Peter Y. Kim Memorial Lecture
The Peter Y. Kim Memorial Lecture was established in 2018 in honor of Peter Kim, MD, PhD, who passed away unexpectedly in 2017, at the age of 55. The Department of Neurology established this lectureship to bring speakers with expertise in outpatient general clinical neurology to speak to the department.
Peter Kim was born in South Korea and came to the United States at a young age. He spent most of his youth in Buffalo, NY, where he developed his lifelong love of the Buffalo sports teams, as was evident to anyone who entered his office. He received his BS and his PhD from the University of Rochester, completing his thesis on “Activation of c-myc and ki-ras oncogenes in radiation induced rat thyroid carcinomas.” He then completed his MD at the State University of New York Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse, NY. After finishing an internship at the University of Rochester in 1994, he came to the Neurological Institute to begin his neurology residency, which he completed in 1997. Between the years of 1997 and 1999, Dr. Kim worked as a postdoctoral research fellow in the Departments of Neurology and Pathology at Columbia. Then, in 1999, he joined the fledgling Department of Neurology Division of General Neurology.
As one of the original members of this newly formed division dedicated to caring for patients with all types of neurological problems, Dr. Kim was integral in the division’s growth and success. He was always available. Physicians throughout the medical center called him to see their patients, friends and colleagues. He never said no. He served as the primary neurological consultant to the Columbia University Athletics Department. When the Multiple Sclerosis Clinic needed attending supervision, he stepped in to serve as co-director. For years he provided the majority of the consultations needed by the cardiac and liver transplant services. He developed an expertise in HIV neurology and was asked by the Department of Medicine’s Infectious Disease Service to run an HIV Neurology clinic.
Peter also never said no to any educational contribution he was asked to make. He directed the Neurology Residents’ General Neurology Clinic for many years. He supervised the outpatient General Neurology elective. He enthusiastically participated in outpatient rotations for the medical students and residents. Those who participated saw him as teacher and mentor, yet he still treated everyone as a peer.
Dr. Kim’s untimely death was a blow to the Department, particularly for those in the Division of General Neurology, who worked closely with him every day. He was a beloved friend, colleague, clinician, teacher, and mentor and remains sorely missed. This lecture series is dedicated to his memory and countless contributions to this Department.
Most recent 2025 lecture information:
Challenging Cases in Right Brain Stroke
Anna M. Barrett, MD, FAAN, FANA, FASNR
UMass Memorial Chair in Neurology and Professor of Neurology at UMass Chan Medical School and UMass Memorial Health;
Chief of Neurology, VA Central Western Massachusetts Healthcare System
Physician-scientist Dr. A.M. Barrett leads the Neurology Department at UMass Chan/UMass Memorial Health, and the Neurology Service Line at the VA Central Western MA, as well as a VA-funded spatial neglect rehabilitation research program. Dr. Barrett’s extensive experience brings together training in cognitive neurology and neuropsychology, neurology, medicine, and brain injury. She has been UMass Chair since 2022, and before that was at the Emory University School of Medicine, where she was director of the neurorehabilitation division of the Department of Neurology Emory Brain Health, directed the Atlanta VA Medical Center Rehabilitation Research Center, and served as professor of neurology and rehabilitation. She has also served as Director of Stroke Rehabilitation Research and co-director of Stroke Rehabilitation at Kessler Institute and Kessler Foundation/Rutgers New Jersey Medical School.
Board-certified in neurology, behavioral neurology and neuropsychiatry, and brain injury medicine, Dr. Barrett earned her medical degree at New York University School of Medicine. She completed an internship at Norwalk Hospital/Yale University School of Medicine, neurology residency at Columbia University/the Neurological Institute of New York, and fellowships in behavioral neurology and neuropsychiatry neuropsychology at the University of Florida.