UAMS’ James McDonald, M.D., Named Chair of Department of Radiology

Nov. 15, 2016 | Nov. 15, 2016 | James E. McDonald, M.D., has been named chair of the Department of Radiology in the College of Medicine at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).

McDonald has served as interim chair of the department since May 2014. He has been a full-time faculty member and director of the department’s Division of Nuclear Medicine since 2010. He has served as director of UAMS’ Nuclear Medicine Residency since 2013 and was interim co-vice chair of the department from 2012 to 2014.

“Dr. McDonald has done a great job in his interim post, and his leadership and dedication to the department and its faculty, trainees, students and patients will continue to be a strong asset for radiology, the College of Medicine, and UAMS,” said Pope L. Moseley, M.D., executive vice chancellor of UAMS and dean of the College of Medicine.

McDonald’s scholarly interests focus on helping radiology and nuclear medicine faculty members collaborate with faculty throughout UAMS to support research, education and patient care.

An expert on the molecular imaging of multiple myeloma, he has been named a consultant to the UAMS Myeloma Institute. He is also facilitating the integration of quantitative imaging data into research initiatives of the College of Medicine’s Department of Biomedical Informatics.

Under McDonald’s leadership, UAMS became the first program in the country to list and fill a combined residency in diagnostic radiology and nuclear medicine through the National Resident Matching Program, which matches medical school graduates with residency programs. He has also conducted several clinical trials with novel PET radiotracers.

McDonald received his medical degree, Summa Cum Laude, from the University of Mississippi School of Medicine and completed an internship in surgery and pathology at the Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans. He completed his residency in diagnostic radiology at the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology at Washington University in St. Louis, serving as co-chief resident in his final year, and continued his training with a fellowship in nuclear medicine at UAMS and Mallinckrodt.

From 1983 to 2010 McDonald was a partner in Radiology Associates, P.A., in Little Rock, where he served on its governing board, including a term as its chair. He was active on the medical staff at St. Vincent Infirmary, where he was chief of nuclear medicine from 2003 to 2010 and led a fundraising campaign for nursing education. At Southwest Regional Medical Center in Little Rock his leadership posts included chief of the Department of Radiology, chief of staff, and chair of the Advisory Board. He also served as an adjunct clinical assistant professor in the UAMS Department of Radiology from 2003 to 2006.

McDonald is a member of numerous professional organizations with service on state and national committees. He was recently named a fellow of the American College of Radiology.

UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a northwest Arkansas regional campus; a statewide network of regional centers; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, the Myeloma Institute, the Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, the Psychiatric Research Institute, the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging and the Translational Research Institute. It is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 2,870 students, 799 medical residents and five dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including about 1,000 physicians and other professionals who provide care to patients at UAMS, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and UAMS regional centers throughout the state. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.