Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), the world’s leading academic medical center focused on musculoskeletal health, honored Todd J. Albert, MD, HSS Surgeon-in-Chief Emeritus and orthopedic spine surgeon, and Joel M. Press, MD, HSS Physiatrist-in-Chief, with Lifetime Achievement Awards at the 40th Annual HSS Tribute Dinner. Kendrick R. Wilson, III, HSS Chairman Emeritus, received the Tribute Dinner Award at the gala event, which took place on June 2 at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

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40th Annual HSS Tribute Dinner at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

The Tribute Dinner is HSS’s premier fundraising event recognizing physicians, philanthropists and business leaders who have made a major impact in the field of musculoskeletal medicine. The evening, hosted by WABC-TV Eyewitness News anchor Sade Baderinwa, featured entertainment by Emmy Award-winning comedian Jim Gaffigan and a musical performance by The Castellows.

The Lifetime Achievement Award is the highest recognition for an outstanding healthcare leader at HSS. “Both Dr. Albert and Dr. Press have made significant contributions to the advancement of musculoskeletal medicine and exemplify the finest qualities found in physicians,” said Douglas E. Padgett, MD, surgeon-in-chief and medical director at HSS. “Their knowledge and skill in their respective fields and commitment to providing the highest quality of care make them the kind of doctors you would want for your own family.”

The HSS Tribute Dinner Award recognizes outstanding achievements in business and service to the community. “We celebrate Ken Wilson not only for his illustrious career but also for his many years of leadership and support at HSS,” said HSS President and CEO Bryan T. Kelly, MD, MBA. “We are privileged to recognize him for his 24 years of service on the HSS Board of Trustees, including five years as Board Chairman. During his tenure, his strong leadership and vision for the future led to unprecedented growth, with an expansion of HSS services not only in New York but also in Connecticut, New Jersey and Florida.”

This year’s Tribute Dinner, attended by over 800 guests and raised more than $6.5 million for patient care, research and medical education.

HONOREES

Kendrick R. Wilson, III

Mr. Wilson is Chairman Emeritus of the HSS Board of Trustees, having served in that role from 2013 to 2018. During his tenure, he oversaw a major expansion of HSS services and locations. In total, he served on the Board from 1998 to 2022, at which time he became a Life Trustee.

Mr. Wilson is best known for his career in the banking industry, where he gained the respect of his peers for his strategic insight and leadership. During his long career on Wall Street, he played a role in some of the most significant transactions in the financial services industry. At the height of the financial crisis of 2008, President George W. Bush asked him to work as an adviser to then Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to help resolve the financial crisis.

Mr. Wilson retired as Vice Chairman of BlackRock, Inc. in the first quarter of 2018 and was a member of its Global Executive Committee. He also served as Chairman of BlackRock's Human Capital Committee and BlackRock Alternative Investors. Before going to Washington in the summer of 2008, he was Vice Chairman, Investment Banking of Goldman Sachs & Co. and a member of Goldman's Executive Office. He also served as Chairman of Goldman's Financial Institutions Group.

He has served on the boards of numerous public and private corporations in the United States and overseas. In addition to HSS, he is a Trustee Emeritus of the Montana Land Reliance and Middlebury College. Mr. Wilson also served as a member of the Board of Governors of the Montana State University Foundation.

Todd J. Albert, MD

Over the years, Dr. Albert has earned a reputation as a highly skilled and greatly respected spine surgeon nationally and internationally. He is Surgeon-in-chief Emeritus and Richard Rogers Professor to Advance Spine Care at HSS, as well as a professor of orthopaedic surgery at Weill Cornell Medical School. His practice specializes in the treatment of cervical spine disorders as well as degenerative and traumatic conditions of the spine.

Dr. Albert is a member of multiple national and international medical societies. He is president- elect of the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons and served as president of the Cervical Spine Research Society and Scoliosis Research Society.

Dr. Albert has written more than 90 book chapters, edited 14 books and published more than 450 peer-reviewed articles. He has received outstanding paper awards from the North American Spine Society, the International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine and the Cervical Spine Research Society. He serves on the editorial boards for several academic journals. He has been recognized with the John J. Gartland Award for Resident Education and the Jean McDaniel mentorship award at HSS. He was also awarded the Nicolas Andry Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons.

Joel M. Press, MD

Dr. Press is Physiatrist-in-Chief and the Joel and Anne Ehrenkranz Chair in Physiatry at HSS and a professor of rehabilitation medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College. He has published and edited multiple articles and textbooks, chaired numerous courses and lectures extensively nationally and internationally on the rehabilitation of spine and sports-related injuries.

Prior to joining HSS, Dr. Press was an attending physician at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago from 1988 to 2016. In 1989, he founded and directed the Spine and Sports Rehabilitation Centers at the Institute. He was a professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation and the Reva and David Logan Distinguished Chair of Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. He served as Vice President of External Relations and the Executive Medical Director for Outpatient Physician Services at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.

He has been an oral board examiner and written board examination-item writer for the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. He is a past president of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, the North American Spine Society and the Physiatric Association of Spine, Sports and Occupational Rehabilitation.

About HSS

HSS is the world’s leading academic medical center focused on musculoskeletal health. At its core is Hospital for Special Surgery, nationally ranked No. 1 in orthopedics (for the 15th consecutive year), No. 3 in rheumatology by U.S. News & World Report (2024-2025), and the best pediatric orthopedic hospital in NY, NJ and CT by U.S. News & World Report “Best Children’s Hospitals” list (2024-2025). In a survey of medical professionals in more than 20 countries by Newsweek, HSS is ranked world #1 in orthopedics for a fifth consecutive year (2025). Founded in 1863, the Hospital has the lowest readmission rates in the nation for orthopedics, and among the lowest infection and complication rates. HSS was the first in New York State to receive Magnet Recognition for Excellence in Nursing Service from the American Nurses Credentialing Center five consecutive times. An affiliate of Weill Cornell Medical College, HSS has a main campus in New York City and facilities in New Jersey, Connecticut and in the Long Island and Westchester County regions of New York State, as well as in Florida. In addition to patient care, HSS leads the field in research, innovation and education. The HSS Research Institute comprises 20 laboratories and 300 staff members focused on leading the advancement of musculoskeletal health through prevention of degeneration, tissue repair and tissue regeneration. In addition, more than 200 HSS clinical investigators are working to improve patient outcomes through better ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat orthopedic, rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases. The HSS Innovation Institute works to realize the potential of new drugs, therapeutics and devices. The HSS Education Institute is a trusted leader in advancing musculoskeletal knowledge and research for physicians, nurses, allied health professionals, academic trainees, and consumers in more than 165 countries. The institution is collaborating with medical centers and other organizations to advance the quality and value of musculoskeletal care and to make world-class HSS care more widely accessible nationally and internationally. www.hss.edu.

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