Birmingham dermatologic surgeon Gary D. Monheit, MD, has been named to the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery’s (ASDS) Visiting Professor lecture series, which is designed to support the training needs of dermatology residency departments and residents.
As an expert in dermatologic and cosmetic surgery, Monheit, who practices at Total Skin & Beauty in Birmingham, will visit dermatology residency programs for between one and three days to lecture and demonstrate procedures. During his career, Monheit has been an innovator in chemical peels and has been a teacher for injectable fillers, neuromodulators and lasers.
Visiting Professors work to enhance what residency programs already offer by sharing practical treatment tips gleaned from their clinical expertise and personal insights in dermatologic surgery, practice management and patient care. Their visits are provided at no cost to the host site.
Besides learning about treatments and techniques directly from renowned dermatologic surgeons, the residents obtain invaluable perspectives and receive exposure to an expanded field of cases. The ASDS also encourages the host site to invite other local dermatology residents to sit in during the sessions.
Princeton BMC Recognizes Lisa Smith, RN
Each year Princeton BMC recognizes a nurse who stands out for nursing excellence. That nurse is the recipient of Princeton’s Ida V. Moffett Nursing Excellence Award named in memory of Ida V. Moffett, who was known and respected by countless healthcare professionals as an excellent nurse and teacher.
Lisa Smith, RN, charge nurse, was named Princeton’s 2013 winner during National Nurses Week and Hospital Week. Smith is charge nurse on Princeton’s 4 North Women and Infants unit and is a graduate of Bevill State School of Nursing.
Lisa was nominated for the Ida V. Moffett award by several colleagues and physicians because she models Ms. Moffett’s “ideal attributes of a caring nurse” which include “treating the patient as the most important person in the hospital, building self-confidence in everyone and taking some of the patient’s burden on yourself and transferring some of your own comfort and convenience to the one in need.”
Urology Centers Holds Walk for Bladder Cancer
One in 42 people will be diagnosed with bladder cancer during his or her lifetime, but unfortunately, a detrimental lack of awareness about the disease, its risk factors and diagnosis persists among the public. To generate much-needed increased awareness of the threat of bladder cancer and raise funds for research toward a cure, Urology Centers of Alabama presented the second annual Ginny Dutton Memorial Bladder Cancer Awareness Walk at the Gardendale Civic Center on May 11th.
Bladder cancer can impact anyone, and although it tends to be diagnosed in older patients, the risk still remains for people of all ages, genders and races, many of whom are not aware of the risk factors, signs and symptoms for the disease.
Dothan Physician Elected to Lead State Medical Association
Dothan anesthesiologist Michael T. Flanagan, MD, was recently installed as the 2013-2014 president of the Medical Association of the State of Alabama, the oldest and largest organization representing physicians and medicine in Alabama.
Dr. Flanagan is the director of the Southeast Pain Management Center at Southeast Alabama Medical Center. He is MASA’s first president from Dothan, and he has already outlined many of the advocacy activities he plans to spearhead during his year as the association’s leader, mainly “protecting medicine…from every direction.”
Certified as a Diplomat of the National Board of Medical Examiners and by the American Board of Anesthesiology, Dr. Flanagan is a member of the American Society of Anesthesiology, the Alabama State Society of Anesthesia, the American Medical Association, and the Houston County Medical Society. He has been a long-standing voice in Alabama’s medical leadership by serving on the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners and the Medical Licensure Commission of Alabama, a state agency that has the authority to issue, revoke and reinstate licenses to practice medicine or osteopathy in Alabama. Licensed by the states of Alabama and North Carolina, he is a published author, the recipient of numerous awards and honors, and is involved with several community service organizations and is an Eagle Scout.
The Medical Association of the State of Alabama exists to serve, lead and unite physicians in promoting the highest quality of healthcare for the people of Alabama through advocacy, information and education.
Birmingham Medical Pioneer Receives Highest Honor from MASA
Birmingham’s pioneering organ transplantation physician Arnold G. “Gil” Diethelm, MD, recently received the Medical Association of the State of Alabama’s highest honor, the Samuel Buford Word Award, presented in recognition of service to humanity beyond the usual scope of medical practice and often rendered at some personal sacrifice.
Dr. Diethelm is widely recognized for his work in organ transplantation having performed the first renal transplant in Alabama in 1968. He served as director of the division of transplantation at the University of Alabama Birmingham’s School of Medicine, director of the UAB Transplant Center, and as medical director of the Alabama Organ Center. Under Dr. Diethelm’s leadership, UAB’s Renal Transplant Program has become the largest in the world.
He continues to share his knowledge by serving as a visiting professor at nearly 30 locations nationwide. He has devoted the last 45 years to educating physicians, developing an outstanding transplant program, and sharing his knowledge with others in the profession. A graduate and former professor at Cornell Medical College in New York, Dr. Diethelm also received an honorary doctor of science degree from UAB’s School of Medicine for his extensive work with the program.
Birmingham Live Advanced Therapeutic Endoscopy Conference
Trinity Medical Center will host the 9th annual Birmingham Live Advanced Therapeutic Endoscopy Conference for physicians, GI nurses and assistants on Saturday, August 24 at the Birmingham Hilton.
The one-day workshop will include observation of live ERCP and EUS cases; discussion of the various types of stenting techniques and closure devices; and discussion of duties of the nurse/tech assistant during ERCP.
This year’s guest speaker will be Michel Kahaleh, MD, Chief of Endoscopy at Weill Cornell Medical College. Course director is Kenneth Sigman, MD, Birmingham Gastroenterology Associates, and faculty includes Craig Philpot, MD, Birmingham Gastroenterology Associates, and Traci Richey, RN, GI Lab Director at Trinity Medical Center.
For more information on this CME and CE approved workshop call (205) 599-4926.
St. Vincent’s One Nineteen attracts big crowd to annual block party and health festival.
St. Vincent’s Health System welcomed 1,200 attendees to its annual block party and health festival on Saturday, June 8 at its One Nineteen location. Participants enjoyed free health screenings, free Zumba and Spinning classes, live bands and a kid-friendly zone, including moonwalks and a face painting station.
Baptist Health System Names Francis VP Human Resources
Beth Francis has been named vice president, human resources for Baptist Health System (BHS), according to Shane Spees, BHS president and chief executive officer. Francis will join BHS in June.
Francis has served as vice president of human resources for DCH Health System (DCH) in Tuscaloosa since 2010. In that position, she has been instrumental in leading the four-hospital system’s human resources function through communications, team-building and integration of technology, as well as education and training. Prior to her tenure at DCH, Francis served in numerous leadership roles within the Carilion Health System and Carilion Clinic in Roanoke, Virginia from 1989 to 2009.
Pennington Named CEO of Medical West
BESSEMER, AL – Keith Pennington has been named president and chief executive officer of Medical West, an affiliate of University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Health System. He succeeds Tom McDougal, Jr. who announced his resignation on April 18, 2013.
Pennington, who served as senior vice president and chief operating officer at Medical West since 2003, has been instrumental in the progress of the hospital and assumes the CEO role with over 20 years of health care experience.
“Keith Pennington brings the experience and leadership skills that will take Medical West forward as a pillar of the Bessemer/West Jefferson County region and as an integral part of the UAB Health System,” said Will Ferniany, Ph.D., CEO of the UAB Health System. “We’re thrilled to have a man of his background in healthcare management assume this important role.”
“I look forward to continuing the positive momentum the hospital has gained over the past several years,” said Pennington. “I am excited about the opportunity we have in this community and I am dedicated to seeing this organization reach its greatest potential.”
A native of Birmingham, Pennington earned his Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy and his Doctor of Pharmacy from Samford University. Prior to becoming the chief operating officer, he served as vice president and director of development and director of pharmacy. Pennington has also been very active in the community recently serving as chairman for the Bessemer Area Chamber of Commerce and currently serving as secretary for the Western Health Services Foundation and the Medical West Imaging Center. Pennington has been with Medical West since 1993.