Helen R. Turner, MD, PhD,
Dr. Turner was born in Walnut Grove, Mississippi and grew up in Kosciusko, Mississippi. She completed her undergraduate education at Mississippi University for Women. After college, she and her husband Jim moved to Fort Huachuca, Arizona where he served in the Army. While in Arizona, she taught kindergarten and fifth grade, good training for her later career teaching medical students and residents.
Jim and Helen subsequently moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where Jim worked as a chemical engineer, Helen taught fifth grade and their son Jimmy was born.
Later returning to Mississippi, Helen entered graduate school at UMC in the Department of Microbiology, completing her Ph.D. in 1975. With the encouragement of her major professor, Dr. Rowe Byers, she entered medical school and graduated in 1979. She subsequently completed residency training in internal medicine and fellowship training in infectious diseases then joined the faculty at UMC as a staff physician at the VAMC. At the VAMC she held leadership positions as associate chief of staff for education and chief of medical service. In 1993, she moved to the University of Mississippi School of Medicine to become associate dean for academic affairs, following the tragic death of Dr. Carl Evers who had held that position for many years.
In 2003, she became the first associate vice chancellor for academic affairs at UMC. As a faculty member at UMC, she has received recognition for teaching excellence, being named Alpha Omega Alpha teacher of the year for two years. She has also been recognized for clinical excellence and was named to “Best Doctors in the Southeast Region” and “Best Doctors in America” for several years. She was recognized by Who’s Who of American Women and received the Alumnae Achievement Award in 2003 from the Mississippi University for Women.
She has been actively involved in organized medicine for many years, serving as Secretary, member of the Board of Trustees, president elect and now president of the Mississippi State Medical Association. She serves as representative to the American Medical Association Section on Medical Schools and alternate delegate to the AMA House of Delegates.
During her career, she has been a trailblazer as the first woman to serve as associate chief of staff for education and chief of medicine at the VAMC, associate dean for academic affairs at UMC and the second woman to be elected president of MSMA. She feels fortunate to have been able to mentor many medical students, residents, fellows and junior faculty members during her academic career.
She and her husband of 42 years live in Jackson. Their son Jimmy and his wife Christy, also live in Jackson, where he teaches music and performs in many events. She feels blessed to have her brother, her two sisters and many nieces and nephews in Jackson. She enjoys spending time with family and singing in her church choir.
Page Posted: 5/5/2009
Contact Information
Mississippi Chapter Governor: Dan M Woodliff, MD, FACP
Chapter Staff:
Nancy Youngblood
Executive Director
Telephone: 601-519-6877
Fax: 601-372-1678
E-mail : anyoungblood@bellsouth.net
