The University of the West Indies (UWI) graduate Dr. Gail S. Kerr has been named a Master of the American College of Rheumatology. She is the first woman of color to be awarded this accolade. Dr. Kerr’s accomplishment was announced by Celia Davidson-Francis, Director of Alumni Relations at UWI, who also included a statement from Sir George Alleyne, Chancellor Emeritus of UWI.
The announcement of Dr. Kerr’s new title was warmly received by Sir George Alleyne, who described her as an exceptional student who achieved honors in many areas and was awarded the clinical gold medal in medicine in addition to the Allenberry Prize. He continued by saying that Dr. Kerr “never lets you forget” how proud she is to have graduated from the UWI medical school in 1981. Sir Alleyne claims that Dr. Kerr completed her postgraduate studies in internal medicine at the Mona campus in Jamaica and in the United States. She was awarded a DM degree in internal medicine. Although praising her academic accomplishments, Sir Alleyne pointed out that her “persistence and dedication” stemmed from her skill as a field hockey player. She captained the Jamaican squad from 1976 to 1985. Her appointment to the Mastership of the American College of Rheumatology, according to him, is a “fitting recognition” of her outstanding contributions to the specialty of rheumatology as well as her support of patients, other professionals, and students. He sent Dr. Kerr his “sincere personal congratulations” as he wrapped off his remarks.
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Washington, DC’s Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and Howard University Hospital both employ Dr. Gail Kerr as Chief of Rheumatology. She has clinical professorships at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland, as well as positions as an adjunct medical professor at the Georgetown and Howard University Hospitals. She is particularly interested in studying gout, spondyloarthritides, rheumatoid arthritis, and systemic vasculitis.
Dr. Gail Kerr is the co-principal investigator of the Ethnic Minority Rheumatoid Arthritis Consortium, a clinical database created from various clinical practices, and founded the VA Rheumatology Consortium, an organization dedicated to offering cutting-edge rheumatoid arthritis treatment to veterans of the armed forces.
She was a member of an expert team that developed ACR recommendations for gout therapy and reviewed many clinical rheumatology publications. She also serves on the DC VAMC Institute of Clinical Research board of directors. Apart from her medical duties, she engages in consistent physical activity, such as running the Boston Marathon three times.
Dr. Kerr has received many honors in recognition of her contributions as a renowned and skilled rheumatology specialist. She is especially proud of the work she has done to lessen the injustices that ethnic minorities must endure. She continues to provide various forms of assistance to both UWI and Kingston’s St Andrew High School for Girls, where she first gained her education. Her address at Medical Grand Rounds in 2019 was titled “Reducing ethnic disparities in rheumatoid arthritis: using EMRAC as a roadmap.” She was also granted the Johns Hopkins Distinguished Visiting Professorship in Diversity.”
She is a participant in the USP Rheumatology Expert Committee and the FDA Arthritis Advisory Board. In addition to being a board member of the VA Institute of Clinical Research, she chairs the VA National Rheumatology Consortium and is on the steering committee of the Caribbean Rheumatology Association. The American College of Physicians, the Royal Colleges of Physicians, and the American College of Rheumatology have all elected her to fellowship. Her peers have ranked her as one of the top 21 physicians in the Washington, DC, Baltimore, and Northern Virginia region.
