Institute for Family Health Faculty Physician Dr. Mark Josefski Receives Catherine Abate Memorial Award

Albany, NY (March 5, 2024) – On March 4, 2024, Dr. Mark Josefski received the Catherine Abate Memorial Award, which recognizes his work as a physician leader and as an outstanding advocate for primary medical care and public health. The Catherine Abate Memorial Award is presented annually at the Community Health Center Association of New York State (CHCANYS) Advocacy Day in Albany.

Dr. Mark Josefski is a family physician who has worked at the Kingston Family Health Center in Kingston, New York since 1989. In addition to caring for patients in the health center and the hospital, Dr. Josefski was the director of the Institute’s Mid-Hudson Family Medicine Residency for 10 years and remains a senior faculty member there. He was instrumental in establishing the program, which later became one of the first federally funded Teaching Health Centers in the nation, as a vital health workforce pipeline in the region. Residents work at the Institute’s health centers in Kingston, New Paltz and Ellenville in Ulster County and the program currently graduates 10 physicians annually, many of whom continue to practice in the Hudson Valley. Dr. Josefski serves on the faculty, trains medical students who rotate at the center, and chairs the Department of Family Medicine at HealthAlliance of Hudson Valley.

Dr. Josefski is a past president of the New York State Academy of Family Physicians, where he was an outstanding advocate for primary care, public health, and affordable health care for all, regularly meeting with State representatives to educate them about these concerns. In 2020, he received their Family Medicine Educator of the Year Award for his extraordinary accomplishments as a physician educator. He also serves as an alternate delegate representing upstate New York in the American Academy of Family Physicians.

In the written nomination for Dr. Josefski, Institute leaders praised his commitment and achievements. Dr. Walter Woodley, the Institute’s vice president for medical services and regional medical director for the Institute’s Mid-Hudson region, who has worked with Dr. Josefski nearly his entire career, said, “Mark Josefski is a local treasure, admired by patients, residents and colleagues for his expertise and his willingness to serve the community. He is our ‘Swiss army knife’ physician – he has many interests and is skilled at them all. He’s always willing to jump in and help wherever the need arises.”

“The Institute is incredibly fortunate to have a physician leader like Mark on our team,” Dr. Neil Calman, the Institute’s president and CEO, recounting his experiences with Dr. Josefski for the award nomination. “He is an outstanding clinician who cares deeply about his patients, a remarkable teacher, a hard worker, and an advocate for healthcare for all. Through his work as a provider, as a teacher, and as a mentor and role model, Mark has contributed tremendously to the health of the people of Ulster County.”

The Community Health Care Association of New York State (CHCANYS) is a membership organization representing over 70 community health centers across New York State. For nearly 50 years, CHCANYS has provided training and technical assistance to New York’s community health centers, as well as advocacy efforts that elevate public health issues at the local, state and federal level. Community health centers provide care for 1-in-9 New Yorkers at over 800 locations across the state.

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The Institute for Family Health is a federally qualified health center network in New York State serving 100,000 patients annually. Services are available to people of all ages, regardless of ability to pay.