FAQs: Frequently asked questions (Physician-focused)

Northwell Health Physician Partners (Physician Partners) is the medical group of Northwell Health, representing more than 7,300 employed physicians. Physician Partners is the largest group practice in New York State, representing over 100 specialties, practicing in all 28 hospitals and 1,050+ ambulatory care locations throughout Northwell Health. For more information about Physician Partners, please visit www.northwell.edu/physician-partners.  

All Northwell and Nuvance employed physicians are eligible for five of the six Truly Awards:

• Truly Caring Touch Award, Truly Rising Star Award, Truly Leadership Award, Truly Mentorship Award, and Truly Inclusive Award. 

Eligible for the Truly Outstanding Contribution Award: 

• Northwell voluntary physicians only, those who are part of Northwell’s credentialed medical staff, but not employed by Northwell. 

Not eligible for any Truly Award: 

• Residents and fellows
• Nuvance voluntary physicians 
• Allied health providers or advanced practice providers, including nurse practitioners and physician assistants 
• Physicians who hold a specific leadership title have been excluded from eligibility including any Senior Vice President, Executive Director, Service Line Chair, Medical School Chair and Physician System Executives such as the Physician-In-Chief and Chief Medical Officer.

Northwell is committed to continually evolving and expanding our comprehensive recognition framework, with the goal of celebrating the extraordinary contributions of all team members. While these groups are not included in the current program’s eligibility, there are other system-wide programs that celebrate team members across all roles.

For more information on The Truly Awards for nurses, please visit their dedicated FAQ page.  

The information within this FAQ is specific to the physician Truly Awards program.  

In the search box, type the first few letters of the physician's first or last name. This will return a list of eligible physician matches. Only eligible physicians will appear in these search results for you to select and nominate. 

If you would like to check on the eligibility of a physician, please email TrulyAwards@northwell.edu.  

Northwell Health Physician Partners created The Truly Awards to inspire all Northwell Health team members to recognize the physicians of Northwell Health. Working alongside us, their courage and determination inspire and change the lives of their patients, colleagues and communities. With The Truly Awards, we’ll celebrate our physicians for their positive impact on our lives. In 2024, the program expanded to include registered nurses who bring our values to life.   

You can also nominate and vote for one nurse who you believe deserves a Truly Award in each of the six nurse award categories. Visit the nurse Truly Awards page to nominate. 

The Truly Awards is designed to align with the Northwell Health values; Truly Compassionate, Truly Innovative, Truly Ambitious, Truly Together and Truly Inclusive. Our values help guide how we act, and they inspire us to bring our best selves to work every day. The Truly Awards aim to honor physicians who embody these values. The Truly Awards also includes voluntary physicians who are part of the Northwell credentialed medical staff, helping us recognize all the physicians who work alongside us. 

All Northwell Health team members and physicians: You can nominate using your Northwell universal ID and password. 

All Nuvance Health team members and physicians can nominate both Northwell and Nuvance employed physicians using your Nuvance email. 

Please Note: Physicians cannot self-nominate. 

Nuvance Team Members: How to log in and nominate (Magic Link process) 

1. Nuvance team members will use a "Magic Link" to access the nomination site: 
2. Go to the Nominate Now page on TrulyAwards.northwell.edu.  
3. Click the "Nuvance Login" button. 
4. Enter your Nuvance email address and click "Send Magic Link." 
5. Check your email for a passwordless login link. 
6. Click the link in the email. This will take you back to the Nominate Now page, where you can begin your nominations. 

If for some reason, you receive an error message, contact TrulyAwards@northwell.edu. 

Beginning Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, all Northwell and Nuvance team members and physicians can nominate physicians and nurses for one or more of the six Truly Awards. The nomination phase will be open through Friday, Oct. 24, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. ET.  

• Northwell and Nuvance employed physicians and dentists and Northwell voluntary physicians are eligible for a nomination (see Nomination Criteria section for details). Nominations can only be submitted through The Truly Awards website at TrulyAwards.northwell.edu. Select Nominate Now from the navigation to begin your nomination.  
• An HR review will occur throughout the nomination phase to ensure nominees meet the criteria for eligibility and good standing. All nominations will be reviewed by the Physician Scoring Panel, which includes physicians who are members of the Northwell Health Physician Partners Physician Engagement Committee, Northwell voluntary physicians and Nuvance employed physicians. 
• After the Physician Scoring Panel, the top-ranked nominations will be reviewed by an Initial Selection Committee, which includes members of the Northwell Health Physician Partners Executive Committee, the Physician Partners Governance Committee Chairs, Regional Physician Leadership, Medical Directors, and other designated reviewers to determine the finalists. 
• The selection process will continue until early November 2025. At that time, we will identify our 30 finalists. Those finalists will move forward to the voting phase, where team members and physicians can cast their votes for one physician to receive an award in each of the six award categories. 

All Northwell and Nuvance team members and physicians will be invited to vote beginning Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, through Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. Voting will take place on The Truly Awards website at TrulyAwards.northwell.edu. 

• A Final Selection Committee will be engaged until early March 2026, to determine the award recipients. The Final Selection Committee is representative of select senior executives throughout Northwell Health and Nuvance. Voting results will be a factor in helping determine the six Truly Awards recipients. 

The nomination and voting phases for The Truly Awards is the same for both physicians and nurses. You can submit nominations and cast your votes for both groups simultaneously. For more information about The Truly Awards for nurses, please visit their dedicated FAQ page.  

The Truly Awards are awarded based on the voice of Northwell Health team members and physicians, whereas the Patients’ Choice Award is based on the voice of our patients. The Northwell Health Physician Partners (NHPP) Patients’ Choice Award is awarded to any NHPP physician who scores five stars on their Patient Satisfaction rating for an extended period. To be eligible for the Patients’ Choice Award, physicians and dentists are required to see patients at least 50% of their time. Recipients of the Patients’ Choice Award and The Truly Awards are honored during The Truly Awards celebration phase.

The Dr. Lawrence Smith Lifetime Achievement Award honors a Northwell Health Physician Partner leader who embodies Dr. Smith’s commitment to clinical excellence, education, mentorship, and the promotion of inclusion. This extraordinary physician has illustrious accomplishments in the medical field over a significant term of service and a career that is an example for others. Members of the Board of Governors, Hospital Medical Directors and Executive Directors and other medical group leaders nominate potential recipients of this award. The Selection Committee then determines the award recipients. The Selection Committee is representative of select senior executives throughout Northwell Health. The recipient will be honored during The Truly Awards celebration phase.

The Distinguished Physician Award honors a Northwell Health Physician Partner leader whose expertise, visionary thinking and extraordinary impact have propelled teams forward and contributed to Northwell's reputational excellence both locally and nationally. Members of the Board of Governors, Hospital Medical Directors and Executive Directors and other medical group leaders nominate potential recipients of this award. The Selection Committee then determines the award recipients. The Selection Committee is representative of select senior executives throughout Northwell Health. The recipient will be honored during The Truly Awards celebration phase. 

As a Truly Awards Ambassador, you play a vital role in championing this important program and encouraging participation. Empower yourself with resources designed to help you spread the word and inspire your colleagues to nominate and vote for deserving physicians. Download the Truly Awards Ambassador Toolkit to get started. Have questions? Contact TrulyAwards@northwell.edu. 

You may nominate an eligible physician or dentist who has been honored in the past.  

To be eligible for the Truly Caring Touch Award, Truly Rising Star Award, Truly Leadership Award, Truly Mentorship Award and The Truly Inclusive Award, physicians and dentists of Northwell Health and Nuvance must meet the following criteria: 

• Be an active employed physician of Northwell Health or Nuvance Health (with an MD, DO, MBBS, DDS or DMD degree.  
• Employed by Northwell Health or Nuvance Health on or before July 1, 2025. 
• Be in good standing as determined by the Service Line leaders, Human Resources and Northwell and Nuvance Compliance Office. 

Physicians who hold a specific leadership title have been excluded from eligibility including any Senior Vice President, Executive Director, Service Line Chair, Medical School Chair and Physician System Executives such as the Physician-In-Chief and Chief Medical Officer.  

The following titles are eligible for nomination: Medical Director, Vice President, Associate Medical Director, Hospital Chief Medical Officer, Chief Medical Information Officer and any local Chair of a facility or clinical service. 

The Rising Star Award includes one additional exclusion: The physician or dentist must have fewer than ten years of clinical practice experience. This will be measured by the individual’s New York State and/or Connecticut State license issue date, which must be issued on or after July 1, 2015.  

To be eligible for the Truly Outstanding Contribution Award, physicians and dentists of Northwell Health must meet the following criteria:  

• Be a voluntary doctor or dentist with an MD, DO, MBBS, DDS or DMD degree.  
• Please note, Nuvance voluntary physicians are not currently eligible for nomination, but we are committed to exploring their inclusion in future years.  
• Credentialed by Northwell Health and active as of July 1, 2025. 
• Be in good standing as determined by the Service Line leaders, Medical Directors, and Northwell Central Medical Staff Services Office. 

Other eligibility details to note:  

• Northwell and Nuvance registered nurses are eligible for nomination under The Truly Awards for nurses. For more information on The Truly Awards for nurses, please visit their dedicated FAQ page. 
• Northwell Health Physician Partners allied health providers or advanced practice providers such as nurse practitioners, physician assistants, residents and fellows, are not currently eligible. 

Northwell is committed to continually evolving and expanding our comprehensive recognition framework, with the goal of celebrating the extraordinary contributions of all team members. While these groups are not included in the current program’s eligibility, there are other system-wide programs that celebrate team members across all roles.

Northwell Health and Nuvance physicians and dentists should possess attributes that align with the award for which they are nominated, and those attributes must be documented in the nomination submission. Nominators should provide specific examples to demonstrate the attributes of the person they are nominating. Read below for the award descriptions and attributes.  

Truly Caring Touch Award  

Award description: This employed physician embodies compassion and kindness and has exceptional bedside manner, reflecting the deep caring that is the essence of doctoring. 

Attributes: 

• Builds extraordinary connections with patients. 
• Embodies compassion and shows great care and respect for patients, team members, caregivers and communities. 
• Excels in the art of medicine and prioritizes the well-being and care of patients. 

Truly Rising Star Award 

Award description: This employed physician, while relatively new to medicine, demonstrates a growth mindset and has made advancements in education, research or healthcare delivery. 

Attributes: 

• Is an innovative solution seeker and embraces additional responsibilities and growth. 
• Has an open mind and demonstrates great promise in the advancement of healthcare. 
• Significantly contributes to education, research or healthcare delivery by always looking for new ways to improve the field of medicine. 

Truly Leadership Award 

Award description: This employed physician has the desire and ability to embrace change, push boundaries and inspire colleagues and teams to make healthcare better. 

Attributes: 

• Has demonstrated meaningful accomplishments leading others formally or informally to support Northwell’s growth and advance its mission. 
• Sees the big picture, is visionary and inspirational, empowering colleagues to realize their strengths to contribute to the advancement of healthcare. 
• Creates and effectively communicates a vision for improvements in medicine and how it can be provided to patients and the community. 

Truly Mentorship Award 

Award description: This employed physician selflessly gives time, energy and support to help colleagues and others recognize their potential and work together to achieve greatness. 

Attributes:  

• Understands the power of togetherness and proactively offers time, energy and support to lift colleagues and others to their full potential. 
• Builds trusting teams, unity and connection, while coaching colleagues and others in a caring manner without any expectation of recognition. 
• Constructively guides colleagues and others through their work challenges toward one collective mission. 

Truly Inclusive Award  

Award description: This employed physician is a passionate advocate for fostering an inclusive environment, actively advancing high-quality care by addressing the unique needs of each individual patient. 

Attributes: 

• Fosters a culture of inclusion, values everyone’s backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives and supports the growth of colleagues, team members and trainees. 
• Demonstrates exceptional commitment to address the unique and individual needs of their patients. 
•  Seeks innovative approaches to enhance healthcare for all and actively support community-based health programs. 

Truly Outstanding Contribution Award  

Award description: This Northwell voluntary physician has made an outstanding contribution to Northwell and the communities we serve. Please note Nuvance voluntary physicians are not eligible to be nominated at this time.  

Attributes: 

• Promotes a compassionate patient experience and demonstrates collaboration working alongside fellow clinicians and team members. 
• Embodies and is committed to our values. 
• Makes an outstanding contribution to the communities we serve through the advancement of education, effective leadership and exemplary service. 

All Northwell and Nuvance team members and physicians can nominate one or more physicians for each award. You cannot nominate a physician more than once for the same award but you can nominate the same physician for two or more different awards (where applicable). Please note, Northwell voluntary physicians are only eligible for one award, the Truly Outstanding Contribution Award.  

Yes, you may also nominate the same physician. 

Yes, recipients of the Patients’ Choice Award may be nominated for and be recipients of The Truly Awards.  

Double-check that you have searched for the individual correctly. Follow the exact search naming convention described above the search box. Search for a physician by entering only the physician’s first name or last name. Start typing the first few letters of the physician’s first name or last name, and then a list of physicians with the closest match will appear. Scroll through the list and select the physician you would like to nominate. You may need to wait a moment for the list of physician matches to appear. Read all the instructions on the nomination form carefully.  

If the physician you are trying to nominate is not appearing in the search, they may not be an active employed physician, or they do not meet the criteria. Remember, only Northwell voluntary physicians are eligible for the Truly Outstanding Contribution Award, while employed physicians are eligible for the other five awards. 

See the nomination criteria under “Who can be nominated?” for more information or contact TrulyAwards@northwell.edu for help with your search.

You can find an eligible physician or dentist of Northwell Health and Nuvance by searching for his or her name within the nomination form. Once a physician is selected in the search, the eligible awards will appear in the awards drop-down menu. If you would like assistance to determine eligibility or do not see the name of a specific physician or dentist, please email TrulyAwards@northwell.edu and a member of the Physician Partners Administrative Team will respond in one to two business days. 

Yes, you can save your nomination and return to it later. Here’s how it works: Automatic saving, the system will save your progress every five minutes. Any time you begin a new nomination, it is automatically saved as a draft. For security, you will be logged out after 30 minutes of inactivity. We recommend saving your work manually to avoid losing recent changes.  

To find your save nominations: Go to “My Account” (found at the top of the menu page), navigate to “My Nominations,” look under the “In progress.” Tab to find your saved drafts.  

You will receive both an on-screen confirmation message and a confirmation email in your Northwell Health or Nuvance Health inbox immediately after submitting.  

Nominated physicians will be notified of their nomination after the nomination phase has ended. Additionally, a copy of the nomination will be mailed to every nominated physician.  

All nominated physicians receive multiple levels of recognition to highlight their extraordinary efforts and positive impact. These include organization-wide and leadership announcements, participation at The Truly Awards celebration event and a certificate, plaque or crystal. At the hospital, practice, regional and service line level, local recognition activities will include department communications and acknowledgements in honor of all nominated physicians.  

Voting will take place on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, through Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. ET.  

All Northwell and Nuvance team members and physicians are eligible to vote for The Truly Awards. This includes Nuvance team members voting for both Northwell and Nuvance employed physicians.  

Nuvance Team Members: How to log in and vote (Magic Link process) 

Nuvance team members will use a "Magic Link" to access the vote site: 

1. Go to the Vote Now page on TrulyAwards.northwell.edu.
2. Click the "Nuvance Login" button. 
3. Enter your Nuvance email address and click "Send Magic Link." 
4. Check your email for a passwordless login link. 
5. Click the link in the email. This will take you back to the Nominate Now page, where you can begin voting. 

If for some reason, you receive an error message, contact TrulyAwards@northwell.edu.  

Read the nominator’s story about each finalist. Consider how well the finalist’s attributes, as explained in the story, meet the award category criteria for which the finalist was nominated. Then cast your vote for the physician you feel best deserves to be recognized with a Truly Award. Vote for one physician for each award category. Each team member or physician can cast six total votes: one vote in each of the six award categories. You can also cast your votes for nurses by visiting TrulyAwards.northwell.edu. 

You may only vote for one finalist in each of the six physician award categories. You cannot vote for a finalist more than once within one award category. Once you have completed your physician voting, click here to vote for the nurse finalists.  

Yes, you may encourage team members and physicians to vote for the physician you nominated.

You can submit your votes during one or more sessions until Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. ET when voting officially closes. Once a vote is submitted, it is final. 

Once a vote is submitted, it is final and cannot be changed.  

All votes are automatically captured after you place them. You will see a confirmation on the screen after each vote. 

There are five finalists for each physician award category, a total of 30 physician finalists.  

First, all nominations are reviewed by the Physician Scoring Panel, which includes physicians who are members of the Northwell Health Physician Partners Physician Engagement Committee, Northwell voluntary physicians and Nuvance employed physicians. Each nomination is reviewed and scored using a rating scale based on how well the nominee meets the award attributes. Every nomination is scored by multiple judges. The more specific and detailed the nomination story is with examples of how the nominee meets the award criteria, the better the chance of the nomination scoring higher. After the Physician Scoring Panel, the top-scored nominations are reviewed by an Initial Selection Committee including members of the Northwell Health Physician Partners Executive Committee, the Physician Partners Governance Committee Chairs, Regional Physician Leadership, Medical Directors, and other designated reviewers to determine the finalists. The Initial Selection Committee selects finalists for each award category based on the nomination stories submitted by Northwell Health team members and physicians during the nomination phase from Sept. 25, 2025, through Oct. 24, 2025.  

Following the Northwell Health and Nuvance Health team member and physician voting period, a final selection committee will consider the vote results and determine the award recipients.  

The six physician award recipients (one for each of the six award categories) will be announced system-wide in the spring of 2026.  

For the best user experience, use Google Chrome. If you are unable to view the site, contact TrulyAwards@northwell.edu.  

Questions about The Truly Awards or experiencing technical issues, contact  TrulyAwards@northwell.edu.  

The Truly Awards app icon is available to Northwell team members as an easy way to access The Truly Awards website on your desktop. Don’t have the app? Northwell team members can contact IT for support at TechConnect. (Nuvance team members do not have access at this time, but we are looking to update in the future.)  

Double-check that you have searched for the individual correctly. Follow the exact search naming convention described above the search box. Search for a physician by entering only the physician’s first name or last name. Start typing the first few letters of the physician’s first name or last name, and a list of physicians with the closest match will appear. Scroll through the list and select the physician you would like to nominate. You may need to wait a moment for the list of physician matches to appear. Read all the instructions on the nomination form carefully.  

If the physicians you are trying to nominate do not appear in the search, they may not be an active employed or credentialed physician, or they do not meet the eligibility criteria. Remember, only Northwell voluntary physicians are eligible for the Truly Outstanding Contribution Award – employed physicians are eligible for the other five awards. 

See the nomination criteria under “Who can be nominated?” for more information or contact TrulyAwards@northwell.edu for help with your search.

Use your Northwell Health credentials to log in. Users can only log into The Truly Awards website with their Northwell Health email/user id and password (Northwell credentials). Still having difficulty? Contact IT for support at TechConnect. 

For Nuvance team members, use your Nuvance email address to log in. If for some reason, you receive an error message, contact TrulyAwards@northwell.edu.  

Yes, you can save your nomination and submit it later. We encourage you to save your nomination frequently. The site will save your work every five minutes but will log you out after 30 minutes of inactivity. You may find your saved nominations at “My Account” > “My Nominations” > “In progress.” Each time a nomination form is started it will automatically save to your account. 

Nuvance team members can nominate/vote for Northwell employed and voluntary physicians or Nuvance employed physicians. For Nuvance team members to access the site, they must follow these steps:  

Nuvance Team Members: How to log in and nominate (Magic Link process) 
Nuvance team members will use a "Magic Link" to access the nomination site: 

1. Go to the Nominate/Vote Now page on TrulyAwards.northwell.edu.
2. Click the "Nuvance Login" button. 
3. Enter your Nuvance email address and click "Send Magic Link." 
4. Check your email for a passwordless login link. 
5. Click the link in the email. This will take you back to the Nominate/Vote Now page, where you can begin your nominations or votes. 

If for some reason, you receive an error message, contact TrulyAwards@northwell.edu.