For nearly 25 years, Dr. William Bauman, a medical researcher and internist specializing in endocrinology, and Ann Spungen, an applied physiologist, have been working as a team to improve the quality of life of paralyzed veterans.

As the current director and assistant director, respectively, at the Veterans Affairs Department’s National Center of Excellence for the Medical Consequences of Spinal Cord Injury, Bauman and Spungen have conducted research and clinical practice in studying each organ system of paralyzed patients. In the process, they have advanced the treatment of those with spinal cord injuries.

“William Bauman and Ann Spungen have led a team of talented doctors in internal medicine, neurology, rehabilitation medicine, physiology and molecular biology to address many of the largely neglected but highly relevant issues that have faced those with spinal cord injury,” said Dr. Erik Langhoff, director of the James J. Peters VA Medical Center, in an interview with the Partnership for Public Service.

For their work in researching and developing treatments that improve the lives of paralyzed veterans, Partnership for Public Service recently named Bauman and Spungen as finalists for the 2014 Science and Environment Medal. The award recognizes federal employees who have made important contributions in the area of science and environment. This includes biomedicine, economics, energy, information technology, meteorology, resource conservation and space.

Getting to know Bill Bauman

Federal News Radio asked each of the Sammies finalists five questions about themselves. Here are Rogers’ responses:

What three words best describe your leadership philosophy?
Get out front.

Who is your greatest role model and why?
Dr. Rosalyn S. Yalow, a Veterans Affairs Department senior research scientist and Nobel laureate in physiology or medicine in 1977, had a formative influence on my research career. Yalow was undoubtedly my foremost scientific mentor, but she also instilled in me a profound and lasting appreciation of those whom she referred to lovingly as “our boys,” our veterans, who deserved the very best from us. The clinical and scientific work that we performed at VA medical centers is for them.

While working at our VA facility, Yalow and Dr. Solomon A. Berson developed radioimmunoassay, a technique that permits the measurement of infinitesimal amounts of hormones in blood, as well as that of many other substances, revolutionized medical practice and advanced science. If this technique had been patented by these physician-investigators, they could have been millionaires several times over. When I asked Yalow why she neglected to patent this “invention,” she replied, “Who had the time? We were too busy making discoveries.” That says it all. They did not once consider enriching themselves, but scientifically enriched the entire scientific community, vastly improved medical care for veterans and non-veterans alike, and keep pushing ahead in their scientific pursuits. Their approach coincided remarkably well with my approach to my work, as well as my core values.

What’s the last thing you read and what’s next on your reading list?
I believe that being informed citizen is vital. As such, I read The New York Times on a daily basis, but, I must admit, the sports section is left to my son, Jeremy. My professional responsibilities demand that I keep current on topics that investigators in my research unit are actively studying, and to do so keeps me quite busy scrambling to stay up-to-date in my professional responsibilities.

What would be the title of your autobiography and why?
“Renaissance Man: Physician, Scientist, Musician and Poet”

The Science and Environment Medal is just one of the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals (Sammies) presented annually by the Partnership for Public Service. View a photo gallery of all the Sammies nominees.

Copyright © 2024 Federal News Network. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.