CHICAGO — The American Medical Association (AMA) honored Susan Benigas, chief executive officer of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM), with the Medical Executive Meritorious Achievement Award for her exceptional leadership and service in advancing lifestyle medicine to improve patient outcomes. This award honors medical society executives who have made outstanding contributions to the profession of medicine by improving medical practice, education, or public health.
“Susan Benigas exemplifies visionary leadership, tirelessly advancing evidence-based approaches that have made a profound impact on the medical profession and the patients we serve,” said AMA Board Chair David H. Aizuss, M.D. “Her commitment to innovation, collaboration, and education has helped bring lifestyle medicine into mainstream health care, empowering physicians to address the causes of chronic disease. Her work exemplifies outstanding medical executive leadership.”
Since joining ACLM in 2014, Benigas has led the organization through a period of extraordinary growth—from just 380 members and one part-time staff member to a thriving 15,000-member professional society with a 45-member team operating across the United States. Under her direction, ACLM has become a driving force in medical education reform, embedding lifestyle medicine—including food as medicine—into undergraduate, graduate, and continuing medical education.
In 2016, Benigas co-founded the Lifestyle Medicine Global Alliance (LMGA) under ACLM’s umbrella, expanding the reach of lifestyle medicine worldwide. What began as a collaboration among five national societies has grown into a coalition of 32 lifestyle medicine medical societies across the world.
