Thursday, September 20, 2012

Physicians Group Announces Healthy U-S-A Fair Prize Winners

Health fair prize winner Angelia Bendolph, associate director for web services
The University of South Alabama Physicians Group recently announced the winners of the Healthy U-S-A Fair prize drawings.

Angelia Bendolph, associate director for web services in the USA Public Relations office, and Charlmaine Jackson, billing and insurance clerk at Knollwood Physicians Group, received USA outdoor folding chairs.

Lisa Nash in the psychology department and Konrad Kressley in the political science/criminal justice department both received USA football jerseys.

USA faculty and staff entered to win the prize drawings at the USA Health System’s Healthy U-S-A Fair on August 24, 2012, at the USA Faculty Club.

The event provided health screenings, and USA Physician Group providers were on hand to answer questions. More than 200 USA employees attended the event.

“The Healthy U-S-A Fair was such a success,” said Becky Tate, chief executive officer of the University of South Alabama Health Services Foundation. “We’ve received a tremendous amount of positive feedback from USA faculty and staff, and we are looking forward to scheduling additional health fairs in the future.”

Free Flu Vaccine for USA Health & Dental Enrollees

USA Physicians Group is providing Seasonal Flu Shot Clinics exclusively for USA Employees next week at six convenient locations on September 26th, 27th and 28th. This will provide you with convenient, fast, and timely seasonal flu vaccines free of charge. USA retirees are not eligible.

Family members covered by the USA Health & Dental plan are also eligible for seasonal flu vaccines at these clinic sites free of charge. This applies to children four years old and older.

No appointments are necessary.

Specific times and locations are:

Main Campus - USA Mitchell Center
5950 Old Shell Rd.
West Concourse
(251) 461-1682
September 26 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Main Campus - Human Resources
Tech & Research Park III
Suite 2200
(251) 460-6133
September 27 12:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Main Campus - Urgent Care
Tech & Research Park III
Suite 1175
(251) 414-8101
September 27 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Springhill Avenue Campus - Family Medicine
1504 Springhill Ave
Suite 1800
(251) 434-3475
September 27 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
September 28 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

West Mobile - Knollwood Physicians Group
3301 Knollwood Dr
Med Park 4
(251) 660-5787
September 27 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
September 28 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

USA Medical Center - Our Neighborhood Healthcare Clinic
2451 Fillingim St.
Suite 300
(251) 471-7944
September 27 12:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
September 28 12:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

These walk in clinics are available Sept. 26-28, 2012. After these dates, flu vaccines should still be available, but an appointment will be necessary.

For more information visit http://www.usahealthsystem.com/fluvaccine. If you have any questions, call our appointment and information line at (251) 434-3711.


Med School Café - Expert Advice for the Community


This week, Dr. Albert Pearsall, professor of orthopaedics and director of sports medicine at the USA College of Medicine, presented the September Med School Café lecture.

The lecture, titled “Cadaver Cartilage Transplantation,” had a total of 71 attendees.

During the talk, Dr. Pearsall discussed meniscal transplant surgery, a procedure that transplants a cadaver meniscus from a tissue bank into patients who have had their meniscus removed.

The next Med School Café lecture will feature Dr. Lynn Dyess, professor of surgery at USA. The event will take place Oct. 24, 2012.

If you are interested in attending, email kepartridge@usouthal.edu for more details. To learn more about the lectures, click here.

Snapshots: GO RUN for Women's Cancer



The 5th Annual GO RUN (5K and 1 Mile fun run/walk) for gynecologic cancer research at the University of South Alabama Mitchell Cancer Institute was held Sept. 15, 2012, on USA's main campus.

The event generated funding for an endowment for research in women's cancer, including ovarian cancer, uterine cancer and cervical cancer.

To view all photos from the event, click here.

Dr. Brogdon Attends Medical School's 60th Reunion

Dr. Brogdon and Dr. Jones at the 60th reunion of the University of Arkansas School of Medicine class of 1952.


Dr. Gil Brogdon, Distinguished Professor Emeritus and former chair of radiology at the University of South Alabama, recently attended the 60th reunion of his graduating class from the University of Arkansas School of Medicine.

Thirteen of the 15 survivors of the Class of 1952 were able to attend. Only three of them still practice their profession, including Dr. Brogdon and Dr. Edith Mae Irby Jones. Dr. Jones broke both color and gender barriers when in 1948 she became the first African American student to be admitted to a Southern state's medical school.


Student Donates Books to USA Children’s Medical Center

Colin Dunlap
The University of South Alabama Children’s Medical Center recently received approximately 30 new children’s books collected by a third-grader at Bayside Academy.

The student, Colin Dunlap, recently had a birthday party and asked for books to donate to the clinic in lieu of gifts.

Dr. Rosina Connelly, assistant professor of pediatrics at USA, said she was amazed by Dunlap’s act of kindness.

Colin Dunlap with Dr. Rosina Connelly
“I’m so thankful for the new books to give away to children in our clinic whose parents may otherwise not be able to purchase a variety of books of their own,” Dr. Connelly said.

Dr. Connelly said the Children's Medical Center gives books away as part of the Reach Out and Read program, a nonprofit organization that promotes early literacy and school readiness in pediatric exam rooms nationwide by giving new books to children and advice to parents about the importance of reading aloud.

Books are handed out to children at every check-up visit. “The kids have come to expect a good read after they have seen the doctor, which is a great thing,” Dr. Connelly said. “We always try to have books to give away, and we always welcome donations from the community.”

Dr. Connelly said the Reach Out and Read program is important because it promotes reading in at-risk families starting at an early age – from six months to five years of age.

“Without this program, many children would get to school without the early literacy skills,” she said. “As a pediatrician, I do not see any other way of practicing pediatrics but to promote literacy and language development starting at an early age.”

She said that when parents read books with their children starting at a young age, children grow up with a love for reading and are ready to learn when they get to kindergarten.

“It is great when the kids visiting the clinic ask for a book at the end of the visit instead of asking for a sticker,” Dr. Connelly said. “Colin's donation is a wonderful thing.”