Thomas A. Cavalieri, DO, Honored with NBOME Santucci Award

The National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME) recently awarded Thomas A. Cavalieri, DO the 2019 Santucci Award in recognition of his sustained outstanding contributions to the NBOME’s mission of protecting the public by providing the means to assess competencies for osteopathic medicine and related health care professions. The award was presented this past June at the NBOME Board of Directors meeting.

Dr. Cavalieri was first recruited by the NBOME in the late 1980s as an exam item writer by fellow Past Chairs Frederick G. Meoli, DO, and Thomas Santucci, DO. He became Board President in 2001, and Board Chair in 2002 when the NBOME first hired a full-time physician President and CEO. During this time, Dr. Cavalieri oversaw the launch of the COMLEX-USA Level 2-Performance Evaluation. Dr. Cavalieri has led various NBOME committees, chairing the COMLEX-USA Level 3 examination committee as well as the Standards and Assurances Committee.

“It is an honor and a privilege to celebrate the life and work of a man who has had such an impact on our mission and our profession,” said NBOME Board Chair Dana Shaffer, DO in an NBOME press release. “His work and dedication have gone a long way toward producing superior doctors and outcomes for patients across the US.”

Dr. Cavalieri is the immediate past Board Chair of AACOM. He is part of the UME-GME Continuum Initiative's Steering Committee and is the liaison and board representative to the AACOM Diversity Committee and Council of Diversity and Equity. He was also a member of the AACOM search committee that recommended Dr. Robert A. Cain to become the Association's President and CEO. In 2016, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert A. McDonald appointed Dr. Cavalieri to serve on the VA National Academic Affiliations Council (NAAC).