Biography
Joanna Fair, MD, PhD is a Regents’ Professor of Radiology, Vice President for Academic Affairs at the UNM Health Sciences Center, and Chief of Staff at UNM Hospitals. Previously, she served as Vice Chair of Academic Affairs and Chief of Nuclear Medicine in the Department of Radiology at the University of New Mexico. She earned her PhD in Chemical Physics at the University of Colorado and MD from Washington University in St. Louis, followed by diagnostic radiology residency at the University of New Mexico and nuclear medicine residency at Washington University in St. Louis. Dr. Fair is board certified by the ABR in Diagnostic and Nuclear Radiology and by the ABNM in Nuclear Medicine.
During her career at UNM, Dr. Fair has had the privilege to care for patients, grow clinical services, educate learners, build programs, and be a senior leader in a complex, diverse healthcare environment, with the state’s only Level I Trauma Center, Comprehensive Stroke Center, and NIH-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC). As Vice Chair, she led faculty recruitment and promotions, developed hiring models, and oversaw the faculty clinical schedule. As Associate then Senior Associate Dean of GME and Designated Institutional Official, she grew GME by 17 programs to 71 ACGME-accredited residencies and fellowships, managing a $50 million budget and over 750 trainees. As Chief of Nuclear Medicine, Dr. Fair opened a nuclear medicine clinic, collaborated with hospital partners on protocols and equipment purchases, worked with the UNM CCC and multiple stakeholders to launch the theranostics program, and combined Nuclear Medicine and Cardiothoracic Imaging into one section. As Chief of Staff for UNM Hospitals, she leads clinical privilege alignment and medical staff governance across two hospital campuses and more than 1700 providers. As the Vice President for Academic Affairs, she is spearheading strategic planning for educational program growth and healthcare workforce development for New Mexico.
Nationally, Dr. Fair is the current Associate Executive Director and past chair of the American Board of Nuclear Medicine, as well as a member of the Advisory Committee for the Medical Uses of Isotopes for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. She has served on multiple committees and advisory boards, including for the Association of American Medical Colleges, Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, American Board of Medical Specialties, American College of Radiology, and Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. Dr. Fair has spoken regionally and nationally about nuclear medicine imaging and therapy, feedback, medical education, and leadership, and she is co-lead author of the 4th edition of the textbook Diagnostic Imaging: Nuclear Medicine.
Areas of Specialty
Specialization #1 Diagnostic Radiology
Specialization #2 Nuclear Medicine
Education
MD, Washington University School of Medicine, 2003
PhD, National Science Foundation Fellow University of Colorado, 1999 (Chemical Physics)
BA, Rice University, Summa cum Laude (Chemistry)
Certifications
Certification #1 Diagnostic Radiology, American Board of Radiology Subspecialty Certification in Nuclear Radiology
Certification #2 Nuclear Medicine, American Board of Nuclear Medicine
Certification #3 Certified Clinical Densitometrist, International Society for Clinical Densitometry
Achievements & Awards
American Board of Nuclear Medicine, Board of Directors, 2014-2020
UNM SOM Curriculum Committee Award for Excellence in Evaluation Teamwork, 2019
Society of Chairs of Academic Radiology Departments – General Electric (SCARD-GE) LEAD Leadership Development Program , 2019-2020
AAMC GME Leadership Development Certificate, 2018-2019
Nominee for 2018 Outstanding Diagnostics Consultant to Hospital Medicine, UNMH, 2018
AAMC Mid-Career Women Faculty Leadership Development Seminar (selected to represent UNM SOM), 2017
Certificate of Achievement, Academy of Radiology Leadership Management, 2015
Distinguished Service Award, American Board of Radiology, 2013
Volunteer Service Award, American Board of Radiology, 2012
Radiology Chair’s MVP Award, 2011
UNM Hospital Radiology Pride in Excellence Award, 2011
RIT Award of Excellence for the Best Medical Imaging Article,
Journal of Applied Clinical Medical Physics, 2009
Gender
Female
Languages
- English
Courses Taught
Medical Student Phase I Anatomy, Radiology Director and Lecturer
PA Student Radiology Education Director and Lecturer
Specialty Exploration Experience (Continuity Clinic III) Radiology Director
Research and Scholarship
Marks AJ, Mugweru J, Naney T, Lorenzo G, Fair JR, ?Perforation of a heroin drug packet with resultant fatal overdose,? ACR Case in Point, 2020, selected as the May Case of the Month
Segall GM, Pryma DA, Fair JR, ?A Bright Future for Nuclear Medicine,? J Am Coll Radiol. 2019 Apr;16(4 Pt A):531-532. doi: 10.1016/j.jacr.2018.08.029. Epub 2018 Nov 6. PubMed PMID: 30409562.
Segall GM, Grady EE, Fair JR, Ghesani MV, Gordon L, ?Nuclear Medicine Training in the United States,? J Nucl Med 2017 Nov; 58(11): 1733-1734.
Qaseem Y, Fair J, Behnia F, Elojeimy S, ?Metachronous Presentation of Small Cell Rectal Carcinoma on an 18F-FDG PET/CT Follow-up for Follicular Lymphoma,? Radiol Case Rep 2017 Sep; 12(3): 632-634.
Bermo M, Behnia F, Fair J, Miyaoka R, Elojeimy S, ?Review of Extra-Skeletal Activity on Tc-99m MDP Bone Scintigraphy and Value of Cross-sectional and SPECT-CT Imaging Correlation,? Curr Probl Diagn Radiol 2018 Sept; 47(5); 324-332.