The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) today presented James D. Grant, MD, MBA, FASA, with its 2021 Distinguished Service Award in recognition of his highly distinguished career as a physician anesthesiologist, enduring contributions to ASA members and deep commitment to advocating for the specialty and protecting patient safety. The award is the highest honor ASA bestows and is presented annually to a member who has transformed the specialty of anesthesiology.
Doctor Grant is senior vice president and chief medical officer at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM) in Detroit. Prior to joining BCBSM, he served as chair of the Department of Anesthesiology and physician executive of perioperative services at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
Doctor Grant served as ASA’s president from 2017-18, where he made many valuable contributions within the Society and the specialty. Notably, he has been pivotal in driving ASA’s efforts to maintain physician-led anesthesia care at the local, state and national levels, and providing educational opportunities for physician anesthesiologists to become leaders within their organizations. He was instrumental in implementing ASA’s Physician Leadership Development Collaborative with the American College of Healthcare Executives to provide best-in-class education for leadership development through collaborative programming.
Doctor Grant has held numerous positions in the Society. He served on ASA’s Executive Committee and Administrative Council as treasurer. Additionally, he chaired both ASA’s Section on Fiscal Affairs and the Committee on Executive Compensation. Doctor Grant also served on the ASA Board of Directors, as well as the Board of Directors of the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation and the Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research, two ASA-related organizations.
A past president of both the Michigan State Medical Society (MSMS) and the Michigan Society of Anesthesiologists (MSA), Doctor Grant received the MSA’s President’s Award in 2012 and the MSMS Presidential Citation in 2014. In addition, he served on the Michigan Board of Medicine for seven years and was chair from 2003-2006. He is currently a senior examiner of the American Board of Anesthesiology and is chair of ASA’s delegation to the American Medical Association.
“Doctor Grant’s dedication to physician leadership and education, both within ASA and as part of the larger health care system, is unparalleled,” said ASA President Randall M. Clark, MD, FASA. “His passion and professional stewardship have been instrumental in helping to position anesthesiologists as perioperative leaders within their institutions, advancing the specialty and providing outstanding service to each of our more than 55,000 members.”
Doctor Grant received a Bachelor of Science from Michigan State University in East Lansing, a Doctor of Medicine degree from Wayne State University in Detroit and Master of Business Administration from Indiana University Kelley School of Business in Bloomington. He completed his anesthesiology residency at Northwestern University Medical Center in Chicago.
Doctor Grant and his wife, Lisa, a physical medicine and rehabilitation physician, reside in Michigan and have two children, Brendan and Alexandra.
The Distinguished Service Award is presented annually for outstanding clinical, educational or scientific achievement, contribution to the specialty and/or exemplary service to the Society. ASA’s House of Delegates establishes policies governing the selection of a recipient for the Distinguished Service Award.