Department of Anesthesiology
Joel McMasters, M.D.
Joel McMasters, M.D., has joined the Department of Anesthesiology as an Associate Professor and Director of the Anesthesiology Perioperative Evaluation Center (APEC). Dr. McMasters received his medical degree from UAMS. He completed his transitional internship at Brooke Army Medical Center and his anesthesiology residency at Brooke Army Medical Center and Wilford Hall Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas. He worked as a staff anesthesiologist at Brooke Army Medical Center and served as Chief of Anesthesia in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Prior to joining the UAMS faculty, Dr. McMasters worked in private practice in Pine Bluff and most recently in Little Rock.
Beth Anne Reed, M.D.
Beth Anne Reed, M.D., has joined the Department of Anesthesiology as an Associate Professor and Director of Anesthesia Services at The Orthopaedic & Spine Hospital, which will open this spring. Dr. Reed received her medical degree at UAMS. She completed her anesthesia internship and residency at the University of Pennsylvania Health System in Philadelphia. She continued her training with a pediatric anesthesia fellowship at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Reed returned to Little Rock and practiced at Southern Regional Anesthesiology Consultants and most recently at Baptist Health.
Department of Internal Medicine
Division Director, Hematology/Oncology
Rangaswamy Govindarajan, M.D., Professor of Internal Medicine, has been appointed Director of the Division of Hematology/Oncology. Dr. Govindarajan is a hematologist and medical oncologist in the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute at UAMS and in the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System and has served on the faculty for over 25 years.
Dr. Govindarajan received his medical degree from Mysore Medical College in Mysore, India. He completed an internship in general medicine, surgery and obstetrics/gynecology/pediatrics at K.R. Hospital and Cheluvamba Hospital in Mysore. He is a member of the UK’s Royal College of Physicians (MRCP). He came to UAMS in 1992 for his residency in internal medicine and continued his training with a fellowship in hematology/oncology before joining the faculty as an Assistant Professor in 1997.
Dr. Govindarajan is board certified in Internal Medicine, Hematology and Oncology and is a Diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine. He is a member of the American Society of Hematology and the American Society of Clinical Oncology. His primary clinical and research interests are gastrointestinal cancers and sarcoma. He is the principal investigator for Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG), and a member of the GI working committee and sarcoma working group in SWOG. He has experience in conducting investigator-initiated trials and actively participates in industry-sponsored and cooperative group trials. He also serves as the Chief of the Section of Hematology/Oncology at CAVHS.
Sri Obulareddy, M.D.
Sri Obulareddy, M.D., has joined the Department of Internal Medicine as an Associate Professor and breast oncologist in the Division of Hematology/Oncology. Dr. Obulareddy received her medical degree in 2004 at Andhra Medical College, Dr. NTR University of Health Sciences, in India. She was a junior resident in hematology and oncology at Yashoda Cancer and Multispecialty Center in Hyderabad, India.
Dr. Obulareddy received a master’s in occupational and environmental health from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas, in 2009. She completed her residency in internal medicine in 2014, followed by a fellowship in medical oncology in 2016, at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. Dr. Obulareddy began her career as a physician at Sanford Health in Dickinson, North Dakota, where she was instrumental in setting up a stand-alone hematology/oncology practice. Prior to joining UAMS, she practiced at Yakima Valley Memorial, North Star Lodge Cancer Center in Yakima, Washington.
Department of Pediatrics
Section Chief, Pediatric Neurology
Erin Willis, M.D., Associate Professor of Pediatrics, has been appointed Section Chief for Pediatric Neurology in the Department of Pediatrics and Arkansas Children’s. Dr. Willis received her medical degree at UAMS, where she stayed for her Child Neurology Residency. She served as Chief Resident during her final year of training and went on to complete a fellowship in neurophysiology.
Dr. Willis is board certified with the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology with special qualifications in Child Neurology as well as Epilepsy. She is also boarded as a diplomate with the American Board of Clinical Neurophysiology. Her professional memberships include the American Academy of Neurology, Child Neurology Society, American Epilepsy Society, and the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers. Her clinical and research interests include epilepsy and pediatric demyelinating disorders.
She serves as a pediatric epileptologist at UAMS and Arkansas Children’s Hospital with active involvement in the Level 4 Epilepsy Center within the Neuroscience Center. She is also the Director of the Pediatric Demyelinating Clinic at Arkansas Children’s Hospital and certified as a Multiple Sclerosis Partner in Care by the National MS Society.
Section Chief, Pediatric Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Laura Hobart-Porter, D.O., Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, has been named the inaugural Section Chief of Pediatric Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation in the Department of Pediatrics and Arkansas Children’s.
Previously a component of the Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics Section, PM&R was established as a separate section in 2022 to help facilitate substantial growth in both areas, with Dr.Hobart-Porter serving as Interim Section Chief of Pediatric PM&R. Dr. Hobart-Porter also serves as Medical Director of the Spinal Cord Disorders Program at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.
Dr. Hobart-Porter received her Doctor of Osteopathy at Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences. She completed her residency training at UAMS, followed by a fellowship in pediatric physical medicine and rehabilitation at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.
Dr. Hobart-Porter is the first physician in Arkansas to become board-certified in pediatric PM&R. She is the Co-Chair of MedCamps of Arkansas, a statewide organization that provides camp experiences for children with functionally limiting medical conditions. Her primary research interests are the application of clinical practice guidelines through implementation science, particularly in the management of children with spina bifida. She also enjoys working in transdisciplinary clinic models and clinical outreach programs through telemedicine.
Neonatology Section
Vikramaditya Dumpa, M.D., has joined the Department of Pediatrics as an Associate Professor in the Neonatology Section. Dr. Dumpa earned his medical degree at Osmania Medical College in Hyderabad, India, before completing a master’s in nutrition at the University of Bridgeport in Bridgeport, Connecticut. He completed a residency in pediatrics at Saint Peters University Hospital in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Dr. Dumpa specialized in neonatal-perinatal medicine during his fellowship at the University of Buffalo in Buffalo, New York. His research interests include non-invasive ventilation in premature babies, dysphagia and neonatal hypoglycemia.
Critical Care Section
Nathan Epps, M.D., has joined the Department of Pediatrics as an Assistant Professor in the Critical Care Section. Dr. Epps received his medical degree at the University of Alabama School of Medicine in Birmingham. He completed his internship and residency at Louisiana State University Health Science Center in New Orleans and then continued his training with a critical care fellowship at UAMS. In addition to his academic and clinical duties, Dr. Epps is engaged in a collaborative quality improvement (QI) project focused on improving pediatric sepsis outcomes through the Children’s Hospital Association.
Department of Psychiatry
Division Chief, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Jason Williams, Psy.D., M.S.Ed., has joined the faculty as Professor and Chief of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in the Department of Psychiatry and Senior Vice President and Chief Mental and Behavioral Health Officer for Arkansas Children’s. Dr. Williams will lead joint efforts by UAMS and Arkansas Children’s to improve pediatric mental and behavioral health throughout the state.
Dr. Williams comes to Arkansas from Children’s Hospital Colorado, where he served as an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and Director of Operations in the Pediatric Mental Health Institute. With more than 20 years of experience in the mental health field, he is recognized nationally for his leadership and expertise. He currently serves as Chair of the Commission on Accreditation for the American Psychological Association.
Dr. Williams received his master’s and doctoral degrees from the California School of Professional Psychology in Los Angeles. He completed an internship and postdoctoral training at the Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles, where he worked for 12 years prior to his recruitment to Colorado.
Read more in the UAMS Newsroom.