Read about other faculty achievements in Top Stories.

FACULTY COUNCIL AWARDS

Here are the recipients of the Faculty Council Awards announced in July, along with excerpts from the anonymous nominations.

Faculty Senior Teaching: Charles G. (Gerry) Maitland

“[Maitland] began teaching medical students in our Program in Medical Sciences about 18 years ago. For many years, he would take time off (without compensation) from his practice to come to campus and work with the medical students. It is rare to find someone so dramatically capable as both a clinician AND a teacher. His knowledge in his field is encyclopedic, and he is remarkably skilled in sharing that knowledge with the students, especially when it comes to helping the students with clinical reasoning. When he brings his patients to class, students witness not only how a top-ranked neurologist thinks, but also how he genuinely cares for his patients. In turn, the patients’ affection for him is obvious, teaching the students something about the doctor-patient relationship that they cannot learn from books. Many students are motivated to do research with him, and he has had up to 10 students working with him at one time. These students have the opportunity not only to publish research papers but to observe a master at work. He also organizes annual symposia to which the students are specifically invited, affording them the chance to listen to and interact with world-class clinicians and researchers.” (Pictured with Coley Sheriff, left, and Sarah Novara)

Faculty Junior Teaching: Jacob VanLandingham

(Excerpts from student evaluations that were read at the awards ceremony)

“Dr. VanLandingham makes the class fun, entertaining, and always stresses the clinical aspects of the information. He always has an open door for questions and additional help. He really cares about his students and wants us to do well.” “Excellent clinical relevance and an amazing teacher with great passion for what he teaches.” “I enjoyed this class immensely. I am not exaggerating when I say that Dr. VanLandingham is one of the best professors I have ever had.”

Faculty Senior Researcher: Yi Zhou

“He has a large number of DIS students in his lab, two Ph.D. students and three postdoctoral associates. One undergraduate working on her honors thesis in his lab recently was selected to attend the Tri-Beta National Biological Honor Society Convention in Colorado to present a poster. Zhou has published two papers in peer-reviewed journals. In addition, a grant from the National Institutes of Health is currently funded, as is one from the American Heart Association. He is also a co-principal investigator on a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health. Zhou has served on NIH study sections, the Animal Care and Use Committee, the neuroscience program executive committee, the faculty development committee, the graduate admissions committee, and the faculty search committee.”

Faculty Junior Researcher: Gareth Dutton and Akash Gunjan

“Both have demonstrated tremendous promise in developing a continuing program of high-quality research their departments and the College of Medicine can be truly proud of.

“Gareth’s general area of expertise is health psychology, with a particular focus on physical activity and obesity. He has had numerous publications in high-quality journals and has won several awards. He was previously selected as a Fellow in the National Institutes of Health Summer Institute on the Design and Conduct of Randomized Clinical Trials Involving Behavioral Interventions and recently received an NIH K23 award, which is designed to ‘support the career development of investigators who have made a commitment to focus their research endeavors on patient-oriented research.’ He is also a mentor for student research at all levels: undergraduate, graduate and medical students.

“Akash’s research on maintenance of genomic stability relates to the understanding of the basic mechanisms underlying cancer. He has had numerous publications in prestigious journals and has won several awards. His latest paper, ‘Histone levels are regulated by phosphorylation and ubiquitylation-dependent proteolysis,’ published in Nature Cell Biology, was selected by the Faculty of 1000 as an exceptional paper. The Faculty of 1000 is a group of scientists who select what they consider to be KEY papers in medicine and biology for discussion on the paper and its impact.”

Guardian of the Mission Awards: Maggie Blackburn and Gail Bellamy

“Maggie Blackburn (left) is director of rural health in the Department of Family Medicine and Rural Health. Gail Bellamy is director of the Center for Rural Health Research and Policy. Together they remind the College of Medicine that ‘rural’ is part of our mission statement. They deserve this recognition not only for what they do but for the way in which they do it, with great enthusiasm and dedication. Their passion is contagious. For example, when the newest Rural Track students were officially welcomed in Marianna, many faculty members from the College of Medicine were there -- and they didn't all have 'rural' in their titles. They realize the importance of rural medicine, thanks in part to Maggie and Gail.”

Faculty Service Award: Karen Myers

“Karen Myers is responsible for the preceptorship program in the first two years of the medical school curriculum. This program is part of the Doctoring 1 and Doctoring 2 series, and requires tremendous dedication to arrange for preceptors for 240 students per year in the Tallahassee area. Ms. Myers works tirelessly to recruit and retain faculty, an often thankless but invaluable service to the institution and to the students. In her role as director of the preceptorship program, she also participates in the delivery of faculty development through the Office of Medical Education. This program is one the students value greatly, and one that encourages the participation of our community faculty early in the education of medical students. It is perceived as a recruiting tool for incoming medical students.” (Pictured here with Sharon Aroda, Class of 2012)

Staff Individual Award: Dana Urrutia

“Dana Urrutia is the admissions coordinator at the College of Medicine. She works closely with Graham Patrick and others in Student Affairs to identify candidates for admission, schedule interviews and make arrangements for the interview days. She also coordinates admissions committee meetings and admissions subcommittee meetings. She does this all without complaint, and seems uniformly enthusiastic in her approach and dedication. She often lends insight into candidates, providing information we might otherwise not have in making critical decisions regarding the most appropriate selection of medical students for the College of Medicine.”

Staff Group Award: Clinical Learning Center Standardized Patients

“Our standardized patient program is among the best in the nation, and this is in large part because of the dedication and commitment of our standardized patients. These 200 or so folks from our community, some of whom have been in the program since its inception in 2001, consistently show extraordinary dedication, patience, adaptability and poise as they contribute to the training of our students. We tell them what meds they are on, give them a fake past, tell them how to look and present themselves and assign each of them a complex set of symptoms. Then we watch them perform with consistency and diligence. These performances are possible because of the (mostly unpaid) time they invest, well before the student encounters begin, in absorbing fully the scripts they have been given.” (Pictured here: Deb Danforth, director, Clinical Skills and Simulation Center)

APPOINTMENTS & ELECTIONS

Maggie Blackburn, M.D., director of rural health, has been elected a member at large of the Rural Medical Education Executive Board for 2010-11. This special-interest group, part of the National Rural Health Association, helps recruit, train and orient medical students for careers in rural medicine.

NOTEWORTHY MEETINGS

Kevin Sherin, M.D., MPH, clinical professor at our Orlando regional campus, was among the speakers at “Climate Change Adaptation: The Public Health Response,” an outreach meeting of the Interagency Climate Change Adaptation Task Force, June 6 in Orlando. Sherin is president of the American Association of Public Health Physicians and director of the Orange County Health Department.

Joan Meek, M.D., clinical associate professor and pediatrics clerkship director at our Orlando regional campus, met with the U.S. surgeon general June 17 to discuss nationwide breastfeeding initiatives and recommendations.

PUBLICATIONS & PRESENTATIONS

Marshall Kapp, J.D., MPH, director of the Florida State University Center for Innovative Collaboration in Medicine & Law, launched a new electronic journal, Medical-Legal Studies. It is sponsored and edited by the center and published by the Social Science Research Network. You may subscribe online free.

Kapp also published an invited article in the May 2010 issue (Volume 137, Number 5, pp. 1190-94) of Chest, the official publication of the American College of Chest Physicians. Its title: “Assorted Legal Issues Affecting Medical Practice.”

Also, Kapp presented on “Improving American Health Care:  The Importance of Physician-Attorney Relationships” at a program on Efforts to Improve Health Insurance Availability and Affordability. It was sponsored by the Florida State University Center for Insurance Research on April 23 in Jacksonville.

OTHER HONORS

John Agens, M.D., geriatrics clerkship director for the Tallahassee regional campus, was recognized at the annual meeting of the American Geriatrics Society in Orlando for “outstanding service on a committee.” The AGS recognizes fewer than 10 percent of all committee members for this honor, explained his department chair, Ken Brummel-Smith. “It reflects exceptional personal activity on a national level to advancing the goals of AGS and improving care for elders,” Brummel-Smith said. “He received this honor for his work on the Quality and Performance Measurement Committee.”

IN THE NEWS MEDIA

Mario Sanguily, M.D., Martin Memorial Health Systems and clerkship faculty member in Fort Pierce, was featured in a news story and photo on tcpalm.com (Treasure Coast and Palm Beaches). The story, “New surgical procedure clears blocked arteries of plaque buildup,” focused on orbital atherectomy, in which doctors insert a device like a drill bit into a blocked artery to pulverize hardened plaque. Also quoted in the story was clerkship faculty member Rene Loyola, M.D., St. Lucie Medical Center.

Greg MacKay, M.D., gastroenterologist and Fort Pierce clerkship faculty member, was praised in an issue of the Vero Beach Flash. The newsletter encourages readers to write in about a positive person in the community. Here is the tribute to MacKay, who was nominated by Michael Wein, another clerkship faculty member:

“One cannot be in the nonprofit/volunteer sector for long without having come across Dr. Greg MacKay! This family man is everywhere and is a ‘Positive Person’ with a heart for this community and his family! MacKay was nominated by Dr. Michael Wein, who says, ‘Everyone in town knows how this gentleman is constantly striving to help others.’ This compassionate physician with a busy practice still makes time to be a soccer coach, foster parent to 50 children over the last 9 years, volunteer doctor for Haiti clinic, Board Member of American Cancer Society, We Care volunteer for 15 years, Boy Scout volunteer and was the first Lego League robotics coach! He has been married to his wife Debbie for 24 years and together they have four children ages 19, 17, 16, 13. He says he is inspired by his wife (a school board member) and his parents. He enjoys playing tennis with his kids and swimming with his wife. He is thrilled to be in a position where he can help others. His advice is to always make time for your family, but also carve out a piece of time to help others. He is extremely appreciative of all the wonderful people in our city who donate their time and resources helping others. Dr. MacKay... You serve as a tremendous role model in today’s world, and this week we salute you and thank YOU for the countless hours you have so graciously given to help make our community a better place!”

The May issue of Central Florida Doctor showed Mike Muszynski in a place where we don’t usually see the dean of the Orlando regional campus: in his kitchen, whipping up spectacular desserts. He told the magazine, “The kitchen is like a giant laboratory for me. I love research and experimenting, and cooking is similar to that.” It just tastes a lot better than most lab experiments. “Since 1987,” the magazine stated, “Dr. Muszynski has showcased his baking skills with a dessert party for the medical residents. Now as dean, he invites students and department heads to his gathering that he hosts along with his wife.” As many as 95 people show up for delicacies such as Black Forest Cake and English Trifle. (Pictured with Emily Taylor Overholser at the Class of 2010 awards ceremony)

NEW FACULTY

Henry Carretta, M.D., joined the Division of Health Affairs in May. His work is largely centered on health services research in collaboration with the Agency for Health Care Administration. He joined us from the Chicago-area Veterans Administration via Virginia Commonwealth University, where he received his Ph.D. 

PROMOTIONS

Suzanne Nagy, head of web services in Maguire Medical Library, has been approved by President Barron for promotion in rank from Associate Librarian to University Librarian. Suzanne has contributed her creative energy and hard work in building both the virtual and physical library from the earliest days of the College of Medicine. Her dedication and talent were critical during all phases of our development, and she is leading the way as we continue to refine our web presence.