New Appointments and Promotions at School of Medicine Announced
In recognition of Dr. Ricardo Gomez's outstanding performance and service in the role of Acting Chief of Pediatric Endocrinology since April of 2021, Dr. Raymond Watts and Interim Dean Richard DiCarlo, MD appointed Dr. Gomez to Section Chief. As Acting Chief, Dr. Gomez oversaw fundamental changes in the Pediatric Endocrinology Section including expansion of clinical and research activities and recruitment of new faculty. The Section is poised to expand its footprint of excellence in education, clinical service, research and advocacy across the Gulf South.
Dr. Frank Smart will serve as the inaugural Associate Dean for Clinical Innovation and Investigation. He is currently the Section Chief of Cardiology and Director of the Heart and Vascular Service Line at University Medical Center. Dr. Smart is also an LSU School of Medicine alum. Prior to joining the LSU faculty in 2011, Dr. Smart served as Director of Heart Failure and Cardiac Transplantation and Medical Director of Transplant Services at Ochsner Medical Center; Associate Chief of Cardiology and Director of Cardiac Transplantation at Tulane University School of Medicine; Director of Heart Failure, Transplant and Mechanical Circulatory Support at Texas Heart Institute and Baylor College of Medicine; and Department Chair of Cardiovascular Medicine Atlantic Health, a three-hospital system of Morristown Memorial, Overlook and Mountainside Hospitals in Morristown, NJ. He has had a distinguished academic career and is an accomplished clinical investigator. He has served as site-PI or co-PI for over 80 clinical trials and had minor roles in several others. He has also co-authored 155 publications and seven book chapters.
This new Associate Dean position is part-time but reflects the commitment and support of Interim Dean Richard DiCarlo and Interim Chancellor Steve Nelson to our faculty and their development in the arena of clinical research. The primary goal of the Associate Dean for Clinical Innovation and Investigation will be to expand clinical research through process improvement within LSUHSC and our partnering clinical sites, and through faculty mentorship. Dr. Smart will facilitate communication between SOM faculty and SOM business managers and the clinical trials staff in the LSUHSC Office of Research to process specific study contracts expeditiously. He will also serve as the liaison between departments and the LSUHSC Office of Research, clinical research sites (clinics, hospitals, and Clinical Trials Unit) and industry to expand the volume of clinical research and clinical trial opportunities for our faculty. He will initially focus his efforts on expanding our clinical research at UMC-NO.
Dr. Lolie Yu has been named Vice Chair for Clinical Research for the LSU Department of Pediatrics. Dr. Yu has been a faculty member since 1987 when she began as an Instructor in the Department of Pediatrics. She has more than 80 peer reviewed publications, has held grant funding for decades, has served on numerous University and Hospital committees, and led breakthroughs in childhood cancer and bone marrow transplantation which have impacted hundreds of Louisiana children over the last three decades. She has built the only Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplant program in Louisiana and has led the Children's Oncology Group programs to excellence and preeminence in the state over the last 20 years. Dr. Yu has also recently been named as Pediatrics' first member to the School of Medicine Appointments and Promotions Committee. In her new roles, Dr. Yu will be able to leverage her extensive knowledge and experience to the benefit of the department's research, advocacy, and faculty development missions.
Briana Bell has been promoted to Business Manager 2 in the Department of Anatomy.