News

In a Q&A for Women in Medicine Month, Analia S. Loria-Kinsey, PhD, associate professor of pharmacology and nutritional sciences, discusses how she contributes to the College of Medicine and how she prepares the learners she mentors to excel in their careers.

Q: What are your current roles at the College of Medicine, and what do you do?

Pamela Branson has been a nurse for 40 years, 35 of those working at the University of Kentucky. After long days treating patients, she always turned to golf as a way to escape the stress.

So, when she couldn’t garner the energy to make it to the course in 2018, she knew something was wrong.

The Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is excited to launch the first volume of its quarterly newsletter, The Mosaic. 

The Mosaic represents the varied lived experiences in the College of Medicine, our challenges, our changes, and the patterns we create together. Our vision is to cultivate a learning and working environment that is representative, equitable, and welcoming for faculty, staff, and learners across the College of Medicine and contributes to the growth and development of advocates for change.

Lisa Tannock, MD, is senior associate dean for faculty affairs and development at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine, as well as a professor of medicine. September is Women in Medicine Month. In this Q&A, Dr. Tannock shares the highlights of her career and the advice she has for the next generation of female physician-scientists.

Q: What are your current roles at the College of Medicine, and what do you do?

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine is excited to share that Kaylin Batey, a third-year medical student, has received the 2021 Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Herbert W. Nickens Medical Student Scholarship.

Batey is one of five recipients of this prestigious national award, which recognizes students entering their third year of medical school who have demonstrated leadership working to help eliminate inequities and address educational, societal, and health care needs of non-majority communities.

On behalf of the Office of Graduate Medical Education, the University of Kentucky College of Medicine is pleased to announce the selection of Mohammed Kazimuddin, MD, as the associate dean for graduate medical education at the Bowling Green Campus.

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine has developed into a research powerhouse helping find solutions to Kentucky’s most urgent health needs.

Clinical research is vital in bringing important findings from the laboratory into the clinic to improve patient treatment. To continue to strengthen its research capabilities, the college is excited to share its selection to fill a newly created position, associate dean for clinical research.

Larry B. Goldstein, MD, chair of neurology, has been chosen to take on this role. He will begin Sept. 1.

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine is pleased to announce its selection of Tianyan Gao, PhD, as acting chair of the department of molecular and cellular biochemistry.

Dr. Gao has dedicated more than a decade to the UK College of Medicine as an educator and researcher, mentoring several students, post-docs, and residents over the years while obtaining substantial funding from the National Institutes of Health and other major organizations.

University of Kentucky College of Medicine student Gerek Meinhardt will bring home his second bronze medal as part of Team USA in the men's team foil competition at the delayed 2020 Olympics. The team defeated Japan 45-31. Meinhardt previously won a bronze medal in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games.

 University of Kentucky College of Medicine student and Lexington native Lee Kiefer became the first American to win a gold medal in an individual foil event defeating reigning Olympic champion Inna Deriglazova (ROC) 15-13 in Tokyo. She also earned Team USA's first fencing medal of the delayed 2020 Olympics and ninth medal since the game began. 

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine is excited to welcome a new class of medical students across all of its campuses.

On Thursday, July 29, and Friday, July 30, 2021, the college will hold White Coat Ceremonies for new students after going through their first-year orientation. These events mark the official start to our students' journey to a medical degree.

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine is pleased to announce that Luke Bradley, PhD, has accepted the position of acting chair of the department of neuroscience, effective Aug. 1.

Dr. Bradley, a University of Kentucky Chellgren Endowed Professor, has served in the College of Medicine for nearly 15 years researching the discovery and development of peptide- and protein-based platforms for biotherapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases. He also touts more than 20 years of STEM education experience.

Dr. Michael D. Rankin, a 1980 graduate of the University of Kentucky College of Medicine, was honored today for his monumental $22 million gift commitment that will transform medical education in Kentucky.

Rankin’s gift is the second-largest single gift in university history and will support scholarships in the College of Medicine and the construction of a new health education building.

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine has implemented a system to enhance the medical student experience and ensure optimum professional development, career advising, social connectedness, and wellness during medical school.

In response to the continued growth of the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and the evolving landscape of medical education, the Office of Medical Education is happy to announce a new curriculum leadership structure ahead of the 2021-2022 academic year.

As part of the Office of Graduate Medical Education’s continued expansion of its graduate medical program opportunities, the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and UK HealthCare have established a new residency program to equip medical trainees with the necessary knowledge and experience to best treat Kentucky patients with both medical and psychiatric needs.

When his parents drove from their home in rural Lincoln County to drop Michael Rankin off at Haggin Hall on the University of Kentucky campus in August 1967, it was one of the biggest places he had ever seen.

His high school math teacher had encouraged his love for math and science and in 1971 he received an engineering degree. His dream was to go on to medical school, but he feared achieving this goal was out of reach. Today, he wants to make sure that young men and women from rural areas who aspire to be physicians have the support they need to make their dreams come true.

Juneteenth is observed on June 19, 2021, to commemorate the emancipation of enslaved people in the U.S. On this day, enslaved African-Americans in Galveston, Texas, were notified they had actually been freed almost 2.5 years earlier.

Members of the College of Medicine were asked a series of questions on how they honor Juneteenth.

Q: When did you first become aware of Juneteenth?

Em Neiport, MA, is project manager at the College of Medicine and staff co-chair of the LGBTQ* Advisory Committee.

Q: What are your roles at the UK College of Medicine?

A: I’m a project manager in the College of Medicine. The projects I’ve worked on are so varied and have allowed me to see just how expansive academic medicine really is. It’s fascinating! The best part of my role is having a chance to work with so many amazing people in all areas of the college.

Meriem Bensalem-Owen, MD, and Brian Gold, PhD, might not have ever had the chance to work on projects together. Dr. Bensalem-Owen is a physician who spends much of her time at the patients’ bedside, reviewing video-EEG monitoring studies, or in clinic treating patients with epilepsy, and Dr. Gold is a researcher who studies age-related brain and cognitive changes in the lab.

But thanks to the University of Kentucky College of Medicine’s Alliance Research Initiative, they have joined forces to better localize, and ultimately treat, epileptic seizures.