After spending more than a decade toward the goal of graduation, including years of undergraduate education, medical/dental school, internships and residency/fellowship training, the time has finally come for this year’s graduating class.
On June 15, the University of Florida Colleges of Dentistry, Medicine and Pharmacy celebrated during the Jacksonville Resident and Fellow Graduation Ceremony held in the Learning Resource Center Auditorium. July 1 will be the graduating residents/fellows last day.
“I don’t think it has set in yet,” said Radley Griffin, M.D., a family medicine resident and co-winner of the Excellence in Student Education award. “I’ll probably wake up July 1 ready to come to clinic.”
As part of the ceremony, the UF College of Medicine presented four different prestigious awards to residents, fellows and faculty members.
UF students rotating on the Jacksonville campus determine the recipients of the eighth annual Excellence in Student Education award by voting on which residents/fellows and faculty members are the most outstanding educators. Resident winners receive a plaque and $500 and faculty winners receive a professional expense account for $500.
Co-Winners:
Radley Griffin, M.D., family medicine resident and Elizabeth Morgan, M.D., obstetrics & gynecology resident
Winner (faculty):
Thomas Morrissey, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of emergency medicine
The Edward Jelks Outstanding Resident Clinician award winners are chosen based on which residents/fellows are considered to have contributed the most, through dedication, diligence and compassion, or through innovation in patient care, to the improvement of patient care at Shands Jacksonville. Along with a plaque, winners receive $500.
Nominees:
Frances Chaar, M.D., pediatric resident
Jeffrey Gehring, M.D., emergency medicine resident
Elizabeth Morgan, M.D., obstetrics & gynecology resident
Mardi Steere, M.D., pediatric emergency medicine fellow
Samuel Wolf, D.O., obstetrics & gynecology resident
Co-Winners:
Jeffrey Gehring, M.D., emergency medicine resident and Samuel Wolf, D.O., obstetrics & gynecology resident
“Winning the Edward Jelks Outstanding Resident Clinician Award was unexpected but I am so honored that this institution presented me with such an accolade,” said Samuel Wolf, D.O., obstetrics & gynecology resident.
The Rosilie Saffos Outstanding Resident Teacher award is given based on outstanding resident/fellow teaching on the Jacksonville campus. Recipients are given a plaque and $1,000.
This award was established to honor the memory of Rosilie Saffos, M.D. She was known for being an excellent physician and teacher who possessed compassion, intellectual curiosity and a genuine dedication to education.
Finalists:
Radley Griffin, M.D., family medicine resident
Claudia Klenck, M.D., pediatric resident
Mardi Steere, M.D., pediatric emergency medicine fellow
Honorable Mention:
Radley Griffin, M.D., family medicine resident
Co-Winners:
Claudia Klenck, M.D., pediatric resident and Mardi Steere, M.D., pediatric emergency medicine fellow
The Louis Russo Award for Outstanding Professionalism in Medicine is an award given to faculty and residents. Only individuals with the highest standards of medical professionalism, substantiated by a commitment to personal behavior that reflects the core values of the consummate physician, including altruism, excellence, ethics and respect for others are considered. The resident award consists of a plaque and $1,000. The faculty award includes a plaque and a professional expense account for $3,000.
Established in 2001, this award was named after a well-respected senior associate dean, Louis S. Russo, M.D.
Finalists:
Clara Chaves, M.D., family medicine resident
Dorothy Iwanski, D.O., internal medicine resident
Joshua Kucker, M.D., emergency medicine resident
Richard Picerno, M.D., orthopedic surgery resident
Kristin Yonker, M.D., obstetrics & gynecology resident
Honorable Mention Award:
Clara Chaves, M.D., family medicine resident
Dorothy Iwanski, D.O., internal medicine resident
Joshua Kucker, M.D., emergency medicine, resident
Kristin Yonker, M.D., obstetrics & gynecology resident
Winner:
Richard Picerno, M.D., orthopaedic surgery resident
Finalists (faculty):
Linda Haigh, M.D., associate professor of general surgery
Shahla Masood, M.D., professor of pathology
Wyatt McNeill, M.D., associate professor of obstetrics & gynecology
Ru-Jeng Teng, M.D., assistant professor or pediatrics
Winner (faculty):
Wyatt McNeill, M.D., associate professor of obstetrics & gynecology
The names of all award winners are engraved on a plaque located in the Learning Resource Center Building.
“I feel lucky and very blessed that I was given the opportunity to be a resident at the UF Health Science Center Jacksonville,” said Claudia Klenck, M.D., a pediatric resident and co-winner of the Rosilie Saffos Outstanding Resident Teacher award. “I couldn’t imagine a better place to complete my medical education. I will always treasure this experience and the people that I’ve worked with.”