The 2025 Dean’s Impact Awards celebrate 55 outstanding faculty members across WashU Medicine, including six from the Department of Anesthesiology, for their enduring impact and remarkable dedication to advancing health locally, nationally, and globally. The awards are presented on behalf of David H. Perlmutter, MD, Dean of WashU Medicine, and honor faculty who embody the highest standards of professionalism and deliver outstanding results across the school’s missions through community-focused clinical care, education, and research.
“Our department’s commitment to excellence is exemplified by the remarkable achievements of these faculty members,” said Michael S. Avidan, MBBCh, FCASA, head of the Department of Anesthesiology. “Their compassion, innovation, and commitment to building meaningful, community-focused programs have not only advanced our field but also created lasting change in the lives of our patients, learners, and communities. I am immensely proud of their contributions.”
Congratulations to the six faculty members from the Department of Anesthesiology who will be recognized during the School of Medicine’s 2025 Dean’s Impact Award ceremony on Tuesday, April 22, 2025: Preeta George, MD; Judith Golden, PhD; Burel Goodin, PhD; Katie Holzer, PhD; Justin Knittel, MD; and Molly McCormick, MD.
Learn more about each of this year’s awardees and their impactful contributions below.
Preeta George, MD
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology
Director Fetal Anesthesia Program
Clinical Director of Simulation for Anesthesiology
Medical Director of Simulation at the Howard and Joyce Wood Simulation Center
Preeta George, MD, is an associate professor in Pediatric Anesthesiology and director of the Fetal Anesthesia Program, which she has helped develop. She is also the medical director of simulation at the Howard and Joyce Wood Simulation Center. She is passionate about medical education and simulation and is the clinical immersion leader in this area for the new medical student curriculum. George is deeply committed to teaching and mentoring residents, fellows, and SRNAs locally, and is making a major contribution to training tomorrow’s anesthesia clinicians. George has co-led the Pediatric Division’s Pediatric Anesthesia Fellows Bootcamp, which provides advanced didactics and skills training for pediatric anesthesia fellows, helping fellows in their professional transitions. Fellows from around the world, including from poorly resourced programs, have participated in and benefited from this innovative program. In September 2024, George visited CMC Vellore, India, where she provided a simulation workshop to approximately 90 residents eager to learn. George is planning to bring the Pediatric Anesthesia Fellows Bootcamp to India as well as other international arenas. George appreciates that WashU Medicine and the Anesthesiology Department have enabled her to give back to her home community. She is deeply committed to sharing knowledge with and providing training to learners internationally.
Judith Golden, PhD
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology
Judith Golden, PhD, has dedicated over 30 years of her career to WashU Medicine and her St. Louis community. She has demonstrated a deep commitment to serving the community by volunteering her time and expertise to a diverse range of learners. She strongly believes that early and consistent engagement in students’ education is crucial for their success and for fostering their interest in science. Golden is incredibly generous with her time in support of this goal. For the past eight years, she has volunteered as a tutor for kindergarten through eighth grade students at the St. Louis Catholic Academy in North St. Louis City, an area with limited resources and many challenges. In addition, she contributes to the Upward Bound Summer Program at St. Louis University High School (SLUH), which prepares sixth and seventh grade students (88 students in total) for high school. Golden also regularly organizes neuroscience outreach lectures and hands-on neuroanatomy demonstrations for students at SLUH. These presentations are tailored for two groups, freshman biology students and senior anatomy and physiology students. She involves graduate students and postdoctoral trainees from the Washington University Pain Center in these programs, providing them with valuable outreach and teaching opportunities. Golden has been organizing these educational sessions at both Upward Bound and SLUH for over 15 years.
Burel Goodin, PhD
Professor of Anesthesiology
Burel Goodin, PhD, is nominated for a 2025 Dean’s Impact Award for his impact over his career as a clinical health psychologist and scientist. As a St. Louis-area native, he strives to engage his community in furthering his commitment to health care equity. Goodin’s community engagement research focuses on addressing the intersectional needs of marginalized populations. His work emphasizes the importance of community-based strategies for improving health outcomes for individuals who often face unique challenges in health care access and social stigma. Goodin collaborates closely with organizations and grassroots groups to develop culturally competent and inclusive interventions that address the specific needs of these communities. His research highlights the significance of building trust, promoting inclusive health practices and ensuring that individuals have a voice in shaping the policies and services that directly impact their lives.
Katie Holzer, PhD, LCSW
Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology
Katie Holzer, PhD, has built her focused research career on projects that seek to better the experience of the patients we serve. She is actively involved in patient-centered research, with a particular focus on engaging community members as research partners. Holzer spearheads these efforts in several avenues, particularly focusing on mental health in the perioperative period, as well as in research on various acute and chronic pain conditions. Her research in the past year focused on compassion-based mental health interventions, and cultural adaptation of interventions to improve their reach and engage populations who have limited access to care. In addition, Holzer co-led a large consortium initiative to elevate patient partnership in pain research. She obtained funding from the new ACTTION Center for Patient and Stakeholder Engagement for Trial Innovation and Quality to further this effort and facilitates authentic collaboration between researchers and community members. Holzer serves as the administrative director of WashU Medicine’s Center for Perioperative Mental Health and mentors students in best practices for community-engaged research. She is an outstanding colleague who exemplifies service in all that she does.
Justin Knittel, MD
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology
Chief, Trauma Anesthesiology
Director, Resident Education, Surgical ICU
Justin Knittel, MD, is nominated for a 2025 Dean’s Impact Award for his leadership in trauma anesthesia, which has had significant impact both locally at WashU Medicine and nationally in positioning our school as a thought leader in this area. Knittel is an associate professor of anesthesiology and serves as the division chief of our new Trauma Division. The division has grown and strengthened under his leadership, and he excels are fostering collaboration among invested partners. He works hard to build community within the Trauma Division, holding annual retreats for professional development and positive team dynamics. He is passionate about trainee education and collaborates to support the education team in the intensive care units. Knittle has been involved in multiple global health projects both on his own and as a representative of WashU Medicine. He has participated in outreach trips to Guatemala City, Guatemala, and Accra, Ghana, and was heavily involved in creating an outreach program with the University of Cape Town, South Africa, which was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, he has participated in 10 outreach missions through Doctors Collaborating to Help Children, providing Ukrainian children with free plastic and reconstructive surgery for burn-related injuries. His persistent work and service both locally and globally make him a worthy candidate for this award.
Molly McCormick, MD
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology
Chief, General Anesthesia
Molly McCormick, MD, is nominated for a 2025 Dean’s Impact Award due to her deep commitment to running one of the largest divisions in the Department of Anesthesiology, General Anesthesiology. While we have been experiencing national clinician shortages, she has been able to find time to dedicate her skills and passions to a wider community. McCormick has made significant contributions to global health care through her volunteer mission work with Surgical Outreach for the Americas (SOFA) since 2016. SOFA is a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to performing surgical services, building relationships and providing health, education and sustainability to developing countries of North, Central and South America. In her role as division chief, McCormick ensures high-level care for each patient passing through the operating rooms — sometimes overseeing 90 anesthetizing locations and picking up shifts where needed to deliver skilled care to the community. She also mentors learners, taking care to strengthen the next generation of clinicians through bedside teaching and providing lectures/simulation support. Her commitment to quality and compassionate care through dedicated teamwork is part of her daily work at WashU Medicine, and McCormick is proud to be part of other organizations committed to these goals.