Rounds
Four Virginia leaders join EVMS Board of Visitors
The longest-serving mayor in Norfolk’s history, a graduate of EVMS’ inaugural MD class and two retired Naval officers have joined the EVMS Board of Visitors.
The Hon. Paul Fraim, Esq., served on Norfolk City Council for 30 years. He was appointed mayor in 1994 and re-appointed every two years until 2006 when he became the first popularly elected mayor since 1916. Twice re-elected as mayor, he did not seek re-election in 2016. Not only does he hold a law degree from the University of Richmond, he also earned his master’s degree in education from the University of Virginia (UVA).
UVA is where Marcus Martin, MD (MD ’76), is Vice President and Chief Officer for Diversity and Equity. He holds two bachelor’s degrees from North Carolina State University and was EVMS’ first African-American graduate. Dr. Martin is a past president of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine (SAEM) and the Council of Emergency Medicine Residency Directors. Among his numerous awards is the SAEM Diversity Interest Group Leadership Award, now named the Marcus L. Martin Leadership Award in his honor.
Fred Lindsay, DO, was selected by Presidential appointment to attend the U.S. Naval Academy. He graduated from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, completed a residency at Naval Medical Center San Diego and was named head of Otolaryngology at the Navy’s hospital in Rota, Spain. He later joined Naval Medical Center Portsmouth and was deployed to Germany to manage all medical evacuations from southwest Asia. Dr. Lindsay is in private practice with Hampton Roads ENT-Allergy, based on the Virginia Peninsula.
Rear Adm. Kevin Sweeney is also retired from active duty in the U.S. Navy after having served as Commander, Carrier Strike Group TEN; Commander of the Harry S. Truman Strike Group; and Executive Assistant to both the Under Secretary of the Navy and the Commander, U.S. Joint Forces Command and NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander for Transformation. He was Interim President and CEO of the Hampton Roads Economic Development Alliance and is now Vice President of Track Patch 1 Corporation. He holds two master’s degrees and was a senior executive fellow in Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.
Glennan Center embodies vision of its founders
It was 20 years ago this past summer that a physician who dreamed of a center dedicated to the care of older adults in Hampton Roads came together with a donor who shared his vision.
The result was the Glennan Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology, co-founded by geriatrician John Franklin, MD, and philanthropist Virginia Glennan Ferguson.
This anniversary milestone finds the Glennan Center functioning as its founders intended, providing specialized care to older adults in hospitals, independent-living centers and nursing facilities throughout the region and promoting “successful aging” initiatives. The Glennan Center also partnered with Sentara Healthcare to begin a hospital based palliative care program and launched an innovative approach called Acute Care for Elders, which uses enhanced care to significantly shorten hospital stays.
As the number of older Americans continues to climb, Glennan Center geriatricians are teaching their trade to the health-care providers of tomorrow.
Education Coordinator Madeline Dunstan has been on the Glennan Center staff since the beginning. “I think Dr. Franklin and Mrs. Ferguson would be gratified to see how the center has helped spotlight the importance of geriatric care,” she says, “and has made a difference in the lives of so many families over the last two decades.”
Renowned expert in diabetes and heart disease chosen to lead diabetes program
Nationally known physician-investigator Elias Siraj, MD, joined EVMS in September to lead the diabetes program. Dr. Siraj comes to EVMS from Temple University in Philadelphia where he led that school’s diabetes program and headed the endocrinology fellowship training program. He was previously on the endocrinology faculty at the Cleveland Clinic.
As the David L. Bernd Distinguished Chair for Cardiovascular and Diabetes, Professor of Internal Medicine and Chief of Endocrinology and Metabolic Disorders at EVMS, Dr. Siraj oversees the EVMS Strelitz Diabetes Center. He also leads the research programs at the EVMS Sentara Cardiovascular Diabetes Center, which helps coordinate longterm care of patients with diabetes and heart problems.
Richard Homan, MD, EVMS President and Provost and Dean of the School of Medicine, says Dr. Siraj is a good fit for EVMS: “Dr. Siraj’s recruitment — in combination with the recent assessment of our diabetes experts as among the best in the nation by U.S. News & World Report — again demonstrates the school’s commitment to make a difference in the lives of people with diabetes.”
Jerry Nadler, MD, the Harry H. Mansbach Chair in Internal Medicine, Vice Dean for Research and Chair of Internal Medicine, recruited Dr. Siraj during a year-long, national search. The school had assistance from the state in the form of an Eminent Research Scholar Award.
Dr. Siraj is excited about his new role. “I hope to elevate the stature and capability of the Division of Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders by growing our patient-care capabilities, enhancing our teaching programs and expanding our research activities.”
