Alabama Healthcare Hall of Fame Inducts 13 Individuals

Sep 19, 2024 at 12:12 pm by kbarrettalley


13 healthcare professionals were recently inducted into the Alabama Healthcare Hall of Fame.

The 2024 inductees include:

• Regina Benjamin, MD, MBA, the first African-American president of the Medical Association of Alabama and the nation’s 18th U.S. Surgeon General.

Joan Bergman, PT, PhD established the first hospital-based physical therapy at the Crippled Children’s Clinic and Hospital and founded a physical therapy education program at UAB.

Sumpter D.  Blackmon, MD practiced medicine in Alabama’s Black Belt region and was a key figure in sustaining John Paul Jones Hospital in Camden.

Kenneth Brewington, MD served as vice president of medical affairs and later president of Mobile Infirmary.

• The late Elsie Jean Cowsert, MD practiced internal medicine at Providence Hospital in Mobile and worked to desegregate hospital facilities in Mobile.

Joy Deupree, PhD, MSN, CRNP co-founded the Nurse Practitioner Alliance of Alabama.

Will Ferniany, PhD, MSHA, who retired in 2022 as CEO of UAB Health System.

Marnix E. Heersink, MD established numerous healthcare organizations in Dothan, and whose $100 million to the University of Alabama resulted in the naming of UAB’s Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine.

• The late Joseph Henry Johnson, MD established the Alabama School for the Blind and the School for the Deaf.

Max Michael III, MD served as the dean of UAB’s School of Public Health for 16 years, longer than anyone else to date.

Elizabeth Barker Morris, BSN, RN served as the executive director of the Alabama State Nurses Association and was instrumental in establishing the Alabama Healthcare Hall of Fame.

Kent G. Palcanis, DDS, MSD was UAB’s associate dean of academic affairs where he restructured the dental school curriculum.

David R. Thrasher, MD, whose work to educate the public about COIV-19 was honored by Gov. Kay Ivey and the Alabama Legislature.

Sections: Grand Rounds



September 2024

Sep 19, 2024 at 12:18 pm by kbarrettalley

Your September 2024 Issue of Birmingham Medical News is Here!