Two University of Florida physicians receive high honors

Two longtime University of Florida College of Medicine pulmonary division faculty members of were honored recently for their contributions to medicine.

The American College of Chest Physicians chose Ricardo Gonzalez-Rothi, M.D., and A. Jay Block, M.D., from among their peers worldwide to receive prestigious awards at the group’s international conference late last year.

Gonzalez-Rothi was one of three recipients selected from 152 worldwide to receive the organization’s Governor Community Service Award for his work to promote health in medically underserved communities.

For the past 15 years, Gonzalez-Rothi, a professor of medicine and acting chief of the department’s pulmonary division, has been volunteering his time to care for patients at the ACORN Clinic in Brooker, which provides medical help to low- and no-income rural families. The award included a $2,500 donation to the clinic to improve lung health in patients.

In honor of his lifetime contributions to advancing chest and pulmonary disease research and teaching, Block was awarded the organization’s highest honor of master fellow, making him one of only 15 to have received the award in the group’s 65-year history.

Block, a professor emeritus and former chief of the pulmonary division, retired in 1998 after 28 years as a UF faculty member. A former president of the American College of Chest Physicians, Block is editor-in-chief of Chest, the organization’s journal. He also is past president of the Florida Thoracic Society and has authored more than 200 scientific journal articles about his research, which focused on sleep and breathing.