St. Margaret’s Hospital Guild and Versiti Blood Center of Indiana announced Amy Beth Kressel, M.D., M.S., FIDSA, FSHEA, and Joseph Smith, M.D., as recipients of the 2021 Achievement in Medicine (AIM) Award. The AIM Award honors a physician or professional of the Eskenazi Health team who upholds the tradition of excellence in health care.
Dr. Kressel is the medical director of infection prevention and antimicrobial stewardship at Eskenazi Health. She and her team rose to meet the emergency needs posed by the COVID-19 pandemic starting in February 2020 and continue to lead the charge in the fight against the virus.
Dr. Kressel played an instrumental role early on in daily decisions regarding isolation procedures, use of personal protective equipment (particularly early on when masks and gowns were in short supply), COVID-19 testing and procedures on how to allow surgery to be performed on patients suspected to be positive for COVID-19. Recently, Dr. Kressel has been actively involved in decisions about the use of monoclonal antibodies for COVID-19 treatment and vaccination.
In her role as medical director of the infection prevention and antimicrobial stewardship, Dr. Kressel directs and strategically plans a program to prevent hospital-acquired infections. In addition to her work at Eskenazi Health, Dr. Kressel serves as a professor of clinical medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine. She currently serves as chair of the Indiana COVID-19 Vaccine Review Advisory Group. She is board certified in infectious disease by the American Board of Internal Medicine.
Dr. Smith serves as the medical director of the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) and medical director of Respiratory Care at Eskenazi Health. He has been instrumental in leading patient care during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Throughout the past year, Dr. Smith has assisted with the development of state guidelines, established new protocols and procedures, supported MICU staff and expanded Eskenazi Health’s MICU capacity – all while providing exemplary care to Eskenazi Health patients. As a result of his leadership and collaboration, Eskenazi Health has discharged more than 1,500 patients who tested positive for COVID-19.
Dr. Smith has been a true leader and collaborator throughout the pandemic. He developed and maintained the Eskenazi Health MICU COVID-19 Guide to ensure MICU providers, nurse managers, pharmacists and respiratory therapists were continuously updated. He has worked closely with the Palliative Care team to ensure they were equipped to best serve their mutual patients. Dr. Smith has also assisted with development of an implementation plan to apply the Indiana Department of Health Crisis Standards for Ventilator Allocation to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Smith serves as an assistant professor of clinical medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine. He is board certified in internal medicine, critical care medicine and pulmonary medicine by the American Board of Internal Medicine.
AIM Award recipients are selected by the St. Margaret’s Hospital Guild. The guild is a volunteer organization committed to raising funds for the services and programs at Eskenazi Health. Founded in 1907, the guild has raised more than $13 million for Eskenazi Health throughout the years. This is the 23rd year for the AIM Awards.
St. Margaret’s Hospital Guild’s largest fundraising event is the annual Decorators’ Show House and Gardens. This year’s 60th annual event will take place April 24 – May 9, at The Columns on Meridian, located at 5417 North Meridian St. Hours are from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday with extended hours from 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. on Thursdays. Tickets must be purchased in advance and will not be sold at the door. Masks will be required while on the Show House property, and capacity within the home will be limited in order to ensure social distancing. High touch surfaces in the home will be regularly cleaned throughout the day, and hand sanitizing and washing stations will be available throughout the property. To purchase tickets or for more information, please visit www.showhouseindy.org.