The Department of Pathology congratulates Paul Benson, M.D., Associate Professor, Division of Anatomic Pathology, on assuming directorship of the autopsy section on April 1, 2020, and recognizes Silvio Litovsky, M.D., Professor, Anatomic Pathology, for his service as interim director since June 1, 2019.
The section head oversees the day-to-day autopsy section operations for the Department in collaboration with Thurman Richardson, UAB Autopsy Supervisor. This role is essential in supporting the education, services, and research mission of the UAB Autopsy Service.
Dr. Paul Benson earned his Doctor of Medicine from The Medical College of Ohio at Toledo before serving as a preliminary intern in Internal Medicine at the University of Maryland Medical System. He completed residency training in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at the University of Virginia, and is board certified in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology. After fellowship in Forensic Pathology at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Richmond, Virginia, Dr. Benson became board certified in Forensic Pathology.
Benson taught autopsy and forensic pathology as Assistant Professor at The Quillen College of Medicine at East Tennessee State University for two years before returning to Virginia as Assistant Chief Medical Examiner for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Roanoke. There, he practiced forensic pathology for six years with teaching appointments at The Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine, Blacksburg, Virginia, and the Medical College of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia. In 2014, Dr. Benson was appointed Assistant Professor in Forensic Pathology and Assistant Medical Examiner for Shelby County, Tennessee, at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC)/West Tennessee Regional Forensic Center in Memphis. As Program Director of the UTHSC Forensic Pathology Fellowship, he reinstated the Forensic Pathology Fellowship training program in Memphis. Benson has performed more than 3,000 autopsies and testified as an expert witness in forensic pathology, developing informatics oriented autopsy reporting and fostering autopsy research collaborations.
Dr. Benson's responsibilities as director include scheduling faculty coverage, supervising medical students and residents on the autopsy service, tracking the academic milestones of autopsy faculty, ensuring efficient workflow, and serving as liaison between the Department of Pathology and the University Hospital as well as outside institutions such as the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, Alabama Department of Corrections, community hospitals, funeral directors and coroners.
Dr. Silvio Litovsky joined UAB Pathology's faculty in 2004. A native of Argentina, he completed a cardiology residency in Buenos Aires before travelling to the U.S. for a basic cardiac electrophysiology fellowship. He later moved into the field of pathology, specializing in cardiac pathology.
His clinical responsibilities cover the autopsy service and heart biopsies (the latter shared with Thomas Winokur, M.D., Professor, Anatomic Pathology ) and his teaching responsibilities include directing the preclinical cardiovascular module (alongside Dr. Harish Doppalapudi, Cardiology) at the UASOM. Administratively, he has served as treasurer of the Society for Cardiovascular Pathology since 2006, CAP Alabama State commissioner since 2008, and UAB AOA Councilor since 2013.
By Hannah Weems