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Mayo Clinic Trustees Recognize New Named Professors
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ROCHESTER, Minn. — The Mayo Clinic Board of Trustees recognized four new named professorships, the highest academic distinction for faculty members at Mayo Clinic, during its quarterly meeting today.
Michael Brodsky, M.D., a physician with joint appointments in the Department of Neurology and Department of Ophthalmology, is recognized as the Knights Templar Eye Foundation, Inc. Professor in Ophthalmology Research. The Knights Templar Eye Foundation, incorporated in 1956, is a charity sponsored by the Grand Encampment of Knights Templar. The organization’s mission is to improve vision through research and education and by supporting access to care.
As a researcher, Dr. Brodsky focuses on evolutionary mechanisms of infantile strabismus (a condition in which the eyes are not properly aligned with one another); congenital optic disc anomalies; ocular motor physiology; nystagmus (a condition of involuntary eye movement acquired in infancy or later in life, that may result in reduced or limited vision); and other ocular motility disturbances. He has authored or co-authored several textbooks, including the definitive Pediatric Neuro-Ophthalmology.
He has also established a video-oculography laboratory at Mayo Clinic to study the role of binocular luminance disparity in infantile strabismus.
Douglas Husmann, M.D., Department of Urology, is recognized as the Anson L. Clark Professor in Urology. This professorship was established in 1974 by The Clark Foundation of Dallas, Texas, in memory of Anson L. Clark, M.D. Dr. Clark was a member of the Mayo Clinic staff in the section of special urology and an instructor in urology from 1931 to 1934.
As a urologist, Dr. Husmann’s clinical and research focus includes pediatric and reconstructive urology, and he has extensive experience in urologic reconstructive surgical procedures in both congenital abnormalities and traumatic injuries. He excels at translating basic science findings to the clinical arena. His work has resulted in numerous advances in the fields of androgen receptor physiology, the management of reproductive congenital abnormalities, traumatic genitourinary injuries and reconstructive urology.
Kerry D. Olsen, M.D., chair of the Division of Head and Neck Surgery in the Department of Otolaryngology, is recognized as the Joseph I. and Barbara Ashkins Professor in Surgery. This professorship was established in 1986 by Dr. and Mrs. Joseph I. Ashkins of Dunedin, Florida. Dr. Ashkins received his medical training at Tufts University School of Medicine and became a prominent surgeon at Milford Hospital in Massachusetts. His many accomplishments include authoring the article “Early Rising after Surgical Operations,” which was published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1945.
Throughout his career, Dr. Olsen has received numerous awards and honors, such as recognition as America’s Top Physicians and Cancer Surgeons and The Best Doctors in America. As an educator, Dr. Olsen has developed medical curriculum and courses, has been named Mayo Teacher of the Year multiple times and is in the Mayo Fellows Association Teaching Hall of Fame. He has also been recognized as a Distinguished Mayo Clinician.
Ulrich Specks, M.D., chair of the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine within the Department of Internal Medicine, is recognized as the Connor Group Foundation Professor in Thoracic Diseases Honoring Claude Deschamps, M.D., and Eric Edell, M.D. The Connor Group Professorship was established by Larry S. Connor and The Connor Group Kids and Community Partners in 2009 to honor Dr. Deschamps and Dr. Edell for their commitment to medical excellence and their compassion for patients. Dr. Deschamps served as chair of surgery from 2006 to 2013. Dr. Edell serves as a consultant in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine.
Dr. Specks’ research and clinical interests include interstitial lung diseases, pulmonary vasculitis and Wegener’s granulomatosis, an uncommon disorder causing blood vessel inflammation which can lead to damage of the kidneys, lungs and upper respiratory tract. He leads or is involved in several clinical research studies aimed at the identification of novel, more effective and safer treatment modalities for patients with these conditions.
The Mayo Clinic Board of Trustees, a 31-member group of public representatives and Mayo Clinic physicians and administrators, is responsible for patient care, medical education and research at Mayo Clinic’s sites in Jacksonville, Florida; Rochester, Minnesota; and Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona.
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MEDIA CONTACT: Karl Oestreich, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, newsbureau@mayo.edu.
