Prof. Herman Goossens Receives ESCMID Excellence Award
Prof. Herman Goossens
The ESCMID Award for Excellence in Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases is ESCMID's most prestigious award. For 2020, the ESCMID Executive Committee selected Prof. Herman Goossens (University of Antwerp, Antwerpen, Belgium) as recipient of this prestigious award.
Prof. Goossens will receive his award at ECCMID 2020 in Paris during the Excellence Award session on Monday 20 April 2020. During the ceremony, he will give his recipient lecture entitled “Transcending European clinical research in infectious diseases through collaboration to break down traditional silos”.
Research interests
Prof. Goossens’s current research is focused in five areas. First, the detection and genetic mechanisms involved in the emergence and evolution of antibiotic resistance and virulence in bacteria and its epidemiological and ecological bases and implications. Second, studying antimicrobial use in hospitals, the community and long-term care facilities, developing indicators of use and quality of prescribing, initially in Europe, later globally, focusing on Low and Middle Income Countries. Third, linking scientific and clinical research throughout Europe in lower respiratory tract infections, in primary health care and hospital medical practice. Fourth, better prepare Europe for emerging infectious diseases and pandemics. Fifth, building a network of more than 800 diagnostic labs in more than 40 countries in Europe to support clinical trials that investigate the utility of new antimicrobial strategies and diagnostics.
Scientific output and awards
Prof. Goossens authored more than 600 Web of Science cited papers, and his papers have been cited close to 25,000 times. He was promotor of close to thirty PhDs, authored more than 20 chapters and was invited as a speaker at more than 400 international events. He received several honors and awards, including the Solvay award in 1983, the Horlait-Dapsens award in 1987, the Vesalius award in 1987, the Goslings price of the Dutch-Flemish Society of Infectious Diseases in 1991, the “Eugène Yourassowsky” price of the Belgian Society for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases in 2001, 2002 and 2006, the Leadership Award by the American Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics (APUA) in 2006, and the medical sciences award of the Belgian Royal Academy of Medicine in 2017. In 2008 Prof. Goossens obtained the prestigious status of Methusalem top-scientist from the Flemish government.
