College of Medicine Peoria Presents 2025 Alumni Awards, Including Inaugural Early Career Award
Introduction
The University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria presented its annual alumni awards during a reception and awards ceremony on November 13, 2025. Honored were Joel Diamant, MD (UICOMP Class of 1990) who was presented the 2025 Distinguished Alumni Award and Brandon Bleess, MD (UICOMP Class of 2013), the inaugural recipient of the Early Career Achievement Award, presented to a graduate who has earned the medical degree in the past 15 years.
Dr. Joel Diamant completed his residency and served as chief resident in internal medicine at Scripps Clinic in La Jolla, California. He rapidly rose as an educator and leader through the ranks as internal medicine residency program coordinator, division head of Hospital Medicine and Chair of the Medical Ethics Committee. Today, he remains at that same institution where he serves as President and Chief Executive.
Following residency, he rapidly rose through the ranks as an educator and leader, serving for 19 years as Director of the Internal Medicine Residency Program, where he earned widespread recognition for fostering academic excellence and mentorship. He also served as the inaugural Division Head of Hospital Medicine and held numerous leadership roles, including Chair of the Medical Ethics Committee and Physician Leadership Evaluation Committee. A nationally respected clinician-educator and a strong advocate for evidence-based practice, Dr. Diamant has lectured widely and served as principal investigator for groundbreaking translational research initiatives that continue to shape the field of internal medicine.
His professional achievements and his unwavering commitment to teaching and mentorship have earned him some of the highest honors, including a Master of the American College of Physicians and recipient of the prestigious Jane F. Desforges Distinguished Teacher Award.
This year’s winner of the Early Career Achievement Award is Dr. Brandon Bleess who, following medical school remained in Peoria for emergency medicine residency, and in 2016, served as chief resident. Dr. Bleess now serves as clinical assistant professor of emergency medicine and director of prehospital and disaster education at UICOMP and OSF Saint Francis Medical Center.
A respected leader in emergency and prehospital medicine, he has advanced resident education and emergency response systems across central Illinois. He has served as medical director of OSF Life Flight since 2018 and has a heart for service by providing medical oversight for the Greater Peoria Honor Flight, guiding 17 missions for veterans traveling to Washington DC.
Board certified in both Emergency Medicine and Emergency Medical Services, Dr. Bleess is a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians, the American Academy of Emergency Medicine, and the Academy of Emergency Medical Services.