Six Surgeons Are Honored for 2025 ACS/Pfizer Volunteerism and Humanitarian Awards

The ACS Board of Governors Surgical Volunteerism and Humanitarian Awards Workgroup has announced the recipients of the 2025 ACS/Pfizer Surgical Volunteerism and Humanitarian Awards. These prestigious honors recognize and celebrate ACS Fellows and other members whose altruism, vision, leadership, and dedication provide models to emulate and whose contributions have made a lasting difference to caregivers and patients around the globe. The awards are administered through the ACS Health Outreach Program for Equity in Global Surgery (ACS H.O.P.E.^®).

The contributions of the six award recipients are briefly summarized in this article and will be formally recognized at Clinical Congress 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. Clinical Congress attendees are invited to hear the honorees speak on their experiences at the Panel Session, “Humanitarian Surgical Outreach at Home and Abroad: Reports of the 2025 Surgical Volunteerism and Humanitarian Award Winners,” on Sunday, October 5.

Academic Global Surgeon Award

Linda P. Zhang, MD, FACS

Dr. Linda Zhang is a distinguished academic surgeon and global health leader whose 2-decade career has shaped the future of surgical education and care in low- and middle-income countries. She currently serves as associate professor of surgery and director of global surgery at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, New York, where she also practices advanced minimally invasive and bariatric surgery.

From her early work with the International Rescue Committee in South Sudan to co-leading the creation of the Kyabirwa Surgical Center in Uganda—the country’s first ambulatory surgery facility— Dr. Zhang has prioritized sustainable system changes. Her leadership helped launch a new surgical residency in Liberia and establish laparoscopic training centers across eight countries, reaching more than 280 surgeons.

As chair of the Global Affairs Committee for the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, Dr. Zhang spearheaded the Global Laparoscopic Advancement Program, creating in-country curricula and certification pathways for laparoscopic surgery in partnership with national surgical societies. She also pioneered virtual Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery testing in Africa and launched telementorship models to support continued professional development.

Dr. Zhang has published extensively on global surgical access, ethics, and education, securing nearly $2 million in funding, including a National Institutes of Health’s R21/R33 Phased Innovation Award Grant for integrating mobile technology into postoperative care in Uganda. She is a respected mentor, educator, and advocate who continues to drive policy, research, and innovation in global surgery through her roles with the College of Surgeons of East, Central, and Southern Africa, Association of Academic Global Surgery, and other international groups.

Dr. Zhang’s visionary leadership has redefined what is possible in global surgery. Through a unique blend of surgical expertise, cross-sector collaboration, and steadfast advocacy, she has built systems that not only expand access to care but also empower the next generation of surgical leaders worldwide.

International Surgical Volunteerism Award

Ziad C. Sifri, MD, FACS

Dr. Ziad Sifri is a professor of surgery and division chief of trauma and surgical critical care at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School in Newark, where he also directs the Rutgers Center for Global Surgery. For more than 15 years, Dr. Sifri has exemplified the highest ideals of surgical volunteerism, combining humanitarian outreach with sustainable global impact.

In 2009, Dr. Sifri cofounded the International Surgical Health Initiative (ISHI), a nonprofit organization dedicated to delivering free, high-quality surgical care to underserved communities worldwide. Under his leadership, ISHI has conducted 37 surgical missions across countries including Bangladesh, Ghana, Peru, the Philippines, and Sierra Leone—mobilizing more than 700 volunteers and performing nearly 3,000 surgeries.

Beyond clinical care, Dr. Sifri has pioneered efforts in global trauma training, leading the expansion of the ACS Stop the Bleed program in low- and middle-income countries. His advocacy helped integrate bleeding control training into national emergency systems in Ghana and Sierra Leone, training more than 1,500 first responders.

A champion of sustainable systems, Dr. Sifri created lasting programs for postoperative care, surgical education, and infrastructure development. He founded the RECOVER initiative to repurpose medical supplies from US hospitals, and he has mentored more than 100 students and fellows in global surgery.

Through his leadership, mentorship, and tireless volunteerism, Dr. Sifri has advanced the field of global surgery and inspired the next generation of humanitarian surgeons.

Domestic Surgical Volunteerism Award

Thomas Romo III, MD, FACS

For nearly 4 decades, Dr. Thomas Romo has provided life-changing surgical care to children with complex facial deformities. A double board-certified facial plastic and reconstructive surgeon, Dr. Romo is the founder and medical director of the Little Baby Face Foundation (LBFF), a nonprofit organization that provides free, comprehensive facial reconstructive surgery to underserved children from the US and around the world.

Early in his career, Dr. Romo participated in international surgical missions, which revealed the limitations of short-term care—particularly for patients requiring follow-up or multiple procedures. In response, he established LBFF in 2002 to bring children in need to New York City, where they could receive safe, high-quality surgical care in a well-resourced environment. Under Dr. Romo’s leadership, LBFF has served more than 660 children from 22 countries and 40 states, performing nearly 2,500 procedures to date.

Dr. Romo personally reviews every patient’s application, oversees care planning, and remains directly involved in each case. He performs the most complex procedures himself, particularly those related to microtia, hemifacial microsomia, and congenital vascular anomalies. In addition to clinical care, Dr. Romo has led advocacy efforts to expand access to treatment for uninsured and underinsured children, raised more than $4.5 million to support patient services, and helped establish housing partnerships to ensure families receive care without financial burden.

He also is the principal investigator on a first-of-its-kind FDA-approved clinical trial using 3D-printed ear implants, with the potential to expand access to reconstructive care globally. Through his commitment to service, innovation, and sustainability, Dr. Romo has redefined surgical volunteerism and brought renewed hope to hundreds of families.

Military Surgical Volunteerism Award

Tamara J. Worlton, MD, FACS, FASMBS

A Navy surgeon, academic leader, and global health advocate, Captain Tamara Worlton has spent more than a decade strengthening surgical systems in low-resource and conflict-affected settings while mentoring the next generation of global health professionals. She currently serves as director of the Division of Global Surgery and director of surgical operations at the Center for Global Health Engagement at the Uniformed Services University (USU) in Bethesda, Maryland.

Dr. Worlton’s passion for global surgery began during her 2011 deployment to Afghanistan, where she trained Afghan National Army medics and physicians and became deeply engaged in the ethical complexities of providing care during conflict. Since then, she has led trauma training and disaster preparedness missions in more than a dozen countries, including Djibouti, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and Uzbekistan. She has participated in multiple US Navy hospital ship deployments and was part of the COVID-19 response aboard the USNS Comfort in New York City.

In addition to delivering care, Dr. Worlton has built enduring educational programs that connect military trainees with global surgery opportunities. She established the Global Surgery Interest Group at USU, developed ethics curricula for global health courses, and helped create a research partnership between USU and Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts. She also played a key role in organizing the annual USU/Walter Reed Global Surgery Day and has served as a Fulbright Scholar studying trauma systems in Sri Lanka.

Through her tireless efforts in advocacy, education, and surgical service, Dr. Worlton has advanced the role of the military in global health and inspired a generation of clinicians to approach global surgery with humility, purpose, and respect for partner nations.

Resident Surgical Volunteerism Award

Nathan Brand, MD

Dr. Nathan Brand has demonstrated exceptional dedication to global surgical capacity building throughout his early career, with a particular focus on strengthening systems in East Africa. What began as childhood exposure to short-term global health trips evolved into a career marked by sustained partnerships, rigorous advocacy, and a deep commitment to equity in surgical care.

As a surgical resident at the University of California San Francisco, Dr. Brand has led or co-led numerous initiatives to expand surgical training and improve access to specialized surgical services in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda. His work includes the development of national surgical oncology capacity assessments, laparoscopic training programs, vascular access surgery initiatives, and low-cost surgical skills laboratories. In each effort, he has worked hand-in-hand with local partners, emphasizing long-term sustainability and context-specific solutions.

During a yearlong National Institutes of Health Fogarty Fellowship in Tanzania, Dr. Brand supported multiple national training efforts at Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences in Tanzania, including simulation-based laparoscopic education and vascular surgery capacity-building. His efforts have helped expand access to minimally invasive surgery and arteriovenous fistula creation, improved emergency laparotomy protocols, and supported regional efforts in breast, liver, and colorectal cancer care.

Dr. Brand has raised more than $400,000 in support of these initiatives and serves on the board of the Alliance for Global Clinical Training. He is widely recognized for his ability to mobilize resources, build trust among diverse collaborators, and mentor both US and African trainees.

This fall, Dr. Brand will begin an academic surgery position at The University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, where he will continue his global surgery work while also serving an underserved population in the US. His career exemplifies the principles of partnership, sustainability, and service.

Surgical Humanitarian Award

William Rhodes, MD, FACS

For more than 25 years, Dr. William Rhodes has exemplified an unwavering commitment to delivering surgical care in some of the world’s most underserved and austere environments. A board-certified general and plastic surgeon, Dr. Rhodes has served full-time at AIC Kapsowar Hospital in rural western Kenya since 1999—making him one of the longest-serving American surgeons in sub-Saharan Africa.

In Kapsowar, Dr. Rhodes performs a full spectrum of general and reconstructive procedures, from cleft lip repairs and complex burns to craniotomies and cesarean deliveries, often in resource-limited settings. Alongside his wife, Laura—his scrub nurse and partner in service—he has expanded the hospital’s infrastructure, helping raise more than $4 million to construct new operating theatres, an intensive care unit, and housing for medical staff and trainees.

Beyond Kapsowar, Dr. Rhodes and his wife have conducted more than 50 trips to Somaliland and frequent missions to Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, and other regions affected by conflict or limited surgical access. Dr. Rhodes also has played a key role in launching a 5-year surgical residency program in Kenya through the Pan-African Academy of Christian Surgeons, training the next generation of African surgeons.

In 2021, Dr. Rhodes and his wife received the Gerson L’Chaim Prize from African Mission Healthcare in recognition of their life’s work. Fluent in Hebrew and Kiswahili, Dr. Rhodes also pursues advanced study in Biblical languages and is completing a PhD in the Hebrew Bible.

Dr. Rhodes’s career reflects a rare blend of surgical excellence, deep cultural humility, and lifelong service. His legacy is one of faith, family, mentorship, and an enduring commitment to those most in need of care.