bioMérieux Presents 2012 Sonnenwirth Award for Leadership in Clinical Microbiology to Susan Sharp, Ph.D.

bioMérieux, a world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics, is proud to announce Susan Sharp, Ph.D., D(ABMM), as the 2012 recipient of the bioMérieux Sonnenwirth Award for Leadership in Clinical Microbiology. The award was presented during the 2012 American Society for Microbiology (ASM) General Meeting awards dinner on June 17. Given in memory of Alexander Sonnenwirth, Ph.D., the award honors a top microbiologist for his or her innovation in clinical laboratory science, dedication to ASM and leadership in the microbiology field.

Presented by ASM and sponsored by bioMérieux, the world leader in microbiology, the award recognizes the advancement of clinical microbiology as a profession. On June 17, as part of a scientific session, Sharp delivered the Sonnenwirth Award Lecture as part of the session, “Best Practices in Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing: An Update from CLSI.”

A very active member of ASM for over 25 years, Sharp currently serves as Chair of ASM’s Committee on Laboratory Practices. She also serves as the Co-Chair of ASM’s Cumitech Editorial Board and the Vice-Chair of ASM’s American Board of Medical Microbiology. She is a Diplomat of the American Board of Medical Microbiology (ABMM) and a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology. She serves as the Microbiology Section Editor for ASCP’s LabQ education exercises, and is a reviewer for the Journal of Clinical Microbiology, Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, and The Permanente Journal.

Sharp’s outstanding scholarly achievements have provided numerous contributions to the clinical microbiology field. She has given many lectures, seminars and workshops nationally, and internationally, and has numerous publications in the field of clinical microbiology. Much of her work has focused on cost-effective, clinically relevant diagnostic microbiology.

“It is a great honor to recognize Dr. Sharp with this year’s bioMérieux Sonnenwirth Award for Leadership in Clinical Microbiology,” said Manuel O. Méndez, Executive Vice President and General Manager, bioMérieux Americas. “Her contributions to clinical microbiology are abundant and her work has set many of the standards practiced in laboratories across the country.”

Currently, Sharp is the Director of Airport Way Regional Laboratory and Regional Director of Microbiology, Department of Pathology for Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon, and Associate Professor of the Department of Pathology at Oregon Health and Sciences University.

Sharp received her B.S. in Medical Technology and M.S. in Medical Microbiology & Biochemistry from the University of Nebraska Medical Center, and her Ph.D. in Veterinary Microbiology and Parasitology from the Veterinary School of Medicine, Texas A&M University. She then completed a two-year post-doctorate fellowship in Clinical Microbiology in the Department of Pathology, Division of Microbiology, at Hartford Hospital in Connecticut with Ray Bartlett and Jim MacLaughlin. Sharp began her career at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, Florida, and then worked at Health Midwest in Kansas City, Missouri, before beginning her current position with Kaiser Permanente.

About bioMérieux

Advancing Diagnostics to Improve Public Health

A world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics for over 45 years, bioMérieux is present in more than 150 countries through 40 subsidiaries and a large network of distributors. In 2011, revenues reached €1.427 billion with 87% of sales outside of France.

bioMérieux provides diagnostic solutions (reagents, instruments, software) which determine the source of disease and contamination to improve patient health and ensure consumer safety. Its products are used for diagnosing infectious diseases and providing high medical value results for cancer screening and monitoring and cardiovascular emergencies. They are also used for detecting microorganisms in agri-food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic products.

bioMérieux is listed on the NYSE Euronext Paris market (Symbol: BIM – ISIN: FR0010096479).

Additional information can be found at www.biomerieux-usa.com.

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