Now Accepting Nominations!
The Chris Hackler Award is given to those at UAMS who have, in their work, demonstrated exemplary attention to ethical issues that affect patient care
Nominations should include a robust explanation of the nominee’s positive ethical, professional attributes and practices.
Please send nominations and explanations to bnicholas@uams.edu or complete the form below.
Deadline for nominations is May 31, 2026.
2026 Chris Hackler Award Nomination
Nominations can be from or for any faculty, housestaff, or staff member of UAMS who exemplifies ethically thoughtful (not just compassionate) care, attitude, and practice. Nominations should include a robust explanation of the nominee’s positive ethical, professional attributes and practices
Background
J. Chris Hackler, Ph.D., was the Founding Director of the UAMS College of Medicine’s Division of Medical Humanities. In this role, Dr. Hackler was the leader in developing a broader view of medicine within the institution. He was course director for the medical students’ medical ethics course from 1983-2005, and in that time touched every medical student who passed through the College of Medicine. Further, he helped develop the Medical Ethics Advisory Committee (MEAC) for the UAMS Hospital and made himself available for ethics consultations.
The Chris Hackler Award was created by the MEAC to honor Dr. Hackler and his efforts on behalf of UAMS. The award is given annually and is intended to identify faculty, housestaff, and staff throughout the institution who champion a culture of ethics through their attitudes and practices. Nominations for the Award are solicited by and recipients are determined by the MEAC.
The winners of the 2025 Hackler Award for Ethics are:
Ahmed Abuabdou, MD, MBA – Faculty
Shannon Barringer, MS, LCGC – Clinical Staff