The 2025 Robert Kemper Award for Professionalism in Medicine is on Thursday, April 3, 2025, and is presented by the Key Biscayne Community Foundation & the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine at Florida International University.
This year’s recipients are Zachary Blashinsky and Kalin Stoyanov.
Zachary Blashinsky was born in Toms River, New Jersey, before moving to Sarasota, Florida, at the age of 8. After graduating with a Bachelor’s degree from Florida State University’s Honors College, Zach matriculated to FIU’s Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine (HWCOM) the following year. He was granted the U.S. Army Health Professions Scholarship Program (HPSP)- a four-year full tuition scholarship.
Zach recently matched into his top choice for residency in Orthopedic
Surgery at Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. Zach will care
for active-duty service members, veterans, and their families. In the future, he hopes to specialize in Sports Medicine and preservation surgery.
Kalin Stoyanov is currently a 4th year medical student in Miami, Florida, attending the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine. Kalin is applying for psychiatry residency, stemming from a lifelong passion in providing accessible care for a wide array of patients and relieving the suffering of many people who at times feel like they have been betrayed by their own minds.
Kalin attended the University of South Florida, where he graduated summa cum laude. Kalin founded and served as president for the Association of Integrative Medicine, bringing holistic patient-centered principles and evidence-based medicine together to best help future patients. He is planning on obtaining a post-training fellowship in child and adolescent psychiatry in the future.
The Robert Kemper M.D., PhD. Award for Professionalism in Medicine is named in memory of Dr. Robert Kemper, who exemplified the highest qualities of medical professionalism until his life was cut short by Cancer. This award is presented to a recipient who has demonstrated:
- Respect for patients, faculty, staff members, and peers.
- Altruism, compassion, and empathy towards patients.
- A sense of commitment, duty, responsibility, and dedication to the ethical practice of the medical profession.
- Comportment, courtesy, and exemplary personal demeanor becoming of a physician.
- An ability to convey hope, be a healer of patients, be a team builder, and foster harmony in the group and the workplace.
The Key Biscayne Community Foundation underwrites the award and is made possible thanks to Dr. Kemper’s grateful patients, friends, and family contributions.