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Leadership Named for Department of Psychiatry

College of Medicine, Memphis,

a University of Tennessee Health Science Center Campus

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Memphis, Tenn. (January 11, 2007) – Steve J. Schwab, MD, executive dean of the College of Medicine for the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), has announced the appointment of James A. Greene, MD, professor, as chair and Kenneth M. Sakauye, MD, professor, as co-chair of the Department of Psychiatry in the College of Medicine, Memphis, one of three College of Medicine campuses.

James A. Greene, MD

Interim UTHSC Chancellor Hershel P. Wall, MD, said, “Dr. Greene has served admirably as the interim chair for the Department of Psychiatry and has promoted the growth and stability of that department.  I am pleased with his appointment as permanent chair for the department and look forward to working with him in that capacity.”

Dr. Greene’s expertise combines his in-depth knowledge of psychiatry, geriatric psychiatry, in particular, clinical practice and academic teaching with business experience.  Over his 30-year career, he held a variety of private practice and administrative positions, primarily in the South.  In 1991, he founded Geriatric Medical Care (GMC), Inc. whose core business was to set up, implement and manage geropsychiatric units within selected hospitals.  GMC operated in seven states (including Tennessee) and was affiliated with five medical schools.  In 2004, Dr. Greene accepted a position as professor on the UTHSC faculty, and was appointed interim chair of the Department of Psychiatry in 2005.

He is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), past-chair of its Committee on Long Term Care and Treatment of the Elderly, current chair of the Committee on Access and Effectiveness of Psychiatric Services, and a representative to the Tennessee Psychiatric Association in the APA Assembly.  Dr. Greene was the only psychiatrist named as a delegate to the 1995 White House Conference on Aging.  He received the National Institute of Aging Academic Medicine Award in Geriatric Mental Health, and was the charter recipient of the American Geriatrics Society Clinician of the Year Award.  

A graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Medicine, Dr. Greene completed his residency in psychiatry at Dorothea Dix Hospital, an affiliate hospital of the University of North Carolina and the North Carolina Department of Mental Health.  He completed a Faculty Development Program in geriatric psychiatry while teaching at the University of South Florida College of Medicine and Tampa Veterans Hospital.

Kenneth M. Sakauye, MD

Dr. Sakauye, an internationally known geriatric psychiatrist, joined UTHSC in May 2006 from the Louisiana State University College of Medicine (New Orleans).  He has been instrumental in the development and accreditation of a UTHSC psychiatric fellowship program in geriatric psychiatry that will begin in July 2008. The fellowship program will be based at St. Francis Hospital and the Veterans Administration Medical Center, both in Memphis. 

In addition, Dr. Sakauye has developed the UTHSC psychiatric clinical service at St. Francis Hospital, establishing a strong inpatient and consultative service, as well as a teaching program.  Areas of emphasis include emergency psychiatry and electroconvulsive therapy, as well as geriatric psychiatry.  Dr. Sakauye has recently authored a textbook on geriatric psychiatry which has garnered attention and acclaim prior to its release in January.

A graduate of the University of Chicago School of Medicine, Dr. Sakauye completed his residency in psychiatry at the University of Chicago Michael Reese Hospital.  He is board certified in adult and geriatric psychiatry.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is focused on a four-tier mission of education, research, clinical care and public service, all in support of a single goal: to improve the health of Tennesseans.  Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main campus, which includes six colleges, is located in Memphis.  UTHSC has additional College of Medicine and College of Pharmacy campuses in Knoxville and a College of Medicine campus in Chattanooga.  For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu.

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