DR. ALAN CHEN AND DR. F. WINSTON GWATHMEY RECOGNIZED BY ALLOSOURCE WITH THE DR. STEVEN GITELIS INSPIRATION AWARD FOR HONORING THE GIFT OF DONATION

"It truly means a lot to be recognized for my contributions to the medical community," Dr. Chen said. "However, more importantly, I would not be able to treat the patients that I have in the past, present, and future if it wasn't for the people that donate their tissue as part of their final wishes."

Dr. Chen completed his undergraduate degree at Cornell University and attended medical school at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He then completed his general surgery training at Harvard and fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh for plastic reconstructive and hand surgery. In private practice since 2007, Dr. Chen has been rated as one of the best plastic surgeons by Newsweek. He currently serves as the Chief of Plastic Surgery and Hand Surgery at Silver Cross Hospital and holds a clinical academic position at the University of Chicago Medicine.

Dr. Gwathmey shared his personal story while being presented his award: "This is quite an honor," Dr. Gwathmey said. "When I was a fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital, a former fellow and friend of mine unexpectedly passed away in his early 40's. His wife notified us that one of his tendons had been used to reconstruct the ACL of an injured athlete. It highlighted the personal story and immense value of allograft tissue and made me think differently about the grafts that I routinely use."

Dr. Gwathmey received his undergraduate degree at the University of Virginia (UVA) and earned his medical degree from Eastern Virginia Medical School. He established the hip arthroscopy program at UVA and performs close to 300 hip arthroscopies and more than 200 shoulder and knee arthroscopies annually.

Winners of the Dr. Steven Gitelis Inspiration Award receive a monetary contribution to the charity of their choice from AlloSource. Dr. Chen chose the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and Dr. Gwathmey chose the UVA Sports Medicine Education and Research fund.

"These two doctors exemplify what it means to honor the gift of donation by utilizing these tissues to change patients' lives," said Kevin Whitten, AlloSource Chief Commercial Officer. "Whether directly or indirectly, the impact each of these doctors continue to make on patients and donor families is truly immeasurable."

The award is named after Dr. Steven Gitelis, a highly regarded orthopedic surgeon and one of AlloSource's founding medical directors. For more information on AlloSource, please follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, or visit allosource.org.

About AlloSource^®
AlloSource, a life sciences organization, helps restore patient functionality by transforming the gift of human tissue donation into enhanced medical products that enable a life of movement, health, and wellbeing. The organization partners with medical professionals and biomedical companies who share our drive for innovation and quality in the use of human tissue allografts for medical advancements. Headquartered in Centennial, Colorado, AlloSource has served a global marketplace since 1994. Learn more at allosource.org.

Media Contact 
Colton Ostrander
AlloSource
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SOURCE AlloSource