The medical school recently welcomed two new faculty members to its departments of Biomedical Informatics and Pathology.
Thomas East, PhD, began his new role at WMed on March 25 as an associate professor in the Department of Biomedical Informatics. Dr. East is an alumnus of John Carroll University where he graduated magna cum laude in 1979 with a bachelor’s degree in physics.
Later, Dr. East earned his master’s degree in engineering and bioengineering, as well as his PhD in bioengineering with an emphasis in medical informatics, at the University of Utah in 1981 and 1982, respectively.
Prior to coming to WMed, Dr. East worked for more than nine years at Syncronys, a non-profit that is the designated health information exchange (HIE) for the state of New Mexico, where he served as chief executive officer and, more recently, as chief technology officer. As an educator, Dr. East has served previously at the University of Utah as an associate professor in the departments of Anesthesiology and Medical Informatics, and as a research associate professor in the Department of Bioengineering.
Dr. East is the author of 89 peer-reviewed publications and six book chapters. He is also a longtime member of the American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) and the Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS).
Meanwhile, Christine James, DO, joined the medical school on April 1 as an assistant professor in the Department of Pathology. Dr. James is an alumna of the Cook Honors College at Indiana University of Pennsylvania where she earned a bachelor’s degree in biology in 2005. In 2008, she earned her master’s degree in biological science from Duquesne University.
Dr. James earned her DO degree from Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2013 and completed her anatomic and clinical pathology residency in 2017 at West Virginia University. During her final year of training, Dr. James served as chief resident.
After residency, Dr. James completed a one-year forensic pathology fellowship with the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office in Pittsburgh. Before coming to WMed, she served as a clinical assistant professor at West Virginia University and was a clinical adjunct faculty member at the University of Kansas Medical Center, the Arkansas College of Osteopathic Medicine, and the Lincoln Memorial University - DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. James also served for more than three years as a representative on the Kansas State Child Death Review Board.
In addition to her academic appointments, Dr. James most recently worked for more than three years as a deputy medical examiner for the Johnson County Medical Examiner’s Office in Olathe, Kansas.
Dr. James is board certified in forensic pathology and anatomic and clinical pathology through the American Board of Pathology. She is also an associate member of the American Academy of Forensic Science and a fellow of the National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME).