UMSOP Faculty Member Honored with National Baldrige Foundation Leadership Award
National recognition highlights Mullins’ leadership in advancing patient-centered health care, health equity, and performance excellence.
By Pam Carder
April 6, 2026
Daniel Mullins, fifth from left, pictured along with the other Baldrige Foundation award recipients.
C. Daniel Mullins, PhD, professor in the Department of Practice, Sciences, and Health Outcomes Research and executive director of the PATIENTS Program at theUniversity of Maryland School of Pharmacy (UMSOP), has been named a 2026 recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige Foundation National Quality Leadership Excellence Award in the health care sector.
The annual leadership awards recognize individuals who exemplify the values and principles of the Baldrige Framework, a nationally respected model for organizational excellence, performance improvement, and innovation.
“Baldrige helps thousands of organizations across the country and around the world, in all sectors of the economy, pursue performance excellence, which in turn makes a positive difference in people’s lives,” said Josh Racette, president and CEO of the Foundation for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Inc. The foundation’s leadership awards honors individuals who demonstrate sustained impact within their organizations, communities, and sectors.
Mullins was recognized alongside distinguished leaders from health care, education, business, government, nonprofit, cybersecurity, and community organizations nationwide. His selection reflects his decades long career focused on improving health outcomes by advancing patient-centered research, health equity, and systems-level change.
“Dr. Mullins is a leader who has reshaped how we think about the role of patients and communities in health care research,” said Sarah L.J. Michel, PhD, dean and professor of pharmaceutical sciences at UMSOP. “Through his scholarship, mentorship and service, he has advanced a model of research that is both rigorous and deeply human.”
“I am deeply honored to receive this recognition from the Baldrige Foundation,” Mullins said. “The Baldrige Framework has long emphasized the importance of listening to patients, engaging diverse stakeholders, and using evidence to drive meaningful improvement. This award reflects the collaborative work of colleagues, partners, and patients who share a commitment to strengthening health systems and improving health outcomes.”
As founder and leader of the PATIENTS Program, Mullins has redefined how health care research is designed and conducted by ensuring patients, caregivers, and community members are engaged as equal partners rather than passive participants. The program has become a national model for meaningful stakeholder engagement, influencing how researchers, clinicians, and policymakers collaborate to improve the quality, value, and equity of care.
According to his nomination materials, Mullins’ leadership “turns inclusion into empowerment,” redefining clinical research by centering trust, ethics, and community voice. His work reflects a systems perspective that bridges academia, industry, and community organizations while building durable partnerships with communities historically excluded from research.
That commitment was especially visible during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Mullins leveraged long-standing community and industry relationships to help establish testing and vaccination clinics in under-resourced West Baltimore neighborhoods. Working alongside faith-based and community organizations, his efforts brought life-saving resources directly to communities facing significant barriers to access.
Mullins’ leadership also extends to education and mentorship. Through initiatives such as the PATIENTS Program Academy, he has trained researchers, patients, and stakeholders in principles of equity, diversity, and patient-centeredness, while mentoring generations of minority doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows who now carry this work forward in their own communities.
The Baldrige Foundation’s leadership awards were presented during the Foundation Awards Luncheon at the annual Quest for Excellence Conference in March in Baltimore.
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