Fundraisers to benefit USA Student-Run Free-Clinic

The USA Student-Run Free Clinic is hosting two fundraisers during the month of July. 

Jacket and Badge Reel Sale
The jacket is navy with the SRFC logo on the left and individualized names embroidered on the right. Jackets are $45 each, and badge reels are $5 each. Sale runs through Aug. 1. Order here: https://forms.gle/P8RohrSiEU9XBoA28

Taco Mama Fundraiser

Taco Mama in Midtown will host a fundraiser from 3 to 9 p.m. Monday, July 31. All proceeds from the event will go toward the USA SRFC at the Salvation Army and our newest clinic location at McKemie Place. 

OB-GYN Interest Group to host DEI book club

The OB-GYN Student Interest Group hosts a quarterly Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Book Club, and they are partnering with MedPride & Allies for the August meeting. The meeting is at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 1, in the Atlantis Room, located in CWEB behind Children's & Women's Hospital. 

The group will discuss "The Remedy: Queer and Trans Voices on Health and Health Care," edited by Zena Sharman. The book is available for free as an eBook through the Mobile Public Library or the USA Marx Library. Heather Glass (hglass@health.southalabama.edu) also has copies available for checkout. 

Dinner is provided, and all are welcome. RSVP on the Google spreadsheet.

New hospitalist joins internal medicine faculty

Angel Gonzalez Rodriguez, M.D., recently joined the Whiddon College of Medicine as an assistant professor of internal medicine and USA Health University Hospital as a hospitalist providing inpatient care.

He brings a background in caring for patients of all ages to these positions. 

Originally from Cuba, Gonzalez Rodriguez received his medical degree from the University of Medical Sciences of Havana, where he graduated summa cum laude. He and his family fled the country, moved to Miami and eventually found a home in Mobile.

“I came to Mobile to interview for residency,” he said, “and not only loved USA but also the city itself as it reminded me and my family of our hometown.”

After relocating to Mobile, Gonzalez Rodriguez completed an internal medicine/pediatrics residency at USA Health.

“Throughout med school and residency training, I’ve looked up to some wonderful attendings who helped me get here,” he said. “Staying at South and serving this community while contributing to forming the next generation of healthcare professionals is a great opportunity that I’m looking forward to.”

During his residency, Gonzalez Rodriguez served as chief resident and was recognized for Outstanding Performance in the Pediatric Outpatient Setting in 2021 and for the Most Growth in the Pediatric Continuity Clinic in 2020. He held positions on the Internal Medicine Residency Council and the Internal Medicine Program Evaluation Committee for three years. 

Williams Hogue named director of USA Center for Healthy Communities

Ashley Williams Hogue, M.D., an assistant professor of surgery, added director of the USA Center for Healthy Communities to her leadership roles. 

To know Ashley Williams Hogue, M.D., a trauma surgeon at USA Health University Hospital, is to know she is driven to make a difference in the community. Now the co-founder of Project Inspire, a gun violence prevention program, has another leadership role through which to make a local impact. 

Williams Hogue was recently named director of the USA Center for Healthy Communities, an arm of the University of South Alabama tasked with addressing health disparities, improving access to healthcare for underserved populations, and empowering individuals to make decisions about their health.

The opportunity to take the lead in making more critical changes in the community is what interested her in the position.

“In my opinion, the Center for Healthy Communities is the University of South Alabama’s gateway into the community we serve. It offers the establishment of an ongoing partnership between medicine, research and the community,” said Williams Hogue, also an assistant professor of surgery at the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine. “One cannot exist, and certainly not succeed, without the others. I understand the value in this partnership and want to be a part of the team leading this effort.”

Williams Hogue has been outspoken in her efforts to curb gun violence and improve community wellness, both of which make her an ideal fit for the role. 

“In just a few years, Dr. Williams Hogue has already established herself as a true changemaker within our academic health system and the community,” said John V. Marymont, M.D., M.B.A., vice president for medical affairs and dean of the Whiddon College of Medicine. “It will be exciting to see how she builds upon the mission and impact of the center.”

Part of that mission is to put research into action where it’s needed. Already, the center has organized vaccination clinics, educational events, farmers markets and more in underserved communities to help address disparities and improve access to care.  

“An advocate for those she serves, Dr. Williams Hogue has shown she has the passion and drive to make our community healthier for everyone who lives here,” said Owen Bailey, M.S.H.A., USA Health chief executive officer and senior associate vice president for medical affairs. “In her new role, she’ll have more access to the resources of the university and our academic health system, factors that should give her the tools necessary to open more doors for our patients and their families.”

The Future Trauma Leader, so named by the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma, already has her sights set on goals she wants to achieve in her new position.

“It is extremely important for medicine and research to bring forth evidence-informed interventions and preventive strategies that can be immediately deployed into the community to alleviate many of the health burdens that exist,” Williams Hogue said. “Our communities struggle with advanced disease, systemic barriers, and social determinants that negatively impact our ability to thrive.”

In 2002, USA established the Center for Healthy Communities to use its academic and healthcare resources to help address some of the region’s most pressing health concerns, most notably health disparities among African American, Native American, Hispanic and Asian communities. 

Additionally, the state struggles with a high prevalence of multiple chronic conditions, such as heart disease, stroke, obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and Type 2 diabetes, according to the America’s Health Rankings 2022 Annual Report, which makes access to care and education a priority for the community to thrive.

Various studies credit community participation with improved health incomes and positive health impact. 

“The Mobile area is poised for the task at hand. We have an academic health system that has the resources and capacity to couple quality medical care and research,” Williams Hogue said. “Partnering with community stakeholders will allow the efficient delivery of resources and programs that serve the overall health needs of the public.”

She is married to Antwan Hogue, M.D., a senior hospitalist at USA Health and collaborating physician with the Johnson Haynes, Jr., M.D., Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center. The couple has three children.