In 2016, Yabing Chen, Ph.D., a University of Alabama at Birmingham professor of pathology and research scientist at the Birmingham VA Medical Center, received a prestigious VA Research Career Scientist Award that provided five years of salary. 

Now she has taken an even larger step — a Senior Research Career Scientist Award from the Department of Veterans Affairs that will give her seven more years of salary support.

These senior-level awards recognize VA health services researchers who are international leaders in their field, and only those who have been a research career scientist for at least five years can advance to the senior level.

“Chen is the first researcher at the Birmingham VA to receive this highest honor for a non-physician scientist,” said Louis Dell’Italia, M.D., associate chief of staff for Research at the Birmingham VA Medical Center and a professor emeritus in the UAB School of Medicine Division of Cardiovascular Disease.

Read More at UAB News.