The Rev. Louis J. Putz, C.S.C., Award - 2022: Dr. Patricia Curtin White MD, FACP, CMD, ’80
2022: Dr. Patricia Curtin White MD, FACP, CMD, ’80
For her outstanding dedication to the medical profession and service to providing excellent health care to those in need, both at home and abroad, the Notre Dame Alumni Association and Notre Dame Senior Alumni honor Dr. Patricia Curtin White ’80.
A member of the fifth graduating class of women at Notre Dame, Dr. Curtin White fueled her passion for serving others as a resident assistant in Lewis Hall and as the community services chairperson, while also founding the “Elderly Buddy Program.” Now, she serves as an internist and geriatrician and section chief of geriatric medicine at ChristianaCare in Delaware. In addition to educating future clinicians as clinical assistant professor at Sidney Kimmel Medical College (SKMC) of Thomas Jefferson University, from which she graduated in 1988, she has also served as a medical director in nursing homes for 30 years.
Dr. Curtin White joined Rev. Tom Streit, C.S.C., ’80 and the late Dr. Emil T. Hoffman in 2009 on her first trip to Leogane, Haiti, as a part of Notre Dame’s Haiti Program. There, she witnessed first-hand the barriers Haitians faced in receiving adequate access to healthcare. Since then, she has led or participated in 16 medical mission trips with ND-Haiti, including after the devastating 2010 earthquake. Her teams have also supported a local school — Ecole l’Erudit de Leogane, founded by Jean Marc Brissau ’08 J.D. — where Dr. Curtin White and others serve on the school board. Additionally, she has participated in medical and house-building mission trips with Hope’s In, a program dedicated to humanitarian efforts in Guatemala City.
A dedicated member of the Notre Dame family, Dr. Curtin White is a member of the ND Clubs of Philadelphia and Delaware, where she served as the Parent Program Liaison for families and students. For several years, she was a speaker for the College of Science’s Leadership in Science and Medicine course, in which she shared her volunteer experiences in Haiti. She also serves on the Advisory Board of her alma mater, Saint Mark’s High School in Wilmington, Delaware, and as immediate past president of the SKMC Alumni Association.
Dr. Curtin White continues her dedicated work in geriatrics and service to those in most need, both locally and internationally. Married to Thomas White, the two have three children: Mary ’17, Ann, and Joseph.