





































       V38 N3 / 2023 

©2023 American Medical Writers Association. All rights reserved.  
ISSN 2163-5315

AMWAJournal.org     42

The Golden Apple Award is given to an AMWA member in 
recognition of their consistent and outstanding excellence in 
leading AMWA workshops. 

This year’s Golden Apple recipient is Hope Lafferty, AM, ELS. 
Hope joined AMWA in 2003 and has been leading work-
shops, roundtables, and hands-on intensives since 2009. She 
has taught 14 workshop sessions spanning 3 workshop cur-
ricula for AMWA. Participants in her workshops consistently 
give Hope high ratings and excellent feedback. 

 Hope’s involvement in AMWA is truly on a national 
scale. Beyond her national conference workshop leadership, 
she’s served 2 terms as the annual conference workshop 
coordinator and participated in the education committee. 
She also has been a member of at least 5 chapters, and in 
chapters where she wasn’t a member, she has led work-
shops and talks at AMWA chapter events. 
 Her dedication to learning, teaching, and growth is evi-
dent in her career path and contributions. Hope received 
her certificate in medical writing and editing from the 
University of Chicago—where she also received her mas-
ter’s degree specializing in group psychotherapy and cog-
nitive-behavioral therapy. She is a past president of the 
Board of Editors in the Life Sciences and has served on the 
editorial board of the last 2 iterations of the AMA Manual of 
Style. Hope is a faculty member of the medical writing certif-
icate program at the University of California, San Diego. The 

bulk of her medical communication work centers on the 
academic and research space—with 100% of the grants on 
which she worked receiving fundable scores. 
 In 2015, Hope made a career pivot by stepping out 
from behind the desk to teach communication skills, sci-
entific writing, public speaking, and leadership. In 2016, 
she received her training certificate from the Association 
for Talent Development. In 2020, Hope completed the 
Habit Finder coaching program, which is the founda-
tional work behind this year’s AMWA Medical Writing & 
Communication Conference intensive, “How to Think Like 
a Leader.” Hope also holds instructor member status at the 
Robert S. Hartman Institute, a nonprofit that focuses on 
value theory, which is the math and science behind the 
Habit Finder assessment and Hope’s work as a coach.
Hope made another career pivot—from writer and coach 
to playwright and performer—which led her to enroll in the 
Professional Training Program at the Dell’Arte International 
School of Physical Theatre at the age of 57. In 2019, Hope 
qualified to join the Dramatists Guild of America, the lead 
professional organization for playwrights and lyricists, and 
is an individual member of the American Association of 
Community Theatre. She is currently touring 2 solo shows 
across North America. 
 Please join AMWA in congratulating Hope as she 
receives her award this fall at the Medical Writing & 
Communication Conference in Baltimore, MD. 

The Member Awards Recognition Committee members 
were Abbie Miller, MWC (chair); Loretta Bohn, ELS (Board 
of Directors liaison); Elizabeth Brown, MS, PMP; Joanne 
McAndrews, PhD; Christina Barnes, MSN, RN, CPNP-PC; 
Jerm-Day Storms, PhD, MWC; and Susan Aiello, DVM, ELS. 
Diane Noland served as staff liaison, and Susan Krug, MS, 
CAE, served as ex officio. 

Author declaration and disclosures: The author notes no  
commercial associations that may pose a conflict of interest in 
relation to this article.

Author contact: Abbie.Roth@NationwideChildrens.org

2023 Golden Apple Award Recipient
Hope Lafferty, AM, ELS

AMWA NEWS

Abbie Miller, MWC / 2022-2023 Chair, Member Awards Recognition Committee

http://www.amwajournal.org



