College of Medicine Honors Faculty, Staff, Alumni

By ChaseYavondaC

Jeannette M. Shorey II, M.D., surprises Distinguished Faculty Service Award winner Richard P. Wheeler, M.D., with a scholarship in his name during the College of Medicine Dean’s Honor Day ceremony.

Wheeler, a 1976 graduate who joined the faculty in 1982 and serves as the college’s executive associate dean for academic affairs, received the Distinguished Faculty Service Award.
The scholarship was revealed as he stepped to the podium to accept the service award. When fully funded, the scholarship will be presented annually to one or more medical students.

“There is no doubt that Dr. Wheeler has a lifelong impact on our graduates, so many of whom become Arkansas’ physicians,” said Jeannette M. Shorey II, M.D., who nominated Wheeler for the service award and spearheaded the scholarship campaign with other initial contributors. She also served as mistress of ceremonies for the event.

“As far as Dr. Wheeler is concerned, it has never been about him either,” Shorey said. “His selflessness has been a gift to our students and their future patients. He has genuinely helped the college deliver our educational mission.”

Shorey said Wheeler’s work with chronically ill patients while directing the Dialysis Unit at UAMS early in his career undoubtedly helped him become a strong champion for emphasizing compassion and professionalism in medical education and training.

Joseph Bates, M.D., (right) receives a glass bowl by Arkansas artist James Hayes to commemorate his induction into the College of Medicine Hall of Fame. Stavros Manolagas, M.D., Ph.D., (left) nominated Dr. Bates for the honor.

Like other key honorees at the event, Wheeler spoke of the impact of colleagues and mentors on his own career and noted the shared mission of clinicians, educators, researchers and administrative staff and leaders at Arkansas’ only medical school.

“Every day – today and tomorrow and the day after that, and every day after that for as far as we can see – one of us, or one of the people we have trained, or one of the people they have trained, will walk into a room with a patient who is sick and scared, and we will help them,” Wheeler said. “Sometimes we can cure them; sometimes we can just make them a little better. But we can always do something for them by having compassion for them and by helping them understand that we care about them – and that is why what we all do is so important.”

The ceremony began with the induction of 1957 alumnus Joseph Bates, M.D., into the college’s Hall of Fame. Bates trained in internal medicine and infectious diseases at UAMS and served on the College of Medicine faculty for 35 years. His leadership posts included vice chair of the Department of Internal Medicine at UAMS for 21 years and chief of the medical service at the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System for 30 years.

In 1998, Bates went to the Arkansas Department of Health, where he continues to serve as deputy state health officer and chief science officer. He worked with others to establish both the Arkansas Center for Healthcare Improvement and UAMS’ Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, where he is an associate dean and professor of epidemiology.

Bates became internationally known for his expertise in pulmonary medicine and tuberculosis and seminal research findings about how the disease is spread. He has served as president of national organizations including the American Lung Association.

“Dr. Joe Bates is a giant in medicine,” Stavros Manolagas, M.D., Ph.D., distinguished professor and director of the Division of Endocrinology, said when presenting the award. He praised Bates’ clinical expertise and compassion as well as his appreciation for the science of medicine. “In all of these roles, Joe has exemplified excellence and demanded it of those working with him,” Manolagas said.

The Dean’s Distinguished Alumnus Award was presented to 1965 graduate Kent Westbrook, M.D., who has been a surgical oncologist and faculty leader at UAMS for more than four decades. Westbrook cofounded what is now the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute in 1984 and directed it for 14 years. He was chief of the Division of Surgical Oncology for 11 years and has held the rank of distinguished professor since 2003.

Westbrook also has led several programs during leadership transitions at UAMS including the Department of Surgery in 1999-2002, UAMS Development and Alumni Affairs in 2011, and the Department of Dermatology in 2014 to early 2015. He has received numerous awards for his medical leadership in Arkansas, most recently the Arkansas Medical Society’s 2015 Asklepion Award.

2015 Distinguished Alumnus Kent Westbrook, M.D., (right) is presented with a James Hayes art glass bowl by Jeannette M. Shorey II, M.D.

When presenting the alumnus award, Shorey read a message from Westbrook’s longtime colleague Laura Hutchins, M.D., a professor and former director of the UAMS Division of Hematology/Oncology. Hutchins, who could not attend the ceremony due to an out-of-the-country commitment, wrote about Westbrook’s exceptional problem-solving skills and lack of desire to receive credit for the work.

“The biggest secret, however, is that while Dr. Westbrook is portrayed as a tough, unflappable person, he has an extremely soft heart for patients and coworkers as well as UAMS as an institution,” Hutchins wrote. “His contributions in patient care, education and administrative work to improve UAMS are truly immense.”

Others faculty members receiving awards included:

  • Karl David Straub, M.D., Ph.D., a professor of internal medicine who began teaching at UAMS in 1972, received the Master Teacher Award in recognition of his skill and enthusiasm for bringing the science of medicine to bedside teaching.
  • David Davies, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Developmental Sciences, and Charles Matthew Quick, M.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Pathology, received the Educational Innovation Award. They developed a program that allows first-year medical students to investigate potential medical issues of cadavers in the gross anatomy lab.
  • Taranjit Sangari, M.D., an associate professor in the Division of Pediatric Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, received the Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award from the Arnold P. Gold Foundation for his work with children and families at Arkansas Children’s Hospital and internationally through Operation Smile and his positive impact on colleagues, students and trainees.
  • Travis Eastin, M.D., M.S., an assistant professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine, received a Residency Educator Award for his leadership of the Emergency Medicine Residency.
  • Issam Makhoul, M.D., an associate professor and director of the Division of Hematology/Oncology, received a Residency Educator Award for his leadership of the Hematology/Oncology Fellowship.

Three staff members were honored for their work in the college’s major mission areas:

  • Anna Moses, M.Ed., an instructional development specialist in the Department of Anesthesiology and the college’s Graduate Medical Education office, received the Staff Excellence Award in Education for training and helping others who use the college’s comprehensive residency management system.
  • Melinda Gunnell, B.A., a research program manager in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, received the Staff Excellence Award in Research for her laboratory leadership and support of a large research team that is developing addiction treatments and antibody-based therapeutics.
  • Darlene Bailey, R.N., received the Staff Excellence Award in Clinical Care for her work in the Department of Anesthesiology to help re-establish and operate UAMS’ Interventional Pain Management Clinic.

The college also recognized 69 faculty members who were promoted in rank and/or received tenure, including Aubrey Hough, M.D., UAMS’ first University Professor. Others were recognized for their work leading to the college’s recent national re-accreditation. Six faculty members who were named to endowed chairs this year also were honored.