Faculty members, clinics are national-level exemplars

Published on Monday, May 5, 2025

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.

Brodell, Sterling make impact in the world of academic medicine

Two Medical Center faculty members, Dr. Robert Brodell, professor and chair of pathology, and Dr. Sarah Sterling, professor of emergency medicine, are serving on the Council of Faculty and Academic Societies for the Association of American Medical Colleges.

In addition, Sterling was the recipient of the CFAS Rising Leader Award at the organization’s spring meeting in April. Brodell serves on the CFAS administrative board.

The CFAS represents medical school faculty and academic societies governed by the AAMC. CFAS representatives wield influence on a national level concerning a number of vital academic medicine issues. They also relay to the CFAS the perspectives of their peers and colleagues.

Brodell, a 1979 graduate of the University of Rochester School of Medicine, completed dermatology and dermatopathology training at Barnes-Jewish Hospital/Washington University in St. Louis. He is the past founding chair of the UMMC Department of Dermatology and a Billy S. Guyton, MD Distinguished Professor.

Sterling, a 2008 graduate of the UMMC School of Medicine, completed an emergency medicine residency and clinical research fellowship at UMMC. She is a course director in the School of Medicine and director of the Medical Student Research Program, which provides medical students with mentored research experiences.

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UMMC clinics earn Age-Friendly standing

Several University of Mississippi Medical Center sites have received Ambulatory Care Setting designation as Age-Friendly Health System Participants: the Geriatric and Memory Impairment and Neurodegenerative Dementia (MIND) Center Clinics at Colony Park and Grants Ferry, as well as The MIND Center clinics at Riverchase-UMMC and Flowood Family Medicine-UMMC.

Age-Friendly Health System recognition is an initiative of the John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the Catholic Health Association of the United States. The goal is “to build a social movement so that all care with older adults is age-friendly,” the Institute for Healthcare Improvement website says.

Clinical care settings that have earned Participant (level 1) status are working toward evidence-based interventions for all older adults in their care; these four interventions are known as the 4Ms: What Matters, Medications, Mentation and Mobility.

Age-Friendly Health Systems aim to: “follow an essential set of evidence-based practices; cause no harm; and align with What Matters to the older adult and their family caregivers,” the IHI website says.

“We are honored to receive this recognition for our MIND Center and geriatrics clinics as we continue our mission to deliver exceptional care to our aging population,” said Dr. Kim Tarver, associate professor of medicine, director of the Division of Geriatrics and director of clinical services for The MIND Center.

“Our dedicated team remains committed to advancing how we support our patients – through both direct care and by training others to do the same. This work is deeply meaningful to us, and we’re proud to care so deeply for those we serve.”

The IHI explains the 4Ms as follows:

• What Matters – “… (A)lign care with each older adult’s specific health outcome goals, including … end-of-life care, and across settings of care.”
• Medication – “(U)se Age-Friendly medication that does not interfere with What Matters to the older adult, Mobility or Mentation … .”
• Mentation – “Prevent, identify, treat and manage dementia, depression and delirium … .”
• Mobility – “Ensure that older adults move safely every day in order to maintain function and do What Matters.”