Choudhary Named Chair of Department of Radiology
| Arabinda Choudhary, M.D., MBA, has been named chair of the Department of Radiology in the College of Medicine at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).
Choudhary has served as chair of pediatric radiology at Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Delaware, since 2013. He is internationally recognized in his subspecialty of pediatric neuroimaging and for his expertise in imaging related to pediatric abusive head trauma (AHT).
“Dr. Choudhary brings extensive experience as a clinical, executive and academic leader at top tier hospitals,” said Christopher T. Westfall, M.D., UAMS executive vice chancellor and College of Medicine dean.
Choudhary succeeds James McDonald, M.D., who retired July 31. McDonald was in private practice in Little Rock for 27 years before joining UAMS in 2010. He became chair of the Department of Radiology in 2016.
Choudhary received his medical degree from the Medical College of Calcutta in 1994. He completed residencies in pediatrics at Princess of Wales Hospital and the University of Wales and Llandough Hospital in the U.K., followed by a residency in radiology at Cambridge University. He continued his training with fellowships in pediatric radiology and pediatric neuroradiology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.
Choudhary received his M.B.A., with a major in finance, from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 2017 and received Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE) certification in 2018. He is board certified in clinical informatics, radiology, neuroradiology and pediatric radiology.
He began his career in academic medicine as director of pediatric neuroradiology at Penn State Milton S. Hershey University Medical Center in Hershey, Pennsylvania, from 2006 to 2013. He also served as associate program director of radiology in 2011-2012. He developed the pediatric neuroradiology section with increased specialization and a comprehensive teaching curriculum for fellows and residents. He also worked with partnering hospitals to build relationships and provide subspecialist services. He taught medical students at Penn State and mentored numerous students, residents, fellows and junior faculty members.
Choudhary’s research has centered on diagnosis of brain and spinal trauma, as well as chronic disease and surgery involving the brain. He was the lead author on a 2018 consensus statement on abusive head trauma, the leading cause of fatal head injuries in children younger than 2 years of age. The statement, supported by 15 international pediatric and radiology organizations and published in the journal Pediatric Radiology, outlines the consensus of evidence-based medical findings on AHT to serve as a tool within the legal system. Within weeks of publication it was in the top 5% of all research ever tracked by Altmetric, and it was the third most downloaded article from Springer’s pediatric and radiology journals in 2018.
Choudhary has published extensively and lectured internationally on neuroimaging. He received the Society of Pediatric Radiology’s prestigious Walter E. Berdon award in 2016 for authoring the best clinical research paper in Pediatric Radiology in 2015. He received the David S. Hartman, M.D., Faculty Golden Apple Award for outstanding medical student teaching at Hershey Medical Center in 2010.
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 3,275 students, 890 medical residents and fellows, and five dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 12,000 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.###