A pioneer in veterinary laser surgery and education has been named a 2019 winner of the Kumar Patel Prize.
Presented by the American Laser Study Club, the award will go to John C. Godbold, DVM, as well as two educators in human medicine: Robert A. Strauss, DDS, M.D., and Warren Seiler, M.D. They will receive their awards in late March at the organization’s second annual symposium.
The group credited Dr. Godbold with leading more than 600 laser workshops, wet labs and continuing education meetings around the world.
The former practice owner and later founder of Stonehaven Veterinary Consulting “has extensive experience with surgical and therapeutic lasers, has developed new surgical and therapeutic techniques, and assists equipment manufacturers with the development of new laser and light-based technologies,” the organization stated.
Among Dr. Godbold’s published works are “Atlas of CO2 Laser Surgery Procedures,” “Atlas of Class IV Laser Therapy — Small Animal” and “Laser Therapy in Veterinary Medicine — Photobiomodulation.”
He is a 1978 graduate of the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine.
The other two winners, Drs. Strauss and Seiler, will be honored for contributions to oral and maxillofacial laser surgery education and for cosmetic laser surgery education, respectively.
The Kumar Patel Prize is named after the inventor of the carbon dioxide laser.