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Faculty of Three Schools Named Fellows of
National Academies
Three faculty members of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston have been recognized for their expertise by being named fellows of national academies in their fields: Mazen M. Dimachkie, M.D., the American Academy of Neurology; Elda Ramirez, the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners; and Kishore Shetty, D.D.S., the American Academy of Dentistry for Persons with Disabilities.
Neurology
Mazen M. Dimachkie, M.D., is associate professor of neurology, director of the Neuromuscular Disease Program and director of the Clinical Neurophysiology Fellowship Program at the UT Medical School at Houston. He also is director of the Memorial Hermann Hospital-Texas Medical Center Electromyography Laboratory.
Mazen M. Dimachkie, M.D.
The American Academy of Neurology (AAN), established in 1948, is an international professional association of neurologists and neuroscience professionals dedicated to providing the best possible care for patients with disorders of the brain and nervous system, such as Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease and stroke.
The AAN bestows the title of fellow to active members for their achievement in the neurosciences, including academic accomplishment, significant contribution to the medical literature, and service to the community through clinical neurology.
“Through our multidisciplinary approach we offer the full spectrum of clinical services for the diagnosis, prognosis and management of patients with neuromuscular disorders,” Dimachkie said. “We assess patients using conventional and advanced electromyography and nerve conduction study. Some patients also benefit from our ability to perform and interpret (with the assistance of UT neuropathologists) muscle and/or nerve biopsy.”
His research interests are diverse and include HIV and muscle disease; gene expression profiling in muscle tissue from patients with myositis, a chronic inflammatory muscle disease; West Nile virus encephalitis natural history and experimental treatment; the genetic profiles in peripheral polyneuropathy, a common cause of damage to multiple nerves in the limbs; and peripheral nerve entrapments, such as carpal tunnel syndrome.
Nurse Practitioners
Elda Ramirez is assistant professor of nursing and head of the Emergency Care Division in the Department of Acute and Continuing Care at the UT School of Nursing at Houston.
Elda Ramirez
The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners recognizes as fellows nurse practitioners who have made outstanding contributions to health care practice, research, education or policy. Ramirez was one of 19 fellows selected this year. Her primary sponsor was the late Frank Cole, Ph.D., with whom she conceptualized and implemented the Emergency Nurse Practitioner program at the UT School of Nursing in 1994.
Ramirez is an experienced educator and clinician. In collaboration with the UT Medical School at Houston, she developed an animal lab to teach emergency procedures to nursing students and established the first cadaver lab for graduate students in the School of Nursing.
She has been recognized for her clinical expertise by the Houston Chapter of the Emergency Nursing Association and the National Honor Society Sigma Theta Tau Zeta Pi. She has been recognized by Health Week magazine as an outstanding nurse clinician. Through her clinical practice, she has developed a research project to identify competencies for nurse practitioners in the emergency department.
Dentistry
Kishore Shetty, D.D.S., is director of the Medically Complex Patient Clinic and associate professor of restorative dentistry and diagnostic sciences at the UT Dental Branch at Houston.
Kishore Shetty, D.D.S.
The American Academy of Dentistry for Persons with Disabilities, founded in 1952, selects fellows in recognition of outstanding achievement and commitment to the oral health of the medically compromised, elderly, and persons with disabilities.
Trained in oral medicine, hospital dentistry and dental public health, Shetty said he was attracted to his specialty for four reasons.
“The first was the excitement, privilege and satisfaction of caring for the medically complex patients.
“The second was the opportunity to contribute to the creation of new knowledge, in my case, oral management of medically compromised and special needs patients with an emphasis on immunodeficiency diseases.
“The third was the intellectual stimulation involved in teaching students and residents in an institutional setting, where most of the disabled people get care.
“The fourth was the opportunity to do multiple things over a lifetime,” he said. “I couldn’t see myself doing just patient care, or just research, or just education. At a place like the Texas Medical Center you can draw on the experience of people who have been instrumental in defining the field.”