College of Dentistry
Seunghee Cha, D.D.S., Ph.D., a professor in the oral & maxillofacial diagnostic sciences, was one of 33 faculty named a University of Florida Research Foundation Professor for 2018-2021. Cha was also named the director of the Center for Orphaned Autoimmune Disorders, or COAD. Established in 1992, COAD is a multidisciplinary center that provides patient care and clinical research protocols for oral manifestations of autoimmune diseases.
Marcelle Nascimento, D.D.S., Ph.D., M.S., an associate professor in restorative dental sciences, has been elected to the board of directors of the American Academy of Cariology, or AAC, as chair of the Caries Research Pillar. Nascimento was also an invited speaker for the AAC Second Annual Conference in Denver.
Shahd Nawari, a predoctoral student, was one of only 38 dental students in the United States to receive a $5,000 scholarship from the Dental Trade Alliance Foundation. Nawari graduates in May 2019 and eventually plans to specialize in endodontics.
College of Medicine
Shawn Larson, M.D., an assistant professor of pediatric surgery, has been named to the editorial board of the journal SHOCK, which focuses on scholarly research reports on basic and clinical studies of shock, trauma, sepsis, inflammation, ischemia and related pathobiological states. Among his duties, Larson will review manuscripts and submit his own articles for publication.
College of Public Health and Health Professions
Sherrilene Classen, Ph.D., M.P.H., OTR/L, FAOTA, FGSA, a professor and chair of the department of occupational therapy, received the Scholar Award from the Association for Driver Rehabilitation Specialists at the association’s annual conference held in August in Richmond, Virginia. The award recognizes outstanding scholarly achievement in driver evaluation, education, research and/or engineering.
College of Nursing
Gee Su Yang, Ph.D, R.N., a postdoctoral associate, has been awarded the college’s first National Institutes of Health F32 Ruth L. Kirschstein Postdoctoral Individual National Research Service Award. The three-year $180,778 fellowship will allow Yang to further her clinical research knowledge and skills in symptoms science, specifically focused on aromatase inhibitor-associated musculoskeletal symptoms in breast cancer survivors.
UF College of Nursing researchers awarded NIH grants totaling more than $5 million
Three UF College of Nursing leaders have been awarded grants from the National Institute of Nursing Research that total more than $5 million. Leslie Parker, Ph.D., ARNP (NNP-BC), received a four-year, $2.4 million grant for a project that will seek to determine the optimal time feeding tubes should be left in premature infants to prevent contamination and other complications.
Debra Lyon, Ph.D., R.N., FAAN, the executive associate dean, and Joyce Stechmiller, Ph.D., ARNP, FAAN, the undergraduate program director, received a five-year, $2.7 million grant to identify the biobehavioral mechanisms responsible for symptoms and healing outcomes for older adults with venous leg ulcers, and for the development of targeted therapies that address patient-oriented outcomes and healing outcomes. — Kelly Sobers
College of Pharmacy
Josh Brown, Pharm.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor of pharmaceutical outcomes and policy, has been selected by the National Institutes of Health’s Division of Loan Repayment for a loan repayment award and has been named an NIH Loan Repayment Ambassador. As a loan repayment awardee, Brown will receive financial support paying off his student debt in return for a commitment to engage in NIH mission-relevant research. Congress established the program to address the escalating costs of advanced education and training in medicine and clinical specialties, which is forcing some scientists to abandon their research careers for higher-paying private industry or private practice careers.
Almut Winterstein, Ph.D., a professor and the Dr. Robert and Barbara Crisafi Chair of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy, has been named president-elect of the International Society for Pharmacoepidemiology, or ISPE. She was installed on Aug. 25, at the ISPE Annual Conference in Prague, Czech Republic. As president-elect, Winterstein will serve on the executive board and chair the strategic planning committee. She will take over as president of the organization in August 2019.
