Irfan M. Asif, M.D., chair of the Department of Family and Community Medicine, has recently accepted a two-year appointment on the Board of Directors as chair of the Research Development Committee for the Association of Departments of Family Medicine (ADFM). The ADFM is the premier organization shaping the landscape of family medicine.

A group of AHEC Scholars and other COVID-19 event workers (photos provided by the Southern Alabama AHEC)

When a hospital or health care center experiences worker shortages, the impact can be far reaching. Shortages impact patient care, put strain on current employees and affect a hospital’s ability to make positive changes as it scrambles to complete daily tasks. The COVID-19 pandemic, including the most recent surge, has put even more pressure on health care systems and exacerbated many situations where shortages were already an issue.

The Department of Family and Community Medicine would like to congratulate the 2020 Cahaba-UAB Family Medicine Residency graduates. Of the seven graduates, four participated in the rural track and three from the urban track. A celebration was held via Zoom on June 22 at 7 p.m. 

I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the social struggles that we are all facing in light of the recent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. Many of us are feeling and witnessing emotions of sadness, anger, and frustration, which can take on an entirely different meaning in the setting of the Deep South, where racial injustice and disparities have had a long history.

Crystal and Alex Odom with daughter Everleigh (photos provided by the Odom family)

Written by: Kenia Hernandez

At 17 weeks pregnant, Crystal Odom and her family were packing to leave for Thanksgiving to Savannah, Georgia when she felt an intense amount of pressure and had to be rushed to UAB for an emergency cerclage due to an incompetent cervix, a condition that causes the cervix opens too soon during pregnancy.

The American Medical Society of Sports Medicine (AMSSM) is an organization dedicated to supporting growth in the sports medicine field. AMSSM offers educational resources, research opportunities, and collaboration among sports medicine physicians around the world. Irfan Asif, M.D., chair of the Department of Family and Community Medicine, has been involved with AMSSM since medical school.

This year has been a challenge, to say the least. Issues with working situations, worries about health, and trouble staying in touch with loved ones are just a few of the ways that 2020 has made life more difficult. While this time of year is typically marked with joy and excitement, as well as some stress, this year there are added tensions related to remaining safe and healthy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

(Top: Ksneia Blinnikova, M.D., MPH, Kala Dixon, Ph.D., Jill Marsh, M.D., Bottom: Adrienne Fowler Payne, Earl Salser, M.D., Kimberly Smith, Ph.D., MIchael Wiederman, Ph.D.)

Though the pandemic brought many challenges to educators, virtual learning, virtual collaborating and the strain of a world crisis also created opportunities for faculty and staff members in the Department of Family and Community Medicine to focus on ways they could impact their students despite the distance.

Hoover clinic team members

The UAB Hoover Family and Community Medicine Clinic, led by Sameera Davuluri, M.D., assistant professor and medical director, and Annie Shedlarski, R.N., nurse manager, consistently ranks among the best UAB outpatient clinics across the health system. Shedlarski knows why.

In a recent episode of UAB MedCast, Michael Wiederman, Ph.D., director of leadership and professional development, discussed the benefits of practicing mindfulness and incorporating the practice into one's daily routine.