HJAR Nov/Dec 2020

62 NOV / DEC 2020  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS Hospital Rounds Acute Coronary Syndrome Subcommittee. “We applaud the significant institutional commitment to their critical role in the system of care for quickly and appropriately treating heart attack patients.” Arkansas Children’s Names Mourani President of Arkansas Children’s Research Institute After an extensive national search, Arkan- sas Children’s has named Pete Mourani, MD, as president of Arkansas Children’s Research Insti- tute (ACRI) and senior vice president and chief research officer for the state’s only pediatric health system. He will serve as the fifth president of ACRI. Mourani, who will also hold the position of pro- fessor of pediatrics and pediatric critical care in the College of Medicine at the University of Arkan- sas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), joins Arkansas Children’s from the University of Colorado and Children’s Colorado Hospital where he served as a professor of pediatrics in the Section of Criti- cal Care Medicine. Mourani, who is board-certi- fied in pediatric pulmonary and critical care med- icine, has been an influential leader at Colorado Children’s in development of child health research strategy and clinical research programs and infra- structure. He has served as medical director of the Children’s Hospital Clinical Research Organi- zation (CCRO) and most recently as medical direc- tor of the Children’s Hospital Colorado Research Institute. “We know Dr. Mourani’s strong track record of NIH funding, his clinical research background, and his strong leadership skills will ensure Arkan- sas Children’s succeeds in our five-year strategic plan of fully integrating research across our entire system,” said Arkansas Children’s President and CEO Marcy Doderer, FACHE. “Arkansas children face a brighter future as ACRI makes more dis- coveries and breakthroughs on their behalf with his guidance.” Mourani, who will also hold the Ross and Mary Whipple Family Distinguished Research Scientist Endowed Chair at Arkansas Children’s, has main- tained a consistent track record of NIH funding to support multi-center investigations focusing on pulmonary and pulmonary vascular disease in pre- term infants, as well as projects investigating the pathogenesis and care of critically ill children with severe lower respiratory tract infection, including ventilator-associated pneumonia. “Integrating research and innovation across the Arkansas Children’s system is an essential part of making children better today and healthier tomor- row,” Mourani said. “I’m thrilled to join and lead a team of nationally recognized scientists who are becoming a creative force in pediatric health- care. Arkansans are already seeing new diagnos- tics, devices, and therapeutics coming forward as a result of Arkansas Children’s efforts, and I look forward to leading us into the next era of child health.” Mourani is the site principal investigator and steering committee member for the prestigious eight-site National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) supported Col- laborative Pediatric Critical Care Research Net- work (CPCCRN), which performs impactful clini- cal research in the field of pediatric critical illness and injury. ACRI will join the 24-site CPCCRN, if a pending renewal application is accepted. He joins the Arkansas Children’s and UAMS health systems on Dec. 7. Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Physician Morgan Drake, MD, Joins Northwest Health Morgan Drake, MD, physical medicine and reha- bilitation physician, recently joined the medical staff of Northwest Health. Drake will serve as the medical director for the Acute Inpatient Rehabili- tation Unit at Northwest Medical Center - Spring- dale (NMC-S). The rehabilitation unit, located within NMC-S, provides around the clock nursing and medical care coupled with skilled and intensive therapy for patients recovering from a stroke, spinal cord injury, amputation, neurological diseases, brain injury, complex orthopedic injury, joint replace- ment, or other debilitating condition. Drake earned a medical degree at the Uni- versity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. She then completed a physical medicine and rehabilitation residency at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington, Ky. Kenneth Howell, MD, Joins the CHI St. Vincent Heart Institute The CHI St. Vincent Heart Institute welcomes cardiovascular surgeon Kenneth Howell, MD, to its network of heart specialists in Arkansas. How- ell sees patients at the CHI St. Vincent Cardiovas- cular Surgery Clinic, located at 5 St. Vincent Cir- cle, Suite 501 in Little Rock. “We look forward to having Dr. Howell join our veteran team of heart surgeons who share a com- mitment to providing compassionate and excel- lent care for our communities in Arkansas,” said Marcia Atkinson, president of the CHI St. Vincent Heart Institute. After attending medical school at the Univer- sity of Colorado School of Medicine, Howell com- pleted a residency in general surgery at the Uni- versity of Colorado Denver and fellowship training in cardiothoracic surgery at the University of Utah Health. The CHI St. Vincent Cardiovascular Surgery Clinic offers advanced surgical options and most types of heart surgery including elective or emer- gency surgery for heart valve disease, aortic aneu- rysm, coronary artery disease, arrhythmias, heart Morgan Drake, MD Pete Mourani, MD