Powers cited for outstanding public service in medicine

A UAB pathology professor has been honored for his public service.

The American Medical Association has named Richard E. Powers, M.D., professor in the Department of Pathology at UAB, a recipient of the 2012 Dr. Nathan Davis Awards for Outstanding Government Service in the category of outstanding career public servant at the state or local level.

The awards, established by the AMA in 1989, are one of the most prestigious forms of recognition for outstanding public service in the advancement of public health.

Powers is a geriatric psychiatrist and a neuropathologist. He was trained in pathology at the University of Kentucky as well as psychiatry and neuropathology at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. He is board certified in general psychiatry, geriatric psychiatry and general pathology and is the medical director for the Alabama Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation.

The awards are determined by an independent panel of judges and will be presented to the 2012 recipients at a gala in Washington, D.C., in February.