Illustrative image for Hastings Center Cunniff Dixon Physician and Nursing Awards

Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Physician and Nursing Awards

The Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Physician and Nursing awards recognize physicians and nurses practicing in the United States who give exemplary care to patients at the end of life.

The Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Physician Awards have long recognized five outstanding physicians. In 2022, a sixth physician award was added: The Dr. Richard Payne Leadership Award honors physicians who work with underserved populations. This award is named for Dr. Richard Payne, an internationally acclaimed leader in palliative care who at the time of his death was a Trustee of the Cunniff Dixon Foundation and member of The Hastings Center’s Board of Directors. For many years, Dr. Payne led the selection committee for The Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Physician Awards and always sought to recognize those who represented what he loved to call “good doctoring.” 

The year 2022 also marked the first year for the Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Nursing Awards, which recognize nurses who provide optimal end-of-life care in a hospital setting and in hospice and home care.

The physician and nursing awards are given every other year.

The awards consist of $25,000 each for the senior and mid-career physicians, as well as for the Dr. Richard Payne Leadership Award and for each of the nursing awards, and $15,000 each for the early-career physicians.     

Criteria for the physician awards.

Criteria for the nursing awards.

Nominations for the 2025 nursing awards begin on October 1, 2024, and continue until January 31, 2025. Nominate a nurse.

Click here to learn about the recipients of the awards.