Explore UAB

Congratulations to the recipients of the 2020-2021 Founder's Fund Grants!

The Founders' Fund was established by the UAB Department of Pediatrics to honor the exceptional lifetime achievements of the founders Drs. John W. "Bill" Benton, Ralph E. Tiller and Paul A. Palmisano. For more than a decade, the Founders' Fund has been used to encourage and support educational endeavors in the Pediatric Residency Program through educational grants. These educational grants support new, innovative educational research or programs related to the curriculum or quality and outcomes research of the residency program.

Ten Founders' Fund Awards were given this year:

Obesity Prevention Birth-to-Two Years in Primary Care Clinic

Cason Benton (PI)
Kelsey Thetford

STEP-PREP

Joe Bradsher (PI)
Neha Teekappanavar
Andrew Marshall
Channing Brown
Kirollos Roman
Rachel Klein
Carlie Stein

Well Child Check that is Anything But Well: Suicidal Teenager

Candice Dye (PI)
Nancy Tofil

Baby Safety Shower for Young Mothers

Meghan Harrison (PI)
Abigail Martin
Grace Spears
Kathleen Vincent
Terri Coco
Kathy Monroe

Pediatric RAP

Kylee Miller (PI)
Kathy Monroe
Michele Nichols
Brad Troxler
Chang Wu

Pediatric Neurology at UAB Podcast

Salman Rashid (PI)
Khaled Al-Robaidi

Improving Residency Physician History and Physical in Challenging Situations

Nicholas Rockwell (PI)
Nancy Tofil
Michele Kong
Chrystal Rutledge

Procedural Competence in Pediatric Residents

Jeremy Ruhlmann (PI)
Alexis Ricci
Jordan Ashcraft
Michele Nichols
Nancy Tofil
Erinn Schmit

Kids CAN DO Telehealth

Stephen Russell (PI)
Channing Brown
Ryan Sheets
Andrew Watson 

Improving Firearm Safety Counseling in Primary Clinic

Austin Wheeler (PI)
Katie Mascia
Abby Martin
Christina Hunley
Jennifer Joseph
Morissa Ladinsky

We are excited to announce Chrystal Rutledge, M.D., Pediatric Critical Care, and Ana Xavier, M.D., Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, have been appointed as the co-directors of Diversity and Inclusion for the UAB Pediatrics Residency Program. Tina Simpson, M.D., Adolescent Medicine will serve as the faculty liaison. Our main goals are to increase recruitment and retention of underrepresented within medicine (URiM) pediatric residents, foster relationships amongst current URiM pediatric residents, fellows and faculty, and promote a more inclusive environment with the department.

Tamera Coyne-Beasley, M.D., Adolescent Medicine, has been selected to serve on the Healthcare Leadership Academy (HLA) Advisory Board. The HLA is a collaboration between the Collat School of Business and the School of Medicine. The program offers training opportunities and develops leadership skills essential to academic healthcare.

The UAB Pediatric Primary Care Clinic has been awarded recognition by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Patient-Centered Medical Home Program.

In order to achieve NCQA Patient-Centered Medical Home Recognition, the UAB Pediatric Primary Care Clinic must meet certain standards that emphasize the use of systematic, patient-centered, coordinated care. This recognition will help the Pediatric Primary Care Clinic support their patients through access, communication and patient involvement.

In the UAB Pediatric Primary Care Clinic, we have already been providing many aspects of the level of care required for Patient-Centered Medical Home Recognition,” said Candice Dye, M.D., medical director for the Pediatric Primary Care Clinic. “Having the official recognition and certification from the NCQA is a huge gain for our patients and clinic. Our team worked extremely hard to organize and submit the various needed documents to achieve this. We are very excited to partner with NCQA with this Patient-Centered Medical Home certification to provide even more comprehensive care to our wonderful and deserving patients and their families in Primary Care Clinic.”

The NCQA Patient-Centered Medical Home program reflects the input of the American College of Physicians (ACP), American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and American Osteopathic Association (AOA) and others. It was developed to assess whether clinician practices are functioning as medical homes and recognize them for these efforts.

“NCQA Patient-Centered Medical Home Recognition raises the bar in defining high-quality care by emphasizing access, health information technology and coordinated care focused on patients,” said NCQA President Margaret E. O’Kane. “Recognition shows that the UAB Pediatric Primary Care Clinic has the tools, systems and resources to provide its patients with the right care, at the right time.”

Tamera Coyne-Beasley, M.D., has been elected to the board of directors for the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID). Dr. Coyne-Beasley will serve a three-year term from July 2020 to June 2023. As part of her role on the board of directors, Dr. Coyne-Beasley will also serve on the NFID Continuing Professional Education Committee and the Work Group on Strategic Opportunities.

Please join us in congratulating Connie Trieu, M.D., Second Year Fellow- Pediatric Infectious Diseases, on receiving the 2019-2020 Spring Fellow Research Roundtable/Fellow Core Conference Attendance Award. This allows her to attend a scientific meeting of her choice, within the continental United States.

Hope Wilson, M.D., Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, has been selected to participate in the 2020 Class of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) Clinical Research Training Institute (CRTI). A prestigious honor, the institute is year-long education and mentoring program for hematology fellows and junior faculty.

Christina Cochran, M.D., Pediatric Emergency Medicine, was named the recipient of the UAB Emergency Medicine Pediatric Emergency Medicine Instructor of the Year Award. This award is given out annually by the UAB Emergency Medicine Residency Program to recognize faculty and instructors who show dedication to resident education and superior patient care. 

Congratulations to Sarah Grace Engel, M.D., and Amelia Schuyler, M.D., on being named the 2020 Joe LaRussa Interns of the Year!

The Joe LaRussa Intern of the Year Award is given out annually by the Pediatric Residency Program to honor two members of the intern class who inspire others with their work ethic, compassion, professionalism, and positive outlook. The award is named after Joe LaRussa, M.D., an alumnus of the residency program. The winners are voted on by the pediatric faculty, fellows and residents. 

For the 11th consecutive year, Children’s of Alabama is ranked among the nation’s best children’s hospitals by U.S. News & World Report.
 
The nine of Children’s pediatric specialty services ranked in the top 50 programs in the United States are:

The Founders’ Fund was established by the Department of Pediatrics to honor three key “Founders” and educators of our Department: Dr. Paul Palmisano, Dr. Bill Benton, and Dr. Ralph Tiller. These physicians epitomized the ideal academic pediatrician. Thankfully, the dream to honor these esteemed individuals became a reality with the generosity of former and current pediatric faculty and residents. For more than a decade, Founders’ Fund Educational Grants have been used to encourage and support educational endeavors in our Pediatric Residency Program.

Congratulations to our UAB Pediatric Fellowship Class of 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we were not able to hold an in-person banquet. Please the video above that was created to celebrate the graduates.

Please see below where they will be going after completing fellowship training.

Congratulations to Brooke Goar, M.D., Pediatric Resident PGY-3, on being chosen as this year's recipient of the Carolyn Ashworth, M.D. Pediatric Primary Care Award.

The Division of Pediatric Endocrinology & Diabetes and Children's of Alabama have received a Merle S. and Mack C. Hunt Diabetes Fund Field of Interest Grant from the Central Alabama Community Foundation to help fund a monthly diabetes clinic in Montgomery County.

The 2020 graduating class presented the following awards at their Graduation Banquet on Friday, June 5.

We would like to congratulate the Pediatric Residents, The Combined Med-Peds Residents and the Combined Peds-Genetics Residents for completing their residency.

Below is what our graduates will be doing after residency:

The Chu Family has generously donated funds to Children's of Alabama and the Department of Pediatrics to support educational initiatives. A portion of this donation has been set aside for the pediatric fellows to fund scholarships for fellows who apply. Candidates were selected on a competitive basis. These awards will provide funds for tuition, books and fees related to their educational endeavors.

Please join us in congratulating the Chu Family Educational Scholarship recipients for the 2020-2021 academic year:

Samantha Hanna, M.D.
Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellow
Educational Initiative:  UAB Quality Academy Certificate Course

Alexandra Healy, M.D.
Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellow
Educational Initiative:  UAB Quality Academy Certificate Course

The Dixon Foundation supports the Dixon Pediatric Fellowship training program for fellows who intend to pursue an academic career with a research emphasis (ranging from basic and translational science to education or QI-centric research) in approved pediatric subspecialties. As part of this prestigious award, recipients benefit from salary support and an additional $5,000 per year discretionary fund to support research and continuing education activities. The selection committee for the Dixon Fellowship recently met and selected five Dixon scholars on a competitive basis.  

Please join us in congratulating the recipients for the 2020-2021 academic year:

Miles Fowler, M.D., Pediatric Pulmonology, Title: Adrenal Insufficiency (AI) in Cystic Fibrosis. Dr. Fowler’s research involves screening pediatric patients with CF for AI using a survey based on signs and symptoms and a morning cortisol level as well as testing for the presence of the SNP that was associated with AI in patients with asthma. His mentors are Jennifer Guimbellot, M.D., Isabel Virella-Lowell, M.D., and Michael Stalvey, M.D.

Amy Freeman, M.D., Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Title: The Nff2 Pathway Protects against Hyperoxia-Induced Lung Injury in Murine Models of Airway Microbial Dysbiosis. Dr. Freeman will be exploring the direct role of microbiome on the lungs and the effect of dysbiosis on the redox balance during the development of BPD. Her mentor is Vivek Lal, M.D., Ph.D.

Snehashis Hazra, M.D., Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Title: Characteristics of Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSC) derived from Wharton's Jelly of Umbilical Cord of Extremely Preterm Infants in Relation to Outcome of Survival without Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia. Dr. Hazra’s research involves delineating the characteristics of the MSC and MSC derived media/exosomes in infants with and without BPD, and to understand the molecular pathway through which MSC prevent and improve BPD. His mentor is Namasivayam Ambalavanan, MD.

Vivek Shukla, M.D., Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Title: Brain Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Based Radiomics Risk Prediction for Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in Neonates with Hypoxia-Ischemic Encephalopathy. Dr. Shukla will use novel machine learning-based models for developing a risk prediction algorithm for neurodevelopmental impairments in neonates suffering from perinatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy using MRI images acquired at or before one week after birth. His mentor is Namasivayam Ambalavanan, MD.

Mary Silverberg, M.D., Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Title: Oral Nitrate Supplementation in a Murine Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia Model. Dr. Silverberg’s research involves testing oral nitrate supplementation to reduce histological lung injury and improve pulmonary function in a murine model of Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (BPD). Her mentors are Rakesh Patel, Ph.D. and Samuel Gentle, M.D.

Graduating Dixon Fellows are:

Abdulsalam Alsulami, M.D., Pediatric Infectious Diseases, will be joining The Department of Pediatrics at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia 

Aditi Dhir, M.D., Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, will be joining the University of Miami as an assistant professor

Veronica Godsey, M.D., Pediatric Critical Care, will remain at UAB to complete a Pediatric Cardiac Critical Care fellowship

Nazia Kabani, M.D., Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Neonatology, will continue her combined Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Neonatology Fellowship here at UAB

Charles Schlappi, M.D., Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, will be joining Pediatrics West Bessemer Clinic

Michele Nichols, M.D., Pediatric Emergency Medicine, has been named the 2020 recipient of the Robert S. Holm, M.D., Award. This award is presented by the Association of Pediatric Program Directors (APPD) each year to honor a member of the APPD for their outstanding contribution to mentorship and support for other program directors in the APPD and for their service as a role model to program leadership across the organization.

Dr. Nichols served as the co-program director for the UAB Pediatric Residency Program from 1995 to 2008 with Ray Watts, M.D., and took over as the program director in 2008. During her tenure, the program has graduated 554 residents working in pediatrics across the United States. Her commitment to creating a strong educational foundation and fostering outreach and advocacy opportunities has been instrumental in the residency program graduating well-rounded residents. As the vice chair for Education in the Department of Pediatrics, she has been a dedicated leader for education initiatives across the department.

Dr. Nichols’ leadership and commitment extend outside of the department with positions on University-wide committees and membership in regional and national associations. As part of the APPD, Dr. Nichols has led several workshops and presentations to help mentor and teach other program directors across the nations.

“I am both honored and humbled to be receiving this award from the APPD,” said Dr. Nichols. “I share this award with many people including program and department leadership as well as our amazing residents. I have had incredible support and teaching from my mentors and leaders over the years and hope I have been able, in turn, to pay it forward and help others find their passion in pediatrics.”  

Congratulations Dr. Nichols!

As the novel coronavirus began to spread across the United States, shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) started to become a major concern for hospitals and healthcare professionals. In response to these potential shortages, Nitin Arora, M.D., an assistant professor in the Division of Neonatology at UAB, began to search for solutions for alternative PPE options that could be used at UAB and in Alabama. Dr. Arora had been following the COVID-19 pandemic as information began to come out in December 2019.