Pictured L to R: Jonathan Kalehoff, Ali Johns, Jordan Crocker, and Stephen Stuart“No greater opportunity, responsibility, or obligation can fall to the lot of a human being than to become a physician.” This quote from Dr. Tinsley Harrison rings true to us now more than ever.  Writing our farewell this year is different. We are saying goodbye from afar, via Zoom, and at a distance at least six feet apart.  

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have had the opportunity to grow even closer, to work harder, and to learn how to share a PowerPoint over a  virtual conference. We have successfully tripled our number of ICU teams and moved nearly half of our residents off of services to home reserve on the same day. We have seen tremendous strength, resiliency, and humanism within our residents.  

We are in awe of our residents. The courage, support, and positive attitudes we have been privileged to be witness to are incredible. When we emailed our request for interest in the “COVID Back-Up Squad” who would work in ICUs or in other high-risk areas, we never could have imagined the heart-warming (and number) of responses we received. Several long-standing and loved events, like the Crawfish Boil and Spring Party, were canceled due to COVID-19, but we are still having socially-distant wellness events with Zoom happy hours and movie nights!

Despite all of this, our program continues to evolve. This year, we have redesigned and successfully piloted aspects of our new ambulatory curriculum to provide a more comprehensive educational experience. When our new interns arrive at the end of June, they will no longer have clinics during wards months as those before them, but rather will have increased clinics during their non-ward months, allowing for focused but separate inpatient and outpatient experiences. We have plans in place to redesign our Coronary Care Unit (CCU) rotation block to coincide with the launch of the new Cardiovascular Institute (CVI) at UAB Hospital. The new rotation structure is set to launch in June 2021. Finally, we have welcomed another class of internal medicine residents. This year, we have matched 38 Categorical, 1 ABIM, 1 Medicine/Genetics, and 4 Med/Peds interns into the UAB Tinsley Harrison Internal Medicine Residency Program. We cannot wait for them to join our UAB family.

The past year has been even more than we could have hoped for. We are so fortunate for the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of alumni before us and to be a part of our residents’ journeys and experiences. We have learned more from the program leadership, office staff, and residents than we can put into words and are all so grateful. It has been a privilege. Thank you.

Jordan Crocker will be starting a career in Primary Care at Grandview Hospital in Birmingham, Alabama. While she is sad to leave UAB, she is so thankful for her time there and the mentorship she received. She and her husband Tony have just welcomed their second daughter, Madelyn, to the world and are looking forward to staying in the Birmingham area near family.

Ali Johns will be heading to Winston-Salem to start Endocrinology fellowship at Wake Forest University. Her husband, Dan, will be pursuing a fellowship in Pain Medicine at Wake Forest as well. They have a one-year-old son, Owen, and will be sad to leave UAB and Birmingham, but are so thankful for their time there.

Jonathan Kalehoff will be staying on at UAB as one of the Pulmonary/Critical Care fellows. He is excited to have the opportunity to continue working with the Internal Medicine residents during their rotations in the Medical Intensive Care Unit, on Pulmonary Consult services, and in other didactic sessions. He is humbled and grateful for the privilege to have worked with this phenomenal leadership team over the past year and is glad to continue his training at UAB.

Stephen Stuart will be starting a career in Primary Care with Southview Medical Group. He has cherished his eight years of medical school and residency at UAB, learning from the best and brightest and developing friends for life. He couldn’t have asked for a better leadership team to work with and grow with over the past year. He and his wife, Mary Katherine, have a baby boy named Mitchell and look forward to their future in Birmingham.