Dr Begg Receives Magida Award

STAMFORD –– In a ceremony held recently at the Stamford Sheraton, Newtown resident William Begg III, MD, a board-certified emergency department physician at Danbury Hospital, received the Dr Melville G. Magida Award.

The award is given annually by the Fairfield County Medical Association and the Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Foundation to a physician age 39 or younger who has shown notable capacity for patient treatment and care.

This is the second year in a row that Dr Begg was nominated by Danbury Hospital. He is known among his peers for his calm and focused manner, well-reasoned decisionmaking, superior clinical judgment, and excellent rapport with patients.

“He possesses the unique skill to treat patients with respect and in that manner he always earns their respect, as well,” said Robert Wennick, MD, president of the Danbury Hospital medical staff.

Emergency Department Chairman Patrick Broderick, MD, agreed. “He continues to serve as a role model and as a physician exemplar in the Emergency Department and maintains a degree of integrity in both his clinical and personal interactions with staff and patients,” Dr Broderick said.

Dr Begg, who has been with Danbury Hospital for 11 years, said he was flattered and humbled to have won this award. In giving his acceptance speech, he thanked his wife Leah, his four brothers and sisters, and mother, Claire, who struggled to raise five children on her own when her husband died at age 38. He also told of growing up in Waterbury, putting himself through college and medical school, and working diligently these past 11 years to pay off thousands of dollars in student loans.

“Despite the challenges along the way, there is still no job I would rather have than being an emergency room physician,” he said. “Each day as physicians, we have many opportunities to make profound differences in people’s lives, and society places no greater responsibility on a profession than on the one we have. Ironically, it seems our same society is placing a disproportionate number of demands on our profession in our quest to provide quality medical care. Nonetheless, there is no pressure that can take away from the personal satisfaction of making a difference in someone’s life,” he said.

Dr Begg earned his medical degree with honors from New York Medical College and completed a residency in Emergency Medicine at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Md., where he was named Emergency Medicine Resident of the Year in 1992. At Danbury Hospital, he serves on the Credentials, Trauma Operations, and Trauma Peer Review Committees, and on the Press Ganey Patient Satisfaction and Emergency Department Trauma Task Forces. He received the American Medical Association Physician Recognition Award in both 1995 and 2003, and the National EMS Recognition Award in 2001.

In addition to his Danbury Hospital work, Dr Begg has served as a preceptor for Yale University, St Francis Pennsylvania, and Quinnipiac University Physician Assistant programs.

“Amongst all medical staffs, there is always a small percentage of physicians who stand out, not only as providers of high-quality care, but as whole physicians who know their fields, communicate well, teach, demonstrate commitment to a ‘patient-first’ principle, and as grassroots leaders for improving health care,” said Matthew Miller, MD, vice president of medical affairs. “Bill is such a leader of his peers, and his commitment to the community at large is an extension of that dedication.”

Dr Begg lives with his wife and three young children in Newtown, where he is active in the community and often speaks against alcohol and drug use.

“Thanks to Dr Patrick Broderick and the Danbury Hospital community that have supported me,” said Dr Begg.