LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 11, 2022) — Rob Brooks is from Bedford, Kentucky, a town of fewer than 600 people in Trimble County. He grew up knowing that rural areas like his hometown are typically underserved in regard to health care, so he planned to become a doctor who could be part of the solution.

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine will celebrate the Class of 2022 during its annual spring commencement ceremony.

Biomedical Learners
Friday, May 6, 2022
2 p.m.
Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center
Livestream: Click here

While completing his undergraduate degree at the University of Kentucky, Jonathan Davies, MS, found himself at a crossroads. He had stretched himself too thin with involvement in organizations and programs, and he started suffering burnout. He then missed the window to take his medical school entrance exam junior year.

Megan Hutchcraft, MD, a gynecological oncology fellow at the UK College of Medicine and UK Markey Cancer Center, was recently recognized by the premier organization for professionals in gynecologic cancer care. During the Society of Gynecology Oncology’s (SGO) winter meeting, Dr. Hutchcraft was awarded the SGO 2022 Best Oral Abstract Award. She was selected among nearly 200 submissions and was one of 45 accepted abstracts. “I've never won an award like that before, so it's really motivating for me,” Dr. Hutchcraft said.

The UK College of Medicine is excited to announce that Sarah Hall, MD, PhD, and Eleftherios Xenos, MD, PhD, have been elected to represent the college on the University Senate.

The University Senate is the faculty voice in the governance of our college and the University and determines broad academic policies of the University. Dr. Hall and Dr. Xenos will serve as College of Medicine representatives for three-year terms beginning in August.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 3, 2022) — The University of Kentucky’s UNited In True racial Equity (UNITE) Research Priority Area will host its inaugural research showcase on Wednesday, May 4. The 2022 UNITE Research Showcase is centered around elevating and promoting the importance of racial equity research at UK, across the Commonwealth and beyond.

In 2020, high-profile murders of Black civilians by police garnered national attention, shining a light on the growing need for social change. Learners at the UK College of Medicine collaborated to compose a letter to their leadership, advocating for solutions to combat systemic racism. The College of Medicine administration engaged with learners to implement strategies and initiatives that would address their concerns.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 2, 2022) — Are you caring for someone with dementia? We invite you to participate in a research study that offers the Harmony at H.O.M.E. (Help Online Modifying the Environment) telehealth program at the University of Kentucky. The program provides training and tools for care partners to assess and modify the home to promote activity engagement and behavior regulation for the person with dementia. This study is led by researchers within UK’s Sanders-Brown Center on Aging.

Ramon Sun, PhD, is an assistant professor of neuroscience whose lab focuses on interpreting the molecular events connecting complex carbohydrate metabolism to cellular metabolism, signaling, and physiology.

While his primary appointment is in neuroscience, his work also encompasses molecular and cellular biochemistry and is affiliated with Markey Cancer Center, Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, and the Spinal Cord and Brain Injury Research Center.

You can learn more about Dr. Sun in the following Q&A.

Early in her undergraduate years of college, Elena Shelepak had several career paths in mind. She was good at biology and curious about genetics. During freshman year, she took a few psychology courses. Criminal justice also piqued her interest.

LEXINGTON, KY. (April 28, 2022) — It started as an idea during the 2021 spring semester. The goal behind the idea being discussed by the student group, Minority Students in Neuroscience (MSN), was to bring together all neuroscience majors, faculty and staff for an event celebrating the study they all love and enjoy.

April 24, 1962, marks the official 60th anniversary of the University of Kentucky Albert B. Chandler Hospital – then known as University Hospital.

Rob Brooks is from Bedford, Ky., a town of fewer than 600 people in Trimble County. He grew up knowing that rural areas like his hometown are typically underserved in regards to health care, so he planned to become a doctor who could be part of the solution.

Through the UK College of Medicine Rural Physician Leadership Program (RPLP), Rob received two years of education at UK’s large academic medical center in Lexington, Ky., followed by onsite rural medicine experience and training in Morehead, Ky.

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine is excited to announce the appointment of faculty members Sarah Marks, MD, MA, and Jordan Clay, MD, to serve on its committees. The electeds have been endorsed by the College of Medicine acting dean and Faculty Council. They will serve three-year terms on their respective committees.

Dr. Marks has been appointed to the College of Medicine Admissions Committee. Dr. Clay has been appointed to the College of Medicine Medical Student Curriculum Committee.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 20, 2022) — More than two years into the University of Kentucky’s $87 million HEALing Communities Study (HCS) to address the opioid epidemic in Kentucky, it is possible to see the life-changing impacts it has already made in the eight counties of the study’s first wave.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 19, 2022) — Two undergraduates have been selected as the first recipients of the University of Kentucky’s new Beckman Scholars Program, titled Scholars United by Chemistry: Cultivating Excellence through Science Stewardship (SUCCESS).

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 18, 2022) — University of Kentucky experts on the front lines of the nation’s opioid and addiction crises will share their work in the field of opioid use disorder research, treatment and prevention this week at the 2022 Rx Drug Abuse & Heroin Summit in Atlanta April 18-22.

The UK College of Medicine Office of Faculty Affairs and Development is pleased to announce that Caryn Sorge, MD, and Rachèle Yadon, MD, have been selected as fellows for the 2022 Bluegrass Higher Education Consortium Academic Leadership Academy (BHEC-ALA).

A Frankfort, Ky., native, Josh Karsner originally planned to attend the UK College of Medicine’s main campus in Lexington. Near the start of medical school, he learned about the college’s new regional campus in Bowling Green that would offer the same curriculum but smaller class sizes, as well as a chance to pave the way for future physicians-in-training in western Kentucky.

His first thought: “Why not?”

BENHAM, Ky. (April 14, 2022) — Make Better Choices 2 (MBC2), a mobile health (mHealth) project through the University of Kentucky, is celebrating a new wave of community participation with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its project headquarters in Benham, Kentucky, on May 11 at 2 p.m.