NATICK, Mass. (May 18, 2015) -- An officer from the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine has received top honors for excellence.
Capt. Carrie Quinn, a research physiologist with USARIEM's Thermal and Mountain Medicine Division, received the Medical Service Corps Award of Excellence Junior Officer Award during the annual Junior Officer Week gathering in Washington D.C. from April 27 to May 1. Quinn, who won this year's award for Medical Allied Sciences, was one of only nine recipients out of the more than 100 nominated this year.
"Captain Quinn is representative of the impressive military officers working with us here at USARIEM," said Maj. Rich Westrick, chief, Environmental Medicine Branch. "Her outstanding performance as a research physiologist while managing multiple additional duties made her an ideal candidate for the Award of Excellence. I'm extremely proud that she was recognized with this award."
Quinn, who serves multiple roles including principal investigator for TMMD, Institute intelligence officer and GEMS director, said she was awed and humbled to receive this award.
"I was just very honored to have my name called, to be included in this amazing group of officers," said Quinn. "It was truly something incredible."
The Medical Service Corps award program provides personal recognition to outstanding junior MSC officers and warrant officers who have made significant contributions to the Army Medical Department mission and have performed in an exceptional manner.
Quinn credits the people around her for her success and truly appreciates all they have done to mentor and guide her while at USARIEM.
"Everything that I've accomplished has been a direct reflection of my leadership and those I work with," Quinn said. "USARIEM has been an excellent assignment for me, I've had very unique opportunities to take on leadership roles and build several programs from the ground up, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to represent them at a high level."
Since the program's initiation in 1982, the chief, MSC, has presented Awards of Excellence in various categories to recognize outstanding young officers and to encourage their future contributions to the corps. This year, junior officers were awarded in the health services maintenance technician (warrant officer), health services administration, medical allied sciences, preventive medicine sciences, and clinical allied sciences categories.
Quinn said that she looks at receiving this award more as an opportunity to inspire other junior Army officers.
"When I was getting the award, I was thinking, 'This is huge. This is really something huge.' I absolutely owe it to every other MSC to pay it forward," Quinn said. "I've been handed an opportunity as an Award of Excellence recipient and a responsibility to advance the MSC through leadership.
"Several of us would like to work together throughout the next year on a capstone project that we will then present to next year's winners at their Junior Officer Week so that we can create this circle of excellence -- a pay it forward mentality."
USARIEM provides solutions to optimize warfighter health and performance through medical research. USARIEM is recognized by many DoD organizations as the trusted leader in medical research for warfighter health and performance.
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