Darwin Conwell, M.D, joined the University of Kentucky College of Medicine as a professor and the Jack M. Gill Endowed Chair in Internal Medicine in 2022. Four years ago, he was interviewed about his initial impressions of the department and enterprise.
Now, Conwell reflects back on his time in Lexington and the successes he has experienced, as well as what he looks forward to in the future.
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Q: What reflections do you have as you mark four years at the University of Kentucky?
A: When my wife Kathy and I arrived at the University of Kentucky four years ago, we hoped we could make a meaningful contribution to the people of the Commonwealth. What we have experienced has exceeded anything we could have imagined.
We have been welcomed into an extraordinary university, an outstanding health system and a community that has embraced us with kindness, encouragement and genuine friendship. Looking back over these four years, I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the opportunity to serve, for the remarkable people I work alongside every day and for what we have been able to accomplish together.
Q: What has been the move pivotal moment for you in the past four years?
A: Without question, the most memorable moment of the past four years was when the Markey Cancer Center achieved National Cancer Institute (NCI) Comprehensive Cancer Center designation.
I still remember the celebration at the Gatton Student Center. State and university leaders, faculty, staff and students gathered with an incredible sense of excitement and pride. It was far more than receiving another designation. We all understood what it meant for the people of Kentucky.
This achievement meant that patients throughout the commonwealth would have greater access to world-class cancer specialists, innovative clinical trials, cutting-edge therapies and discoveries that would directly improve their lives. It represented decades of dedication from countless faculty and staff members.
For me, the moment carried special personal significance. More than forty years ago, the Markey Cancer Center saved my brother’s life while he was a freshman at the University of Kentucky. My family has always carried a special place in our hearts for Markey. Watching the center receive Comprehensive Cancer Center designation was deeply emotional because I understood both the professional significance and the personal impact it represents for families across Kentucky.
I was honored to play a small role in supporting the preparation for that site visit by helping ensure that our physician and advanced practice provider compensation remained nationally competitive so we could recruit and retain outstanding faculty. It truly was a team accomplishment, and I was grateful simply to contribute in a small way.
Q: What are some milestones you have experienced?
A: Professionally, these four years have also been incredibly rewarding.
One of the highlights has been reestablishing my own NIH-funded research program at the University of Kentucky. Continuing to pursue research focused on pancreatic diseases while mentoring young investigators has been deeply fulfilling.
Equally rewarding has been expanding our department’s community engagement. We received NIH funding with Drs. Nancy Schoenberg and Lovoria Williams, as a Center of Excellence for Community Engaged Research.
Additionally, I find pride in the Miles for Medicine 5K, an event that not only brings our department together but also supports medical student education and helps fund healthcare provided through the Salvation Army Clinic for underserved members of our community.
Working alongside Dr. Tukea Talbert, Tim Gaillard, and many others, we have also expanded community outreach efforts, health fairs and educational initiatives focused on improving cardiovascular health, diabetes prevention, hypertension control, obesity, smoking cessation and recruitment into healthcare public health careers. Improving health begins long before patients arrive in the hospital.
Q: What growth and change have you seen in academic medicine?
A: Academic medicine has changed dramatically over the past four years.
The University of Kentucky has experienced extraordinary growth. We have expanded our educational programs, increased medical school class sizes, and began new facilities projects such as the Rankin Health Education Building and the Cancer and Advanced Ambulatory Building, continued planning for a new hospital tower and expanded our footprint across Kentucky through clinical partnerships and outreach into other parts of Kentucky.
Within the Department of Internal Medicine, we have focused on building sustainable systems rather than relying on individual effort. Our goal has been to organize the department for long-term success by developing strong leadership teams, recruiting outstanding division chiefs and faculty, establishing accountability, improving communication, strengthening governance and creating succession plans that will outlast any one department chair.
Much of our leadership philosophy has been influenced by Jim Collins’ “Good to Great.” We strive to recruit disciplined people, encourage disciplined thinking and execute disciplined action. Sustainable excellence requires systems, culture, accountability and servant leadership working together.
Q: What growth and change have you seen in healthcare?
A: Healthcare itself is changing faster now than at any point in my career.
Artificial intelligence will fundamentally transform nearly every aspect of medicine — from medical education and clinical decision support to imaging, documentation, research, operational efficiency and personalized patient care. Our responsibility is not simply to adopt AI but to use it wisely, ethically and safely in ways that improve patient outcomes.
We are also seeing significant evolution in healthcare delivery through integrated service lines, value-based reimbursement, bundled payment models and multidisciplinary care that brings specialists together around the patient rather than requiring patients to navigate fragmented systems.
At the same time, physician shortages continue to grow. Advanced practice providers have become indispensable members of our healthcare teams, helping us expand access while maintaining high-quality care.
Perhaps the greatest public health challenge remains obesity. The emergence of GLP-1 therapies has created tremendous opportunities, but we still have important questions regarding long-term management, affordability, appropriate patient selection and how these medications integrate into comprehensive lifestyle interventions. Addressing obesity effectively has enormous implications for reducing diabetes, cardiovascular disease, stroke, cancer risk and many chronic illnesses.
Healthcare will continue to evolve, but our mission remains constant: providing compassionate, evidence-based care while improving the health of our communities.
Q: What makes Lexington feel like home to you?
A: One of the greatest surprises has been discovering what a remarkable place Lexington truly is. People here genuinely care about one another.
Whether we’re attending church, shopping at local businesses, visiting restaurants, spending time at Keeneland or walking through our neighborhoods, Kathy and I have consistently experienced kindness, respect and hospitality.
Our weekends are often filled with volunteer work, community health initiatives, church activities and spending time with our six wonderful grandchildren — five in Texas and one in Ohio. Although they live far away, they remain one of our greatest joys and we cherish every opportunity to help influence their lives.
Q: What are your hopes for the future of the Department of Internal Medicine?
A: When I first arrived, I said that I hoped to make a meaningful contribution to Kentucky.
Four years later, that commitment has only grown stronger.
Our mission and vision is straightforward: One Department. One Mission. Committed to creating a healthier Kentucky.
My hope is that when my time at the University of Kentucky eventually comes to an end, the Department of Internal Medicine will be stronger than when I arrived.
I hope we will have built an organization that is more collaborative, more innovative, more accountable, more compassionate and more prepared for future generations of physicians, scientists, educators, staff and learners.
Leadership is never about one individual. It is about building people, developing future leaders, creating systems that endure and leaving behind an organization capable of serving others even better than before.
I remain incredibly grateful to Drs. Chipper Griffith, Robert DiPaola, and Mark Newman, university leadership, UK HealthCare leadership, our faculty, staff, trainees, patients and the citizens of Kentucky for placing their trust in me.
Kathy and I often say that we have been blessed beyond measure.
Our prayer is that we continue to be a blessing to others as together we work to improve the health of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.