• Health Equity Champion – Associate Professor in Pediatrics leads the School of Medicine’s distinction track for primary care, promoting the sustainability of care in Kentucky for communities vulnerable to the impacts of poverty and discrimination. As general pediatrician at the downtown Novak Center for Children’s Health, where she helps serve thousands of underrepresented patients, Porter is a passionate leader who is propelling the field of child health equity forward.

• Innovator – Jason Chesney, director and chief administrative officer of UofL Health-Brown Cancer Center is a practicing oncologist who has expanded his practice to include holistic wellness programs for patients and families and outreach programs to educate the community on health. With the goal of reducing Kentucky’s cancer death rate by 50% in the next ten years, he leads the Cancer Trials program at the center which is nationally recognized for testing novel cellular therapies and immunotherapies, attracting patients across the country.

• Innovator – Associate Professor Adam Gaweda has been harnessing Artificial Intelligence (AI) to design clinical tools for real-world application since the early 2000’s, when he joined UofL’s Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology and Hypertension. Since then he has developed AI-guided clinical decision support software which has greatly enhanced the cost-effectiveness of anemia treatment and has been adopted by roughly 30% of the national market, creating a turning point for the treatment of dialysis patients and for the widespread use of AI in nephrology.

• Manager – , UofL’s executive vice president for health affairs and dean of the School of Medicine, has been affiliated with UofL as an alum and a professor for more than three decades. Bumpous played a key role in the establishment of the department of Otolaryngology — Heck and Neck Surgery and uses his inclusive, service-minded leadership style to strengthen the forward-moving partnerships between academic and clinical medicine with his years of trusted expertise.

• Rising Star – Assistant Professor Bridgette Hittepole serves as associate director of UofL’s MD/PhD Physician Scientist Training Program, advancing medical education and excellence through mentorship of the field’s next generation of leaders. With a commitment to increase health awareness in the community, Hittepole also expanded the conventions of her practice as a founding member and treasurer of the Bluegrass Obesity Society and founded Louisville’s chapter of Walk with a Doc—an international organization that encourages lifestyle health through physical activity and educational social meetups in spaces like the Waterfront Park.
• Provider – Deborah Kozik, associate professor in UofL’s Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery and pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon with Norton Healthcare, is completing a master’s program in bioethics from Harvard Medical School in May and plans to use this degree to help build and improve access to care for patients and families in our community. She also is interested in finding ways to address the social determinants of health that affect patients.

The 2025 Health Care Heroes are profiled in the Feb. 28-March 6 edition of Louisville Business First and were honored at an in-person event at the Olmsted on Thursday, Feb. 27.

A UofL School of Medicine alumna, Jones leads UofL’s diversity initiatives as senior associate vice president for diversity and equity. She also is associate vice president for health affairs/diversity initiatives, professor of pediatrics and vice chair, Department of Pediatrics-Inclusive Excellence.

In addition to the lifetime achievement award for Jones, the publication recognized the following faculty members and UofL Health providers as Health Care Heroes.

Frontline Hero: Ruth Carrico, professor in the UofL Division of Infectious Diseases and a family nurse practitioner, UofL Health

Health Entrepreneur: Suzanne Ildstad, professor, UofL Department of Surgery, director, UofL Institute for Cellular Therapeutics, founder and chief scientific officer, Talaris Therapeutics Inc., and Distinguished Professor of Transplantation Research at UofL Health – Jewish Hospital.

±õ²Ô²Ô´Ç±¹²¹³Ù´Ç°ù(²õ):ÌýPaula Bates, professor of medicine at UofL School of Medicine, and Kenneth Palmer, professor of pharmacology and toxicology and Helmsley Charitable Trust Endowed Chair in Plant-based Pharmaceutical Research at UofL as well as director of the UofL Center for Predictive Medicine for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases and UofL’s Regional Biocontainment Laboratory.

±Ê°ù´Ç±¹¾±»å±ð°ù(²õ):ÌýValerie Briones-Pryor, medical director for the hospitalist team, UofL Health — Jewish Hospital and UofL Health — Mary & Elizabeth Hospital, and Gary Weinstein, clinical associate professor for the UofL Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, owner of Gary Weinstein MD and founder/volunteer of the Louisville Free Mental Health Clinic. Weinstein practices at Louisville VA Medical Center.

The 2021 Health Care Heroes will be profiled in the April 9 edition of Louisville Business First and recognized during a virtual event April 8, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The event also will include a panel discussion with the CEOs of Louisville’s three largest health systems: Tom Miller of UofL Health, Gerard Colman of Baptist Health and Russell Cox of Norton Healthcare. Register to attend .

They are:

• Innovator Winner – Susan Harkema, PhD, professor, Department of Neurological Surgery, UofL School of Medicine; associate scientific director, ; director of research, Frazier Rehab Institute

Harkema was honored for her research and ongoing commitment to the study of human locomotion. She has dedicated her career to the exploration of technology and development of therapies that will allow individuals with spinal cord injury to recover.

• Innovator Finalist – Walter Sobczyk, MD, pediatric cardiologist, University of Louisville, , Norton Children’s Hospital; associate professor, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Cardiology, UofL School of Medicine

A finalist in the innovator category, one of Sobczyk’s career highlights was the pioneering work of his pediatric cardiology group to use computer technology to transmit cardiac ultrasounds remotely from small community hospitals throughout the state of Kentucky. This important advancement helped provide high-level care to underserved areas of the state.

• Provider Winner – Erle Austin III, MD, cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon, University of Louisville, ; professor and vice-chairman of the Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, UofL School of Medicine

As winner of the provider category, Austin has spent his career as a physician-educator and surgeon treating adults and children in need of congenital heart repairs. The ability to positively impact a person’s health quickly, along with the challenge of cardiovascular and thoracic surgery made the specialty particularly appealing to him.

• Provider Finalist – Christian Davis Furman, MD, geriatrician, ; professor of geriatric & palliative medicine; interim chief, Division of General Internal Medicine, Palliative Medicine and Medical ³ÉÈËÖ±²¥, UofL School of Medicine; Margaret Dorward Smock Endowed Chair in Geriatric Medicine; medical director, UofL Trager Institute

Furman was recognized as a finalist in the provider category for her work in the field of geriatrics. She still makes home visits and in her Q&A with Business First says the most rewarding part of her job is bringing together patients and families to discuss goals of care and advance care planning.

Read more about the Healthcare Hero finalists and winners on the .