Dr. Aaron Wenger Joins UAMS as Director of the Division of Hospital Medicine
| Dec. 12, 2016 | Aaron S. Wenger, M.D., has been named director of the Division of Hospital Medicine in the College of Medicine’s Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).
James D. Marsh, M.D., chairman of the Department of Internal Medicine, said Wenger is a key addition to the burgeoning hospitalist program, which was created in July 2016.
“Dr. Wenger brings extensive experience and leadership skills to our program,” Marsh said. “He will be a very strong leader as UAMS and the College of Medicine work to expand our hospitalist services and enhance inpatient care, teaching and scholarly activities.”
Hospitalists are physicians who specialize in overseeing patient care in hospitals. It is a trend in health care that has been shown to increase patient safety and convenience while improving efficiency and cost-effectiveness for hospitals.
Wenger said his initial priorities will be faculty recruitment and identifying areas of research where his team can make the greatest impact.
“I think the most important thing is to bring in hospitalists who will provide the high level of inpatient care that will make UAMS stand out,” Wegner said. “We would like to become regionally and nationally known for our research and emphasis in certain areas. We also want faculty members who are committed to advancing the College of Medicine’s academic mission.”
Wenger comes to UAMS from Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, where he was operations director of the Division of Hospital Medicine and a practicing hospitalist. He was also a clinical assistant professor of internal medicine at the Ohio State University College of Medicine.
He earned his medical degree at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky. His internal medicine residency was at Ohio State University Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio.
UAMS is the state’s only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a main campus in Little Rock; a Northwest Arkansas regional campus in Fayetteville; a statewide network of regional campuses; and eight institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Translational Research Institute, Institute for Digital Health & Innovation and the Institute for Community Health Innovation. UAMS includes UAMS Health, a statewide health system that encompasses all of UAMS’ clinical enterprise. UAMS is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,485 students, 915 medical residents and fellows, and seven dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 11,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children’s, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), YouTube or Instagram.###