Wayne State University School of Medicine Professor of Surgery Anna Marie Ledgerwood, M.D., Res. ’72, FACS, is the 2025 recipient of the American College of Surgeons Dr. Mary Edwards Walker Inspiring Women in Surgery Award.
ACS President Beth Sutton, M.D., FACS, presented the award to Dr. Ledgerwood on Oct. 4 during the convocation preceding the opening of the ACS Clinical Congress 2025, held Oct. 4-7 at McCormick Place in Chicago.
“As a renowned educator mentor and advocate for women in surgery, Dr. Ledgerwood truly embodies the same spirit displayed by Dr. Mary Edwards Walker by paving the way for advancing surgical education and inspiring female surgeons,” Dr. Sutton said.
Given annually, the award recognizes an individual’s contributions to the advancement of women in the field of surgery. It is named in honor of Mary Edwards Walker, M.D., the first woman surgeon to serve in the U.S. Army and the only woman to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest decoration for valor in the armed forces.
“I am honored to be selected for this award,” said Dr. Ledgerwood, a general and trauma surgeon for more than 50 years who was nominated by her former student, School of Medicine Class of 1985 graduate William Cirocco, M.D.
She has attended every annual ACS Clinical Congress (except during the COVID-19 pandemic) since her initiation 50 years ago. In her remarks, she encouraged new members to attend at least part of the congress every year, and take advantage of the learning opportunities offered through state chapter meetings.
“The field of surgery changes. Fifty years ago, laparoscopy and robotic procedures did not exist. I was taught to do a laparoscopic cholecystectomy at my Michigan chapter meeting by the community surgeons in Michigan. We can and should learn from each other. We can and should be both teachers and learners,” she said.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree from Gonzaga University, a degree from Sacred Heart Hospital School of Medicine Technology and her medical degree from Marquette University School of Medicine (now the Medical College of Wisconsin), Dr. Ledgerwood completed an internship at Detroit General Hospital in 1968, where she was one of only two women out of 25 interns, and a general surgery residency at Wayne State University in 1972, completing it as the only woman that year. She then joined the WSU faculty with the encouragement of Charles Lucas, M.D.
“We have worked together sharing patients, teaching students and residents, answering questions and writing papers for the past 53 years. We have more than 300 publications in scientific journals and all of our research was ‘self-funded’ from income we collected for patient care,” she said.
Dr. Ledgerwood is a frequent guest lecturer at other medical schools. Her clinical interests include gastrointestinal, oncologic, bariatric, trauma and emergency surgery, and critical care, with research interests in shock, resuscitation, injury, sepsis and education.
After witnessing quality improvement efforts at another institution, Dr. Ledgerwood became involved with the ACS Committee on Trauma Verification, Review and Consultation program when it was created in 1987. The program has become the basis for verifying trauma centers nationwide at levels I through IV, including at her own Level I hospital, Detroit Receiving Hospital, which was the first designated Level I trauma center in the state.
In large part because of the design Dr. Ledgerwood and other committee members established, ACS trauma center verification has been shown to significantly decrease mortality in adult and pediatric patients.
An ACS fellow since 1975, Dr. Ledgerwood has held numerous leadership positions in the college, serving as the president of the ACS Michigan Chapter, a member of the Board of Governors, a first vice president of the Board of Regents and the first woman to deliver the Scudder Oration on Trauma in 1996. During her 40-year tenure as a full professor, she has established a reputation for mentoring and advising students and junior colleagues in the field of surgery. Additionally, she was the first woman to serve as president of the Academy of Surgery of Detroit, the ACS Michigan Chapter, the Midwest Surgical Association, the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, and the American Surgical Association.
The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational organization founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical practice and improve quality of care for patients. The ACS has approximately 90,000 members and is the largest organization of surgeons in the world.