The HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) has announced the recipients of its 2024 awards, recognizing outstanding contributions to HIV clinical education, research, and advocacy. The awards were presented during IDWeek 2024.
Transformative Leader Award: Daniel R. Kuritzkes, MD, FIDSA
Daniel R. Kuritzkes, MD, FIDSA, the Harriet Ryan Albee Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, received the Transformative Leader Award. This award acknowledges his significant impact on HIV clinical care, provider education, research, and advocacy. Dr. Kuritzkes is a leading expert in drug-resistant HIV, with significant contributions to understanding resistant mutations against nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors and the impact of drug resistance mutations on viral fitness. His work has been fundamental to the field's understanding of resistance to HIV medications, making drug-resistance testing a standard in HIV care. He chairs the World Health Organization HIV Resistance Network Steering Group and previously led the Advancing Clinical Therapeutics Globally group, conducting clinical trials that led to lifesaving advances in HIV management.
Ada Adimora Citation Award: Oni Blackstock, MD, MHS
The inaugural Ada Adimora Citation Award was presented to Oni Blackstock, MD, MHS. This award honors the late Ada Adimora, MD, MPH, FIDSA, for her service and commitment to advancing health equity. Dr. Blackstock, a primary care and HIV physician, researcher, and public health practitioner, has dedicated her career to pursuing equity and justice in healthcare. As the founder and executive director of Health Justice, she consults with healthcare organizations to center antiracism and equity. Previously, she served as the assistant commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, leading the city’s response to ending the HIV epidemic and establishing the first racial equity program.
Innovator Award: Onyema Ogbuagu, MD, FACP, FIDSA
Onyema Ogbuagu, MD, FACP, FIDSA, an associate professor of infectious diseases at Yale School of Medicine, received the Innovator Award. This award recognizes early to mid-career HIVMA members who have made outstanding contributions to HIV medicine. Dr. Ogbuagu is a prolific researcher who has conducted groundbreaking clinical trials on HIV and COVID-19. He oversaw an expansion of the research portfolio through the Yale HIV and Vaccines Clinical Trials Unit, leading to over $9 million in funding. He has been a principal investigator on several multinational clinical trials, including the DISCOVER trial, which is evaluating TAF/FTC versus TDF/FTC for HIV prevention among men who have sex with men and transgender women. Additionally, he led multiple investigational therapeutic and preventive clinical trials in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and has led medical training initiatives in Rwanda and Liberia.
