Awards and Accolades: University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences Announce Faculty, Staff Achievements

UPCI News Archive

PITTSBURGH, December 4, 2007 – The faculty, staff and students of the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences often are recognized by academic and scientific societies and other prestigious organizations for their significant achievements and exceptional leadership. Among those whose work has been acknowledged recently with awards and accolades are the following:

L. Dade Lunsford, MD, has been selected for a National Physician of the Year Award, by Castle Connolly Medical Ltd., whose mission is to help consumers find the best health care. Its most popular publication is America's Top Doctors in which the doctors listed are nominated by their peers in an extensive survey process of thousands of American doctors each year. Dr. Lunsford is the first physician from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center to receive this prestigious honor.

In addition, Dr. Lunsford was selected by the Allegheny County Medical Society (ACMS) to receive its 2007 Ralph C. Wilde Award, named in honor of the former society president. It is the most prestigious award presented by the ACMS and is given to a candidate who exemplifies the high ideals and standards of Dr. Wilde. The award will be presented officially at the society's Annual Installation of Officers and Physicians Awards Presentation on Saturday, Jan. 12 at the Westin Convention Center Hotel in Pittsburgh.
Susan G. Amara, PhD, Thomas Detre Professor of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, has been named an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow. She was chosen for her outstanding service to the field of neuroscience and contributions to elucidating the dynamics of chemical neurotransmission. Fellows are selected by members of the AAAS, the world's largest general scientific society. Dr. Amara will be recognized at the Fellows Forum during the 2008 AAAS Annual Meeting in Boston on Saturday, Feb. 16.
The Center for Environmental Oncology at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute received the Leader in Environmental Health Award from the Pennsylvania Resources Council, one of the Commonwealth's oldest citizen action environmental organizations. The theme for this year's fundraising and awards dinner was "Nurturing Environmental Leaders." The Center has collaborated with the Council in a joint initiative to create a middle-school curriculum, student activities and teaching materials that will convey the Center's environmental health messages. The initiative will be launched in four selected Pittsburgh Public Schools during the 2007-2008 school year.
Lynn M. Martire, PhD, associate director of gerontology, University Center for Social and Urban Research, University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, has been selected to receive the Margret M. & Paul B. Baltes Foundation Award. This distinguished honor is given annually by the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) in recognition of outstanding early career contributions in behavioral and social gerontology. The award was presented at the GSA's 60th Annual Scientific Meeting in November in San Francisco.
Catherine M. Bender, PhD, RN, associate professor, department of health and community systems, University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing received the 2007 Nursing Research Award from the Nightingale Awards of Pennsylvania, a statewide, non-profit foundation created to help recruit and retain nursing professionals.
Karleen Melody, a second-year student in the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy, was elected as coordinator of the American Pharmacists Association Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP) Region 2 Mid-year Regional Meeting (MRM) by the delegates at the annual APhA-ASP meeting that was held in Baltimore in October. The next MRM will be held in Pittsburgh in the fall of 2008.
Ilana Silverman, current master's student in the University of Pittsburgh School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, was awarded a Graduate Student Scholarship by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation. The $4,000 scholarship is given to full-time graduate students in communication sciences and disorders programs who demonstrate outstanding academic achievement. This prestigious scholarship is given to no more than seven students nationally.
Connie Tompkins, PhD, professor, communications science and disorders, Center for Neural Basis of Cognition, a joint project of Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh, received the Honors of the Academy of Neurologic Communication Disorders and Sciences (ANCDS) at this year's annual meeting in November in Boston. ANCDS is a professional organization dedicated to promoting quality services for individuals with neurologic communication disorders. Honors are given to individuals who have made significant contributions in the area of neurologic communication disorders and sciences.

The University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences include the schools of Medicine, Nursing, Dental Medicine, Pharmacy, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences and the Graduate School of Public Health. The schools serve as the academic partner to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Together, their combined mission is to train tomorrow's health care specialists and biomedical scientists, engage in groundbreaking research that will advance understanding of the causes and treatments of disease and participate in the delivery of outstanding patient care. For fiscal year 2005, Pitt and its institutional affiliates ranked seventh nationally among educational institutions in grant support from the National Institutes of Health. For additional information about the Schools of the Health Sciences, please visit http://www.health.pitt.edu.

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