David R. Reagan, M.D., Ph.D.

David R. Reagan, M.D., Ph.D., has been named chief medical officer for the Tennessee Department of Health. In this position, Reagan will serve as an advisor to the commissioner on matters of health policy and assist in setting priorities for the department.

As chief medical officer, Reagan will serve as medical director for the department and will work to assess the health needs of Tennesseans and establish statewide health objectives. He will collaborate with the department’s executive leadership team to assess the health needs of the state; to establish health objectives; to develop and maintain an appropriately organized infrastructure; and in developing, implementing and evaluating coordinated, effective public health programs.

Reagan comes to the Department of Health after serving as chief of staff for the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Mountain Home, Tenn. He also serves as associate dean for veterans affairs and clinical professor of medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine at James H. Quillen College of Medicine at East Tennessee State University. Reagan has also served as ambulatory services manager at Mid-South VA Healthcare Network in Nashville.

Reagan earned his medical degree and a PhD in organic chemistry from Vanderbilt University, and holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and physics from East Tennessee State University, where he graduated magna cum laude. He completed an internal medicine residency at Vanderbilt and a fellowship in clinical epidemiology and infectious diseases at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City.

TDOH names Young general counsel

Jane Young has been appointed general counsel for the Tennessee Department of Health.

Young has served as a staff attorney for the Tennessee Supreme Court and as senior counsel with the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office, where she represented the State of Tennessee in state and federal courts in matters related to criminal appeals, employment, prison civil rights and education. She has served as a staff attorney with the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

She also has worked as an administrative law judge with the Tennessee Board of Equalization and as a law clerk to Judge Samuel L. Lewis, Tennessee Court of Appeals, where she researched and prepared draft opinions.

VUMC’s Burk receives two research awards

Raymond F. Burk, M.D., professor of Medicine, Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, recently received two awards at a meeting in China recognizing his contributions to trace element research.

The first was the Underwood Memorial Lectureship Award at the Trace Elements in Man and Animals (TEMA) symposium, held this year in Enshi, China.

The award honors contributions to the field of trace element research and recognizes Burk’s research into understanding human selenium metabolism and requirements.

Burk has been carrying out clinical research in China for 25 years, and his Chinese colleague, Prof. Yiming Xia, was also honored at the symposium for her international collaborations. Kristina Hill, Ph.D., research professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt, has contributed to this work as well.

Wilcox named director of Baptist center

Dr. Brian Wilcox, cardiovascular surgeon, has been named medical director of the Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine Center at Baptist Hospital.

Dr. Wilcox’s responsibilities include providing clinical oversight for services delivered at the center in addition to strategic oversight of performance metrics, facilitation of the continuum of care and development of growth strategies.

The Wound Care Center has also added two additional physicians to its medical staff, cardiovascular surgeon Dr. Kenneth Laws and plastic surgeon Dr. Kristina O’Shaughnessy. Dr. Wilcox, Dr. Laws and Dr. O’Shaughnessy have also received Problem Wound Management and Hyperbaric Medicine certifications from the Diversified Clinical Services.

These physicians will join Drs. Terry Allen, Scott Faulkner, Robert Garza and Warren Patterson, who had served as medical director since 2005, and the other members of health care team at the center.

Insperity enters Nashville market

Insperity, Inc., a provider of human resources and business performance solutions has opened a new sales office in Nashville.

The company named Walt Harrison as district manager of the Nashville sales office. He will be responsible for directing the company’s sales efforts throughout the Nashville area.

Prior to joining Insperity, Harrison was Tennessee district manager for UnitedHealthcare Dual CompleteM Preferred division. He also owned an Allstate insurance agency in Franklin. Harrison received a bachelor’s degree in business from Saint Leo University and is a U.S. Air Force veteran.

Crosslin & Associates expands tech group

Crosslin & Associates has expanded its services under the banner of Crosslin Technologies, LLC.

Crosslin Technologies will address the fast-growing need for increased information technology security by providing solutions designed to address both compliance requirements and security best practices.

Sese Bennett leads the team as director for the company. Prior to joining Crosslin, Bennett was senior manager of EIS risk assurance, architecture, policy and compliance for Time Warner Cable.

Doug Harlow is a senior forensic examiner with Crosslin. Prior to Crosslin, he served as a computer forensics investigator for NCR Corporate Security.

Tenn. Charter School Incubator expands staff

The Tennessee Charter School Incubator has hired Hunter Schimpff as special projects manager.

In his role, Schimpff will assist chief operating officer Justin Testerman with day-to-day operations and research. He also will manage the Incubator’s website and social media accounts.

Schimpff comes to the Incubator from Nashville Mayor Karl Dean’s Office of Children and Youth, where he focused on adult literacy and early childhood policy for Metropolitan Nashville/Davidson County. Previously, he taught high school math and first grade at an international school in Buenos Aires, Argentina, before returning to Nashville for graduate school.

Schimpff holds a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and math from Wake Forest University. He received his master’s degree in international education policy from Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of Education and Human Development.

Biesman honored for work in laser surgery

Brian S. Biesman, M.D., FACS, director of the Nashville Centre for Laser and Facial Surgery, has received the 2012 Ellet H. Drake Award from the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery, Inc. (ASLMS), honoring him for his significant contributions in the use of lasers for patient care, in laser research and in teaching other physicians best practices in laser medicine.

Biesman is the only physician in the Southeast region to have ever been honored by ASLMS and is one of only seven physicians in the world to have ever received two awards from ASLMS. In 2010, Dr. Biesman received the Society’s Leon Goldman Memorial Award, named in honor of the “father of laser medicine,” and presented to someone who has made a significant contribution to the field of laser science, technology and medicine.

He is a clinical assistant professor at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where he holds appointments in the Divisions of Ophthalmology, Dermatology and Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery.

Miller & Martin adds three new associates

Michael Dumitru has joined Miller & Martin's commercial department, with a specific focus on bankruptcy and creditor’s rights. Dumitru attended Vanderbilt University Law School, where he focused his studies on advocacy. While in law school, Dumitru served as the Chief Justice of the Vanderbilt Moot Court Board.

Lin Ye has joined the firm’s corporate department. Ye graduated from China University of Political Science and Law where she received a bbachelor’s degree in Law and a master’s in Civil and Commercial Law. She took the first place in her class in China’s Master Candidate National Entrance Test. After completing her undergraduate and graduate studies at China University of Political Science and Law, Ye received a J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law where she was on the dean’s list and received the College of Law Scholarship. During her law school career, Ye was selected to serve in the ABA Judicial Intern Opportunity Program. She was also an editor for Transactions: The Tennessee Journal of Business Law.

Ashonti Davis practices in the firm’s litigation department. She graduated in 2005 from Berea College in Kentucky where she received a B.A., cum laude, in speech communication. Davis received her J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 2009. While in law school, she was managing editor for the Tennessee Journal of Law and Policy, chair of the Moot Court Board, member of the Evidence Moot Court Team, and coordinator of the Street Law Program. After graduation, Davis served a two-year term as a Judicial Clerk to Judge John W. McClarty in the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Eastern Section.

VU’s O’Neill honored by pediatrics academy

The American Academy of Pediatrics recently honored James O’Neill Jr., M.D., professor of Pediatric Surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, with its Arnold M. Salzberg Education and Mentorship Award for lifetime achievement in surgical education.

The award, which is given to a pediatric surgeon who distinguishes himself as a mentor to pediatric surgical trainees, was presented at the AAP annual meeting in October.

In 2008, the AAP awarded O’Neill the Ladd Medal, the Academy’s highest award for contribution to the care of children.

O’Neill joined VUMC in 1971, serving as chair of Pediatric Surgery through 1981. He returned to Vanderbilt in 1995, serving as chair of the Section of Surgical Sciences and surgeon-in-chief through 2002.

He received his medical degree from Yale School of Medicine and completed his residency iat Vanderbilt.

Airport Authority announces hires

The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA) recently hired two new employees:

Trudy Carson has more than 17 years of experience in the airport service and marketing industry. She joins the MNAA after working 14 years with Tampa International Airport, where she was the director of air service development. In her new role, Carson will help attract new airlines and air service, as well as retain current service, to Nashville International Airport.

Diana Cavender joins the MNAA from the Monroe Harding Children’s Home in Nashville, where she was director of financial services. She also worked for 10 years for the state in various auditing positions.