We are thrilled to announce the winners of the inaugural AGA-Pfizer Beacon of Hope Awards for Gender and Health Equity. This prestigious award recognizes three outstanding women in the field of gastroenterology who have made significant contributions to advancing gender and health equity for patients and healthcare providers.
These impressive individuals will be celebrated during the Annual Women in GI Luncheon at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW), which in 2025 will be named the AGA Beacons of Hope Women’s Luncheon.
Meet the recipients
Pascale M. White, MD, MBA, MS
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Pascale White, MD, MBA, MS, FACG, is an associate professor of medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, with dual appointments in the divisions of gastroenterology and liver diseases. She previously served as director of the gastroenterology clinic for seven years, where she led clinical operations and advanced patient care. In 2018, Dr. White launched the Direct Access GI Clinic (DAGIC), significantly reducing wait times and improving endoscopic care coordination for underserved, high-risk patients.
A passionate advocate for health equity, Dr. White currently serves as the inaugural director of Health Equity in Action for Liver and Digestive Diseases (HEALD) where she leads innovative efforts to expand access to care and address screening disparities. In 2024, she was selected as an inaugural fellow of the United Hospital Fund’s Health Equity Fellowship. Through this fellowship, Dr. White collaborates with an East Harlem community-based health center to develop culturally tailored education, bilingual tools, and patient-centered strategies aimed at improving colorectal and hepatitis C screening rates.
Dr. White co-authored the American College of Gastroenterology’s colorectal cancer screening guidelines for African Americans and has published widely on barriers to screening and diversity in medicine. She is also a co-founder of the Association of Black Gastroenterologists and Hepatologists (ABGH), a nonprofit committed to promoting health equity in Black communities, advancing scientific excellence, and mentoring the next generation of digestive disease physicians.
Amy L. Stewart, MSN, FNP-C
Capital Digestive Care
Amy L. Stewart, MSN, FNP-C, is the lead advanced practice provider for her division at Capital Digestive Care in Washington, DC. Amy sees all general GI patients, with subspecialties in anal cancer screening/anal HPV, IBD, IBS, and weight inclusive care. She is certified in high resolution anoscopy through the ANCHOR study, is a member of the Guideline Implementation Task Force of the International Anal Neoplasia Society (IANS) and speaks nationally about anal HPV, anorectal STIs, and IBD. She is the vice chair of the APP committee at the American College of Gastroenterology, leads the new mentoring subcommittee, and is on the education committee for Gastroenterology & Hepatology Advanced Practice Providers (GHAPP). Amy is passionate about patient-centered and inclusive care for every body (space intentional) along with empowering APPs in GI.
Sonali Paul, MD, MS, AGAF
University of Chicago
Sonali Paul, MD, MS, AGAF, is associate professor of medicine in the section of gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition at the University of Chicago. While establishing her academic and clinical niches in steatotic liver disease and obesity medicine as a transplant hepatologist, Dr. Paul has been working on her other passion to promote health care equity, particularly in the LGBTQI+ population. She is the co-founder and executive director of Rainbows in Gastro, a non-profit organization that brings LGBTQI+ medical trainees and physicians together. This organization is guided by the mission statement of CHARM: community, healing, advocacy, research, mentorship. Dr. Paul is also associate vice-chair of diversity, equity, and inclusion for the department of medicine and associate program director in the internal medicine residency program, specifically dedicated to DEI efforts.
