Distinctions
Honors, Award and Anouncements
College of Dentistry
Arthur Nimmo, D.D.S., FACP, director of the UF Predoctoral Implant Dentistry Program, was recently installed as the 67th president of the American Board of Prosthodontics. Nimmo serves on the Commission on Dental Accreditation Review Committee on Prosthodontics Education and is a diplomate of the American Board of Prosthodontics and past president of the American College of Prosthodontists.
Wellington Rody Jr., D.D.S., became a board-certified orthodontist in October after successfully passing the American Board of Orthodontics Clinical Examination. A Brazilian-trained orthodontist with over two decades of experience, Rody joined the department of orthodontics in 2012 as an assistant professor after 10 years in private practice. His main research goal is to demonstrate the feasibility of using oral fluids to track bone remodeling after orthodontic appliance activation.
College of Medicine
Bruce Goldberger, M.D., the chief of forensic medicine and a professor and director of toxicology in the department of pathology, immunology and laboratory medicine, received the 2017 Robert F. Borkenstein Award from the Alcohol, Drugs and Impairment Division of the National Safety Council. The award, named for Breathalyzer inventor Robert F. Borkenstein, recognizes individuals who, through a lifetime of service, have made outstanding contributions to the field of alcohol- and drug-related traffic safety.
Sara N. Burke, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the department of neuroscience, has been selected as a recipient of the 2017 American Psychological Association Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award in the area of behavioral and cognitive neuroscience. The honor will be presented to Burke at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., in August. Burke’s research focuses on determining the neurobiology of age-related memory loss.
Albert Rhoton, M.D., a former professor and chair emeritus of the Lillian S. Wells department of neurosurgery, was honored posthumously at the Walter E. Dandy Neurosurgical Society’s meeting in November. Rhoton, an internationally known neurosurgeon and pioneering researcher, was honored for his lifelong career that spanned five decades. Rhoton passed away in February 2016. His son Eric Rhoton, a University of Florida-trained neurosurgeon now practicing in North Carolina, accepted the medal on his father’s behalf.
Public Health and Health Professions
Linda B. Cottler, Ph.D., M.P.H., a professor and chair of the department of epidemiology in the and the UF College of Medicine, was awarded an honorary doctoral degree in public health from Thailand’s leading research university, Chulalongkorn University. Thailand’s Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn presided at the ceremony, held at Chulalongkorn’s campus in Bangkok.
College of Veterinary Medicine
Claus Buergelt, D.V.M., Ph.D., a professor emeritus of anatomic pathology, received the John M. King Award for Sustained Excellence in Veterinary Pathology from the Charles Louis Davis Foundation for his career achievements. The award has only been given twice before in the foundation’s history, and was established to honor professors and teachers whose careers are focused on the study of pathology, discovery and teaching.
Richard Kane, D.V.M., a 1984 graduate of the UF College of Veterinary Medicine, has received the UF Distinguished Alumnus Award in recognition of his accomplishments and service. Kane is the founder and chief of staff of Care Animal Hospital and is co-founder of Surgi-Care Center for Horses in Brandon, Florida. Kane is a lifetime member of the Dean’s Circle of Excellence, a group of elite college supporters. Kane and his wife, Cheri, founded True-Pet Wellness Program, which offers plans to advance pet health wellness care through client and patient management.
Health care finance journal dedicates issue to contribution of
Louis Gapenski
The Journal of Health Care Finance paid tribute to Louis Gapenski, Ph.D., by dedicating an entire issue to his legacy. An internationally recognized health care finance expert, Gapenski served on the faculty of the UF College of Public Health and Health Profession’s department of health services research, management and policy for nearly 30 years before passing away on April 20.
The fall 2016 issue of the Journal of Health Care Finance features more than a dozen research articles that are motivated by or related to Gapenski’s work. These include articles on organizational and environmental factors associated with hospital profitability; organizational characteristics associated with hospital financial performance; accounting strategies for hospitals; and public health finance.
Gapenski wrote the definitive textbook on health care finance, along with several best-selling textbooks, and is the author of a popular American College of Healthcare Executives self-study program in health care finance. His books are used nationally and internationally, having been translated into nine languages, and he taught courses and gave seminars at institutions around the world.
