Kenneth Frumkin, MD, FACEP of Chesapeake was honored with the 2006 Career Achievement Award by the Virginia College of Emergency Physicians (VaCEP) at its annual meeting held March 1st, 2006 at the Omni-Richmond Hotel, Richmond, Virginia.

This award is given annually for outstanding contributions to the College and to the specialty of emergency medicine over a prolonged duration.  The attributes exemplified include inspiration, innovation, dedication, administration and outstanding clinical care.

The specialty of Emergency Medicine has benefited greatly from the likes of Dr. Frumkin.  His involvement in Medicine started after first completing a Doctorate degree in Physiological Psychology and then some years as a teaching professor and researcher in psychology.  After completing medical school, he then began his career in Emergency Medicine by entering an EM residency at Brooke Army Medical Center in 1979.  Once completing the residency in 1981, he was stationed at Madigan Army Medical Center when, in a short period of time, he assumed the positions as the Residency Program Director and Chairman of the department (for a period of time, he held both positions simultaneously).  He had a dramatic impact on military medicine as the Consultant in Emergency Medicine to the US Army Surgeon General.

At the conclusion of his military career, he went on with his practice in EM at a community ED in Las Vegas, where again, in a short period of time, rose to positions of leadership as the Department Chair and as the ED Medical Director.  He became an active member of Nevada's chapter of ACEP, serving as its Treasurer, as well as being active in a multitude of state and national committees to include serving as the Vice Chair of the Nevada EMS Medical Advisory Council and as a member of the Practice Management Committee of ACEP.

His scholarly achievements span over 20 years.  He has written several articles published in leading peer review journals from case studies to reference articles.  Insightful as he is, Dr. Frumkin has peaked the interest of academicians in EM with the editorials that he has written dealing with such topics as concerns about the future of residency training as well as the wisdom of new and "innovative" clinical procedures.  He currently serves as consulting reviewer of the Academic Emergency Medicine Journal.  For over 13 years, he served as one of the Oral Board Examiners for the ABEM.

Since his arrival in Virginia in 1991, where he assumed a position in the ED at Chesapeake General Hospital, he has become an influential physician within the hospital and the community.  He has and continues to serve on several institutional committees and regularly volunteers at a local free medical care clinic for indigent patients.  VACEP has been fortunate to benefit from Dr. Frumkin over the past 10 years as he served as an invaluable member of this chapter's Board of Direcitors (1995-2005).  During this 10 year period, he has further distinguished himself as a leader in our specialty by participating in several initiatives and committees, such as the Emregency Medical Services for Children (EMSC) subcommittee of the Virginia EM Advisory Board, the Emergency Department Directors Academy Development Task Force for ACEP and the Membership Survey Task Force, SAEM.

We are truly fortunate to have had such a quality Emergency Phyician as Dr. Ken Frumkin be part of the development of our specialty of Emergency Medicine in this Commonwealth.  For almost 25 years, his relentless committment to insuring the highest quality of care delivered by physicians working in ED's, not only in this state but in the country as well, has been instrumental in our specialty enjoying the distinguished reputation as the safety net of the health care delivery system.  In some measure, Kenneth Frumkin has influenced many of the thousands of physicians practicing Emergency Medicine in this country.