News and Events

This article honors Rebecca Hatcher Buckley, MD, who served as chief of the Division of Allergy and Immunology from 1974 to 2003 and has been the James Buren Sidbury Distinguished Professor of Pediatrics and Professor of Immunology at Duke since 1979.

By virtue of her exceptional contributions to Duke Surgery and the field of transplant and intestinal surgery, Dr. Debra Lynn Clausing Sudan is recognized as a Master Surgeon. This honor is bestowed to establish a living memory of an individual who has exemplified the ideals of Duke Surgery, with the expectation that reflection on this illustrious career will serve as a guidepost for those aspiring to a life in the art and science of surgery.

Building on Duke’s long tradition of excellence in pediatrics, below is a collection of recent clinical advances and research initiatives in our subspecialty departments.

This issue's Faculty Spotlight shines on hospital medicine physician Samrat Das, MBBS. Das talks to us about his current responsibilities as director of undergraduate medical education for the Department of Pediatrics and director of the children’s procedural sedation unit. He talks about what he enjoys most about his work and provides advice for students and trainees.

Eileen Chambers, MD, an associate professor of pediatrics and surgery in the Duke University School of Medicine, was recently elected to the Society for Pediatric Research (SPR).

From student activist to Senior Associate Dean for Student Diversity, Recruitment, and Retention, Dr. Armstrong left behind a legacy of almost half a century of service to Duke and the wider medical community.

Duke Department of Pediatrics has been ranked second nationally on the list of NIH research grant funding for pediatrics clinical science departments with a total of $75,805,966 for 2020. Notably, four of our investigators were ranked among the top 20 for individual research funding, including Daniel K. Benjamin, MD, PhD, MPH, #13; Sallie R. Permar, MD, PhD, #8; Michael Cohen-Wolkowiez, MD, PhD, #3 and P. Brian Smith, MD, PhD, MPH, MHS, who took the #2 spot.

Pediatrics Residents César Lopez Angel, MD, PhD and Ben Cocanougher, MD, who received R38 grants through the Duke SCI-StARR program and the Duke Office of Physician Scientist Development (OSPD).

Rasheed Gbadegesin, MD, MBBS, has been named associate dean for physician-scientist development and director of the Office of Physician-Scientist Development (OPSD), a centralized, school-wide initiative designed to support the training needs and early faculty transition of physician-scientists.

Duke physician-scientist and critical care pediatrician Kanecia Zimmerman teamed up with Duke physician-scientist and pediatrician Daniel Benjamin, MD, PhD, MPH, to create the ABC Science Collaborative—a consortium to help interpret COVID-19 data to support schools.