Air Force allergy doctors win FIT competition

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Kimberly Spencer
  • 59th Medical Wing Public Affairs
LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) --  A 59th Medical Wing allergy team won the 15th Annual American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Fellows-in-Training Bowl held Nov. 6 in Philadelphia.

Allergy specialists Maj. (Dr.) Stephen Scranton and Capt. (Dr.) Chris Calabria, with the 759th Medical Operations Squadron at Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland AFB, Texas, beat out 21 teams from top allergy fellowship programs across the nation in the academic competition.

"It was an honor to represent the Allergy Program and Wilford Hall in this competition," Captain Calabria said. "Our win is a testament to the great program that our current and prior WHMC staff members have created."

A 59th Medical Wing team has won the competition eight of the last 13 years. The competition is patterned after a television quiz show and has three elimination rounds.
"The competition is fast-paced and dynamic, and the teams competed to answer a variety of serious, and not so serious questions posed by an expert panel," said Lt. Col. (Dr.) Michael Tankersley, 759th Allergy and Immunology Flight commander.

Of the 22 teams only four were made up of military members, two from the 59th MDW and two from Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

"We feel very fortunate to have come away with a win for Wilford Hall," Major Scranton said. "Our program has been so consistently successful in this competition in years past that Wilford Hall has become known as the perennial team to beat, and the other fellowship programs really 'come gunning' for us. I think that Wilford Hall's history of success in this competition can really be attributed to the outstanding educational environment provided by our staff.

The Wilford Hall team won the championship round by 50 points.

"The blend of didactics, clinical experience and research opportunities allow us to graduate fellows like Dr. Scranton and Dr. Calabria and continue to build upon the program's national reputation of excellence," Colonel Tankersley said.

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