April 23, 2024 by matray

The Medical Professional Liability (MPL) Association announced that Carl T. Hook, MD, will receive the 2024 Award of Excellence in Honor of Peter Sweetland. Dr. Hook is being honored for his outstanding contributions and longtime dedication to the MPL insurance community, the MPL Association and healthcare professionals. The MPL Association is the leading international organization representing the medical professional liability insurance community.

Dr. Hook, a PLICO insured since the 1980s, joined the PLICO Board of Directors in 2001, while continuing to practice full-time as an ENT physician. In 2004, when it became evident that PLICO was in severe financial difficulty, Dr. Hook answered his Board's call to be CEO & President with the charge to help save the organization. He retired from medicine, dedicated himself to learning the business of medical professional liability insurance and restored PLICO to sound financial footing. Throughout these many decades, Dr. Hook was an exceptionally active participant in first the Physician Insurers Association of America (PIAA), and then the MPL Association, having served for many years on the Membership & By-laws Committee and on the Activities Committee.

Dr. Hook is a native Oklahoman and obtained all of his education and training in his home state. He holds an undergraduate degree from Southwestern Oklahoma State University, an MD degree from the University of Oklahoma, and received his Otorhinolaryngology training at Oklahoma University Health Sciences Center.

“Through grit, will, and commitment, Dr. Hook turned PLICO around and positioned it for long-term success,” said MedPro Group CEO Tim Kenesey. “Dr. Hook's passion for medicine, for his policyholders, for PLICO, and for his people make him not only a great leader, but well-deserving of this Award of Excellence. And I'd add that he is also a kind, good man—a friend to colleagues and competitors alike.”

MPL Association Board Chair John H. Mize, President & CEO, SVMIC, said, “Dr. Hook is truly an exemplary member of the medical profession and of the MPL community. We are very pleased to honor him for his extraordinary commitment to the physician community, the MPL industry, and this Association. We are grateful for his remarkable dedication of time and energy over the years to support this organization.”

The award will be presented to Dr. Hook on May 9 at the MPL Association Conference held in Washington, D.C.

The MPL Association Award of Excellence in Honor of Peter Sweetland, established in 1993 by the MPL Association’s Board of Directors, was created in honor of the late Peter Sweetland, one of the Association’s chief architects and most fervent supporters. The award recognizes an individual who has provided exemplary service to the industry and to