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 Pictured Above: Tele-ICU Director Steve Stigler, M.D., Associate Professor in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine.  

During COVID-19’s summer surge, UAB couldn’t spare ICU beds for patients, but it could share its expertise with Whitfield Regional Hospital in Demopolis, thanks to a tele-ICU partnership between the two hospitals announced in April of this year. Tele-ICU Director Steve Stigler, M.D., (Associate Professor, Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care Medicine) and other pulmonary experts were able to conduct exams, check vital signs, review patient records, and monitor alert systems from more than 100 miles away. For the patients who were especially critical and needed different types of life-support, the tele-ICU continuously provided high-quality care.

 Pictured Above: Pictured Above: Dr. Masood Ahmad (Inaugural Critical Care Medicine Fellow) and Dr. Sheetal Gandotra (Program Director).  

The Critical Care Medicine Fellowship, led by Program Director Sheetal Gandotra (Assistant Professor, Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine) will add four new fellows to its training program—two in 2022 and two in 2023. The program launched July 2021 with a mission to train physicians in the field of critical care with competence in procedures such as airway management, paracentesis, basic bronchoscopy, percutaneous tracheostomy and arterial access. Training for this program is one year for trainees entering after the completion of a subspecialty and two years for those entering after residency. Recruitment is currently underway. Way to grow, team!

 Pictured Above, Drs. Hernando and Adrienne Carter, Clinical Assistant Professors in General Internal Medicine. 

The Department of Medicine is delighted to celebrate our internal medicine specialists during National Primary Care Week. The annual event highlights the importance of the entire primary care team. Adrienne Carter, M.D., and Hernando Carter, M.D., Clinical Assistant Professors in General Internal Medicine, commemorate this week by sharing how building trusting relationships with their patients has been the foundation of their primary care medicine careers.

Pictured Above: Lisa Jackson, Lauryn Schultz, Caroline Harada, Amanda Cartee, Rita Paschal, Erin Snyder, Latesha Elopre, Vineeta Kumar, Monica Baskin, Tracy Luckhardt, Amanda Schnell, Tammy Pickens

September is the month to celebrate our women in medicine and science: physicians, nurses, biomedical scientists, medical educators and leaders in academic medicine. In the Department of Medicine, we strive to advance the full and successful participation and inclusion of women within academic medicine by addressing gender equity, recruitment and retention, awards and recognition, and career advancement. Join us in honoring the excellence of all the women on our teams who make our mission possible!

Pictured above: Pulmonary faculty Drs. Joseph Thachuthara-George, Aline Zouk and Hitesh Batra demonstrate the ION equipment.

Hitesh Batra, M.D., MBA (Associate Professor, Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care) performed the first robotic-assisted bronchoscopy using the Ion™ system in the state of Alabama on August 25. This new technology from Intuitive enables minimally invasive biopsy procedures to diagnose lung cancer. The system features an ultra-thin, ultra-maneuverable catheter that allows more precise navigation inside the lung, as well as offering added stabilization for the physician performing the procedure. Congrats to the entire team for implementing this exciting advance in interventional pulmonology!