Kudos

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Awards and Honors

Catherine M. Flaitz, D.DS, dean, the William N. Finnegan III Professor in the Dental Sciences and professor of diagnostic sciences, and John Valenza, D.D.S., executive associate dean and associate professor of diagnostic sciences, Dental Branch (DB), were inducted as fellows in the International College of Dentists Oct. 7 during the American Dental Association annual meeting. S. Jerry Long, D.D.S., president of the DB Alumni Association, was their sponsor. The International College of Dentists is the preeminent honorary organization of the world’s outstanding dentists who have demonstrated an abiding interest and concern for their profession.

Robert P. Lee, D.D.S., clinical director and clinical assistant professor of orthodontics, DB, won the Southwest Society of Orthodontists Educator Research Award Oct. 15 during the society’s annual meeting. He was recognized for his work on “Long-Term Treatment Results of Posterior Deformational Plagiocephaly: A Five-Year Follow-Up.” The research evaluated the difficulties that children with plagiocephaly, abnormal head shape, experience with their teeth and jaws. As the father of a child with the condition, Lee has a passion for the research.

Barbara E. Murray, M.D., professor and director, Division of Infectious Diseases, and vice-chair for research, Department of Internal Medicine, MS, was honored with the Dr. Robert J. Fass Award in June at The Ohio State University Medical Center. The award’s namesake was a dedicated physician who provided outstanding patient care, mentored many clinicians and was internationally recognized for his research and contributions to the infectious disease literature. Murray presented grand rounds on “Enterococci: How to Make a Second Rate Pathogen into a First Rate Problem.”

Murray, who is also the J. Ralph Meadows Professor in Internal Medicine and a faculty member in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBS), received the Mayo Foundation Donald Church Balfour Visiting Professor of Medicine Award in October at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. She presented grand rounds on “Enterococci: Is There More to Making This Second Rate Pathogen into a First Rate Problem than its Antibiotic Resistance?”

Leslie Roeder, D.D.S., associate dean for academic affairs and associate professor of diagnostic sciences, DB, was inducted as a fellow in the American College of Dentists Oct. 6 during the American Dental Association annual meeting. Janet Harrison, D.D.S., DB alumna and former faculty member, was her sponsor. The American College of Dentists recognizes those who have made significant contributions to the advancement of dentistry.

James T. Willerson, M.D., president of the UT Health Science Center and president-elect of the Texas Heart Institute, received the Career Achievement Award at the Oct. 19 Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutic meeting in Washington, D.C. The award honors Willerson’s outstanding work as an internationally distinguished cardiologist, research scientist, educator and noted editor of the scientific journal Circulation. It acknowledges a long history of groundbreaking contributions in the academic and clinical arenas of interventional cardiology and endovascular medicine.

Presentations

Kishore Shetty, D.D.S., director of medically complex patient clinic and associate professor of restorative dentistry, DB, presented “Is Alcohol Use Related to the Increasing Prevalence of Oral Lesions in the Immuno-Compromised Patient?” at the 29th Annual Conference of the Association for Medical Education and Research in Substance Abuse in October in Washington, D.C.

Richard Smalling, M.D., Ph.D., the Jay Brent Sterling Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine and director of clinical cardiology, MS, spoke at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) annual meeting, sponsored by the Cardiovascular Research Foundation for health care professionals who specialize in interventional vascular therapy. The meeting was Oct. 15-19 in Washington D.C. Smalling spoke on “Limb Salvage Techniques,” “Percutaneous Ventricular Assist Devices for Acute Cardiogenic Shock,” “Interventional Heart Failure” and “Facilitated PCI II: Preliminary Results from the PATCAR Pilot Trial.” He participated in a roundtable discussion on: “What are the optimal treatment strategies in patients presenting at hospitals that don’t perform angioplasty? How can door-to-balloon time be shortened?”

Two interventional cardiology fellows, MS, had papers accepted for presentation at the TCT meeting. Blaithnead M. Murtagh, M.D., presented “Peritoneal Dialysis Have Higher Rates of Hospitalization from Peripheral Vascular Disease Compared with Hemodialysis Patients.” Gregory M. Giesler, M.D., presented “Coordinated Aggressive Medical and Interventional Therapy for Acute Myocardial Infarction: Pre-Hospital Administration of Thrombolysis with Urgent Culprit Artery Revascularization (PATCAR).”

Publications

Frank L. Cole, Ph.D., professor, assistant dean and department chair, Acute and Continuing Care, SON, had his article “The Role of the Nurse Practitioner in Disaster Planning and Response” published in Nursing Clinics of North America in September.

Scott T. Walters, Ph.D., assistant professor of behavioral sciences, School of Public Health Dallas Regional Campus, co-authored Talking with College Students about Alcohol: Motivational Strategies for Reducing Abuse, published by The Guilford Press in October. Designed for therapists, counselors, health educators and medical professionals working with college students and other young adults, this book provides readily applicable guidelines for assessing and working with college drinkers and advice on interacting with students. He gave a series of lectures on the book, including lectures at Rice University, Southern Methodist University and the SPH Dallas Regional Campus.