Posted 05/12/2008

McBride, Adams are winners of Arnold Awards

A Wisconsin physician recognized for his efforts in preventive cardiology and a USC researcher who has focused on breast cancer and health disparities are the recipients of the 2008 Norman J. and Gerry Sue Arnold alumni awards .

The presentations were made Thursday, May 8 at the Arnold School’s 21st annual Hooding Ceremony at the Koger Center for the Arts.

• The Norman J. Arnold Medal went to Dr. Patrick E. McBride, a tenured professor and associate dean for students at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. McBride earned his master’s in public health from the Arnold School in 1982.
  
• The Gerry Sue Arnold Award went to Dr. Swann Arp Adams, a research assistant professor in USC’s Cancer Prevention & Control Program. Adams earned her doctorate in epidemiology from the Arnold School in 2003.

The awards are an annual feature of the Hooding Ceremony. They were established by the school's leading benefactor and his wife and carry a cash award in addition to the recognition.

McBride has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a medical degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Today McBride co-directs a comprehensive clinical preventive cardiology program with more than 20 professional staff members. The program includes inpatient and outpatient cardiac rehabilitation, a preventive cardiology/cholesterol clinic (one of the first in the U.S.), a diabetes prevention program, and many other clinical initiatives for people at risk for cardiovascular disease.

Working with the American Heart Association and the Wisconsin Academy of Family Physicians, McBride was a leader in developing and implementing statewide teaching programs on cholesterol screening and management and smoking cessation for physicians, nurses, dietitians and physician assistants.

He is the recipient of 11 local and national teaching awards, including a prestigious Distinguished Education Award from the University of Wisconsin.

Adams is a Tennessee native who earned a bachelor’s degree from Furman University and a master’s degree from the University of Tennessee School of Biomedical Sciences.

Her dissertation work investigated methodological challenges between physical activity and breast cancer.

Last summer she worked as a key author for a special issue of the Journal of the South Carolina Medical Association which served to provide critical epidemiologic information for breast. prostate and esophageal cancers within the state.

In his nomination, Adam’s supervisor, Dr. James Herbert, described her as gifted and highly motivated with the potential to become an “academic superstar.”

The Norman J. Arnold Medal honors an alumnus who graduated more than 10 years ago. It carries a cash award of $2,500 and a bronze medal.

The Gerry Sue Arnold Medal honors an alumnus who graduated within the last 10 years. It carries a cash award of $2,500 and a commemorative plaque.

McBride and Adams were selected by a committee of the Arnold School's Alumni Council from among nominees submitted by faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the Arnold School of Public Health.

The alumni awards are the latest example of the Arnold family’s philanthropy. Norman Arnold made a major gift in 2000 to endow the University of South Carolina's School of Public Health, which now bears his name.