Rippey selected for international sports medicine fellowship

Peter Rippey, M.D., second from left, and other members of the group try out the Canadian Olympic team's bobsled on their visit to the Olympic training center in Calgary.

USA Health family medicine physician Peter Rippey, M.D., recently represented the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) as one of three U.S. designees during a prestigious two-week travel fellowship in Canada.   

Rippey, an assistant professor of family medicine at the Whiddon College of Medicine, also has a sports medicine qualification.  

During the international fellowship, Rippey was among two fellows and one mentor from the U.S. who traveled to Canada to meet with other sports medicine specialists and observed how the provision of care can differ, including: reimbursement models, clinical practices, treatment models, and the challenges of providing care for athletes.    

The group attends a Canadian Football League

Edmonton Elks game.

“We shadow sports medicine specialists in clinic and hospital settings, tour and shadow rehab specialists, and have conversations about how provision of care is the same or differs and share ideas,” Rippey said. “We also gave lectures at various sites and acted as ambassadors of sorts to foster international relationships in the sports medicine community.”  

Sports medicine physician members of the AMSSM are eligible to apply for this competitive opportunity if they have completed their fellowship within the previous 12 years. Considered prestigious in sports medicine, the international traveling fellowship offers the chance to learn from global sports medicine experts and further their knowledge through clinical immersion at renowned facilities.  

Rippey described being selected as an honor and personally very exciting because the mentor in his group was Stan Herring, M.D., a physical medicine and rehabilitation physician considered one of the fathers of sports medicine and an expert in the field of concussions and head injury. Herring is currently a clinical professor in the Departments of Rehabilitation Medicine, Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, and Neurological Surgery at the University of Washington in Seattle.  

Herring also has served as team physician for the National Football League’s San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks, and Major League Baseball’s Seattle Mariners.   

“We had amazing conversations traveling around Canada for two weeks,” Rippey said. “We also met the chief medical officer for the Canadian Olympic team; chief medical officer for the Canadian Football League; and Kathryn Schneider, Ph.D., PT, a researcher who was instrumental in drafting the latest concussion position statement.”  

Rippey spent time in Western Canada in Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton, as well as a weekend in Banff National Park. “I would like to thank my fellow sports physicians and colleagues in the departments of family medicine and orthopaedics for allowing me to serve,” Rippey said, “and covering for me to take two weeks off in the middle of football season and from clinic duties.”  

Founded in 1991, the AMSSM provides a forum to foster professional relationships among sports medicine physicians to advance the discipline of sports medicine through education, research, advocacy, and excellence in patient care.  

The AMSSM Traveling Fellowship program encourages academic interchange, shared research, and exploration of common clinical interests with other sports medicine leaders worldwide. The experience includes the opportunity to view live patient encounters, tour sports medicine facilities, share cases, and spend time with regional experts in sports medicine.  

Spencer named business manager of Whiddon COM

Mona Spencer

Mona Spencer, who has been with the University of South Alabama since 2001, has been promoted to business manager of the Whiddon College of Medicine. 

“Over the past several years, Mona has taken on comprehensive responsibilities associated with the South Alabama Medical Science Foundation and has excelled in every aspect of her role,” said Maya Mirzoeva, MBA, associate dean of finance and administration at the Whiddon College of Medicine. “Her deep understanding of her position and her effective management of her duties have significantly enhanced our operations. Her hard work and commitment have not gone unnoticed, and I firmly believe this promotion is well-deserved.”

Spencer started her career in the Whiddon College of Medicine Business Office as an accountant and worked her way up to her previous position of associate business manager. In her 23 years of service thus far, she has enjoyed her pleasant work environment and the beauty of the university’s campus. 

“The most rewarding aspect of my job and working for the College of Medicine is that I enjoy executing my daily responsibilities, and I take pride in knowing the work that I perform facilitates the education and work of medical professionals, the USA Health system and the University of South Alabama.”

Pediatrics residents match at their top choices for fellowships

Pediatrics residents share their fellowship matches.

The latest class of pediatrics residents from USA Health recently matched into their top choices for subspecialty fellowships at prestigious hospitals and health systems across the United States. 

“We could not be prouder of our residents. They've worked so hard and truly earned their top choices,” said Haidee Custodio, M.D., pediatrics residency program director at USA Health and professor of pediatric infectious diseases at the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine at the University of South Alabama. “I would also like to extend our thanks to our amazing attendings for their unwavering support and encouragement along the way.” 

Here are the pediatrics residents, their specialties, and where they matched for fellowships:  

• Maya Augustine, M.D., pediatric gastroenterology, Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine  
• Liliana Arriola Montenegro, M.D., pediatric infectious diseases, Children’s Hospital of Colorado, University of Colorado 
• Shaira Bedi, M.D., pediatric nephrology, Stanford Children’s Health  
• Ana Flores, M.D., pediatric endocrinology, Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine   
• Audrey Gunn, D.O., pediatric rheumatology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital 
• Zoha Nizami, M.D., pediatric emergency medicine, Children's Hospital of Michigan 
• Tyler Tolleson, M.D., pediatric cardiology, Johns Hopkins 
• Reham Yehia, M.D., pediatric endocrinology, Children's Hospital of Los Angeles 

Residents in the Med-Peds residency program also recently matched for subspecialty fellowships. They are: 

• Shilpa Joseph, M.D., adult hematology-oncology, Hackensack University Medical Center 
• Gannon Ray, M.D., adult hematology-oncology, USA Health 

Additionally, Deena Wafadari, M.D., a graduate of the program from the Class of 2017, also matched this year to Boston Children's Hospital (at Harvard) in allergy-immunology. 

The three-year pediatrics residency program at USA Health is a university-based initiative designed to prepare residents to enter practice as general pediatricians or for subspecialty training. The goal of the program is to prepare the pediatricians-in-training to practice effective primary care pediatrics in the community, while simultaneously providing flexibility, allowing those interested in subspecialty training, academic pediatrics, and research the necessary background to pursue those professional goals. 

SciComm bootcamp to focus on transformative communication

Whether a physician, scientist, or both, communicating difficult scientific concepts is more than a skill — it's an art.

The Office of Faculty Affairs and Faculty Development will host “SciComm Bootcamp: Your Gateway to Transformative Communication” on Tuesday, April 1, in the Strada Patient Care Center first-floor conference room (1101). A morning session is set for 8 to 11 a.m., and an afternoon session is scheduled for 1 to 4 p.m.

“Communicating the difficult concepts of science is essential to easing the fears of patients, presenting your work, and promoting scientific education.,” said Natalie Bauer, Ph.D., assistant dean for admissions at the Whiddon College of Medicine.

Past participant Peyton McElroy, Ph.D., assistant professor of medical education, described the bootcamp as “a great way to learn crucial skills regarding how to communicate the value of my work with people outside of my field.” She added that the experience was “eye-opening, humbling, and helpful all at once.”

Program highlights:

• Transform scientific communication through improvisation
• Learn to engage diverse audiences
• Build confidence in presenting complex ideas
• Fun, interactive skill-building activities
• 3 CME credits

To register for the bootcamp, fill out the Google Form.

Whiddon COM researchers and high school students land publication in biology journal

Students from the Alabama School of Mathematics and 

Science, from left, are Kingston Barnes, Kahyeon Jeon, 

Alayla Roussell and Kimberly Gregson.

Four Alabama School of Mathematics and Science (ASMS) student interns recently received co-author credits on a paper before they graduated from high school, thanks to their work with Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine researchers. 

During the summer of 2024, four high schoolers assisted in the investigation of small-RNA production in colon cancer, along with Glen Borchert, Ph.D., professor of pharmacology, second-year medical student Noel Godang, and biomedical sciences major Anita Nguyen. 

Findings from the project, funded by a National Science Foundation grant, were recently published in microPublication Biology, a peer-reviewed journal that presents high-quality data and original research relevant to members of the science community interested in biological sciences.    

The ASMS students who received co-author credits are Kingston Barnes, Kahyeon Jeon, Alayla Roussell, and Kimberly Gregson. 

Borchert, whose daughter attends ASMS but was not involved in this project, speaks often at the state's only public residential high school for upper-level students seeking advanced studies in mathematics and science. School leaders also help to identify students interested in taking part in research projects, often much earlier in their educational journeys than if they attended a typical high school. 

“Pure science is the real driver of technological innovation,” Borchert said. “That said, most kids that excel at math and science are directed toward careers in medicine and/or engineering from a very early age and very few are exposed to actual scientific research until late in their undergraduate experiences, if ever at all.” 

From left, Anita Nguyen, Kahyeon Jeon, medical student 

Noel Godang and Kimberly Gregson. Team members 

not pictured: Alayla Roussell and Kingston Barnes.

While in high school, Nguyen said she didn’t have access to research projects like this, but now that is changing as they are expanding growth and learning opportunities for students. She found it rewarding to inspire curiosity among younger students.  

“It's very gratifying to have worked with very brilliant young minds,” she said. “It makes me wish I were as smart as they were in high school, and these students from ASMS made a great decision by starting their research journey early on. I believe it is especially important to engage younger minds in science and research because they can also bring new perspectives to the project.” 

Godang, an ASMS graduate, considers himself very fortunate to be a part of the tradition of providing learning opportunities like this.  

“ASMS has always been great at providing opportunities to branch out of the traditional high school education to internships and partnership opportunities within the community,” he said. “During my time at ASMS, the faculty were incredibly supportive of students who wanted to partake in these internships.” 

Before he graduated high school, Godang participated in a summer research internship at the USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute. He then joined Borchert’s lab during his freshman year at the University of South Alabama and started doing research on topics related to non-coding RNAs. Along the way, he has worked with undergraduate and graduate students, so he enjoyed the opportunity to share what he has learned. 

“Seeing the enthusiasm and curiosity in these ASMS students reminded me of my own early days in research. It was exciting to potentially spark a lifelong interest in science in these young, brilliant minds,” he said. “As a mentor, I had also learned so much from them as their fresh perspectives and questions often led to new ways of thinking about our research.” 

In addition to mentoring students on the project, Godang, who said he could relate to them as a former ASMS student himself, was able to provide insights about the transition from high school to college and beyond.  

“I believe involving younger students in research experiences can help increase overall scientific literacy, which would help create a more informed and scientifically aware society,” Godang said. “My experiences at ASMS had undoubtedly influenced my decision in wanting to pursue medicine, and I hope the experience that these ASMS students gained this summer makes them more curious about future careers as well.”