Pittsburgh VA’s 2023 Outstanding Physician of the Year

For Dr. David Eibling, being named Pittsburgh VA’s 2023 Outstanding Physician of the Year is the second greatest honor of his 50-year career.

The first?

“To be nominated by my peers is an honor second only to being able to take care of Veterans and active-duty military,” said Eibling, 74, retired Air Force colonel with 33 years’ service at Pittsburgh VA.

Eibling was selected for the annual honor from a field of 12 Pittsburgh VA physicians who received a monthly Chief of Staff Clinical Excellence Award during fiscal year 2022.

Pictured above, Eibling accepts the award from Deputy Chief of Staff Dr. Brooke Decker and Chief of Staff Dr. Ali Sonel.

An otolaryngologist, Eibling for the past 30 years has focused on treating Veterans with head and neck cancer. His peers noted Eibling brings “astute clinical wisdom” and compassion to the bedside.

“He reminds us of the humanity in medicine.”

“I have witnessed time and again his willingness to go the extra mile to get the best care for his patients,” said Dr. John Ludden. “His kind, empathetic approach reminds us of the humanity in medicine and serves as an exemplary role model for everyone he mentors.”

Eibling got his start in medicine while on active duty as a medical student in the Air Force during the Vietnam War. He went to medical school on an Air Force scholarship followed by a residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital, serving at West Haven VA during his rotation.

Eibling traveled the world caring for service members as an Air Force physician. He served at an Air Force hospital in Wiesbaden, Germany, with temporary duty assignments seeing patients at bases in Turkey, Italy and Norway. Stateside, he was stationed at Travis Air Force Base in California and twice at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas as a resident in 1973, then as department chief from 1987-90.

Retiring in 1990, Eibling joined Pittsburgh VA. “I felt comfortable with Veterans and found that I enjoyed caring for them. I think for the most part they’ve enjoyed having me take care of them. It’s a long-term friendship that maybe transcends the usual doctor-patient relationship,” he said.

Hopes work with students will define his mark on medicine

Eibling has chosen to no longer perform elective surgeries, but he continues to see patients. He keeps a full schedule weekly, offering appointments in-person and virtually—by phone or VA Video Connect. When not with patients, he teaches and mentors students and residents. It’s his work with his students he hopes will define his mark on medicine.

“I am not going to live long enough to make all the changes I want to make. If I am going to have an impact on the world, I am going to impact it through my trainees,” he said.

Eibling said his residents have gone on to serve across the nation as remarkable leaders, researchers, innovators and teachers. He is proud of them and thankful for the opportunity to have “maybe had a little influence on them.”

Eibling’s other passion is patient safety, which has been a long-term focus of his teaching. He serves as chair of VA Pittsburgh’s Second Victim Committee, which provides peer support to any staff member who witnessed or feels responsible for an adverse or traumatic work-related event.

It helps the person in need and gives a sense of “what I’m doing matters” to the individual who provides the care. “The single most important thing that matters is taking care of one another. And that can be patients or fellow workers or family members or friends.”

Eibling is an avid bicyclist. He commuted by bike to work in California and Germany and continues that tradition in Pittsburgh. His 7-mile roundtrip ride from Squirrel Hill to the University Drive campus in Oakland takes him through the city’s “most wonderful bike trails and bike lanes.”

Rides bike because “too lazy” for gym work out

Rain, snow or shine, Eibling pedals a bicycle to work, even outfitting one bike with studded snow tires for winter. The rides, he says jokingly, keep him in shape because he’s “too lazy” to work out in a gym.

Eibling said he has stuck with VA for over three decades because of his fellow Veterans. “I feel like I’m in the same boat with them because I’ve been there. I haven’t experienced the horrible things many of them have, but I’ve been in the same boat,” he said.

His co-workers’ passion for caring for Veterans—“from people in the clinic, people in the operating room, people in ancillary services”—is another major draw to working for VA.

“I’m continually impressed by the dedication of the people I work with to provide the best care to Veterans and with each other. They are all passionate about doing the right thing,” he added.

Are you a physician or health care worker considering a career change? We are hiring! To browse our openings, visit VA Pittsburgh Jobs and Careers or USAJOBS VAPHS Openings.