On February 1, 2016, units at UAB Highlands shifted the default “Tomorrow AM” lab draw time from the Midnight to 2:00 a.m. period to the 4:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. period. This has resulted in less interrupted sleep for patients! Thanks to Medical Directors Jim Hunter, Sujan Ravi, Brent Ponce, and Katrina Booth, as well as Nursing Director Beth Clarkson and Lab Director Dianne Morris. It took all of them, plus the tremendous support of the nursing managers, staff nurses, and patient care technicians, to make this important change in patient care.

The Tinsley Harrison Internal Medicine Residency Program reports a terrific Match Day 2016. There are 37 Categorical residents joining the program from 20 schools. 12 are female, 25 are male, and 10 are AOA Honor Society students.  

Julie Locher, PhD (Gerontology, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care) was selected as an Outstanding UAB Woman in 2016, earning the Becky Trigg Outstanding Woman Faculty Member Award for her selfless contributions to the scientific careers of women from diverse disciplines throughout her 24-year career at UAB. 

David Freedman, MD (Infectious Diseases) provided expert opinion in three New York Times articles in the past month regarding Zika virus: one on the risk of microcephaly, one on how international business is responding to the threat, and one confirming the possibility of sexually transmitting the virus.

Monica Baskin, PhD (Preventive Medicine) was appointed to the National Advisory Committee for the Academic Pediatric Association/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases Research in Academic Pediatrics Initiative on Diversity (RAPID). RAPID’s goal is to recruit, retain, and provide career development and advancement for diverse junior faculty in general academic pediatrics pursuing careers in NIDDK mission areas. 

The UAB Informatics Institute is actively seeking postdoctoral scholars. Research will span a wide variety of topics along the spectrum from bioinformatics. Candidates must have an MD or PhD in biomedical informatics, information science, computer science, biology or equivalent field. Click here for more information.

Elizabeth Kvale, MD (Gerontology, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care) was elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine.

Nominations are now open for the 2016 Dean’s Excellence Awards. Two awards—one to a junior faculty member and the other to a senior faculty member—will be given in each of five areas: service, teaching, research, diversity enhancement and mentorship. The deadline is April 1. For more information, click here. 

Coming next week to Medical Grand Rounds: Ken Saag, MD, MSc, UAB Professor of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology, Director of the UAB Center for Education & Research on Therapeutics of Musculoskeletal Disorders, Director of the Center for Outcomes and Effectiveness Research and Education will present “Osteoporosis 2016—Concepts and Controversies.”


Do you have Good News to share? If so, please email the Department of Medicine's Director of Communications, Carolyn Walsh.

View this week's slides.