Jeff Pettey, MD, MBA, CEO of the John A. Moran Eye Center and Chair of the at the University of Utah, has received the in recognition of his longtime outreach work providing sight-saving surgeries for Utahns and increasing access to eye care worldwide.
Established in 2001 to honor the legacy of Harold E. 鈥淗al鈥 Williamson, the award recognizes physicians who exemplify compassion, volunteerism, and service. Presented in partnership with state medical associations, the award has celebrated more than 50 physicians. Pettey accepted the award during a recent Utah Medical Society gathering and will donate the accompanying $10,000 to Moran鈥檚 Global Outreach Division.
The Division operates several programs that assist uninsured and underserved Utahns, including the Operation Sight cataract surgery program co-founded by Pettey. Division physicians teach and train ophthalmologists in low-resource countries to expand access to eye care.
鈥淚 am deeply honored to receive this award, and accept it on behalf of so many dedicated physicians, medical personnel, and staff who carry forward he legacy of the late-Alan S. Crandall, MD, who established the division over 20 years ago,鈥 said Pettey. 鈥淚鈥檝e had the privilege of working at an institution that prioritizes service, supported by generous donors who make this work possible. Together we are creating lasting change.鈥
In Utah, Pettey regularly volunteers his time to perform no-cost surgery for unhoused people, new Americans, and other underserved populations at local clinics. He also travels to the Navajo Nation several times each year to provide critically needed surgical care in a region that has no ophthalmologists.
Pettey has led more than a dozen surgical education missions in countries including Nepal, Guatemala, and Tanzania. These missions combine direct patient care with physician training. As medical co-director of Moran鈥檚 Global Outreach Division (2017鈥2022), he helped establish an ophthalmology residency program at the University of Dodoma in Tanzania鈥攁 country with fewer than one ophthalmologist per million people. Pettey also co-founded the Global Ophthalmology Summit, now hosted by the American Academy of Ophthalmology, to foster collaboration and innovation in outreach.
鈥淒r. Pettey鈥檚 humanitarian work is not episodic鈥攊t is embedded in every facet of his career as he has donated thousands of hours of his time,鈥 wrote Randall J Olson, MD, in his nomination of Pettey for the award. 鈥淗e is a visionary leader, a compassionate physician, and a tireless advocate for the underserved.鈥