George Hripcsak, M.D., M.S., has been appointed chairman of the Department of Biomedical Informatics in P&S and director of medical informatics services for NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia. Dr. Hripscak has been associated with Columbia since 1985, the year he received his M.D. from P&S. In 2000, he received his master's in biostatistics from the Mailman School of Public Health. He has been interim department chairman since March 2007.

Robert V. Sideli, M.D., has returned to Columbia University Medical Center as chief information officer. Dr. Sideli was formerly a chief resident in pathology and an assistant professor of pathology (in the Center for Medical Informatics, before it became a department) from 1993 to 1995.

In June the Trustees of Columbia University appointed Michael Vitale, M.D., as Ana Lucia Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery (P&S); and Mary Woods Byrne, Ph.D., as the Stone Foundation and Elise D. Fish Professor of Health Care for the Underserved in the School of Nursing.

AWARDS & HONORS

The American Society of Nephrology will present the Homer W. Smith Award to Qais Al-Awqati, M.D., the Robert F. Loeb Professor of Medicine and professor of physiology & cellular biophysics, at the society’s meeting in October. The award is presented to individuals who have made outstanding contributions that fundamentally affect the science of nephrology.

Jed Best, D.D.S., associate professor of clinical pediatric dentistry, is president-elect of the College of Diplomates of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry, the certification board for the specialty.

Katherine Crew, M.D., assistant professor of medicine and epidemiology, is a recipient of a Physician-Scientist Early Career Award from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The award provides $375,000 over a five-year period for direct research costs. Dr. Crew plans to evaluate if high doses of vitamin D can reduce breast density, an intermediate marker of breast cancer risk.

New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer has appointed Gerald Fischbach, M.D., the John E. Borne Professor of Medical and Surgical Research (in Pharmacology), and Robert Klitzman, M.D., associate professor of clinical psychiatry, to the Empire State Stem Cell Board, which will administer $600 million to promote stem cell research and development. Dr. Fischbach will serve on the board’s funding committee; Dr. Klitzman will serve on the board’s ethics committee.

Richard M. Garfield, Dr.P.H., the Henrik H. Bendixen Clinical Professor of International Nursing in the School of Nursing, has been named director of the World Health Organization’s first international office for assessing and responding to humanitarian needs in crisis countries. Dr. Garfield will spend the next year in Geneva.

Eric J. Hall, D.Phil., the Higgins Professor of Radiation Biophysics (in Radiation Oncology) and director, Center of Radiological Research, was awarded the Gray Medal from the International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements in July. Dr. Hall is internationally recognized for his research on radiation-induced cancer, health hazards of radon, and biological effects of neutrons, alpha particles, high-Z particles, and low-dose rate radiation.

Saleem Josephs, D.D.S., M.P.H., a postgraduate student in the College of Dental Medicine, was named Commander of the Order of Distinction by the Government of Jamaica for his academic achievements and service to the Jamaican community in New York and Jamaica. Dr. Josephs’ appointment will be celebrated officially at a ceremony of investiture in Jamaica in October.

Alexander G. Khandji, M.D., clinical professor of radiology (in neurological surgery) and vice chairman for clinical affairs in the Department of Radiology, has been inducted as a fellow in the American College of Radiology.

Ian W. McKeague, Ph.D., professor of biostatistics at Mailman, has been elected as a fellow of the American Statistical Association.

The Federal Enforcement Homeland Security Foundation presented Maurizio A. Miglietta, D.O., assistant professor of surgery and chief of the division of acute care surgery, with an award honoring his work with New York law enforcement. Dr. Miglietta is the police surgeon for the U.S. Secret Service’s New York field office and is an honorary police surgeon for the NYPD.

The 2007 Klerman Award for Outstanding Clinical Research from NARSAD - the Mental Health Research Association - was presented in July to Yuval Neria, Ph.D., associate professor of clinical psychology at the Departments of Psychiatry and Epidemiology. The Klerman Award was established in 1994 to celebrate and reward outstanding achievements in clinical research by NARSAD Young Investigators. Dr. Neria, a 2003 NARSAD Young Investigator, was selected for his work on depression and post-traumatic stress disorder among primary care patients after the 9/11 attacks.