Congratulations to Keith K. Burkhart, MD, FACMT. Dr. Burkhart has shown a dedicated passion for and commitment to the field of medical toxicology throughout his illustrious career. He worked alongside the late Ward Donovan at a medical toxicology service that was a primary contributor to multiple studies, including the Toxicology Investigators Consortium (ToxIC). Additionally, Dr. Burkhart has contributed extensively to ACMT since its founding. He has served as the chair of multiple committees, as ACMT's President (2004-2006), and established JMT's precursor journal, the Internet Journal of Medical Toxicology, which he was also the Editor-in-Chief of. His dedication to medical toxicology research is further highlighted by his 100 publications in addition to many more abstracts and his work as a co-editor for two editions of Critical Care Toxicology: The Diagnosis and Management of the Critically Poisoned Patient. Dr, Burkhart has also worked in the public health sphere as a Distinguished Consultant for the CDC. He currently works at the FDA as a Senior Advisor for Medical Toxicology.

Dr. Burkhart will present the 2024 Career Achievement Address at the 2024 ACMT Annual Scientific Meeting on April 13, 2024. Read his full nomination letter below.

Dear Selection Committee,

I take particular pleasure in nominating Dr. Burkhart for this year’s Career Achievement Award. Since the very formative days of ACMT, Dr. Burkhart has been integral to the activities and development of the organization. Beyond his work on behalf of ACMT, Dr. Burkhart has been a leader in the realms of the development of medical toxicology as a clinical discipline and more recently in the public health domain.

After graduating from his medtox fellowship at the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center, Dr. Burkhart joined the late Ward Donovan (a founding member and one of the first Presidents of the newly formed ACMT) in what, at the time, was one of the most clinically advanced primary admitting medical toxicology services in the United States. That service, which also had a medtox fellowship program, was notable for its large volume and academic productivity. For example, in the first few years of the ACMT ToxIC program, that service was the primary contributor of patients. As an integral study site for the Methyl Pyrazole for Toxic Alcohols (“META”) study, they treated a significant number of methanol poisoned patients with the then experimental drug 4-methyl pyrazole (now fomepizole). Because of the number of methanol poisoned patients they enrolled, Dr. Burkhart was one of the coauthors of the clinical trial on fomepizole for the treatment of methanol poisoning published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Given his extensive experience in the primary bedside management of poisoned patients, Dr. Burkhart was a co-editor of the first and the second edition of Critical Care Toxicology: The Diagnosis and Management of the Critically Poisoned Patient. 

Midcareer, Dr. Burkhart transitioned to public health, first at the CDC, where he held the title of Distinguished Consultant,  and now at the FDA, where he is a Senior Advisor for Medical Toxicology. Cognizant of the important role medical toxicologists play in public health, Dr. Burkhart has been highly instrumental in the development of the multiple contracts that FDA has with ACMT’s Toxicology Investigators Consortium and he serves as the FDA’s Principle Investigator for these studies.       

Dr. Burkhart’s other contributions to ACMT are legion. When the College first formed in 1993, he undertook the role of Chair of the Membership Committee. Later he would become Chair of the Practice and the Publications Committees. In the latter role he established and became Editor-in-Chief of the Internet Journal of Medical Toxicology, the precursor journal to what is now the Journal of Medical Toxicology. In 1996, Dr. Burkhart joined the Board of Directors of the College, becoming Secretary-Treasurer in 2000, Vice-President in 2002, and President of ACMT between 2004 and 2006.

Throughout his professional years, Dr. Burkhart has been and continues to be a prolific author with exactly 100 publications and countless abstracts. This year alone he co-authored a major observational study published in JAMA Network Open and a randomized clinical trial published in JAMA.  His other prior, and continued, activities are well documented on his attached CV.

As years pass, we are at risk of failing to recognize some of those individuals who were instrumental in the initial development of ACMT. Dr. Burkhart clearly fits into this category. This nomination is based on his role in the development of ACMT, the successes of his subsequent career, and his contributions to the field of medical toxicology.

Good luck on your deliberations.

Sincerely,

Jeffrey Brent, MD, PhD
Distinguished Clinical Professor of Medicine and Emergency Medicine
University of Colorado School of Medicine & 
Colorado School of Public Health