Faculty join select group, resident earns research honor

Published on Monday, October 28, 2024

By: Gary Pettus, gpettus@umc.edu

Medical Center faculty and staff often are recognized regionally, nationally and internationally for their academic or medical achievements. These accolades place UMMC among health science centers worldwide.

Academy of top faculty salutes new members  

More than two dozen faculty members joined a distinguished “community of educators” during last week’s induction ceremony for The Academy for Excellence in Education at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

The 26 new initiates bring the total membership to 195, all representing “top talent” in the Medical Center’s education mission, said Dr. Amol Janorkar, chair of the Department of Biomedical Materials Science in the School of Dentistry and president of the academy.

Recognizing and celebrating excellent educators from individual schools endows the academy with “a unique interprofessional flavor,” Janorkar said during Tuesday’s observance.

The academy was created in 2022 under the auspices of the Office of Academic Affairs – led by Dr. Scott Rodgers, associate vice chancellor for academic affairs, and Dr. Natalie Gaughf, assistant vice chancellor for academic affairs and Tuesday’s keynote speaker.

Gaughf urged academy members to “pause and appreciate your accomplishments …  practice gratitude – toward others and for the opportunities offered, and be re-inspired.”

The academy aims to enhance the learning environment for all UMMC schools by providing several educational, professional development and career preparation opportunities, including the annual Robin W. Rockhold Lecture on Leadership, “Lunch and Learns,” and an academy book club, Janorkar said. Academy members also contribute to student success by supporting the newly-formed UMMC Honors College, among other initiatives and activities.

The 2024-2025 initiates are:

Dr. Syed Abbas, assistant professor of pathology; Dr. Katherine L. Artman, clinical assistant professor of pharmacy practice and PGY 2 critical care residency program director; Barbara Brent, assistant professor of dental hygiene; Dr. Elizabeth Carr, professor and chair of dental hygiene; Dr. Wade O’Connell Christopher, assistant professor of surgery-transplant; Dr. Jorri S. Davis, assistant professor of nursing; Dr. Yuanyuan Duan, associate professor of biomedical materials science; Dr. Angela Duck, associate professor of nursing and program director for the PhD in Nursing Program for the School of Graduate Studies in the Health Sciences and the School of Nursing; Dr. Charly Nicole Edwards, assistant professor and chair of endodontics; Dr. Peter Wayne Giroux, professor of occupational therapy; Dr. Tiffany M. Griffin, assistant professor of nursing; Dr. Beth Jaeger, clinical assistant professor of pharmacy practice; Dr. Felicitas Koller, associate professor of surgery-transplant; Dr. Megan P. Ladner, associate professor and chair of occupational therapy; Dr. John Timothy Lam, professor of pathology; Dr. Melanie H. Lauderdale, professor and chair of physical therapy; Dr. Lishia Lee, associate professor of nursing; Dr. Seth T. Lirette, associate professor of data science; Presly Lowry, instructor of nursing; Dr. Ryan McGlawn, professor of physical therapy; Tawanda M. McNair, assistant professor of health sciences; Dr. Erin W. Norcross, professor of advanced biomedical education; Dr. Joshua A. Norman, assistant professor of emergency medicine; Dr. Scott M. Phillips, associate professor of care planning and restorative sciences and associate dean for clinical affairs in the School of Dentistry; Dr. Nathan Tullos, associate professor of advanced biomedical education; Dr. Brian Williams, associate professor of preventive medicine.

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Aziz accepts Early Career Investigator Award

Dr. Saleha Aziz, a third-year internal medicine resident at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, has accepted the 2024 Early Career Investigator Award in Healthcare Disparities Research from the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases Foundation Board of Trustees.

The AASLD Foundation Abstract Awards recognize excellence and promote the professional development of early career scientists.

Aziz received recognition for her abstract, “Rising Mortality Trends Among Adults with Chronic Kidney Disease and Cirrhosis in the United States (1999 to 2020): A Study of Health Disparities.” She will present the abstract to an international audience at The Liver Meeting of the AASLD, November 15 in San Diego, California.

“I am honored to have received this award and grateful to my mentors,” Aziz said. “I am deeply passionate about liver diseases and hope that I can play a role in advancing our understanding and care of these vulnerable patients.

“This will be my first time attending the liver meeting and I look forward to learning and presenting.”

Aziz studied U.S. mortality trends in patients with chronic kidney disease and cirrhosis, focusing on disparities related to age, sex, race and location of death. Former UMMC assistant professor of medicine, Dr. Jan Petrasek, served as the senior author.

“We are very proud of Dr. Aziz, like we are of all our residents, because of who she is as a person and physician,” said Dr. Calvin Thigpen, professor of medicine, vice chair of education in the Department of Medicine and director of the Internal Medicine Residency Program.

“She has put a lot of extra time and effort toward her scholarship with the ultimate goal of helping her patients, and it’s wonderful to see her recognized with the Early Career Investigator Award from the AASLD. I know she will represent our program, department and institution very well at The Liver Meeting.”

The AASLD is the leading organization of scientists and health care professionals committed to preventing and curing liver disease, according to its website.