At Dean Selwyn Vickers’ annual State of the UAB School of Medicine address on Wednesday, the Division of Gastrointestinal Surgery’s Daniel Chu, M.D., was named a 2018 James A. Pittman Jr., M.D., Scholar. The Pittman Scholars program was created to recognize the contributions of junior faculty and support the recruitment and retention of highly competitive scientists and physician-scientists.

Dr. Daniel ChuFive Pittman Scholars are selected each academic year and receive $12,500 per year for five years to support each faculty member’s research-related activities or scholarly enrichment.

“I plan to use these funds to further advance our research program on health literacy in surgery,” Chu said. “Much of our current work has implicated health literacy as a major determinant of surgical outcomes and experiences, and these funds will enable us to conduct more detailed qualitative and quantitative studies.”

Pittman Scholars—named for the late Dr. James A. Pittman, longtime dean of the School of Medicine from 1973 to 1992—are nominated by their department chairs based on their research achievements and their potential for continued discovery in the basic or clinical sciences. Pittman is considered a principal architect of the School for his ability to recruit top scientists and physicians to UAB.

“I was quite surprised and honored to be recognized as a Pittman Scholar,” Chu said. “As I often tell my friends and colleagues in other institutions, UAB is an amazing place. There are just so many brilliant colleagues, ideas and resources that permit junior faculty to succeed. This honor fundamentally reflects the support and encouragement given to me by all my mentors, colleagues and staff.”

Check out the other four UAB faculty who were named 2018 Pittman Scholars.