2025 Golden Stethoscope Award: Dr. Benjamin Westley, Alaska Native Medical Center

AHHA is honored to present the 2025 Golden Stethoscope Award to Dr. Benjamin Westley, an infectious disease specialist serving throughout Alaska. This award is one of AHHA's annual Healthcare Champion Awards given to recognize individuals and teams taking progressive and effective steps to improve patient care and outcomes. Each year, awardees are selected from nominations submitted by member facilities across Alaska; we present the awards at our annual conference in September at a special awards luncheon.

Few names in Alaska healthcare are as widely recognized as Dr. Ben Westley. His infectious disease expertise has touched nearly every corner of the state, making it difficult to nominate him under just one facility. Whether serving on Pharmacy & Therapeutics (P&T) committees, caring for patients, drafting treatment guidelines, training learners, or delivering education in person and virtually, Dr. Westley is relentless in his commitment to improving patient outcomes. Most Alaskans in healthcare could share a story that speaks to his dedication and impact.

Dr. Westley practices at PAMC, ARH, ANMC, Mat-Su, and in private practice. Beyond those sites, he fields calls from across Alaska, providing guidance to healthcare facilities, the State Department of Health, and the Anchorage Department of Health. As P&T co-chair at ANMC (with Ashley Schaber), he restructured medication review processes, adding a subcommittee to evaluate high-cost drugs for value and access. He also developed non-formulary pathways to ensure patients receive optimal care. He co-chairs stewardship committees at ANMC and PAMC, updating 20 ANMC clinical guidelines in the past year and collaborating at PAMC to maintain system-wide standards. His work also supports the Sexual Assault Response Team (SART), ensuring access to essential treatments for sexual assault and domestic violence survivors, as well as care for common STIs and HIV.

An educator at heart, Dr. Westley often mentors WWAMI students on caring for vulnerable populations. In February, he presented stewardship updates to more than 100 attendees at the AKPhA conference. His collaborations with AHHA in 2016, 2018, and 2025 provided critical antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) education statewide. He is always available for consultations, generously sharing his expertise with pharmacists and physicians alike.

This spring, Dr. Westley delivered a seven-part webinar series with over 200 registrants. Participant feedback reflects his skill and influence:

• “Great ability to present information in a way that is easy to absorb and apply to practice.”

• “An incredible resource for Alaska.”

• “Great for both introductory learners and advanced practitioners.”

• “Communicates in a common-sense manner—something we all need.”

• “I participated in this series six years ago and still refer to his slides.”
  

Dr. Westley’s depth of knowledge, accessibility, and enduring commitment make him an invaluable resource for Alaska.