Resident Spotlight – Meet Drs. Kat Coombes, Morgan Morelli, and Nikhil Jain As we embark upon a new residency year, our internal medicine program would like to introduce the new medicine chiefs! Dr. Coombes is serving as our resident clinic chief. Her goals for the year include improving the clinic by focusing on resident education, hands on teaching, and simulation lab emphasis. Dr. Coombes hopes to incorporate more Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) training in the clinic and dedicate time to develop resident led quality improvement projects. Dr. Coombes states, “Now that we will have PowerChart in the clinic, we will be able to streamline flow and improve continuity for our patients.” She plans to pursue a career in outpatient medicine while her husband, a second-year resident in our program, finishes his residency. Outside of the hospital, Dr. Coombes enjoys hiking and spending time with her husband and their dog, Ranger. Dr. Morelli is serving our inpatient medicine chief, in charge of resident house staff and inpatient rotations outside of the ICU. Her goals for this year include continuing to recruit a diverse group of residents for our program and building more opportunities for advancement and growth of resident research at UT Medical Center. Dr. Morelli is applying for a fellowship in infectious disease. Outside of healthcare she enjoys making homemade Italian food. She is also a member of a Knoxville bocce league who practices at Hops & Hollers. Her team, Sedice Palle, are 2 times defending champions! Dr. Jain is serving as our ICU chief. His duties include working closely with our ICU team to schedule successful resident rotations in the intensive care unit. His goals for the year include recruiting more diverse residents, improving the efficiency and quality of patient care, and cultivating an inclusive and collaborative environment. Dr. Jain is interested in pursuing a career in cardiology. Outside of the hospital, he enjoys traveling, reading, and spending time with his wife Sneha, a radiology resident at UT, and their dog, Yuki.
Faculty & Resident Awards and Honors Rawson Recipients
The Rawson Award for excellent teaching and clinical skills was given to Dr. Jason Frisbee, DO, and Dr. Kat Coombes, MD, at the 2020 Department of Medicine Residents’ Awards Dinner. This award is given in memory for Freeman Rawson, MD, who joined the Department of Medicine in 1956 as one of our first teaching faculty and was known for his compassion and expertise. Dr. Rawson passed away in 2003.
Clinic Star of the Year
The UT Internal Medicine Center presented the Clinic Star of the Year Award to Zach Marlette, MD at the 2020 Department of Medicine Residents’ Awards Dinner. Congratulations to Dr. Marlette on his well-deserved award!
Medical Student Teaching Awards The medical students who rotated through the Internal Medicine department voted to select the residents with the best teaching abilities: Drs. David Wilson, James Livesay, Tyler McLaurine, and Ryan Dorman. However, Dr. Zach Marlette was named the best teacher among the residents and awarded a $100 cash prize. These residents were acknowledged at the 2020 Department of Medicine Residents’ Awards Dinner.
6th Annual Department of Medicine Research Awards On June 9th, 2020, the Department of Medicine held the 6th Annual Residents’ and Fellows’ Research Contest. A faculty committee reviewed the research papers submitted by Department of Medicine residents and fellows and selected the top three to present at the Research Awards. The audience voted to select the placement of the winners. Dr. James Livesay won first place with “Infective Endocarditis (IE) due to Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Transesophageal Echo (TEE) or No TEE? That is the Question,” Dr. Kristin O’Connor & Dr. Sam Purkey won second place with “Diagnostic Utility of Technetium-Labeled Red Cell Scans in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Acute Lower GI Bleeds at a Tertiary Academic Center,” and Dr. David Norton won third place with “Code stroke in the stroke belt; a cross-sectional analysis.”
Jim Neutens Award for Best Teaching Division of the Year
In 2018, the Department of Medicine created the Jim Neutens Award for Best Teaching Division of the Year in honor of Dr. Jim Neutens, who retired in 2018 after years of service as the Dean of the Graduate School of Medicine. Graduating internal medicine residents select the department that made the most impact upon them after three years of residency training. For the third year in a row, this honor went to the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine. 4