Upstate recruits four diabetes specialists to provide patient care and diabetes research

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Upstate Medical University is bolstering the Syracuse community's response to diabetes care with the appointment of four key faculty in Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism who will provide care the Joslin Diabetes Center.

Rachel Hopkins, M.D., of Syracuse, has been appointed assistant professor of medicine. Prior to Upstate, she was an assistant professor of medicine at Albany Medical Center, having clinical specialty in endocrinology; diabetes; thyroid, pituitary and adrenal disorders; and osteoporosis. She received her medical degree from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, where she completed her internship in internal medicine. Her residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in endocrinology were completed at Albany Medical College Hospital.

Barbara Mols-Kowalczewski, M.D., of DeWitt, has been appointed assistant professor of medicine. Her past appointments include faculty positions at Arnot Medical Center, where she also served as director of its Joslin Diabetes Center and as director of the Arnot Medical Services Endocrinology and Diabetes Center. Mols-Kowalczewski received her medical degree from the Medical Academy of Warsaw, Poland. She completed her residency at St. Vincent's Medical Center at Staten Island, an affiliate of New York Medical College, and a fellowship in endocrinology and metabolism at George Washington University Medical Center. She is certified in ultrasound of the thyroid gland by the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and holds CLIA Laboratory certification. She is the recipient of several recognitions and a member of numerous professional societies.

Hopkins and Mols-Kowalczewski specialize in adult endocrinology. They will provide clinical care at Upstate University Hospital and the Upstate Joslin Diabetes Center.

Also, joining the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism are Lewis Johnson, M.D., and Michael W. Roe, Ph.D. Johnson will head the Preventive Cardiology Service at Joslin. Roe will conduct research in the areas of endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism.

Johnson of Jamesville joins the division as professor of medicine and as director of Preventive Cardiology at the Joslin Diabetes Center. He has held the appointment of clinical professor of medicine at Upstate since 2005. Johnson is certified in the areas of cardiovascular disease, internal medicine, and clinical hypertension. A certified diabetes educator, his clinical and research interests include metabolic syndrome, diabetes mellitus, and preventive cardiology. Johnson's credentials are extensive. In addition to his appointment at Upstate, he has served on the faculty at Harvard Medical School and has held appointments at Crouse Hospital, Lewis County General Hospital, Herkimer Memorial Hospital, Mohawk Valley General Hospital and St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center, where he served as director of its Cardiovascular Laboratory from 1988 to 1996. His scientific literature has been published in numerous journals. He is a member of several professional and community organizations. Johnson received his medical degree from Upstate Medical University where he also completed his residency in medicine. He completed a fellowship in medicine from Harvard Medical School.

Roe of Syracuse, joins the division as an associate professor of medicine and cell and developmental biology. His laboratory is located in the Institute for Human Performance. Prior to Upstate, Roe was an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Chicago. Roe has served as the co-investigator and principle investigator of NIH-funded studies regarding diabetes. His current NIH-funded study involves the role that calcium signaling may play in the development of diabetes. Widely published and a member of several professional societies, Roe is a member of the Scientific Research Grant Review Committee for the American Diabetes Association and has served as a member of peer review panels for the National Institutes of Health and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International. Roe received his doctoral degree in cell biology from the University of Vermont and completed his post-doctoral training at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Duke University and Glaxo Research Institute.