Prominent St. Petersburg neurosurgeon Dr. David McKalip is resigning as president-elect of the Pinellas County Medical Association.

The move follows statewide and national uproar over his forwarding an e-mail of a picture showing President Barack Obama as a witch doctor, wearing an exotic headdress and with bones in his nose.

"I believe that it would be in the best interests of the Pinellas County Medical Association and its mission to serve patients, if I step down from the association at this time," McKalip wrote in his resignation letter. "I will remove myself from the debate on health system reform so that my efforts do not become a distraction to the efforts to protect patients from intrusion into their medical care by government and insurance companies."

The county medical association has released a statement denouncing McKalip's action, and accepting his resignation.

"The Pinellas County Medical Association regrets and is appalled by the statements and act of Dr. David McKalip. Dr. McKalip acted in poor taste and on his own accord when preparing and issuing his message," it notes.

Read the full text here: Download McKalip

More details coming in tomorrow's St. Petersburg Times.

-- Letitia Stein, Times health reporter