JOSEPH L. R. MILLS, Sr., MD, FACS
Tucson, Arizona

2011 Edward James Olmos Award Honoree
for Advocacy in Amputation Prevention

DFCon 2011 Conference Co-Chairmen George Andros, MD, and David G. Armstrong, DPM, MD, PhD, are pleased to announce that the Edward James Olmos Award for Advocacy in Amputation Prevention Honoree for 2011 is Joseph L. R. Mills, Sr., MD, FACS.

Noted vascular surgeon, tireless teacher and limb salvage thought leader, Dr. Mills is professor and chief of the Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery at the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson. He has been at the University of Arizona since 1994. Dr. Mills also is co-director of Southern Arizona Limb Salvage Alliance (SALSA) at the University of Arizona College of Medicine.

“Joe Mills often works below the radar, so many people may not be aware of how important his contributions to vascular surgery and limb salvage really are,” said Dr. Andros. “It was Joe who helped develop a novel partnership between the Society for Vascular Surgery and the American Podiatric Medical Association, and he has done seminal work in vascular surgery and limb salvage.”

“My colleague Joe Mills is one of those rare combinations of a world-class surgeon, world-class intellect, world-class teacher and world-class academic. Working alongside him is a daily source of inspiration,” said Dr. Armstrong.

Dr. Mills is the author of more than 170 peer-reviewed professional journal articles and book chapters. He is co-editor of the two major vascular textbooks, Rutherford’s Vascular Surgery (7th edition) and Comprehensive Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, and sole editor of the book Management of Chronic Lower Limb Ischemia. He is also the Vascular Surgery Section Editor for UpToDate. Dr. Mills has been the principal investigator of more than 30 research studies and clinical trials and has presented at more than 200 medical conferences and meetings throughout the world.

He is on the board of directors of the Society for Vascular Surgery. A Diplomate of the American Board of Surgery, Dr. Mills recently was elected to a six-year term as a director of the ABS. As a director, his responsibilities include oversight and conduct of general surgery and vascular surgery, qualifying examinations and improving and broadening the opportunities for graduate education and training of surgeons. Dr. Mills also sits on the Vascular Surgery Board (VSB), a component board of the ABS, and is currently serving a three-year term as chair of the VSB from 2010-2013. In addition, he is the immediate past president of the Association of Program Directors in Vascular Surgery, directing and mentoring the next generation of vascular surgeons. Dr. Mills has won a number of outstanding teacher awards and is a member of many professional and civic organizations.

Dr. Mills received his bachelor’s degree cum laude from Georgetown University with a double major in biology and German and his medical degree cum laude from Georgetown University School of Medicine. He completed residency programs in general surgery at Wilford Hall USAF Medical Center at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas and in vascular surgery at Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland. Dr. Mills held a senior fellowship in endovascular surgery at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and also was recipient of the E. J. Wylie Traveling Fellowship. He and his wife, Margaret Schneider Mills, have three children, Joseph Jr., Daniel and Andrew.

Previous Honorees:
Karel Bakker, MD, Heemstede, The Netherlands, 2003
Andrew J. M. Boulton, MD, Manchester, UK, 2005
Gary W. Gibbons, MD, Boston, MA, 2006
Christopher E. Attinger, MD, Washington, DC, 2007
Benjamin A. Lipsky, MD, Seattle, WA, 2008
Peter R. Cavanagh, PhD, DSc, Seattle, WA, 2009
Warren S. Joseph, DPM, Philadelphia, PA, 2010