LANSING, Mich. – Highly skilled orthopedic surgeon and Michigan native Alex Gilde, M.D., is University of Michigan Health-Sparrow’s Physician of the Year for 2025.
Richard J. Allen, D.O., of UM Health-Sparrow Westshire Primary Care, was recognized as UM Health-Sparrow Physician Leader of the Year, and Mary E. Jacobs, NP, received the Advanced Practice Provider of the Year Award.
They, along with four others inducted into UM Health-Sparrow’s Physicians Hall of Fame, were honored during a recent celebration dinner.
UM Health-Sparrow is proud to recognize the nearly 600 employed physicians and the more than 1,800 who treat our patients across the U-M Health Regional Network. Their tireless work and unwavering commitment are what allow us to fulfill our promise of providing the highest level of care to people of all ages, close to home.
Gilde, who earned his doctorate degree from Michigan State University’s College of Human Medicine, specializes in total joint hip and knee replacements and serves the greater Lansing and St. Johns communities.
“I’m honored that my patient care for orthopedics and total joint surgery was felt to be worthy of this award,” Gilde said. “I look forward to serving patients to the best of my ability.”
Allen, a family medicine physician, joined UM Health-Sparrow in 2007 and now mentors future physicians as a preceptor. He draws on his osteopathic training when treating patients and lives out those values as an avid runner, youth camp leader and ordained minister.
“As a family practitioner, I am given the privilege every day of working with patients to achieve their health care goals,” said Allen. “To be recognized as having been a leader, to hear I’ve made a difference in their lives, makes it all worthwhile.”
Jacobs, a family nurse practitioner at UM Health-Sparrow’s Lansing Health Center, has given back to the community for more than two decades and UM Health-Sparrow has always been part of her story. She was born at the hospital, her grandmother worked in the cafeteria until her retirement, and now her daughters work and volunteer for the health system.
“I have the best patients and truly enjoy seeing them through both their ups and downs,” Jacobs said. “Health care is a hard profession, but I try to navigate it with my patients through education—making sure they understand their health conditions and medications, have easy access to me when they need it, and, of course, adding in humor when I can.”
Inductees into UM Health-Sparrow’s Physician Hall of Fame can be nominated by colleagues or members of the community. This year’s inductees include:
- Badih Daou, M.D., an outstanding neurosurgeon who is now part of the UM Health-Sparrow/MSU Health Care Neuro Care Network.
- Mark Castellani, M.D., an electrophysiologist who has served patients in Mid-Michigan for nearly 3 decades.
- Frank Takyi, M.D., an outstanding obstetrics and gynecology physician.
- Elizabeth Pelletier, PA-C, a highly skilled physician assistant at UM Health-Sparrow Urology.
To learn more about the distinguished physicians and leading-edge care at UM Health-Sparrow, visit UofMHealthSparrow.org.
University of Michigan Health-Sparrow is Mid-Michigan’s premier health care organization and includes hospitals in Lansing, Carson City, Charlotte, Ionia and St. Johns, as well as UM Health-Sparrow Specialty Hospital, Care Network, the Michigan Athletic Club, and AL!VE. UM Health-Sparrow is part of University of Michigan Health. Through the dedication of our 10,000 team members, UM Health-Sparrow pursues a vision to be nationally recognized as a leader in quality and patient experience. For more information, visit UofMHealthSparrow.org.
