Community Clinician Award

2026 Community Clinician Awardee

Mark J. Dougherty, MD

Mark J. Dougherty, MD, who founded Lexington Infectious Disease Consultants in 1990 and remains its managing partner, is an outstanding infectious diseases physician in the central Kentucky area and a well-known resource in the local medical community. Dr.  Dougherty, who also serves as the hospital epidemiologist at Baptist Health Lexington and is co-director of that facility’s antimicrobial stewardship service, assists many local physicians in diagnosing and managing highly complex medical conditions across a variety of care settings.   

With a reputation for relentless attention to detail, Dr. Dougherty goes above and beyond to care for patients and improve the health of his community. Recognizing the critical role ID specialists play in care transitions and hospital avoidance, he developed a comprehensive acute outpatient treatment program that has enabled thousands of patients with serious infections to receive advanced therapies in outpatient clinics or at home, avoiding hospitalization when appropriate. He has shared this successful model nationally through lectures and educational programs sponsored by IDSA and other organizations, helping physicians establish similar programs in their own communities.   

Dr. Dougherty is an advocate for fair reimbursement for ID providers and has fostered collaborative partnerships with hospitals and health insurance organizations to implement innovative strategies that enhance quality of care while lowering health care costs.   

Under his guidance, LIDC has grown into a thriving 15-provider, independent practice serving as a tertiary referral center for infectious diseases. LIDC features a dedicated outpatient antibiotic infusion center that operates daily, an outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy program and vascular access nurses to place peripherally inserted central catheters in area hospitals.   

Shortly after founding his practice, Dr. Dougherty established a mentorship program designed to provide aspiring health care professionals with clinical experience. He leads a monthly city-wide ID conference attended by physicians, pharmacists and microbiology professionals from nearby hospital systems.   

An active clinical investigator, Dr. Dougherty has participated in several clinical trials evaluating vaccines and therapeutics for a broad range of infectious diseases, including COVID-19, Staphylococcus aureus, Clostridioides difficile, atypical mycobacterial infections and HIV.  

Dr. Dougherty has been an active member of IDSA since 1986, serving on the Clinical Affairs Committee from 2001 to 2006. He has devoted significant time to humanitarian work, serving impoverished communities in Argentina and India. Through rural medical clinics, he has helped provide health care education, vaccination initiatives, treatment of acute and chronic illnesses, and dental care to underserved populations. He has also participated in humanitarian work in South Africa.  

IDSA is proud to present Dr. Dougherty with the 2026 Community Clinician Award for his extensive work to improve ID patient care in his community.   

Past Award Winners 

2025 - Kent Stock, DO, MBA, FIDSA