UAMS Physician Named Finalist for Humanism in Medicine Award
| LITTLE ROCK — Purushottam B. Thapa, M.D., a physician at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), has been selected as a distinguished finalist for the Association of American Medical Colleges’ (AAMC) Humanism in Medicine Award. Thapa is assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry of the UAMS College of Medicine and the Department of Epidemiology of the UAMS College of Public Health. He was nominated by the UAMS chapter of the AAMC Organization of Student Representatives, based on five defining characteristics of humanism in medical education: positive mentoring skills; community service; compassion and sensitivity; collaboration; and the observance of professional ethics. The annual award is presented by the AAMC through the support of the Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative. Thapa also serves as staff psychiatrist at the Arkansas State Hospital (ASH) and as director of research for the Arkansas Mental Health Research & Training Institute (AMHRTI). Staff members at ASH and the AMHRTI are faculty of the UAMS Department of Psychiatry and contribute actively to medical student and resident education. UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with five colleges, a graduate school, a medical center, six centers of excellence and a statewide network of regional centers. UAMS has about 2,430 students and 715 medical residents. It is one of the state’s largest public employers with about 9,400 employees, including nearly 1,000 physicians who provide medical care to patients at UAMS, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and UAMS’