Dr. Eric Larson, medical director of UW Medical Center and professor of medicine, has been appointed to a three-year term on the 28-member governing board of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). The Joint Commission evaluates and accredits more than 18,000 health-care organizations and programs in the United States. An independent, not-for- profit organization, the Joint Commission is the nation’s predominant standards-setting and accrediting body in health care. Larson will represent the American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine on the board.

Dr. Sherrill Slichter, professor of medicine and director of research and education at Puget Sound Blood Center, has received the 1998 Karl Landsteiner Memorial Award from the American Association of Blood Banks for her pioneering work with platelets. Slichter helped develop procedures to separate platelets from whole blood donations, established the platelet apheresis program for platelet transfusions from a single donor, and designed storage methods to maintain platelet viability for five days. These methods are used in blood centers throughout the world. She is now studying ways to reduce immune responses to platelet transfusions. Slichter shares the 1998 award with two other researchers.

Dr. Kathryn Yorkston, professor of rehabilitation medicine and head of the Division of Speech Pathology, has received the 1998 Clinical Achievement Award from the Academy of Neurologic Communication Disorders and Sciences. Her recent research has focused on studies of the effectiveness of treatment for speech disorders associated with Parkinson’s disease and Lou Gehrig’s disease. Yorkston is a recognized expert on speech disorders resulting from neurological conditions such as stroke, traumatic brain injury and Parkinson’s disease. The award was presented at the Academy’s meeting in San Antonio.

Dr. Milo Gibaldi, dean emeritus of the School of Pharmacy and professor of pharmaceutics, is the author of an award-winning supplement published each month as part of Drug Therapy Topics, a newsletter edited by Dr. Nelda Murri, director of the Drug Information Service for UW Medical Center and Harborview, and clinical associate professor of pharmacy. Gibaldi’s supplement, which offers in-depth discussions of significant topics in drug therapy, received the 1998 Editors Award for Overall Excellence from P&T magazine in its annual Newsletter Exchange Awards. Both content and presentation are considered for the award.

Drs. Ellen Lumpkin and Brian Kuhlman, postdoctoral research fellows in UW School of Medicine departments, have won two of the 19 Runyon-Winchell Fellowship Awards given this year. The awards, among the most valuable for postdoctoral researchers, cover three years of fellowship work. They are awarded by the Cancer Research Fund of the Damon Runyon-Walter Winchell Foundation of New York City to “outstanding young scientists conducting theoretical and experimental research that is relevant to the study of cancer and the search for cancer causes, mechanisms, therapies and prevention.” Lumpkin is working in the laboratory of Dr. Jonathon Howard, associate professor of physiology and biophysics. Kuhlman is working with Dr. David Baker, assistant professor of biochemistry, whose research was featured in the Jan. 7 issue of University Week.

Linda Haas, a clinical faculty member in the School of Nursing’s Department of Biobehavioral Nursing and Health Systems who practices at the Seattle VA Medical Center, is now president for health care and education for the American Diabetes Association.