Oct. 27, 2015

17th annual VCU School of Medicine Faculty Excellence Awards

Share this story

By Anne Dreyfuss
C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Center for Clinical and Translational Research

During the Faculty Excellence Awards ceremony last week, Jerome Strauss, M.D., Ph.D., dean of the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, quoted Irish poet William Butler Yeats, who said that education is not the filling of buckets; it is the lighting of fires. “That is what our award winners have done and I thank them for that,” he said.

The ceremony represents a high point in the academic year – a time to celebrate the accomplishments and dedication of faculty to the university community. Those who have contributed to the School of Medicine for many years, as well as faculty and colleagues at the McGuire VA Medical Center, were recognized.

Diane M. Biskobing (left), M.D., professor of internal medicine in the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism and interim assistant dean for medical education at the School of Medicine, was this year’s recipient of the Enrique Gerszten Faculty Teaching Excellence Award, the VCU School of Medicine’s highest recognition for teaching. Jerome Strauss (right), M.D., Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine, presented the award.
Diane M. Biskobing (left), M.D., professor of internal medicine in the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism and interim assistant dean for medical education at the School of Medicine, was this year’s recipient of the Enrique Gerszten Faculty Teaching Excellence Award, the VCU School of Medicine’s highest recognition for teaching. Jerome Strauss (right), M.D., Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine, presented the award.

Strauss presented the School of Medicine’s highest recognition for teaching, the Enrique Gerszten Faculty Teaching Excellence Award, to Diane M. Biskobing, M.D., professor of internal medicine in the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism and interim assistant dean for medical education at the School of Medicine. The award recognizes extraordinary accomplishment in all aspects of medicine.

“I think the reason we’re all here is because we enjoy seeing the progression and growth of our trainees from medical students or residents to fellows and practicing physicians,” Biskobing said. “I’ve worked with many wonderful trainees over the years and my hope is that I was in some way able to have a positive impact on their education.”

The Irby-James Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching recognizes superior teaching in clinical medicine taught in the last two years of medical school and residency training, and encourages excellence in an increasingly complicated and challenging educational environment. Strauss presented the award to two recipients this year.

Rahul J. Anand (right), M.D., assistant professor of surgery in the Department of Surgery and program director for the surgery clerkship at the VCU School of Medicine, was one of two recipients to win the Irby-James Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching. Jerome Strauss (left), M.D., Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine, presented the award.
Rahul J. Anand (right), M.D., assistant professor of surgery in the Department of Surgery and program director for the surgery clerkship at the VCU School of Medicine, was one of two recipients to win the Irby-James Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching. Jerome Strauss (left), M.D., Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine, presented the award.

The first recipient was Rahul J. Anand, M.D., program director for the surgery clerkship at the VCU School of Medicine.

“He is an Energizer bunny,” Strauss said. “I see him at the hospital 24/7. It is absolutely incredible that he maintains very significant clinical activity as well as being accessible to students.”

Anand accepted the award after having spent the entire previous day and night working. “I’m post-call,” he said. “That’s probably why I’m very emotional.” The associate professor of surgery choked up a few times thanking his colleagues and mentors from the Department of Surgery. “It is a pleasure every day to teach medical students,” Anand said. “I find it a huge privilege to exercise my passion and train the next generation of physicians and surgeons.”

I find it a huge privilege to exercise my passion and train the next generation of physicians and surgeons.

The second recipient of the Irby-James Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching was Clifton C. Lee, M.D., chief co-director of the pediatric clerkship at the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU.

Lee, who is an associate professor of pediatrics at the VCU School of Medicine, graduated from medical school at VCU and completed his residency here. “Medical education has changed a lot since I was a student here,” he said, referencing new educational techniques such as team-based learning and process-oriented inquiry. But he said that the foundations of medicine haven’t changed.

Clifton C. Lee (left), M.D., associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics and chief co-director of the pediatric clerkship at the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, was one of two recipients to win the Irby-James Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching. Jerome Strauss (right), M.D., Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine, presented the award.
Clifton C. Lee (left), M.D., associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics and chief co-director of the pediatric clerkship at the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, was one of two recipients to win the Irby-James Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching. Jerome Strauss (right), M.D., Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine, presented the award.

“One of the goals I had when I came to teach at VCU was to teach medical students not only about gaining knowledge and getting good grades, but also about the art of medicine,” Lee said, adding that he tries to nurture character traits such as modesty, integrity, empathy and compassion in his students. “Those are the characteristics that define who we are, how we care for patients and how we interact with each other.”

The Distinguished Mentor Award recognizes significant contributions to the career development of others, such as through mentorship to fellow faculty members, junior faculty, residents, fellows, graduate students, post-docs and medical students, or through other mentoring relationships.

Hamid I. Akbarali, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, was this year’s recipient.

“Our Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology is world-renowned,” Strauss said. “Dr. Akbarali is one of the reasons why we enjoy this outstanding reputation. He is defined by his incredible accessibility, his commitment and caring for the students that he interacts with. It is a pleasure for me to recognize him for his outstanding service to our scientific community.”

This year’s Distinguished Mentor Award went to Hamid I. Akbarali (left), Ph.D., professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology. Jerome Strauss (right), M.D., Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine, presented the award.
This year’s Distinguished Mentor Award went to Hamid I. Akbarali (left), Ph.D., professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology. Jerome Strauss (right), M.D., Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Medicine, presented the award.

During his acceptance of the award, Akbarali thanked his mother for being his first mentor. “It is really a celebration of her mentorship that she let a 16-year-old boy travel across several continents to get here,” he said. “I am really grateful for that.”

The Educational Innovation/Research Award was presented to the Reynolds Interprofessional Team, which includes Peter A. Boling, M.D.; Alan W. Dow III, M.D.; Joel D. Browning; and Christopher L. Stephens. It recognizes an individual faculty member, a group or an academic unit for a significant educational innovation or educational research.

This year’s recognition was for the development of a collaborative educational program for the geriatrics interprofessional virtual case, which guides students in four of VCU’s health professions schools to work in teams managing patient care. “They have created an incredibly powerful tool to help teach case management in geriatrics,” Strauss said of the program, which has been adopted by the University of Kansas, the University of Nebraska, the University of North Texas and East Carolina University. “This is a gift to the national educational scene in geriatrics,” Strauss said.

The Educational Innovation Award was present to the Reynolds Interprofessional Team, which includes Peter A. Boling, M.D.; Alan W. Dow III, M.D.; Joel D. Browning; and Christopher L. Stephens.
The Educational Innovation Award was present to the Reynolds Interprofessional Team, which includes Peter A. Boling, M.D.; Alan W. Dow III, M.D.; Joel D. Browning; and Christopher L. Stephens.

The other major awards presented were the Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award, presented to Mary Helen Hackney, M.D., associate professor, Department of Internal Medicine; the Women in Science, Dentistry, and Medicine Professional Achievement Award, presented to Amelia C. Grover, M.D., associate professor, Department of Surgery, and Elizabeth “Betsy” Ripley, M.D., professor, Department of Internal Medicine; the MCV Physicians Distinguished Clinician Award, presented to Harry D. Bear, M.D., Ph.D., professor, Department of Surgery; and the VCU/VCUHS Leadership in Graduate Medical Education (LGME) Award, presented to Nicole W. Karjane, M.D., associate professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Jennifer Rew, program coordinator, Department of Neurology.  

Other awardees were:

Outstanding Departmental Teacher Award in Health Sciences Education

Andrew Ottens, Ph.D.                               Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology

Paul Ratz, Ph.D.                                       Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Le Kang, Ph.D.                                         Department of Biostatistics

Steven Cohen, Dr.P.H., M.P.H.                   Department of Family Medicine and Population Health

Bassam Dahman, Ph.D.                            Department of Health, Behavior, and Policy

Jessica LaRose, Ph.D.                               Department of Health, Behavior, and Policy

Michael Grotewiel, Ph.D.                           Department of Human and Molecular Genetics

Masoud Manjili, Ph.D.                               Department of Microbiology and Immunology

S. Stevens Negus, Ph.D.                          Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology

I. Scott Ramsey, Ph.D.                            Department of Physiology and Biophysics

 

Best Teacher in the Course and Clerkship Awards

Class of 2018 Scientific Foundations of Medicine Courses

Kimberly Sanford, M.D.                                Foundations of Disease Course

Deborah Lebman, Ph.D.                                Immunity and Infection Course

Virginia Pallante                                           Molecular Basis of Health and Disease Course

Mark Ryan, M.D.                                          Patient, Physician and Society Course

Steven Cohen, Dr.P.H.                                  Population Health and EBM Course

Edward Ishac, Ph.D.                                     Principles of Autonomics and Pharmacology Course

Joseph Feher, Ph.D.                                     Principles of Physiology Course

 

Class of 2018 Applied Medical Sciences A

Diane Biskobing, M.D.                                   Endocrine Course

Scott Matherly, M.D.                                     GI & Metabolism Course

J. Christian Barrett, M.D.                              Marrow Course

Beth Rubinstein, M.D.                                   Movement Course

Leslie Kimball-Franck, Ph.D.                         Patient, Physician and Society Course

Steven Cohen, Dr.P.H.                                 Population Health and EBM Course

Sarah Milton, M.D.                                       Reproduction Course

 

Class of 2017 Applied Medical Sciences B

Kevin Sumption, M.D.                                   Cardiovascular

Isaac Wood, M.D.                                         Mind, Brain and Behavior

Timothy Ford                                               Patient, Physician and Society

Marjolein de Wit, M.D.                                   Pulmonary

Steven Cohen, Dr.P.H.                                  Population Health and EBM

Susan DiGiovanni, M.D.                                 Renal

Sarah Milton, M.D.                                         Reproduction

 

Class of 2017 and 2018 Practice of Clinical Medicine

Huzaefah Syed, M.D. Class of 2017                 PCM Preceptor

Jeff Greer, M.D. Class of 2017                        PCM Preceptor (Family Medicine)

Joel Rene Morrissey, M.D. Class of 2017          PCM Small Group Leader

Augustine Lewis, M.D. Class of 2018                PCM Small Group Leader

 

Class of 2016 M-III Clerkships

Kevin Lee, M.D.                                             Family Medicine Clerkship

Dan Carl, M.D.                                               Medicine Clerkship

Megan Madaras, M.D.                                     Medicine Clerkship

Anand Karthik Sarma, M.D., M.P.H.                 Neurology Clerkship

Aaron Goldberg, M.D.                                    Obstetrics/Gynecology Clerkship

Sean McKenna, M.D.                                      Pediatrics Clerkship

Joel Moran, M.D.                                           Psychiatry Clerkship

Huan Vu, M.D.                                              Surgery Clerkship

 

Faculty with High Evaluation Awards

Class of 2018 Scientific Foundations of Medicine

John Bigbee, Ph.D.                                       Foundations of Disease Course

Kimberly Jefferson, Ph.D.                             Immunity and Infection Course

Colleen Jackson-Cook, Ph.D.                         Molecular Basis of Health and Disease Course

Kirk Cumpston, M.D.                                    Principles of Autonomics and Pharmacology Course

Joseph Feher, Ph.D.                                     Principles of Physiology Course

 

Class of 2018 Applied Medical Sciences A

Edmond (Trey) Wickham, M.D.                      Endocrine

Melissa McGinn-Greer, Ph.D.                         GI and Metabolism

Susan Roseff, M.D.                                      Marrow

Peter Haar, M.D., Ph.D.                                Movement

Raymond Colello, Ph.D.                               Reproduction

 

Class of 2017 Applied Medical Sciences B

John Bigbee, Ph.D.                                       Cardiovascular

Christine Fuller, M.D.                                    Mind, Brain and Behavior

Margaret Grimes, M.D.                                 Pulmonary

Linda Costanzo, Ph.D.                                  Renal

 

Class of 2016 M-III Clerkships

Hayes E. Willis Health Center                         Family Medicine Clerkship

Danielle Shafer, M.D.                                    Medicine Clerkship

Sean Slusher, M.D.                                       Medicine Clerkship

Mark Malkin, M.D.                                         Neurology Clerkship

Susan Lanni, M.D.                                         Obstetrics/Gynecology Clerkship

Fidelma Rigby, M.D.                                      Obstetrics/Gynecology Clerkship

Konye Allen, M.D.                                         Pediatrics Clerkship

Robin Foster, M.D.                                        Pediatrics Clerkship

Megan Lo, M.D.                                            Pediatrics Clerkship

Jozef Bledowski, M.D.                                   Psychiatry Clerkship

John Urbach, M.D.                                        Psychiatry Clerkship

Susan Waller, M.D.                                       Psychiatry Clerkship

Santosh Kale, M.D.                                       Surgery Clerkship

Andrew Maloney, M.D.                                  Surgery Clerkship

 

Subscribe to the weekly VCU News email newsletter at http://newsletter.news.vcu.edu/ and receive a selection of stories, videos, photos, news clips and event listings in your inbox every Thursday.