L to R: Mack Brown, MD, Amanda Brito, MD, Karla Williams, MD, and Rob Smola, MDThe 2017-2018 year is quickly coming to a close, and we are soaking in the final weeks.  This year has been a great experience full of fun and learning.  We have our exceptional residents and program leadership to thank for such an amazing year.

The Spring has been a whirlwind.  We held our annual chili cook-off at Trim Tab Brewery, the Crawfish Boil at the Heudebert residence, and celebrated the accomplishments of our residents at the Spring Graduation Ceremony at the Regions Field.  Our PGY3s are headed all over the country either to begin their practice or continue their training, and we cannot wait to hear of their successes.  We had an excellent match and are thrilled to welcome a new class of 37 categorial and 4 preliminary interns in June.

We have been so fortunate to spend the past four years as a part of the Tinsley Harrison Internal Medicine Residency Program.  We have had the benefit of learning from the history of our residency and participating in the traditions that were built before our time.  We are sincerely grateful to the alumni who came before us and began the customs that we have the honor of carrying forward.  We have enjoyed the time to invest in our program and observe the incredible effort and thought devoted to promoting growth and well-being in our residents’ professional and personal lives. We are so grateful that we have had the privilege to play a role in the journey of our residents and this program.

Amanda Brito will be joining the Patient Safety and Quality Fellowship at the Harvard Medical School and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. Amanda and her husband, Ricky, will relocate to Boston in July.

Mack Brown will be starting a full-time position in outpatient primary care at the UAB Whitaker Clinic. His wife, Sarah, is also starting a position in outpatient primary care for medicine and pediatrics with UAB in Leeds. They will be staying in Birmingham, Alabama.  

Rob Smola will be joining the faculty in the division of General Internal Medicine at UAB as well as working as a hospitalist at the Birmingham VA Medical Center.  Rob and his wife, Kara, are excited about continuing their personal and professional lives here in Birmingham!

 Karla Williams will join the faculty in the division General Internal Medicine as well as Hospital Medicine at UAB with a dedicated role as the Director of Diversity and Inclusion for the internal medicine residency program. She will also continue work with the transition of care initiatives for the general medicine ward. She will be staying in Birmingham.