UAB Named a National Center of Excellence in Pain Education
UAB MEDICINE NEWS
N E W P H YS I C I A N S
Medical management of pain is not taught extensively in
Barrett Bowling, MD, assistant
professor, is a graduate of the
University of North Carolina School
of Medicine and completed a
residency and geriatric medicine
fellowship at UAB. A Special
Fellow in Advanced Geriatrics
with the Birmingham/Atlanta
Geriatric Research Education
and Clinical Center, he now is an
investigator there. He won first
prize in the American Geriatrics
Society’s (AGS) National Resident
Poster Competition was selected
for the T. Franklin Williams
Scholarship Award with funding
from Atlantic Philanthropies, Inc,
the John A. Hartford Foundation,
the Association of Specialty
Professors, the American Society
of Nephrology, and the AGS.
His research interests include the
study of chronic kidney disease
among older adults.
GEMSSTAR Award Goes to Bowling
Ellison Medical Foundation supports new investigators of
many health-professions schools, and clinical approaches
of life for many patients, can lead to negative outcomes,
Barrett Bowling, MD, assistant professor, Division of
outstanding promise in the basic biological sciences relevant to
can be inconsistent. With the NIH announcement of the new
including addiction,” Kvale says. “New curricula can promote
Gerontology, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care, has been awarded
understanding lifespan development processes and age-related
National Centers of Excellence in Pain Education (CoEPE),
better screening and management of patients with chronic
an RO3 Grant for Early Medical/Surgical Specialists’ Transition
dise ases and disabilities.
that may not be the case in the future.
pain and provide education about prescription drug abuse risk.
to Aging Research (GEMSSTAR). GEMSSTAR is an initiative
We will propose multiple case-based scenarios, many of them
of the National Institute on Aging to develop clinician-scientists
Behavioral Therapy for Overactive Bladder in Men
will focus on developing pain management resources for
to be taught in video or electronic formats popularly used in
in the field. Bowling’s initial project is designed to determine
Although well established and shown to reduce urge
vulnerable populations, including persons with multiple
contemporary academic settings.”
if conditions common in older patients with chronic kidney
incontinence in women, little was known about behavioral
disease—such as cognitive impairment, depression, falls, use of
therapy’s effectiveness in men with urinary urgency and
UAB’s center, led by geriatrics and palliative care faculty,
illnesses, dementia, HIV, and cancer. Division of Gerontology,
The 12 new CoEPEs were selected and announced in May
Geriatrics, and Palliative Care faculty members Cynthia
by the NIH Pain Consortium, established to enhance pain
multiple medications, and poor physical performance—explain
frequency before the VA-funded MOTIVE trial, the results of
Brown, MD, MSPH, and Elizabeth Kvale, MD, are co-
research and promote collaboration among its researchers.
why they are more likely to die or have functional decline.
which were published in the Journal of the American Geriatric
principal investigators.
Coordinating the project is the National Institute on Drug
Society (November 2011). UAB continence researchers and
Abuse, with support from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver
Five Are Hartford Foundation Scholars
curricula for UAB’s schools of Medicine and Nursing and
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Five faculty members from UAB have been selected by the
effective as antimuscarinic therapy for men with overactive
its School of Health Professions’ occupational and physical
and the National Institute on Aging.
Hartford Foundation UAB Center of Excellence (CoE) in
bladder (OAB) symptoms without bladder outlet obstruction.
therapy programs as well as
Geriatric Medicine as National CoE Scholars. They are Anne
When added to alpha-blocker therapy, both drug therapy
Birmingham’s Samford University
Halli-Tierney, MD, Laurel Kilpatrick, MD, Alexander Lo, MD,
and behavioral treatment demonstrated significant additional
PhD, Kendra Sheppard, MD, MSPH, and Barrett Bowling,
reductions in voiding frequency and urinary incontinence.
MD. The John A. Hartford Foundation, with matching funds
Principal investigator Kathryn Burgio, PhD, says, “Given its
from UAB, provides one year of support of advanced training
efficacy and side-effect profile, behavioral training represents
Baltimore, MD
for senior fellows or junior faculty physicians preparing for
a promising treatment for OAB in men.” The UAB Continence
(2 locations–Hopkins
and Univ of Maryland)
academic careers in geriatric medicine.
Clinic treats both men and women with urinary and bowel
The center will develop and integrate pain-management
Seattle, WA
schools of Pharmacy and Nursing
Boston, MA
Rochester, NY
and the Auburn University
School of Pharmacy.
Pittsburgh, PA
“Our approach is intended
Sameera Davuluri, MD,
assistant professor, graduated
from Siddhartha Medical College,
NTR University of Health Sciences,
Vijayawada, Andhra Pradeshh,
India, and practiced primary health
care services in India. Following
clinical observerships in Texas
and at UAB, she completed her
residency in family medicine
and a fellowship in geriatric
medicine at UAB. Davuluri’s
clinical interests are to provide
primary care services to geriatric
patients and to minimize recurrent
hospitalizations.
“Managing pain with opioids, while improving the quality
San Francisco, CA
Philadelphia, PA
to help fill the gaps in curricula
Edwardsville, IL
so clinicians and their patients
can work together to make
(2 locations–Univ of
Pennsylvania and Thomas
Jefferson Univ)
control problems.
Million Veteran Program (MVP) is
a national, voluntary research program
conducted by the Department of Veterans
Affairs with the goal of partnering
with veterans receiving care in the VA
Healthcare System to study how genes
affect health. MVP is building one of
the world’s largest medical databases
by collecting blood samples and health
information from one million volunteer
veterans. The landmark study will securely
link volunteers’ genetic information
with health data available in the VA
computerized patient record system.
Patricia Goode, MD, professor in the
Division of Gerontology, Geriatrics, and
Palliative Care, is principal investigator for
the study site in the Geriatric Research,
Education, and Clinical Center at the
Birmingham VA Medical Center (BVAMC).
The site has recruited more than 2,000
volunteers since 2011. To learn more,
visit www.research.va.gov/mvp/ or call
866.441.6075. The local program office is
located in suite 7318 BVAMC.
Medicine Chair Is Geriatrics Specialist
Albuquerque, NM
Seth Landefeld, MD, formerly chief of the University of
better, safer choices about
pain treatment,” says Brown.
colleagues concluded that behavioral treatment is at least as
F E AT U R E D
RESEARCH
PROGR AM
Birmingham, AL
California at San Francisco’s Division of Geriatrics, has taken
“The overall plan is to advance
the reins of UAB School of Medicine’s largest academic unit,
the assessment, diagnosis, and safe
the Department of Medicine. “We are excited Seth has taken
treatment of a variety of pain conditions while
the opportunity to help shape the future of UAB medicine and
minimizing the abuse of opioid pain relievers.”
are proud that his primary appointment will be in our division,”
T E AC H I N G E XC E L L E N C E
says Director Richard Allman, MD, Division of Gerontology,
Geriatrics, and Palliative Care. The new chair is a clinician an d
continued from
front page
“Eliminating health disparities is a national priority
as the number of older African Americans will increase
responses to sensitive topics.”
Importantly, he says, little attention has been paid
researcher in geriatrics, epidemiology, and biostatistics. Among
many other achievements, he and colleagues invented the Acute
more than twice as fast as white Americans by 2050,”
to health disparities among rural African-American
Care for Elders Unit, a model adopted at UAB Hospital and
partners created an infrastructure that recruited 28
he says. “We have an opportunity to impact minorities’
populations or differences between rural and urban older
many other centers.
faculty scholars to participate in the mentorship,
lower life expectancy and their health disparities by
African Americans and whites.
professional development, and pilot grant programs.
distinguishing the causes of and solutions to these
Allman says the new grant will permit the addition
of a core focusing on the use of appropriate analysis
persistent problems.”
Allman points out that only a tiny fraction of NIH-
methods and measures for health disparities research.
funded investigators are African American. The Deep
The RCMAR will provide career development support
South RCMAR aims to increase the number and
for at least 20 new scholars through its multidisciplinary
The RCMAR will fund pilot projects and also
Nutrition Scientist Is Ellison Scholar
partner with teams conducting projects funded by other
Nutrition researcher Daniel Smith Jr, PhD, has received The
mechanisms to address research questions relevant to
Ellison Medical Foundation New Scholar in Aging Award.
health disparities among older adults in the Deep South.
An affiliate of the UAB Center for Aging, Smith is on the
The center’s Advisory Committee will include
faculty of the Department of Nutrition Sciences, School of
diversity of minority researchers, “whose understanding
representatives of community-based organizations
Health Professions. The award is to further research on the
Health Disparities Research Training Program, fund
of social and cultural norms enable them to design the
committed to the elimination of health disparities,
antidiabetic drug acarbose as a calorie restriction mimetic for
at least 15 pilot grant awards, and assist four faculty
most effective interventions and more rapidly overcome
RCMAR scholar alumni, and senior faculty advisors
preserving glucose homeostasis and lifespan extension. The
members to obtain diversity supplements.
community barriers to eliciting valid information and
Alan Siegal, MD: Honoring Teaching Excellence
Alan Siegal, MD, founding director of the UAB
Division of Gerontology, Geriatrics, and Palliative
Care, has dedicated his career to teaching students,
residents, and practicing physicians how to use
complex clinical reasoning to evaluate and manage
acute and chronic illnesses. Now retired from practice,
he still actively teaches residents and medical students
at UAB and affiliated health systems.
Among many other accolades, UAB awarded Siegal
the prestigious Excellence in Clinical Teaching–Lifetime
Award in 1995.
Now the division is establishing the Alan M. Siegal,
MD, Geriatric Medical Education Fund to provide
Geriatric Medicine clinical and advanced fellows
enhanced ability to attend professional conferences
and conduct pilot research, quality improvement, and
education projects. For more information, contact
David Allen, EdD, 295.975.5661 or diallen@uab.edu.
“The most satisfying aspect of my career as a
from all four partnering schools.
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F OR REF ERR A L S: 1- 8 0 0 - 8 2 2- 6 47 8
physician was the opportunity to teach clinical
skills, medical information, and the art of
patient care.” ~Alan M. Siegal, MD.
MOR E INF OR M AT ION: uabmedicine.org /physician
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