Williams presents at national Medical Summit on Firearm Injury Prevention

Ashley Williams, M.D., assistant professor of surgery, attends the 2022 Medical Summit on Firearm Injury Prevention in Chicago.

Ashley Williams, M.D., assistant professor of surgery at the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine and a trauma surgeon at USA Health University Hospital, recently presented “Project Inspire: A Model for Mentorship for At-risk Youth” at the 2022 Medical Summit on Firearm Injury Prevention.

Ashley Williams, M.D.

At the virtual and in-person conference held in Chicago, experts including physicians delivered evidence-based presentations directly related to varying approaches to firearm injury and prevention and the evolving field of research that seeks to identify the most effective strategies.

As a trauma surgeon at the region’s only level 1 trauma center, Williams is passionate about gun safety. She sees its impact almost on a daily basis.

“We have to categorize firearm injury (suicide, homicide and unintentional) as a public health issue,” she said. “We also have to prioritize those who are most vulnerable to this issue. It affects all of us, and it will take all of us to mitigate this problem.”

The focus of her presentation was to explore the idea that trauma centers can feasibly lead community-based initiatives that aim to curb gun violence and positively impact the community. “Interventions aimed at reducing gun violence and the impact of gun violence is critical now more than ever,” Williams said.

Her presentation discussed an injury prevention program called Project Inspire, which was co-founded by Williams. This initiative is an example of a successful model for a hospital-led initiative that focuses on mitigating gun violence through empowerment of youth and mentorship.

“We know that adverse childhood experiences place our youth at risk for negative outcomes, but we are proving that positive experiences can have the opposite effect,” Williams said. “Project Inspire is a curriculum based on building confidence, reinforcing skillsets, and exposing youth to career-specific mentorship. We have seen a vast reduction in recidivism among our teens, at 11 percent, which is superior to almost every intervention around the country of its kind.”

Faculty members needed for academic coaching

On the athletic field, coaching can involve watching an athlete perform, establishing practice routines and providing feedback.

In medical school, coaching is more of a series of conversations designed to help a future physician reach his or her full potential. That’s what leaders and educators at the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine hope to achieve with a program called Academic Medicine Coaching.

The program is seeking faculty volunteers – both clinical and nonclinical – to join its third cohort of coaches and be trained over a six-month period from February to May.

“The goal is to develop medical students into self-directed learners,” said Binata Mukherjee, M.D., M.B.A., assistant dean of faculty and professional development and associate professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at the Whiddon College of Medicine. “This is important, because as science continues to advance, new generations of physicians will need these skills to adapt successfully.”

Academic medicine coaching differs from advising in that coaching is a co-creative process, while advising typically has a specific goal and specific steps built in.

Earlier this year, 18 faculty members completed training to become academic medicine coaches. They attended seminars and two-hour sessions for six months to become versed in coaching methods, and they received 24 continuing medical education credits.

“To any of my colleagues, the strongest argument for learning about coaching is that it will be one of the most efficient ways for you to succeed at something you’re here to do already,” said Franklin Trimm, M.D., associate dean for diversity and inclusion at the Whiddon College of Medicine and USA assistant vice president for medical affairs. “Learning a new way to help other people succeed was why I wanted to get into this.”

To sign up to become a coach, please complete this survey. For more information, contact Mukherjee at bmukherjee@southalabama.edu.

USA Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center named for Johnson Haynes, Jr., M.D.

Johnson Haynes, Jr., M.D., left, is recognized at a recent USA Board of Trustees meeting, during which the board authorized the naming of the USA Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center in his honor.

In recognition of his longstanding commitment to the treatment, research and education of sickle cell disease, the Board of Trustees at the University of South Alabama recently authorized the naming of the USA Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center as the Johnson Haynes, Jr., M.D., Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center.

“Dr. Haynes has cared for most of the adults with sickle cell disease in the southern half of Alabama,” said John V. Marymont, M.D., M.B.A., vice president for medical affairs and dean of the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine. “His dedication to this community is unsurpassed. It is an honor to name the center that means so much to so many after him.”

Eight years after its inception in 1980, the USA Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center was awarded one of only 10 prestigious, federally funded grants from the National Institutes of Health to sustain the program for the next 15 years. Under the leadership of Haynes, the center went on to fund the Cecil L. Parker Sickle Cell Lectureship Endowment, establish the Pediatric to Adult Care Transition Program, enroll patients into pharmaceutical-sponsored clinical trials and issue one patent.

“Dr. Haynes is known and respected for serving those around him, from his patients and medical students to residents and the community,” said Owen Bailey, M.H.A., FACHE, chief executive officer of USA Health. “This naming not only represents his relentless commitment to the community, but also his comprehensive approach to sickle cell care.”

Haynes has served on various local, regional and national committees dedicated to the treatment of sickle cell disease and has served as principal investigator or collaborator on more than three dozen research grants. He also has authored or co-authored countless publications, book chapters, newsletters, abstracts and reports.

His life’s work has been recognized through numerous awards, including the National Research Service Award, America’s Top Doctor, the Edith Mitchell Health Initiative Academy of Achievers Perseverance Award and a Distinguished Alumni Award from the USA National Alumni Association and Medical Alumni Association.

A 1980 graduate of the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine at USA, Haynes completed his internship, residency training and fellowship training at USA Health. Haynes has led the center since 2001 and has served in numerous leadership roles including professor of internal medicine at the Whiddon College of Medicine, assistant dean of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and a pulmonologist with USA Health.

Read about the origins of the USA Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center and Haynes' legacy in Sickle Cell Today, the center's semiannual newsletter.

USA researchers uncover novel insights into mitochondrial diseases

Natalya Kozhukhar, research technologist, and Mikhail Alexeyev, Ph.D., professor of physiology and cell biology, are studying mitochondrial DNA replication.

Scientists at the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine at the University of South Alabama have developed a technique to perform reverse genetic analysis of proteins involved in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) replication. Known as the GeneSwap approach, this new technology provides novel insights into how defects in mtDNA replication cause mitochondrial diseases, which are often lethal and have only palliative treatments available.

Mikhail Alexeyev, Ph.D., professor of physiology and cell biology, is the senior author of a study recently published in Cells, an international, peer-reviewed journal of cell biology, molecular biology and biophysics.

The lack of approaches for reverse genetic analysis of mtDNA replication presented a major obstacle to better understanding mtDNA replication and, consequently, developing effective treatment strategies for disorders caused by defects in this process, Alexeyev said.

“Only a person who knows how the car operates can fix it,” he explained. “In the same way, knowing how a disease develops – its mechanism – allows us to intervene and disrupt it.”

Classical, or “forward,” genetics starts with a trait and works to identify a responsible gene or an alteration in a gene. Reverse genetics, on the other hand, is a relatively recent development made possible by advances in molecular biology and genetic engineering. 

“It works in the opposite direction: We alter, or mutate, a gene in a test tube and examine changes in this gene's or its product's function,” Alexeyev said. “The advantage of reverse genetics is that it allows the generation and testing of specific hypotheses as to how a given gene or its product may work.” 

The lab utilized genetic recombination systems encoded by bacterial viruses (bacteriophages) and mutant genes carried by a type of disabled mouse virus to substitute, in one step, a mutant gene for a normal one in cultured cells. 

Using the GeneSwap approach, Alexeyev and the research team identified 730 conditionally permissive mutations in mitochondrial transcription factor A (TFAM), compared to fewer than a dozen that were known prior to their study. They also made several other seminal discoveries that will be published in upcoming papers.

Additional authors of the study are Natalya Kozhukhar, research technologist; Domenic Spadafora, Ph.D., Flow Cytometry Core Lab manager; and Yelitza A. R. Rodriguez, Ph.D., a recent graduate in basic medical sciences.  

Read the full article in Cells: “A Method for In Situ Reverse Genetic Analysis of Proteins Involved mtDNA Replication.”

Register now: Paddle the Escatawpa River CME Conference

The USA Department of Emergency Medicine's Wilderness Medicine Division will host the 2nd annual Adventure CME: Paddle the Escatawpa River. This challenging and informative continuing medical education conference is planned for Oct. 21-23 at the Longleaf Farm and Lodge in Deer Park, Alabama.

The conference will bring together experts to share their research, experience and interventions surrounding wilderness medicine. Speakers include USA emergency medicine faculty: Grace Lagasse, M.D., Raymond Maguire, M.D., Walker Plash, M.D., and Lynn Yonge, M.D.

Participants will earn eight Category 1 Wilderness Medicine CME hours in preparation for a guided wilderness expedition down the Escatawpa River. During the weekend, participants will learn to camp, canoe, and cook delicious meals over a fire. All camping and canoe supplies will be provided, and all levels of outdoor experience are welcome.

Cost is $800 for the CME course, canoeing and camping. Visit CME Tracker to view the brochure and register for the conference. 

Contact Walker Plash at wplash@health.southalabama.edu for more information.