Founders’ Awards
Since 1990, the Foundation has recognized outstanding osteopathic physicians from the Northwest.
The Foundation is proud to announce that the 2022 J. Scott Heatherington DO Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Paul Aversano, DO
The award presentation will be on National Doctor Day, March 30, during the annual membership meeting of the Foundation. The presentation ceremony will begin at 6:30 p.m. Pacific via Zoom. Please {REGISTER HERE} to get the Zoom link. Participants will have an opportunity to congratulate Dr. Aversano and share a memory about how his leadership and friendship made an impact on osteopathic medicine and the community.
Dr. Aversano is one of the rare osteopathic physicians that is recognized as an excellent clinician, enthusiastic mentor and educator in the hospital setting, and successful teacher and mentor in academic medicine.
Born in Buffalo, NY, he spent his last six months of training with the College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery, Des Moines (now Des Moines College of Osteopathic Medicine) at the Portland Osteopathic Hospital in Portland OR. After his rotating internship in Ohio and his residency at the Cleveland Clinic, he returned to start a practice in Portland.
Dr. Aversano was a very busy physician for many years, balancing his practice with servicing as both Chief of Staff and Director of Medical Education at Eastmoreland Hospital and serving on the facility of the WesternU/ College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific in Pomona, CA.
In partnership with his wife, Paula Crone, DO, he was instrumental in the development of residential training programs in Corvallis, OR which eventually lead to the creation of the WesternU/ College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific-Northwest in Lebanon, OR. Paul currently serves as a Clinica Professor of Internal Medicine and Neurology at the medical school while supporting his wife, Dr. Crone, who is the Dean of the COM.
His organizational memberships include the American Osteopathic Association, Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons of Oregon, the American College of Osteopathic Neuro-Psychiatry, and the American Neurological Association.
You can learn more about Dr. Aversano in this great article by former Foundation President John Stiger DO {LINK}. You can also hear from Dr. Aversano in this interview from the Lebanon Express from 2011 {LINK}.
When the original Board of the Northwest Osteopathic Foundation was formed, five osteopathic physicians and four members of the public served as Founding members. Dr. Aversano is the last surviving DO from that group, with former Governor Barbara Roberts, Mr. Joe Weston, and Mr. Alan Federici.
For many years, Paul chaired the Foundation’s Annual Golf Tournament that raised 10’s of thousands of dollars in tuition scholarships for osteopathic medical students from the Northwest.
This award is presented in honor of Scott Heatherington DO, the first physician from Oregon to become President of the American Osteopathic Association (1969) and former President of the Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons of Oregon (1952-53). He was also the Founding President of the Northwest Osteopathic Medical Foundation (1986-1987).
Nominations are now being accepted for the J. Scott Heatherington Lifetime Achievement Award. Selection will be made by members of the Foundation, and the awardee will be presented on National Doctors Day, March 30, 2022.
Nominations are now closed for 2022. Paul Aversano, DO will be presented the award during the Annual Membership Meeting on March 30. {LINK TO MEETING INFORMATION}
This award is presented to an osteopathic physician from the Northwest that has made a lifetime of contributions to the profession as well as the community.
It is presented in honor of Scott Heatherington DO, the first physician from Oregon to become President of the American Osteopathic Association (1969) and former President of the Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons of Oregon (1952-53). He was also the Founding President of the Northwest Osteopathic Medical Foundation (1986-1987).
