Bhavan receives Essential Hospitals’ 2016 Gage Award

Dr. Kavita Bhavan, Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine, has been awarded a 2016 Gage Award for creating a program that enables uninsured patients to self-administer long-term IV antibiotics. The award is presented annually by America’s Essential Hospitals for evidence-based best practices that raise the quality of care for all patients, but especially for vulnerable individuals.

Individuals with certain infections such as endocarditis or osteomyelitis can require IV antibiotic treatment for six weeks or longer. While patients who have insurance often go home once their antibiotics course has started, with the assistance of home health services, indigent patients frequently have no option but to remain in the hospital for the entire treatment period.

Dr. Bhavan, along with nursing staff and social workers at Parkland Memorial Hospital, created a program that taught these patients to self-administer their long-term antibiotics, allowing them to safely return home and resume their lives. The award was presented to Dr. Bhavan in June at the association’s annual conference in Boston.

Dr. Bhavan earned her medical degree at Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine before completing her residency at Ochsner Medical Center, and her fellowship at Washington University/Barnes Jewish Hospital.

Drazner named Clinical Chief of Cardiology Division

Dr. Mark Drazner, Professor of Internal Medicine, has been named Clinical Chief of Cardiology within the Department of Internal Medicine.

Dr. Drazner, who holds the James M. Wooten Chair in Cardiology, has nearly 20 years of experience to this leadership role. Since 2006, he has served as the Medical Director of the Heart Failure, Left Ventricular Assist Devices, and Cardiac Transplantation Program. He previously founded and served as the Medical Director of the Parkland Memorial Hospital Congestive Heart Failure Clinic.

Dr. Drazner’s efforts have garnered national recognition, including participation on the Writing Committee of the 2013 ACCF/AHA Guideline for Management of Heart Failure. Additionally, he has been recognized with frequent listings in Best Doctors, Texas Monthly Super Doctors, and D Magazine’s Best Doctors.

Dr. Drazner received his medical degree from Washington University School of Medicine before completing his internship and residency training at UT Southwestern. He then had Fellowships at Duke University School of Medicine (cardiology) and at Harvard Medical School/Brigham and Women’s Hospital (congestive heart failure/cardiac transplant) before attending Harvard University School of Public Health (epidemiology).

Mootha selected to hold Stoffel/Centex clinical Professorship

Dr. Venkateswara Mootha, Professor of Ophthalmology and in the Eugene McDermott Center for Human Growth and Development, has been selected to hold the Paul T. Stoffel/Centex Professorship in Clinical Care.

A faculty member at UT Southwestern since 2004, Dr. Mootha received his M.D. from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He interned at St. Joseph’s Hospital before completing his ophthalmology residency at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics. In 1999, Dr. Mootha was a Fellow at UT Southwestern, investigating cornea and external diseases.

Dr. Mootha’s clinical expertise and interests include cataract surgery and lens implants, keratoplasties, refractive surgery, LASIK procedures, and genetic eye disorders.

Morrison holding Bishop pediatric research Chair

Dr. Sean Morrison, Director of the Children’s Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern, now holds the redesignated Kathryne and Gene Bishop Distinguished Chair in Pediatric Research at Children’s Research Institute at UT Southwestern.

The Bishops are longtime Dallas civic leaders and Mrs. Bishop served on the Board of Children’s.

An internationally recognized stem cell researcher, Dr. Morrison is also a Professor of Pediatrics, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, a CPRIT Scholar, and holds the Mary McDermott Cook Chair in Pediatric Genetics. The immediate past-President of the International Society for Stem Cell Research, Dr. Morrison and other CRI at UTSW scientists focus on research at the point where stem cell biology intersects with regenerative medicine and cancer biology. By unraveling the mechanisms that regulate stem cell function, they aim to identify new treatments that enhance tissue regeneration or that defeat cancer. CRI at UTSW’s published discoveries are already leading to clinical trials to test new therapies for incurable diseases, including a Phase 1B clinical trial that is now underway to assess a novel drug combination in Stage IV melanoma patients based on discoveries made in Dr. Morrison’s laboratory.

Dr. Morrison graduated from Dalhousie University in Canada, then completed a Ph.D. in immunology at Stanford University, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship in neurobiology at California Institute of Technology.

Physiology Chair Pan to hold Bashour Distinguished Chair

The Chairman of Physiology, Dr. Duojia Pan, now holds the Fouad A. and Val Imm Bashour Distinguished Chair in Physiology.

Dr. Pan, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, returned to UT Southwestern this summer from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine to become the new Chairman of the Department. He previously had served on the UT Southwestern faculty from 1998 to 2004.

Dr. Pan is internationally known for his discovery of the “Hippo” pathway of intracellular signaling. This pathway controls organ size in animals. In recent research, Dr. Pan has shown that Hippo signaling plays important roles in regeneration and tumorigenesis, the process by which normal cells become cancerous.

A biochemistry major at Peking University, Dr. Pan received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles. After postdoctoral training at UC Berkeley, Dr. Pan joined the UT Southwestern faculty. While at Johns Hopkins he was made an HHMI Investigator (2008), a Professor of Molecular Biology and Genetics (2009), a Fellow of the American Association for Advancement of Science (2012), and was awarded the Paul Marks Prize for Cancer Research (2013).

Warner named President-Elect of American Heart Association

Dr. John J. Warner, Vice President and CEO of UT Southwestern Medical Center University Hospitals, has been named President-Elect of the American Heart Association for 2016-2017. He will serve as the AHA’s President for the 2017-2018 year.

Dr. Warner, who holds the Jim and Norma Smith Distinguished Chair for Interventional Cardiology and the Audre and Bernard Rapoport Chair in Cardiovascular Research, previously has served on the Dallas, Southwest Affiliate board, and national Board of Directors for the AHA, founded in 1924 and now the largest nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke.

An interventional cardiologist, Dr. Warner earned his medical degree from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and his M.B.A. from the Physician Executive Program at the University of Tennessee. He completed his internal medicine residency at UT Southwestern, where he served as Chief Resident. He completed fellowships in cardiovascular disease and interventional cardiology at Duke University Medical Center, and served on the Duke Cardiology faculty before returning to UT Southwestern in 2003. As Assistant Vice President for Hospital Planning, he led the planning and construction of the William P. Clements Jr. University Hospital.

As CEO of University Hospitals, Dr. Warner oversees the 460-bed Clements University Hospital, Zale Lipshy University Hospital, and the clinical operations of all hospital-based clinics and services. In March, Dr. Warner was additionally named a Senior Executive Officer for Southwestern Health Resources, an integrated health care network formed by Texas Health Resources and UT Southwestern that features 27 hospitals and 300 clinics throughout North Texas, as well as an expansive network of over 2,000 physicians across a 16-county area.

Orthopaedics Chair Wukich to hold Gregory Distinguished Chair

Dr. Dane Wukich, Chairman of Orthopaedic Surgery, has been selected to hold the Dr. Charles F. Gregory Distinguished Chair in Orthopaedic Surgery.

Dr. Wukich, only the third Chairman of the Department at UT Southwestern, is a nationally renowned lower leg specialist, educator, lecturer, and researcher who joined the faculty in June from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. As a military officer, Dr. Wukich served as a Chief of Orthopaedic Surgery in Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield. He is recognized internationally for his work in limb salvage, management of diabetes-related complications, and education.

A graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, Dr. Wukich earned a medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine. He completed his surgical internship and orthopedic surgery residency at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, and a Fellowship in foot and ankle surgery at The Cleveland Clinic Foundation.

Dr. Wukich’s research interests include circular external fixation complications in patients with diabetes, foot and ankle problems in post-transplant patients, tendon transfers with bio-tenodesis screw, and thromboembolic complications after foot and ankle surgery.