Last Updated: May 19, 2025
The Pennsylvania Medical Society (PAMED) is proud to announce Ada-Nkem Emuwa, MD, MPH as the recipient of its 2025 Community Voluntary Service Award, honoring her unwavering dedication to advancing health care, promoting diversity, and supporting underserved communities through advocacy and service.
“I am deeply honored to receive this award. To be recognized by my fellow colleagues who are also contributing to the wellbeing of our community makes this even more endearing,” Dr. Emuwa said. “Through medicine I have an opportunity to reach out not only to my patients directly but do what I can to impact my community on a larger scale through public health and my involvement in the community both here and abroad. This award is not only humbling recognition, but motivation to continue to do what I can from where I am.”
Her lifelong commitment to medicine and public health is evident in both her clinical expertise and leadership. A Yale University-trained physician with a master’s in public health from Harvard University, she has continually championed disease prevention, health equity, and patient-centered care. Her journey has taken her from serving as the Head of HIV Programs and Medical Director of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics to directing Public Health Initiatives at health centers in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Currently, she serves as a physician at University of Pennsylvania - Lancaster General Health and sits on the Board of Directors for the Community Health Council of Lebanon County.
Beyond her clinical work, Dr. Emuwa has been a driving force behind initiatives that uplift communities. As a founding Board member and co-leader of The Wheel of Hope Initiative, she has helped design national and global programs that empower women and children through education, health care, and economic opportunities. She is actively involved in numerous leadership roles, including the board of directors for the Community Health Council of Lebanon County, the planning committee for the Cultural Diversity Conference at Lebanon Valley College, and the advisory board for Reach Out and Read.
Dr. Emuwa also actively volunteers through Patients R Waiting, an initiative dedicated to increasing and supporting minority clinicians, and serves as a clinician with The Network Initiative, connecting minorities to free mental health care.
“Dr. Emuwa’s service to communities both locally and globally exemplifies what it truly means to be a physician dedicated to the wellbeing of others,” said Kristen Sandel, MD, FACEP, FAAEM, PAMED Immediate Past President and nomination committee member. “Her efforts to break down barriers in healthcare and uplift underserved populations are inspiring, and we are honored to recognize her contributions with PAMED’s Community Voluntary Service Award.”
PAMED’s Community Voluntary Service Award celebrates physicians who go beyond the exam room to make a lasting impact.
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Media Contact
Myla Merkel
MediaRelations@pamedsoc.org