Joseph Sweeney, M.D. Receives Lifetime Achievement Award

Joseph Sweeney, M.D. Receives Lifetime Achievement Award

Joseph Sweeney, M.D. has received the 2014 Milton Hamolsky Lifetime Achievement Award from the Rhode Island Chapter of the American College of Physicians.

Recognized leader in his field

The award recognizes Sweeney's contributions in both the field of internal medicine and to the Rhode Island Chapter. Sweeney is the medical director of the blood banks at the Miriam and Rhode Island hospitals. He oversees the transfusion of about two-thirds of all the blood transfused in the state of Rhode Island. Also, as Lifespan’s director of coagulation and transfusion medicine, he is responsible for ensuring safe and appropriate transfusion and managing blood coagulation problems.

“Since coming to Rhode Island 20 years ago from Virginia, where he was Chief Medical Officer and Head of Research at the Norfolk American Red Cross, Dr. Sweeney has pioneered the use of new technologies,” said Thomas F. Tracy, Jr., M.D., chief medical officer and senior vice president of medical affairs at The Miriam. “As a result, he has been a recognized leader in safe transfusion practices, while eliminating waste and inefficiencies.”

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Sweeney, who hails from  Barrington, is medical director of the School of Technology at Rhode Island Hospital and is a professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. His writings include more than 230 scientific papers and abstracts. Sweeney is also medical director of the blood bank at Roger Williams Hospital.

“Dr. Sweeney provides that critical knowledge for many of the patients who come into our Level 1 Trauma Center at Rhode Island Hospital in the middle of the night in need of immediate, quality care,” Tracy added. “He is the one fielding those time-sensitive, critical questions and advising on the best care.”

Blood transfusion research

In addition to teaching residents and fellows, Sweeney also engages in blood transfusion research. His recent publications on blood management have received special recognition by The Joint Commission, and he was recently accepted as a member of the Brown University Alpha-Omega-Alpha, a U.S. medical school honor society.

Sweeney received his medical degree from the National University of Ireland at Galway. He trained in internal medicine and hematology in Dublin, Ireland, becoming a member of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland. He subsequently trained in clinical hematology and blood banking at Montefiore and the Bronx Municipal Hospitals in New York City, and in medical oncology at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New York.