Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine Fellowship Director

Department: Department of Internal Medicine

When a clinician educator’s learners describe her  as the “gold standard for how to lead a high functioning teaching service,” it comes as no surprise when she is selected to receive an award that recognizes superior teaching in clinical medicine. Learners state that Lisa K. Brath, M.D., Professor of Internal Medicine, VCU SOM, is “wonderful all- around,” as a “human, clinician, teacher, program director, you name it”; creates a fun, safe and warm learning environment; “solves the unsolvable problems” while taking her learners along the diagnostic journey; encourages independence while providing non-judgmental and thoughtful critiques; and adheres to the concept of graduated autonomy. When the Teaching Excellence Awards Selection Committee met to discuss the award nominees, a committee member familiar with Dr. Brath said that when making work decisions, they often ask themselves, “What would Lisa Brath do?”

Nikita Chadha, D.O., Chief Resident, VCU DOIM Residency Program states that Dr. Brath “strikes a perfect balance between being approachable and supportive while having high standards that encourage learners to reach their maximum potential.” Multiple letters of support for Dr. Brath were received from former VCU medical students, residents and fellows, who recounted the many ways she continues to inspire them. Howard Young, M.D. of Mount Sinai Hospital in Maryland states  that  during  the  COVID pandemic,  she created a private phone text message group of former fellows from the past 22 years to share knowledge and to have a “safe place to vent,” which provided “some degree of sanity in an otherwise insane situation.” He said Dr. Brath continues to be a source of information and “always seems to know the answer to the question that seemed too difficult…She was Google before there was Google, UpToDate before there was UpToDate.”

Alpha A. Fowler III, M.D., William Taliaferro Thompson Professor of Pulmonary Disease/Critical Care Medicine, DOIM, VCU SOM attests to the ways the VCUHS and SOM benefit from the “presence of such an extraordinary teacher,” stating, “Dr. Brath, through  her  single-handed  determination,  has been the main architect of the VCU Health’s fellowship in Pulmonary Disease and Critical Care Medicine (PCCM). Through Dr. Brath’s total commitment to teaching excellence, VCU Health’s PCCM fellowship is now known nationwide..." with close to 500 annual applications for 5 fellowship slots per year. Dr. Brath has served as the program director of the PCCM fellowship since 2002.

Dr. Brath graduated from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in 1988. She completed her Internal Medicine residency and Pulmonary-Critical Care fellowship at VCU, and as a trainee, served as an Introduction to Clinical Medicine preceptor for M2 medical students. In 1996, she was selected by Internal Medicine residents as the Orhan Muren Best  Fellow  and  joined  the  faculty  the  same year. Dr. Brath’s excellence as an educator has been consistently recognized. Between 1998-2012, she received a faculty teaching excellence award nine times and the Outstanding Attending Teacher on a Specialty ICU, Ward, and Consult team for four consecutive years between 2019-2022, awards that are selected by the housestaff from the entire DOIM  faculty  across  all  divisions.  In  2004,  she was voted the MCVP Distinguished Clinician, and from 2008 to 2023, was recognized as a Richmond Magazine’s “Top Doc” 16 years in a row. Dr. Brath’s exceptional teaching was also recognized with the university-wide 2019 VCU Distinguished Term Faculty Award.

Despite these accolades, Dr. Brath is not focused on  recognition for herself but on her learners and their success. Her impact lies in her genuine interest in them as individuals, her patient-centered clinical skills and in creating an “inclusive and engaging” learning environment. Dr. Brath has and continues to make a lasting impact on our learners.

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