CMA ANNUAL GALA: Dr. Peter Bretan Receives Adarsh S. Mahal, MD Award

The California Medical Association (CMA) Foundation is pleased to honor Peter N. Bretan, Jr., M.D., FACS, with the 2016 Adarsh S. Mahal, M.D., Access to Health Care and Disparities Award. This award was established by 2007 CMA President Anmol S. Mahal, M.D., and his wife, Surjit K. Mahal, M.D., to honor an individual or organization that has made a significant contribution toward improving access to health care or reducing disparities in health care in California.

Dr. Bretan has demonstrated a longstanding dedication to improving individual and community health through effective leadership at a variety of levels including local, state, federal and international engagement. As the founder and lead transplant surgeon for Life Plant International, a charitable organization, Dr. Bretan promotes disaster preparedness, organ donation and early disease screening in the U.S. and abroad. He organizes and participates in life-saving medical missions that include performing and teaching about kidney transplants and laparoscopic kidney removals.

Dr. Bretan is a practicing renal transplant surgeon and urologist, with special training in laparoscopic surgery. Not only does he care for patients in Marin and Sonoma counties, he has also improved access to care by providing much-needed renal transplant and urological services to rural areas via robotic telemedicine at nine northern California hospitals.

Dr. Bretan has published over 200 scientific articles covering both clinical and original research subjects, which have been the basis of multiple academic awards. He speaks internationally as a recognized expert in kidney transplantation, as well as prostate and bladder diseases, and serves as a reviewer for six clinical and scientific journals in this capacity.

Dr. Bretan received his medical degree and completed his residency at the University of California, San Francisco. He is active in the Philippine Medical Society of Northern California, participating in its medical missions to the Philippines. He is also currently serving his fifth term as president of the Marin Medical Society and has been a delegate for CMA and the American Medical Association House of Delegates.