Erin Blanchard, Ph.D., MSN, R.N., CHSE, CMQ, led researchers from the UAB Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine who attended this year's International Meeting for Simulation in Healthcare in Orlando, Florida. While there, she presented a poster titled "Effects of Interprofessional Pain Medicine Simulation on Confidence and Knowledge Acquisition," co-authored by Peter Nagi, M.D.; Alethia Sellers, M.D.; Charity Morgan, Ph.D.; and Donnie Thomas, M.D.

Thank you to the UAB Heersink School of Medicine faculty, Prentiss Lawson, M.D.,  Tom Moore, M.D., Matt Sherrer, M.D., MBA, FASA, and Mark Trankina, M.D., who presented excellent talks at the Annual UAB Winter Anesthesiology and Acute Care of the Surgical Patient Conference.  They represented UAB well in a conference with speakers from Mayo Clinic, University of Florida, Mass General, University of Tennessee, and Yale.

Drawing Inspiration from a Legacy

In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, we sat down with Alethia Sellers, M.D., C.M.Q., to discuss what it is like to be an African American in medicine. 

Alethia Sellers, M.D., C.M.Q., Associate Professor at the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, has a life and career shaped by extraordinary African Americans.

Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine have uncovered a pathophysiological mechanism of chronic pain-induced depression and provided a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of chronic pain-induced mood disorders.

Please join us in welcoming Lingyong Li, Ph.D., to the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine as an Associate Professor. Dr. Li joins our department from Baylor University where he served as an Assistant Professor and Principal Investigator.

If you’re in the UAB Heersink Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, you’ve probably heard about the platform called Sickbay; a high-resolution device integration used for data capture and analysis.

Sadis Matalon, Ph.D., Dr.Sc. (Hon.), FAPS, Distinguished Professor, Alice McNeal Chair in Anesthesiology, Director of the UAB Pulmonary Injury and Repair Center, and Vice Chair for Research, is no stranger to
receiving recognition for his outstanding achievements. In 2021, he was elected Corresponding Member to the Academy of Athens (the National Academy of Athens) – a coveted recognition by scientists. He has also been selected for the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Division of Terrorism and Inhalation Disasters for the American Thoracic Society.

Communication is key to excellent patient care. If lines of communication break down, it takes hard work and determination to rectify the issues and mend professional relationships. Such was the case among our anesthesia care teams; and when the issues were identified, members of our department and a devoted group of CRNAs sprang into action creating the Anesthesia Care Team Optimization Committee (ACTOC) in 2019.

Our faculty and staff work together every day to create the best teams and support departmental research, education, and patitent care. Here are some of our staff members who were recognized for going above and beyond during November 2022.

ASA Annual Meeting 2022

Momentum is a Birmingham-based, statewide nonprofit organization that focuses on empowering women through flagship leadership development programs, conferences, events, mentorship, and community. Last fall, the UAB Heersink School of Medicine partnered with Momentum to kick off the executive leadership pilot program, Momentum in Medicine at UAB.

Colleagues,

Effective Oct. 1, 2022, Andrew Barker, M.D., associate professor in the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, is stepping down from the position of program director of the department’s Critical Care Medicine Fellowship Program to focus on other aspects of academic medicine. These endeavors include his role as medical director for the Surgical Intensive Care Unit. He will assist with the transition of the program director role and act as a mentor for the new director. 

Congratulations to our CA-3’s that graduated in June. The department gathered on June 10^th to celebrate at B & A Warehouse. On June 30^th, the class of 2022 completed their last day. We appreciate all of your hard work and dedication over the past several years and we cannot wait to see what all you accomplish!

The following is a message from Susan Black, M.D.

Effective July 1, 2022, Brant Wagener, M.D., Ph.D., assumed the responsibility of leading the Resident Mentored Research Experience Track (RMRET) in the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine.

Thank you to everyone who attended the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine’s second annual Research Day on Monday, May 9, 2022. Congratulations to the following abstract award winners:

The following is an announcement from Alfred Habeeb Professor and Chair Dan E. Berkowitz, M.D.

After a rigorous search committee process, it is with great pleasure that the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine announces the appointment of Peter Nagi, M.D., Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, as the Interim Vice Chair for the Division of Pain Medicine. 

The following is an announcement from Alfred Habeeb Professor and Chair Dan E. Berkowitz, M.D.

As we are all aware, the manpower landscape has changed, making recruitment significantly more challenging. As such, we are obliged to “up our game” when it comes to the entire process of recruitment, from our marketing plan to the ultimate onboarding of our newly recruited faculty and beyond. 

The UAB Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine is pleased to announce that Assistant Professor Hanna Hussey, M.D., has assumed the role of Associate Fellowship Director for the department’s Obstetric Anesthesiology Fellowship. In this role, she will be working with Mark Powell, M.D., Director of the Obstetric Anesthesiology Fellowship.

Each fall, hundreds of applicants from across the country go through the rigorous interview process to become a resident in the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine Residency Program.

Prentiss Lawson, Jr., M.D., has been named the new director of the Pain Medicine Fellowship Program for the UAB Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine.