Explore UAB

Gregory Friedman, M.D., Pediatric Hematology & Oncology, was invited to attend and speak at the WhatIFF Symposium for Pediatric Brain Tumor Research on Sept. 15-16 in Atlanta, GA. This first ever symposium for pediatric brain tumor research gathered the top clinicians and researchers in the field to present their ideas on how to put an end to brain tumors. Dr. Friedman's talk titled, "Immunovirotherapy to Target Pediatric Brain Tumors” discussed the ongoing oncolytic HSV trial at Children's of Alabama and plans to develop innovative combination approaches to maximize virus killing of cancer cells and the development of an anti-tumor immune response.

Kristen Waddell, MSN, CPNP-AC, CRNP, CCRN, recently received a Young Alumni Merit Award from the UAB School of Nursing Alumni Association at their Alumni Awards Night on Sept. 14, 2017. Kristen has worked as a RN in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Children's for six years and a PICU PNP for four years. She is also co-developer and the program coordinator for the Children's of Alabama Community Healthcare Education Simulation (COACHES) program.
 

Hyundai Hope On Wheels presented Children's of Alabama with a $250,000 Hyundai Scholar Hope Grant on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017 in honor of National Childhood Cancer Awareness month. The grant funds will support the research of principal investigator Julie Wolfson, M.D., Pediatric Hematology & Oncology. Children's of Alabama patients battling cancer participated in the program’s signature Handprint Ceremony, in which they dipped their hands in paint and placed their handprints on a white 2017 Hyundai Santa Fe and Dr. Wolfson's white coat. 
 
To view photos, click here.

Winners of the 2017 Argus Awards were announced at the ceremony held Friday, Sept. 8. The awards are given each year by medical students to honor their professors and course directors for excellence in medical education. Click here to view this year's winners. Nominees from Pediatrics includes: Hussein Abdul-Latif, M.D., Pediatric Endocrinology, Robb Romp, M.D., Pediatric Cardiology, William Sasser, M.D., Pediatric Critical Care, and Kim Whelan, M.D., Pediatric Hematology & Oncology. To view all nominees, click here. 

Stephenie B. Wallace, M.D., FAAP, Adolescent Medicine, has been selected to serve as Vice President aka President Elect for the Southeast Regional Chapter of the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine (SAHM). The Southeast Regional Chapter includes members from six states: Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida. 

More information. 

The UAB Healthcare Leadership Academy (HLA) class roster for 2017-2018 was recently announced. Joseph Chewning, M.D., Pediatric Hematology & Oncology, is among the incoming members. The purpose of the HLA is to establish a cohesive and comprehensive program that offers training opportunities and helps develop essential skills for leaders in the 21st century academic health center. Click here to learn more. The UAB HLA is celebrating the 10th anniversary of this program! 

Thirty women have been selected to join Momentum, Alabama's premier women's leadership program. Among these is Cathy Turner, CPA, CGMA, Executive Administrator of UAB Pediatrics. 

The class, which Momentum leaders said is the largest and most diverse in its 15 years, will kick off this week and culminate with a luncheon. Following orientation, the class will begin the nine-month program of training and mentoring. Monthly sessions will include topics such as emotional intelligence, negotiation, healthy conflict, organizational and team development, branding and communication as well as mentoring. 

More information. 

We are happy to introduce Purnima Kasthuri Janarthanan as our Communications Intern for this fall semester. A native of Coimbatore, India, Purnima is a communication management graduate student at UAB. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Computer Science Engineering in 2014. Due to her passion for Public Relations, she gravitated toward activities related to PR during her sophomore year and chose to stick to the field ever since. Most recently Purnima completed an internship with UAB University Relations where she worked with various PR specialists writing news releases and briefs for UAB News, simultaneously pitching them to the external media.

Purnima will assist Sara Davies, communications specialist, with developing content for the website, newsletter, media relations outreach, and new communications initiatives.

Rylie Hightower, BSN, RN, a graduate student in Pediatric Neurology, has been selected as a 2017-2018 Civitan Emerging Scholar by the Civitan International Research Center (CIRC). This one-year award is granted to graduate students or postdoctoral fellows whose research is helping to advance the mission of the CIRC, enhancing our current understanding of brain development, impaired cognitive and intellectual development, and other neurodevelopmental disabilities. Rylie is a Neuroscience PhD graduate student in the laboratory of Matthew S. Alexander, Ph.D. Her newly-funded research will explore the function of an important non-coding RNA in the clinical and pathological disease progression of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Doctors strongly warn against bed sharing, especially for infants under six months. Dramatic public service campaigns highlight the danger of rolling over on a baby or accidental suffocation with pillows and blankets blocking the airway. "The bottom line, a baby shouldn't be sleeping in the same bed with you," advises Dr. Brad Troxler, M.D., Director of the Children's of Alabama Sleep Disorders Center. Dr. Troxler says new 2016 guidelines encourage parents to keep the baby in the same bedroom, just not in the parent's bed. Dr. Troxler says infants need their own safe sleep spot.

Watch the interview on ABC 3340.