Glen A. Lehman, MD, was honored with the Sagamore of the Wabash at the 21st Annual GI Course Update on Friday, May 4, 2018. Since the 1940s, the Sagamore of the Wabash has been the one of the highest honorary awards issued by the state governor. The award is presented to only a few Hoosiers each year and recognizes dedicated individuals for outstanding service to the state of Indiana. Dr. Lehman, a lifelong Hoosier, is a worthy recipient.
As a professor of medicine and radiology at Indiana University School of Medicine, Dr. Lehman has attracted learners from all corners of the world and has personally overseen the training of more than 100 gastroenterology fellows – many of whom continue to practice in Indiana today. Dr. Lehman spent the majority of his life in Indiana, but he is well known for his excellence, kindness and professionalism by gastroenterologists around the globe. He is a graduate of Indiana University School of Medicine, where he has served as a physician educator and leader throughout the last 46 years.
Since the early 2000s, Dr. Lehman has immersed himself in the subspecialty of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), one of the most complex and high-risk gastrointestinal procedures available. His specialty in this area has attracted the talent of other ERCP gastroenterologists to Indiana. Today, the ERCP center at Indiana University Hospital is the highest volume ERCP unit in the United States.
With Dr. Lehman’s contributions and leadership, the Department of Medicine Division of Gastroenterology consistently ranks among the top three departments within the institution by U.S. News & World Report national rankings of medical schools by specialty. In recognition of his years of service and outstanding leadership, the endoscopy center at Indiana University Hospital was renamed the Glen A. Lehman Endoscopy Center in 2011.
“The sheer volume of Dr. Lehman’s clinical work, his unparalleled dedication to clinical research, and the kind spirit with which he has trained more than a generation of gastroenterologists are an inspiration and a cause of tremendous admiration to all that know him,” says Douglas K. Rex, MD, who nominated Dr. Lehman for the prestigious award.
IU School of Medicine Dean Jay Hess, MD, PhD, MHSA, who presented Dr. Lehman with the award at the Indiana History Center on Friday afternoon, made note of Dr. Lehman’s legacy not only in Indiana, but also to the global community of health care in the field of gastroenterology. With hours of research and training and more than 350 original publications, Dr. Lehman’s expertise truly embodies the school’s mission of preparing healers and transforming health care in Indiana and beyond.
