Appointments Announced at Medical School

Leaders named in clinical research, cardiology, OB/GYN, maternal-fetal

Clinical Research

Jon Tyson, M.D., has been selected to fill a new role at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston as assistant dean for clinical research, which complements his position as director of the Center for Clinical Research and Evidence-Based Medicine.

“Dr. Tyson has been one of our leaders in advancing clinical research at the Medical School, since he first arrived in 1998 to direct the Center for Clinical Research and Evidence-Based Medicine,” said Interim Dean Jerry S. Wolinsky, M.D. “We are confident this new role will help him make an even greater contribution to clinical research education.”

Tyson, the Michelle Bain Distinguished Professor in Medicine and Public Health, said the new role goes hand in hand with his current duties at the center, which was established in 1998. With funding from the National Institutes of Health, the center initiated educational programs, including a Clinical Research Curriculum and an Intensive Mentorship Program in 1999 and a Master’s Degree Program in Clinical Research in 2002.

For the past 20 years, Tyson has been a principal investigator for the Neonatal Research Network funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to test the most promising ways to improve the outcome of high-risk newborns.

Division of Cardiology

David McPherson, M.D., was appointed the director of the Division of Cardiology in the UT Medical School’s Department of Internal Medicine, department chair Bruce Kone, M.D., announced. McPherson also was named to direct cardiovascular medicine at the Memorial Hermann Heart and Vascular Institute-Texas Medical Center.

“Dr. McPherson is a triple-threat star in cardiology and a leader with great passion and vision,” Kone said. “He will have an enormous impact on our department, the health science center and our teaching hospitals.”

At Northwestern University for 18 years, McPherson was professor of medicine at the Feinberg School of Medicine, holder of the Knight Chair in the Department of Medicine, and director of research in the Division of Cardiology. He also co-directed the echocardiography laboratories at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

McPherson is an established clinical researcher in cardiovascular imaging and vascular biology who has
received continual funding from the National Institutes of Health, the Canadian Heart Foundation, private foundations and pharmaceutical companies for nearly 25 years. His research focuses on targeted gene and drug delivery to atherosclerotic plaque using ultrasonic contrast agents.

Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences

Susan M. Ramin, M.D., professor and director of the maternal-fetal medicine division at the UT Medical
School, has been appointed chair of the school’s Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences.

“Dr. Ramin has been on our faculty since 1999, joining us following a long tenure at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas,” said Interim Dean Jerry S. Wolinsky, M.D., announcing the appointment. “She has led one of the 14 National Institutes of Health Maternal-Fetal Medicine Network Centers, and her work in the center will continue.”

Ramin, who is the Berel Held, M.D., Professor in Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, will continue to see patients and do clinical research on improving the outcome for mothers and infants in complicated or high-risk pregnancies.

Ramin succeeds Larry Gilstrap, M.D., who stepped down as department chair after serving for 10 years.

Maternal-Fetal Medicine

Manju Monga, M.D., has been appointed director of the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine and the division’s fellowship program at the UT Medical School, Susan Ramin, M.D., chair of the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, has announced. Monga joined the faculty at the Medical School in 1993 after completing the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Fellowship Program. She was director for the residency program at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center.

Now, as director of the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Fellowship Program, she said, “I hope to continue the expansion of our consultation services into our community hospitals, so that women can receive specialized care close to home.”

Monga’s research has focused on basic function of the uterine smooth muscle, substance abuse in
pregnancy, and professional and educational issues, while her clinical interest includes medical complications in pregnancy.