MMS NEWS: Dr. Bretan Receives AMA Award for Public Service

The American Medical Association recently presented Dr. Peter Bretan Jr., a Marin County urologist and transplant surgeon, with the Benjamin Rush Award for Citizenship and Community Service. The award recognizes physicians who have gone above and beyond their professional call of duty to make an outstanding public service contribution.

Dr. Bretan, a former president of the Marin Medical Society and current CMA trustee, was chosen by the AMA for his exceptional work as an innovator in renal transplant surgery and urology, in addition to his unwavering disaster relief efforts around the globe to help save lives. He is the founder of Life Plant International, a charitable organization that promotes disaster preparedness, organ donation and early disease screening worldwide.  

Following the devastating impact of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans in 2005, Dr. Bretan provided free medical care as part of “Team Orleans.” Since 2002, he has also made several medical mission trips to the Philippines to perform and teach local physicians about kidney transplantation and laparoscopic kidney removals. More recently, he served as part of a medical mission to the Philippines to provide care to victims of Typhoon Haiyan.  

“It is an honor to present Dr. Bretan with this AMA award honoring his dedication to helping those in greatest need of care,” said AMA President Dr. Robert Wah. “He is an inspiration to all physicians, and his commitment to the betterment of public health sets a high bar to which we should all strive to attain.”

Dr. Bretan currently serves as an adjunct clinical professor of urology at Touro University as well as chief of surgery at Novato Community Hospital, where he has worked since 2008. He is a member of the U.S. Surgeon General’s Deployable Surgical Team and also serves on county and state panels to educate physicians on disaster preparedness.  

The award was presented to Dr. Bretan during the opening session of the 2014 AMA Interim Meeting in Dallas, Texas.