Dr. Daniel Schumacher: 2021 International Medical Educator of the Year Award recipient
Daniel Schumacher, MD, PhD, MEd is Director of the Education Research Unit at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and a tenured associate professor in the University of Cincinnati’s Department of Pediatrics. He is renowned as an education innovator and mentor, and has made profound contributions to resident education locally in Cincinnati and also internationally.
Invaluable innovations in CBME
Dr. Schumacher’s colleagues describe him as among the most forward-thinking researchers in the area of competency-based medical education, largely due to his development of resident-sensitive quality measures, which integrate clinical care metrics into resident assessments. Dr. Schumacher’s innovative approach has been a major step forward in bringing patient outcomes to the forefront of medical education – and therefore in realizing the full potential of CBME.
He has also been a national leader in the development, implementation and study of entrustable professional activities (EPAs) in the United States, funded by large grants through organizations such as the American Board of Pediatrics, the American Board of Medical Specialties and the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation. In addition to having garnered nearly $3 million in educational grant funding, Dr. Schumacher has led dozens of national and international presentations and workshops, has lectured widely on the use of entrustment in assessment, and has published 100 peer-reviewed manuscripts, including more than 30 in just the last year.
An effective and motivating mentor
Dr. Schumacher has mentored dozens of medical students, residents and others interested in medical education, pushing his mentees to pursue goals they did not realize were within their reach. He has a reputation as a leader who fosters a true sense of team, and as a positive, motivating colleague who infuses every conversation with a growth mindset. As one former mentee said, “The Mentoring Guide by Dr. Sanjay Saint and Dr. Wineet Chopra could have been written about Dr. Schumacher.”
Dr. Schumacher is simultaneously a brilliant and generous educator, and a humble human being who continually states how grateful he is for others’ help and insight – even though many of his students and colleagues owe their very careers to him. Despite having an extraordinarily busy professional schedule, his kindness and generosity mean that he always finds time for his mentees and colleagues. In short, Dr. Schumacher is as great a human being as he is an educator.
