Holcomb named UT Chancellor’s Health Fellow
for Trauma and Injury Programs
John B. Holcomb, M.D.
HOUSTON – (Jan. 8, 2009) – Kenneth I. Shine, M.D., interim chancellor and executive vice chancellor for health affairs for The University of Texas System, has appointed John B. Holcomb, M.D., the Chancellor’s Health Fellow for Trauma and Injury Programs.
Holcomb is professor and chief of acute care surgery and director of the Center for Translational Injury Research at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. As the chancellor’s fellow, he will spend the next year working with other experts in the UT System to enhance services for injured Texans.
“Dr. Holcomb has an impressive record of achievement in pioneering new methods for treating the wounded on the battlefield and for transporting soldiers more efficiently to hospitals,” Shine said. “His vast experience in military trauma surgery and research makes him uniquely qualified for this health fellowship, which is the first Chancellor’s Fellowship to be offered in this specialized area. He will work with all of the UT campuses to strengthen research, educational, prevention and treatment programs for trauma and injury.”
Holcomb, the recent recipient of the American Heart Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award in Trauma Resuscitation Science, said developing the most effective prevention and treatment programs is critical to the health of Texans. According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, almost 30 Texans die every day from injuries – approximately 10,000 each year. For every trauma victim who dies, at least six are seriously injured.
“We need to work collaboratively across the outstanding UT System trauma centers and prepare an agenda that might include developing a trauma registry in Texas and addressing disaster response, as well as health policy issues surrounding injured Texans,” Holcomb said. “I see the fellowship as an opportunity to foster communication and develop an agenda so we can start tackling large problems that affect the citizens of Texas.”
The UT System Office of Health Affairs established the Chancellor’s Health Fellows program in 2004 to maximize improvements in education, research and patient care among the system’s six health campuses.
“Dr. Holcomb is very deserving of this honor from Dr. Shine and the UT System,” said Giuseppe Colasurdo, M.D., dean of The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. “We are very fortunate to have recruited him to our faculty, and his accolades and successes speak to his passion for helping trauma patients.”
Holcomb's contributions to trauma medicine include increased hemorrhage control through dressings, tourniquets and intravenous methods, as well as trauma informatics and systems. He is past commander of the United States Army Institute of Surgical Research at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio. He finished his undergraduate work at Centenary College and received his medical degree at the University of Arkansas Medical School in Little Rock. He completed an internship and residency in general surgery at the William Beaumont Army Medical Center in El Paso.
Holcomb joined the UT Health Science Center faculty in late 2008 to lead a new trauma research center, which is supported by a $5 million investment through the Texas Emerging Technology Fund to the university, plus $5 million from the UT Medical School and $5 million from Memorial Hermann – Texas Medical Center. Much of the research is being conducted at Memorial Hermann – TMC, a top trauma center and home of the Life Flight aerial ambulance service.
“The UT Health Science Center at Houston and Memorial Hermann – Texas Medical Center are at the forefront of trauma research and clinical care to injured patients,” said Larry Kaiser, M.D., the university’s president. “This fellowship will allow Dr. Holcomb to build on this important work through strengthened collaborations with our partners in the UT System.”