University funds three Scholars in Pediatrics

Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and its Department of Pediatrics have established funding for three pediatric scholars named in honor of a trio of highly regarded former pediatricians at the university.

The School of Medicine is funding the Scholars in Pediatrics with $3 million to be divided among three faculty members, in support of their time and efforts devoted to scholarship and teaching. Each inaugural scholar is being appointed for three years.

“The former faculty members whose careers are being honored with these awards would be pleased to know the work of talented, dedicated professionals will be so greatly enhanced with these awards,” said Alan L. Schwartz, MD, PhD, chairman of the university’s Department of Pediatrics and the Harriet B. Spoehrer Professor of Pediatrics. “These inaugural scholars already have contributed greatly to the university and the field of medicine, but this allows them to further meet their potential — and at a critical time for medical research and education, considering the nation’s budget crisis and its impact on medical advancement.”

The new Scholars in Pediatrics, each of whom practices at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, are well-known in their fields. They are Paul Hruz, MD, PhD, Shalini Shenoy, MD, and Andrew White, MD.


Hruz


Hruz
will serve as the inaugural Julio V. Santiago, MD, Scholar in Pediatrics. Hruz is an associate professor of pediatrics and of cell biology and physiology, as well as director of the Department of Pediatrics’ and Children’s Hospital’s Division of Endocrinology and Diabetes. He is an internationally renowned researcher in childhood diabetes and the molecular mechanisms of glucose biology.

Santiago served as co-director of the Division of Endocrinology and Diabetes from 1984 to 1997 and, like Hruz, was recognized globally for his research in childhood diabetes. He was a leader in the development and testing of miniaturized portable insulin infusion pumps, as well as other contributions in diabetes care. At the time of his death in 1997, Santiago was involved in the Diabetes Prevention Program, at that point the largest national diabetes study to evaluate whether medication or lifestyle changes could prevent or delay adult-onset diabetes.


Shenoy