Los Gatos Doctor Earns Medical Association's Highest Honor

Longtime Los Gatos resident Dr. Robert Pearl, a physician executive with Kaiser Permanente, has received the coveted Legacy Award from the Santa Clara County Medical Association.

Pearl was bestowed the honor during the organization's awards dinner last Tuesday evening at the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose.

The association has only given the award twice since it was created. It is reserved for a physician member of the association who has “demonstrated extraordinary visionary leadership, tireless effort, (and) selfless long term commitment… ” to the well-being of patients and the health care community.

Pearl is executive director and CEO of The Permanente Medical Group, which comprises 7,000 physicians and 30,000 staff members providing health care for 3.3 million members of Kaiser Permanente Northern California. 

He advocates for Kaiser Permanente's 21st century health-care model, where physicians collaborate rather than compete and work in partnership with a hospital system and a not-for-profit prepaid health plan, according to Kaiser Permanente spokesman Karl Sonkin.

Named by Modern Healthcare as one of the most powerful physician leaders in the nation, Pearl is also a clinical professor of plastic surgery at Stanford University’s School of Medicine, and teaches courses in strategic thinking and strategic change at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business.

Ten years ago, the Santa Clara County Medical Association presented Pearl with the Dr. Benjamin Cory Award for forward-looking, pioneering ideas and enthusiasm.