Credit Suisse Award for Best Teaching to Luca Gabutti

In the context of USI's 27th Dies academicus ceremony, the Credit Suisse Award for Best Teaching was presented to Luca Gabutti, Full Professor at USI Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, "for the quality of his teaching".

Established by the Credit Suisse Foundation, the Credit Suisse Award for Best Teaching is an accolade, accompanied by a prize of CHF 10,000, awarded in turn to a faculty member from one of USI's Faculties.

Luca Gabutti is the head of the Internal Medicine Department of the Regional Hospital of Bellinzona, belonging to the Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale EOC; the network of southern Switzerland Public Hospitals. Since 2017, he has been full professor at the Faculty of Biomedical Sciences of the Università della Svizzera italiana, USI. He studied human medicine at the University of Lausanne and graduated in 1990. He obtained the MD degree at the University of Bern in 1996 and the PD and the Professorship at the University of Lausanne in 2006 and 2012. The specialties in Internal medicine and nephrology were obtained in 1997 and 1999 respectively. After having taken care of a dialysis unit and a nephrological outpatient clinic at the Regional Hospital in Locarno, he reoriented himself toward Internal Medicine becoming the head of the Internal Medicine department in the same hospital and moving to his current position in 2016. Fascinated by electrolyte disturbances, he started a research path on the topic to continue with subjects related to cardiovascular risk factors, hypertension, vascular aging, hospital data networking and quality and adequacy of care. 

Member of the committee of Smarter Medicine – Choosing Wisely Switzerland, he is also a Swiss representative in Choosing Wisely International; an initiative aimed at promoting quality and adequacy of care. 

As the Vice-Dean for education, he represents the USI in the human medicine federal exam commission and he is the president of the USI study and exam commissions. 

For teaching, he is in charge of the module dedicated to nephrology (where he teaches firsthand) and pulmonology and of the family medicine track. 

He thinks that in learning, enthusiasm is the driving force and that the most important attitudes and skills are learned from peers. He also believes in the value of kindness and compassion and uses them as communication tools in clinical teaching. 

The award was presented by Marzio Grassi (Credit Suisse) and USI Deputy Rector Lorenzo Cantoni.