Dr. Phil Aaron Honored
With Jefferson Award
A local doctor has
been recognized for his long time dedication and prestigious career in helping
Adair and surrounding county residents with their ailments. On Thursday, April
19th in Bowling Green, Dr. Phil Aaron was presented a Jefferson Award for his
27-years of service in helping area residents with their ailments. The Jefferson
Award began in 1972 when
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis along with Senator Robert Taft, Jr. and Sam Beard
founded the American Institute for Public Service to create a Nobel Prize for
public and community service.
This was the 18th annual local Jefferson Awards ceremony sponsored by WBKO and the Daily News. The event was held at Mariah’s restaurant in Bowling Green with more than 75 people in attendance to recognize the winners and hear about their accomplishments. The General Manager of WBKO 13, Rick McCue, and Bowling Green Daily News Publisher Pipes Gaines presented Aaron the award for his long time dedication to public service. “After looking around this room I see many others here that could receive this award and it is a true honor to be given this award,” said Aaron.
As a recipient of the Jefferson Award, Aaron joins the ranks of past national winners such as, former Secretary of State Dr. Henry A. Kissinger and Warren Christopher, former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, Federal Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and Oprah Winfrey.
Dr. Aaron began practicing medicine in Adair County in 1980 and under the guidance of his father Dr. Oris Aaron, who had a different idea about how a doctor should practice medicine. The father-son team started Aaron Medical Center and their hours of operation set the pace for what would be a long and fulfilling career. “We were open seven days a week from 8:00 am to midnight and oddly enough our busiest appointment time was around 11:00 pm,” said Aaron. In 2002 Aaron opened the Dr. Phil Aaron Medical Center in the same facility as Columbia Pharmacy. Another aspect of Aaron’s approach to medicine that goes beyond the normal practice is home visits in which he made 337 visits last year alone.
“Our community has patients who have trouble getting here so I began doing the home visits and have done them ever since,” said Aaron. Aaron went on to say, “When you go to a patient’s home you don’t have the luxury of all the sophisticated equipment to run tests and it teaches you to be a better physician by doing it hands on and relying on your skills as well as making you believe in yourself.” Aaron also said, “It is a wonderful experience and it is helpful the both the patient and doctor when you do home visits.” Aaron has spent a great deal of time working on his skills through education and training.
Aaron currently holds Preventive Medical degrees from Yale University and the University of Louisville, a Law degree from U of L, and a Master’s Degree in American History from the University of Kentucky. “The idea of more training came from my father because he believed it leads to being better trained to practicing in rural areas and allows you to address bigger issues,” Aaron said. Aaron also served on the committee that secured the bond to begin Westlake Regional Hospital in 1980 and was responsible for initiating the Adair County AIDS Prevention Program. “When we first started discussing AIDS prevention there were no reported cases in the community, but I felt that is was the best time to start and we went to every house in Adair County delivering AIDS Prevention packets that had information about the disease as well as condoms and information on how to protect yourself,” Aaron commented.
Aaron’s most current passion is the cervical cancer vaccination and having all young women vaccinated.
“There’s been an explosion in medicine and to think we can prevent a cancer and don’t does not make any sense,” said Aaron. Aaron also said, “It was the almost the same thing when we started vaccinating babies against things such as small pox--a lot of people were not having them vaccinated until the schools made them mandatory before they could enroll.” Aaron is not without medical problems himself as he undergoes kidney dialysis three times a week then returns to his practice and then does his home visits.
Aaron’s list of accomplishments, training and research is astonishing and extends beyond what is expected and travels into what is admired.
Although Aaron’s patients are the first priority, he is also involved with the American College of Legal Medicine, the Kentucky Medical Association, Adair County Medical Society, the American College of Preventive Medicine, the Kentucky and National Rural Health Association, the Pritchard Committee, Doctors Without Borders, the American Chestnut Foundation and serves on the medical staff of Westlake Regional Hospital, Russell County Hospital, Taylor Regional Hospital and Ephraim McDowell Hospital. Aaron closed saying, “Preventive medicine is the key and it has been very rewarding and I love what I’m doing.” Aaron’s list of accomplishments, training and research is astonishing and extends beyond what is expected and travels into what is admired.
