After 19 years of serving as Associate Program Director for Ambulatory Training in the Internal Medicine Residency Program, Gwen Beck, MD, has decided to step down from the role. Beck was the main architect of the ambulatory curriculum component, when the residency program moved to the 4+1 schedule. She wove together all of the elements, which are now collectively called the resident Thursday afternoon curriculum.
Program Director and Vice Chair for Education Manish Suneja, MD, said of Beck’s contributions, “She has mentored too many residents and students to count. Her contributions to the learners and the program are very difficult to put in words. Our department and the residency program sincerely thank Dr. Beck for her dedication and commitment toward the program and the learners.”
Suneja is not alone in his praise for Beck and her impact. Last month, the residents selected Beck as Outstanding Faculty Teacher of the Year and former trainees and colleagues expressed their appreciation for all that she has done for them. Many were gathered in a video played at this year’s graduation event, when the award was announced.
Following the news of Beck’s decision, Suneja announced that Krista Johnson, MD, MME, would succeed her as the next ambulatory APD. “I am very excited that Dr. Johnson has accepted this role,” Suneja said. “We are very sure that she will build on the successes of Dr. Beck and continue to take the ambulatory training in this program to the next level.”
Johnson joined the faculty at Iowa in 2012 and earned her Masters in Medical Education (MME) here in 2015. She provides care for her own patients at the Iowa River Landing Internal Medicine clinic and supervises residents in their continuity of care clinics at IRL and the Iowa City VA Medical Center. She has also been the primary mentor for the VA Chief Resident of Quality and Safety. Johnson is a co-director of the Faculty and Fellows as Clinician Educators (FACE) program and core faculty for the resident teaching skills curriculum. She previously served as the Educational Director of Quality and Safety for the Internal Medicine residency program and as co-director for the University of Iowa’s annual Quality and Safety Symposium.
Johnson says she is “thrilled to serve” as an Associate Program Director. “I’m looking forward to working closely with the residents and am grateful for the opportunity to serve as a mentor and coach.”
Carly Kuehn, MD, will replace Johnson as Educational Director of Quality and Safety. After completing her residency here in 2016, she stayed on as the Chief Resident of Quality and Safety. Since 2017, Kuehn has been a Hospitalist in the General Internal Medicine Division, working both on attending-only and teaching inpatient teams. She has helped facilitate Morbidity, Mortality, and Improvement conferences and will complete her MME in 2022.
Kuehn says she enjoys seeing the residents apply the quality and safety concepts to improve care for patients. “I’m honored to serve as the Educational Director of Quality and Safety and to continue working with a wonderful team of physician educators.”
Suneja and the leadership team also announced that Andrew Bryant, MD, will join the residency program leadership team as an Assistant Program Director. Suneja said, “Dr. Bryant brings a passion for education and for Hospitalist Medicine to this new role. We are excited to see what changes he can bring to our program.”
Bryant will serve as the Hospitalist Pathway Director and as the Co-chair for the Program Evaluation Committee. He completed his internal medicine residency in 2019 from the University of Colorado. He joined the faculty as an Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine within the Hospitalist Program in July 2019 and was an essential member of the University of Iowa Health Care’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Along with Bradley Manning, MD, Bryant was instrumental in creating the Home Treatment Team, which helped people diagnosed with COVID-19 stay in their homes while they recovered instead of as an in-patient. Bryant’s professional interests include clinical reasoning and residency curriculum development.