James Willig, MD, MSPH (Infectious Diseases) will serve as SOM Assistant Dean for Clinical Education beginning October 1. The new position will strengthen collaborative and coordinated clinical training for medical students across the School’s four campuses.

Stephen Russell, MD (General Internal Medicine) and Chief Medical Residents Jori May, MD, and Will Benton, MD, had the opportunity to learn from author and clinician Abraham Verghese, MD, MACP, at the Stanford 25 Skills Symposium which is part of the Stanford Program for Bedside Medicine. Dr. Russell also served as one of the panelists at the conference.

Gregory Payne, MD, PHD (Fellow, Cardiovascular Disease) has been selected as a finalist in the 2016 Northwestern Cardiovascular Young Investigators’ Forum--one of 40 junior faculty and fellows in cardiology selected nationwide. Dr. Payne will present his research on new cellular mechanisms of inflammation in atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease in Chicago later this year.

The DOM is delighted to see the birth date restored to the Tinsley R. Harrison, MD, sculpture in front of Tinsley Harrison Tower. The numbers have been missing quite a while, but once SOM Manager of Facilities and Standards Robert Witherspoon got involved, the date was carefully reproduced, aged to match, and installed within two months. Thanks to all who played a part in restoring the monument of this legendary teacher of medicine!

U.S. News and World Report has ranked five of the specialties within the Department of Medicine in the top 50 according to its annual Best Hospitals list! Among these high performers is the Division of Cardiovascular Disease, which ranks #37 in the country. Kudos to all involved for this national recognition!

According to Luciano Costa, MD, PhD (Hematology and Oncology) social class may influence multiple myeloma survival. His findings, published in Cancer and reported on Fox News Health, indicate that a disparity in outcomes might be overcome by improving access and affordability of treatment.

Ashwani Singal, MD (Gastroenterology and Hepatology) recently provided expert opinion for a Helio article on Alcoholic Liver Disease. The story highlights the clinical and economic burden from alcoholism and alcoholic liver disease, and calls for collaborative efforts to encourage abstinence from alcohol to improve outcome of these patients.

The Department is thrilled to welcome Tinsley Harrison Visiting Professor Jeffrey Samet, MD, to UAB on September 7. Dr. Samet is Professor of Medicine and Community Health Sciences, Boston University Schools of Medicine and Public Health; Chief, Section of General Internal Medicine, Boston Medical Center; and Vice Chair for Public Health, Department of Medicine. As a national thought leader on opioid addiction, he will present two lectures during his visit:

• How to Build It: the "Massachusetts Model" of Office Based Opioid Treatment with Buprenorphine. Wednesday, September 7, from 8:30 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. in Medical Towers 634
• Caring for Patients with Substance Use: An Addiction Medicine Creation Story. Medical Grand Rounds. Wednesday, September 7, from noon to 1:00 p.m. in Margaret Cameron Spain Auditorium.