BCM announces fifth annual DeBakey Poetry contest winners

HOUSTON -- (July 1, 2008) -- Baylor College of Medicine in Houston has announced the winners of the fifth annual Michael E. DeBakey Medical Student Poetry Award. Chosen from original poems submitted by undergraduates currently enrolled in accredited United States medical schools, this annual competition honors DeBakey, a pre-eminent cardiovascular surgeon, pioneering medical scientist, gifted medical educator, prolific author and scholar, and passionate advocate of optimal healthcare throughout the world.

The winners are:

First place cash prize of $1,000 – "The Whole Time You Lay Dying" by Joshua E. Fischer, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
Second place cash prize of $500 – "The Named" by Rachel Smith, University of California, San Francisco
Third place cash prize of $250 – "Donor" by Jeannine Ruby, Yale University School of Medicine
Honorable Mention - "For What Has Gone" by Andrew Thurston, Baylor College of Medicine in Houston

The DeBakey Medical Foundation provides the funds for the cash prizes. The winning poem, "The Whole Time You Lay Dying," will be submitted to a major medical periodical for consideration for publication.