Ward named honorary member of 2017 medical school class

Jamie Ward, MPH, undergraduate surgery education coordinator with the Department of Surgery, was named an honorary member of the UK Medical School class of 2017. She wore cap and gown and joined her fellow classmates for graduation ceremonies on Saturday, May 13.

Ward said she received news that members of the class of 2017 had selected her for this honor on Match Day in March earlier this year. Dr. Todd Cheever, associate dean for student affairs, gave her the good news and the letters of support submitted on her behalf for this honor.
“I am so proud to receive this honor. This group is especially dear to me,” Ward said. She worked with this particular class during their second year of medical school before joining the Department of Surgery. “Our Department has high expectations for medical students, so I try to help keep the courses organized and be flexible as much as I can, so they can focus on learning and becoming great doctors.” Ward added.

Pulito and Massie honors presented at senior awards night

On Senior Awards Night, the evening before graduation, the Department of Surgery awarded its annual Francis S. Massie Award to Brittany Fenner, MD and the Andrew R. Pulito Award to Kyle Stigall, MD.

The Francis S. Massie Award is named in honor of the late Dr. Massie, who was a catalyst for the establishment of the UK Medical School and a founding member if the Southern Society for Clinical Surgeons. The award is given to one senior medical student who demonstrates outstanding potential as a surgeon within the Department of Surgery.
Fenner, who earned her bachelors of science degree in chemistry from Furman University, is said to have “excelled in the surgery clerkship with intelligence, diligence, and a strong desire to achieve.” Of her clinical rotations, many of her advisors agreed that she “showed integrity and team spirit.”

The Andrew Pulito Award, named in honor of Dr. Pulito, pediatric surgeon and long-time general surgery clerkship director, is presented to a student who demonstrates excellence in academics, clinical care, leadership, and teaching.
In addition to earning his MD from the University of Kentucky, Stigall is a 2013 graduate of the United States Air Force Academy. In 2016 he was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. Stigall has also been very involved in surgical research with authorship in a few published scientific journal articles.