[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 81 (Wednesday, May 16, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1070]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




ON TALMADGE E. KING, JR., M.D. OF UCSF RECEIVING THE EDWARD LIVINGSTON 
                             TRUDEAU MEDAL

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BARBARA LEE

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 16, 2007

  Ms. LEE. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize and offer my personal 
congratulations to Talmadge E. King, Jr., MD. The American Thoracic 
Society has awarded Dr. King the Edward Livingston Trudeau Medal to 
recognize Dr. King's lifelong contribution to the prevention, diagnosis 
and treatment of lung disease. Dr. King, throughout his career, has 
made significant contributions to pulmonary medicine, in-patient care, 
research, specialty organization, and academic medicine.
  As a scientist Dr. King has contributed greatly to the fundamental 
understanding of interstitial lung diseases. His contributions have 
served to bridge the gap between basic investigations and clinical 
science and have guided both research and clinical care. He has been 
instrumental in developing and leading rigorous clinical research in 
interstitial lung diseases. The studies, many of which involved 
multiple centers and were led by Dr King, have served to define 
specific diagnostic criteria and to determine the role of various tests 
in establishing a diagnosis. Dr. King has played a major role in 
creating the international classification system now used to make sense 
of the different interstitial lung diseases and also to define 
histological-radiographic correlations that now enable many diagnoses 
to be established without biopsy. Currently, Dr. King is involved in a 
reassessment of the histopathologic basis of classification that will 
permit even further refinements of therapeutic trials.
  Dr. King has made great strides in clinical and academic medicine. He 
has been a member of the American Board of Internal Medicine, 
Subspecialty Board on Pulmonary Disease and is currently on the board 
of directors of the American Board of Internal Medicine, as well as 
serving as the ABIM representative to the American Board of Medical 
Specialties. He either has served or is currently serving on several 
NIH-wide advisory and/or governing groups, including the board of 
governors of the Clinical Center at NIH, the board of external 
advisors, and the advisory board for clinical research. Dr. King has 
received numerous awards and was recently named to the Institute of 
Medicine.
  In all of these roles, Dr. King has not only excelled as a clinician 
and academic, but has taken a leading role in calling attention to the 
inequality of health care and lack of diversity in its own ranks. We 
expect Dr. King will have a significant and far-reaching impact. He has 
written about disparities in health care as, for example, with his 
editorial in the American Journal of Medicine, ``Inequality in health 
care: Unjust, inhumane, and unattended!'' More recently, Dr. King led a 
group of faculty at San Francisco General Hospital in writing a 
textbook devoted to diseases of vulnerable and underserved populations.
  Dr. King continues to serve as a mentor to young enthusiastic 
investigators, obtaining funding and building a clinical base of 
operations and he continues to publish prodigiously.
  Dr. King is recognized in the scientific community for his teaching 
and lecturing skills. He is prized as a lecturer all over the world. He 
is equally impressive when teaching students one-on-one as when 
lecturing to a packed crowd in the largest auditorium at an 
international meeting. During his career, he has trained many 
pulmonologists, a number of whom now have assumed leadership roles in 
academic pulmonary medicine and in the field of interstitial lung 
disease.
  As a clinician, Dr. King is truly exceptional. He has incredible 
experience and clinical judgment honed by years of caring for patients 
with interstitial lung disease. In his interactions with patients, he 
demonstrates intelligence, skill and respect and, in so doing, inspires 
countless students to aspire to the role of clinician. His calm 
demeanor and straight-forward approach fosters near immediate rapport. 
He maintains the highest standards of excellence in patient care and 
expects that from all his colleagues and trainees. His professional 
competence has been recognized at all levels. He is on multiple lists 
of the finest doctors, such as the Top Doctors and Best Doctors in 
America. Above all, he is sought after for his opinions by pulmonary 
specialists all over the world. Dr. King is the epitome of the 
clinician's clinician.
  It is truly my pleasure to join the American Thoracic Society in 
recognizing my constituent, Talmadge E. King, Jr., MD for his receipt 
of the prestigious Trudeau Award.

                          ____________________