The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) today awarded Deverick J. Anderson, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine at Duke University Medical Center, with the Distinguished Scientist Award.

The award, presented at APIC's 43rd Annual Conference, is given to an individual who has made a significant and sustained contribution to infection prevention science and who exemplifies scholarly excellence and infection prevention leadership within the scientific community.

"Dr. Anderson is one of the leading epidemiologists in the U.S. whose contributions are helping to advance patient safety on many levels," said APIC 2016 president Susan Dolan, RN, MS, CIC. "We are honored to recognize him at our conference where he will give an update on his latest research projects." 

Anderson's research focuses on healthcare epidemiology in community hospital settings, antimicrobial stewardship, multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs), surgical site infections, and environmental disinfection. He has authored more than 125 peer-reviewed articles and is principal investigator on the Duke-UNC Epicenter Grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He directed the first study to prove that transmission of MDROs occurs from the hospital environment and that enhanced cleaning can reduce the risk of that transmission. Anderson is co-director of the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network and medical director of the Duke Antimicrobial Stewardship and Evaluation Team. 