Medicine department to enhance faculty development efforts

A new office has been created in the Department of Medicine to support faculty members in their careers. The Office of Faculty Development will be led by Mario Castro, MD, professor of medicine and of pediatrics, and Angela Brown, MD, assistant professor of medicine.

“Our faculty are our greatest resource, and it is important to continue to nurture and cultivate faculty at all levels,” says Victoria Fraser, MD, the Adolphus Busch Professor of Medicine and head of the department. “There is a need for more support and training to help ensure that faculty members continue to develop and have access to resources and educational materials to foster their personal and professional growth.”

Castro

Castro and Brown will lead efforts to implement a new faculty orientation program and to provide workshops and seminars to promote faculty career development in the areas of research, clinical care, education and leadership. Together, they will work closely with Diana Gray, MD, professor of obstetrics and gynecology, who leads the medical school’s Office of Faculty Affairs, and with Adrienne Davis, JD, the university’s vice provost and the William M. Van Cleve Professor of Law. As vice provost, she oversees initiatives to enhance diversity and faculty development.

Castro and Brown bring a wealth of experience and administrative leadership to the office, according to Fraser. Both are highly regarded physicians and enthusiastic mentors and teachers, she says.

Castro is a physician in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine and treats patients with lung diseases, including asthma, emphysema and pulmonary hypertension. His research focuses on improving asthma care, and developing and implementing innovative strategies for the treatment of severe asthma.

Castro joined the medical school faculty in 1994. In addition to his medical degree, he also holds a master’s degree in public health. Castro has served on the executive committees for the Clinical Research Training Center Career Development Awards and Postdoctoral Training Program. He also has served on the faculty diversity committee and the academic affairs committee.

Castro currently is a senior fellow in the university’s Center for Health Policy. In addition, he is co-director for the Center for Community-Engaged Research, part of the Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences, and a co-director of the Clinical Research Training Center.

Brown

Brown is a physician in the Division of Cardiovascular Diseases and treats patients with severe, complicated hypertension and other heart problems. She also is actively involved in teaching medical students, residents and cardiology fellows.

Brown has participated on the School of Medicine’s Admissions Committee since 1996 and served on the executive committee of the university’s Faculty Council as a clinical representative and as secretary. She also has served for many years on the School of Medicine’s Human Subjects Committee.

Brown directs the Outpatient Hypertension Clinic and has been recognized for her work to reduce health disparities by the International Society on Hypertension in Blacks and the Metro St. Louis Division of the American Heart Association.

“Mario and Angela bring outstanding strengths to the office that will enhance our ability to recruit and retain outstanding faculty,” Fraser says.