The students of MEDEX Seattle Class 50 collectively nominated Jason Kilmer, PhD, as the recipient of a 2018 MEDEX Golden Apple Award given to outstanding guest lecturers to the MEDEX classroom. For everyone who has heard Dr. Kilmer speak, this comes as no surprise. The decision to honor Dr. Kilmer’s lecture on communication came from student comments like the below:

• “Entertaining speaker. Educational presentation for a topic that isn’t strictly “medical.” I think it’s important to have communication skills based on objective evidence. Very useful for future practice.”
• “He had a way of being inspirational, funny, and knowledgeable all at the same time. He made me want to listen to him for the entire presentation.”
• “Really great information here. I am actively trying to make changes in my communication style and will be working to incorporate many of these strategies.”
• “The speaker was very engaging and elicited class participation very effectively.”
• “One of the finest classes I’ve attended anywhere.”

MEDEX Northwest operates as a section under the Department of Family Medicine, UW Medicine and trains healthcare providers who will practice primary care in medically underserved and rural areas of the UW School of Medicine’s service region. Most of its 2,100-plus graduates work in the WWAMI region.