Lipschitz leaving UAMS June 30

Phyllis Brandon

Physician in geriatrics set to lead longevity center at St.Vincent

LITTLE ROCK — Dr. David Lipschitz, who is recognized as a leader in the field of geriatrics, said Thursday that he is leaving the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences to join St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center on June 30.

Lipschitz, 65, is chairman of the UAMS Department of Geriatrics and director of the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging.

He said he will become the director of the Longevity Center at St. Vincent. The center, hesaid, will work “to prepare baby boomers and parents to live long and independent lives.”

He said it will be a clinical program that he hopes will create a model that will help in the care of older people in a community setting, expanding and improving programs throughout the state, but particularly in central Arkansas.

With his new position, he said, he feels he will have an opportunity to change and improve heath care, which “needs to be affordable, accessible and rational.”

“It’s critical that I help a community-based hospital extend into new areas to truly make a difference.”

A native of South Africa where he began as a “country doctor,” Lipschitz has been at UAMS for 30 years. He started out treating patients with lung cancer.

In 1995, he and Dr. Claudia Beverly started the Center on Aging.

Today, the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging houses the Donald W. Reynolds Department of Geriatrics, which provides clinical care for older people, conducts research and offers educational programs for health-care providers and the general public.

“It has grown to be the largest clinic on campus and is totally established,” he said. “It’s in a perfect position now to recruit a new leader.”

Lipschitz said at the Reynolds Institute’s Community Advisory meeting Thursday that he feels it’s time for the Reynolds Institute to have new leadership.

Dr. Debra Fiser, dean of the UAMS College of Medicine, said Lipschitz “has done an absolutely amazing job.”

A national search has already begun, she said, and UAMS will soon begin interviewing applicants.

Arkansas, Pages 12 on 06/20/2008

Copyright © 2008, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc.

All rights reserved.

This document may not be reprinted without the express written permission of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc.

Material from the Associated Press is Copyright © 2008, Associated Press and may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. Neither these AP materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and noncommercial use. The AP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions therefrom or in the transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing. All rights reserved.