A milestone TULIP Award at VCU Health

Charles Payne never planned to make history. He simply kept showing up. 

Day after day, even after his OB-GYN rotation had officially ended, the now fourth‑year medical student returned to VCU Medical Center to check on one patient — a pregnant woman facing an extended, uncertain stay as she awaited delivery. Between clinical rounds and studying, he found small moments to be present.

That commitment led to Payne, a McGlothlin Scholar, becoming the first medical student at VCU Health to receive a TULIP Award, an honor that recognizes exceptional compassion and service by non-nursing team members.

McGlothlin scholar Charles Payne, MS'23 (PHIS) (Photo by Daniel Sangjib Min, MCV Foundation)

Medical students typically rotate off service in a clinical specialty after two to four weeks, moving on to the next. But when Payne’s OB-GYN rotation came to an end, his connection with the patient continued. He checked in daily, paying attention to the small details and displaying care rooted in their shared humanity. Drawing on his previous experience as a medic and care partner, he performed simple actions to help the patient feel genuinely cared for.

When a physical therapist suggested badminton as a safe exercise for hospital-bound patients with limited mobility, Payne brought in a set of equipment, giving the patient a way to pass the time and share a laugh with her mother. He also stepped in to help when difficult ultrasound‑guided IV placements increased the patient’s anxiety and discomfort. Together, these acts of presence and compassion led to a TULIP Award nomination — and a milestone moment for medical education at VCU Health.

“Charles’ TULIP Award highlights the extraordinary care our medical students provide every day,” said Luan Lawson, M.D., senior associate dean of medical education and student affairs in the School of Medicine. “It reflects the strength of our training environment and the commitment our students have to showing up for patients as whole people, not just as diagnoses.”

‘Compassion can always make a difference’

For Payne, the experience reaffirmed some of medicine’s most enduring lessons.

“There are times when we can’t change a diagnosis or outcome,” he said. “But compassion can always make a difference.”

That belief was mirrored in the compassion Payne himself received when he was awarded a four-year, full in-state-tuition scholarship recognizing his academic excellence and leadership potential. Being a member of the McGlothlin Scholars inaugural cohort reinforced his desire to invest in others and build his future on the MCV Campus.

While Payne has received multiple TULIP Awards in his previous roles at VCU Health, this most recent recognition – coming during his years as a student – carried particular significance. During a phase of training often shaped by subjective evaluations, the award served as a powerful reminder of the impact students can have simply by being present.

Medical students, Payne noted, are often the providers who get to spend the most time with patients.

“That’s a profound honor,” he said.

At the heart of Payne’s approach to patient‑centered care is listening without rushing — meeting people where they are, often on the hardest days of their lives. That perspective reminds him of a quote from Fred Rogers: “More and more I’ve come to understand that listening is one of the most important things we can do for one another.”

Looking ahead, Payne hopes patients will remember how he made them feel long after the clinical details fade.

“When I become a trauma surgeon, I want my patients to leave thinking, ‘That’s a really good guy,’ not just, ‘That’s a really good surgeon,’” he said. “The technical skills will eventually speak for themselves, but I’d rather be remembered as a good person.”

This TULIP Award is a reminder — for Payne and other future physicians — that compassion doesn’t require a title. It only requires intention.

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