SIU innovators honored at
county-wide event
Written by Karen Carlson • Photography by Jason Johnson
Eleven medical professionals - including eight faculty members from SIU School of Medicine - were honored as Medical Innovators on March 7.
The Sangamon County Medical Society, SIU School of Medicine and The Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce hosted the event, sponsored by The Illinois State Medical Society.
Medical Innovators, first held in 2006 and again in 2009, recognizes physicians, surgeons and researchers working in Sangamon County on projects to improve the health care of the community. Projects represented included basic science research findings, leading-edge clinical trials, and new patient care treatments."Cutting-edge medical research and technology development are key determinants of the potential for economic benefits to accrue to the central Illinois community and to enable the Medical District to fulfill its mission," said Michael Boer, president of the Mid- Illinois Medical District.
This year’s event presented two new categories: community service projects and "Young Innovators," recognizing individuals aged 21-40 for their work.
The evening occasion was held at the James T. Dove M.D. Conference Center at Prairie Heart Institute, 619 E. Mason St., in Springfield.
Springfield Mayor J. Michael Houston presented the Mayor’s Medical Innovation Award to Dr. Stephen Hazelrigg for his decades of work with emphysema. Houston also issued a proclamation at the event, declaring March 7 as "Medical Innovators Day."
Gayle E. Woodson, M.D., chief of the SIU Division of Otolaryngology was chair of the Medical Innovators peer review panel. "There is a tendency to look for excellence from the ivory towers or big cities and discount what is being accomplished in our own backyard," she said. "We want this event to raise awareness of the amazing advances being generated in our own medical community." Medical Innovators will return in 2016.
Medical Innovators 2013
Read more about the Innovators' projects: http://www.tinyurl.com/cu319ue
Jeffrey L. Bennett, M.D., SIU School of Medicine,
for his development of neurostimulatory treatments for mental disorders
Michael Brenner, M.D., SIU School of Medicine,
for his hearing loss research
Kathleen Campbell, Ph.D., SIU School of Medicine,
for her research in prevention of noise-induced hearing loss
Stephen Hazelrigg, M.D., SIU School of Medicine,
for his advances in the surgical treatment of emphysema
Judith Knox, M.D., Springfield Clinic,
for her efforts to educate the public about the dangers of indoor tanning
Gregory J. Mishkel, M.D., St. John’s Hospital,
for his treatment for patients with critical aortic stenosis
Ayman Omar, M.D., Ph.D., SIU School of Medicine,
for his novel approaches to treat brain and spinal cord tumors
Steven D. O’Marro, M.D., Springfield Clinic,
for his clinical trials of Hepatitis C
Khaled J. Saleh, M.D., SIU School of Medicine,
for his clinical trial of pain coping interventions to improve outcomes following knee arthroplasty
Christina M. Vassileva, M.D., SIU School of Medicine,
for her studies of ischemic mitral valve surgery
Andrew C. Wilber, Ph.D., SIU School of Medicine,
for his research into gene therapy for severe hemoglobin disorders.
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