Dr. Thomas McGahan Receives Hospital's Highest Honor

Thomas P. McGahan, M.D., an Emory Saint Joseph’s physician with
Metro Atlanta Gastroenterology, was awarded the hospital’s E.
Napier “Buck” Burson Physician Award of Distinction. He was
honored recently at the 24th annual dinner and ceremony at 103
West.

The award is Emory Saint Joseph’s highest honor for physician
service, and is named for Burson, a respected internist,
gastroenterologist and influential medical staff leader at the
hospital. The late physician was a pioneer in the field of
gastroenterology, establishing Emory Saint Joseph’s first
gastrointestinal diagnostic unit.

Burson Award recipients are selected for their leadership as a
member of the medical staff and contributions to the quality of
medicine practiced at the hospital. Shortly after joining the
Metro Atlanta Gastroenterology practice in 1994, McGahan was
instrumental in establishing the endoscopic ultrasound
department, making Emory Saint Joseph’s the first hospital on
Atlanta’s north side to have endoscopic ultrasound. During this
time, McGahan also expanded the hospital’s GI medical
conferences, and continues to serve as moderator of the
semimonthly abdominal tumor conference.

Burson Award recipients are also selected for their adherence to
Emory Saint Joseph’s Mercy philosophy and contribution to the
Mercy Mission in Atlanta. Emory Saint Joseph’s, Atlanta’s first
hospital, was established in 1880 by the Sisters of Mercy to care
for the sick with dignity, respect and compassion. The hospital
continues to further their healing ministry through the Mercy
Mission, by providing compassionate, clinically excellent health
care to those in need.

McGahan’s commitment to Emory Saint Joseph’s and the Mercy
Mission includes many leadership positions at the hospital and
within Emory Healthcare. He serves as chairman of the hospital’s
Department of Medicine and the Hospital Medical Records
Committee, and is a member of the Emory Saint Joseph’s Board of
Directors and the Hospital Staff Executive Committee.
Additionally, McGahan serves as a member of Saint Joseph’s Mercy
Care Services Board of Directors. Mercy Care Services was
formally established in 1985, and provides medical care to
children and adults in need through various clinic sites
throughout Atlanta and in Rome, Ga.

A Columbus, Indiana native, McGahan was raised in Atlanta and
attended Saint Jude the Apostle School in Sandy Springs. He
graduated from the Marist School in 1981 and as an alumnus, has
introduced rising seniors to a career in the medical field
through the Marist Career Connections Summer Internship program.
McGahan earned his undergraduate degree from the University of
Notre Dame and medical degree from Emory University. Following
his residency at Emory and fellowship at the University of
Cincinnati, McGahan joined Metro Atlanta Gastroenterology. He
also serves as an Adjunct Assistant Professor with Emory
University’s School of Medicine Division of Digestive Diseases.