Carle Illinois College of Medicine announced on May 21 that Tessabella Magliochetti, a graduating medical student, has been named the recipient of the James C. Leonard, MD, Gold-Headed Cane Award. The award recognizes her commitment to patient care and her achievements as an aspiring surgeon and innovator.
The recognition highlights the importance of developing physician innovators who address healthcare challenges through science, medicine, and engineering. Magliochetti is set to begin her residency in general surgery at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte this July.
Magliochetti holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in biomedical engineering and previously worked in industry developing surgical devices before deciding to pursue a career as a physician. “I really wanted to be the one actually using the instrument. I wanted to get closer and closer to that room, that experience. When I looked around in my company for a new role, I realized I could be the surgeon,” she said.
Kristine Carpenter, MD, MS, associate dean for academic affairs at Carle Health and clinical associate professor at Carle Illinois College of Medicine (CI MED), said: “Tessabella is an exceptionally well-rounded student. While many of our students excel academically, she distinguished herself not only through her academic performance but also through her clinical skills, professionalism, and genuine dedication to patient care. She consistently went above and beyond for her patients and became an invaluable member of the clinical team during her clerkships.”
Magliochetti also received several other honors including the Excellence in Surgery Award as well as Academic Honors and Humanism in Medicine Awards from CI MED. During medical school she founded AmnioAlert—a start-up focused on developing a wearable device for expectant mothers—and led efforts to organize bone marrow donor drives through Gift of Life Marrow Registry.
Reflecting on mentorship within surgery where women are underrepresented compared with men three-to-one ratio—Magliochetti said: “I think that being a strong female lead in the OR is really important… I’m really excited to be a mentor as I have been to M1s and M2s [first- and second-year medical students] and will continue that throughout residency and throughout my career.”
Carle Illinois College of Medicine is operated by Carle Health system together with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
