Richard Allman

I was born in Columbus, Ohio, but grew up in West Virginia. I received Christ as Savior at the age of 13 after a neighbor invited me to start attending church with her family. In 9th grade, I felt that the Lord called me to become a doctor. I subsequently went to undergraduate school, medical school, and completed a residency in internal medicine at West Virginia University (WVU), where I met my wife, Connie. After residency training at WVU, I went to Johns Hopkins University for a fellowship that focused on medical research. We then moved to Alabama, where I served as a faculty member at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Medicine and as a part-time staff physician at the Birmingham VA Medical Center for nearly 28 years. While at UAB, I led the programs in Geriatrics and Palliative Care. I retired from UAB in December 2013 to provide leadership for policy and planning for Geriatrics, Palliative Care, home and community-based services, and nursing home care for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in Washington, DC. After 4.5 years in this position, I retired from the VA. I now work part-time as an Executive Life and Leadership Coach for leaders in health care, higher education, not-for-profit organizations, and faith-based ministries. I am credentialed by the International Coaching Federation as an Associate Certified Coach. I hold academic appointments as Professor Emeritus in the Department of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), Clinical Professor of Medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington, DC, and as Adjunct Faculty at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston Salem, NC. I also am a volunteer small group facilitator for discipleship programs for Christian Academic Physicians and Scientists (CAPS), a ministry of the Christian Medical and Dental Associations (CMDA). My wife, Connie, and I have served as lay volunteers in local church ministries since we were in college. Our primary focus has been teaching Sunday School classes for different ages. We are currently members of Calvary Baptist Church in Winston Salem, NC where our son and daughter-in-law, granddaughter and grandson live. I have had the privilege of going on 22 short-term mission trips to Northern Ireland, Mexico, China, Jordan, Ukraine, and Romania since 2004, with seventeen of these trips to Romania. While developing professionally, the Lord has used challenging work and family situations to help me realize that I am totally dependent on Him. Through participation in the ministries of a strong church, hearing Biblical preaching every Sunday, involvement in weekly small group discussions of Christian books, prayer, Bible study, and going on short-term mission trips, I have continued to grow in my faith. I am particularly thankful that the Lord sent Jack and Diane Parker to develop a Cru-sponsored Faculty Commons ministry at UAB in 2008. This ministry permitted me to be a part of a growing network of Christian faculty members from multiple departments and schools. These faculty members were committed to integrating the Christian faith into their work and to help others to come to know the Lord. The Christian Faculty Society at UAB sponsored monthly lectures, small group Bible and prayer discussion groups, and service opportunities. Participating Christian faculty members helped me grow in the Lord and have remained my friends since moving from Birmingham in 2014. More recently, my network of Christian faculty and scientists has been expanded nation-wide through my involvement in Christian Academic Physicians and Scientists (CAPS).

My Life

Favorite Quote

The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love (Galatians 5:6b)

Friends describe me

Someone who is interested in caring for people,coaching, mentoring, consulting, and teaching to inspire others to trust in Christ.

My hobbies

Spending time with my grandchildren whenever possible. Reading Christian books and studying the Bible. Facilitating small Christian discussion groups. Going on short-term medical mission trips.

My undergrad alma mater

West Virginia University

My worst subject in school

art

In college I drove

a 1966 Rambler.

Current Research

My research focuses on understanding the factors that impact mobility among community-dwelling older adults so that we can develop approaches to optimize function in late life. Much of this research focuses on cardiovascular disease and health disparities among older adults due to race/ethnicity, age, socio-economic status, or rural residence.