Family medicine physician Salvador Sandoval, M.D., MPH, has been named the 2025 recipient of the California Medical Association’s (CMA) Frederick K.M. Plessner Memorial Award. The award recognizes a California physician who best exemplifies the practice and ethics of a rural county practitioner.
Dr. Sandoval has spent over 45 years providing medical care in Merced, California, and surrounding rural communities in the Central Valley. He is board-certified in Family Medicine and is known for his dedication to serving underserved populations.
His commitment to rural health began with his early experiences working alongside farm workers and observing their limited access to services. “I worked in farm labor in the summers between junior high and high school, and I was interested in health care because of what I saw: people that were hardworking and also didn’t have very many services,” Dr. Sandoval said.
During medical school, he worked at a migrant clinic in Yuba City, which led to research on cardiovascular disease risk factors among male farmworkers and a master’s thesis comparing HIV risk factors between migrant and settled farmworkers.
Throughout his career, Dr. Sandoval has focused on issues such as migrant and farmworker health, pesticide exposure prevention, opiate overdose prevention, and healthcare for unhoused populations. He played a key role in advancing protections for agricultural workers against pesticides and developed programs addressing opioid overdoses.
Dr. Sandoval also served as Medical Director for a local respite clinic that provided transitional care for patients experiencing homelessness. He operated Golden Valley’s Medical Outreach Mobile (MOM) services to reach residents unable to access traditional clinics. In 1992, Merced Family Health Centers recognized him as “Employee of the Year” for his voluntary service and outreach efforts.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Sandoval served as Merced County Public Health Officer. He implemented science-based policies including wastewater surveillance to predict infection surges. “Dr. Sandoval demonstrated calm, informed leadership during an extraordinarily challenging period,” said Yamilet Valladolid, Director of Government and Community at Golden Valley Health Centers. “His guidance and policies protected countless lives and reflected his lifelong commitment to health equity, public well-being, and science-based decision-making.”
Now semi-retired, Dr. Sandoval continues mentoring new physicians through the Family Medicine Residency Program in Merced.
“Dr. Sandoval’s legacy is etched into the very fabric of rural health care in the Central Valley,” said Merced County Department of Public Health Director Kristynn Sullivan. “Titles or accolades do not define his career, but by the thousands of lives he has touched and the countless systems he has helped shape to be more equitable, compassionate, and effective. He has delivered care under bridges, on farms, in shelters, and clinics – always with humility, integrity, and a deep belief in human dignity.”
A video profile about Dr. Sandoval is available from CMA.
