The McGuire PARDECC has also received funding to develop and evaluate several clinical care and educational protocols. Dr. David Cifu, Chief of the Department of PM&R at both McGuire and VCU, will evaluate the results of a structured outpatient exercise program. Dr. Helen Filmore will head a cutting edge research effort in an attempt to develop a cure for Parkinson's Disease. Dr. Filmore and colleagues grow brain stem cells in a laboratory setting using adult brain tissue. Dr. Warren Felton, VCU Professor and Chief of the Department of Neurology at McGuire VAMC, will develop and deliver educational programs for clinical personnel, Parkinson's disease patients and their family members. Dr. Vincent Calabrese, Director of the McGuire PADRECC stated, "It is an honor for McGuire to be selected as a center of excellence that can serve the many veterans who are afflicted with this devastating disease." The award is a wonderful example of what can be accomplished by synergism between McGuire VAMC and VCU School of Medicine.
Women in Medicine Professional Achievement Award Announced______________
The 2001 WIM Professional Achievement Award was presented to Dr. Michelle Whitehurst-Cook, Associate Professor of Family Practice, on Friday, March 2, during the 9th Annual WIM Pathways to Leadership Conference, held at the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond. The annual award was first established in 1993 and acknowledges special contributions and accomplishments of women faculty in the SOM. The 14 women nominated this year included: Drs. Linda Costanzo, Physiology; Marcella Fierro, Legal Med; Chris Gennings, Biostatistics; Margaret Grimes, Pathology; Lindsey Grossman, Pediatrics;
Kathryn Holloway, Neurosurgery; Anne-Marie Irani, Pediatrics; Lisa Kaplowitz, Int. Med.; Kathryn Kerkering, Pediatrics; Susan Kornstein, Psychiatry; Mary Nettleman, Int. Med.; Eileen Segreti, Ob-Gyn, and Sandra Welch, Pharmacology/Toxicology. Over 250 participants from Virginia and 8 other states attended the Conference to address "Changing the Chilly Climate." The conference is presented by the 3 Virginia medical schools, the Medical Society of Virginia, and the Richmond Academy of Medicine.(Thanks to the VCU Office of Continuing Medical Education for their excellent conference management)
SOM Faculty Receive VCU Faculty Mentoring Awards for Instructional Technology_
The VCU Faculty mentoring initiative is designed to assist selected faculty in developing the means to enhance instruction through technology for their own classes and to extend their knowledge and skills to serve as mentors for other faculty. Faculty selected for the program receive laptop computers and special assistance from the VCU Instructional Development Center (IDC) in finding effective ways to use technology in their teaching. Congratulations to James H. Johnson, Ph.D., Department of Anatomy, and to Helen Ragazzi, M.D. and Suzanne Lavoie, M.D., Department of Pediatrics, for being selected to participate in this program.
Department News___________________________________________________
Department of Emergency Medicine
Dr. Nora Klinker
participated as an Alumni Scholar faculty member at the 2001 Harvard Macy program for Physician Educators. The Program is designed to facilitate the latest in projects for medical education programs, and draws participants from around the world. Dr. Klinker attended the program as a scholar in 1999 to develop a CD Rom based Emergency Medicine Curriculum.Dr. Gloria Kuhn
, Associate Professor and Director of Faculty Development for the Department of Emergency Medicine at MCVH, has had an article published in Annals of Emergency Medicine entitled "Circadian, Rhythm, Shift Work and Emergency Medicine," January 2001.Department of Medicine
Tom Kerkering, M.D.,
Professor of Infectious Disease, spent January 19th-January 27th in Cuba, where he led a delegation of Infectious Disease Specialists from across the USA. The purpose of the trip was to learn how the Cuban Infectious Disease Specialists deal with HIV/AIDS, Dengue and other tropical diseases; how the embargo is effecting the health and nutrition of the Cuban population; and how their system of neighborhood family physicians to tertiary referral hospitals functions.Department of Microbiology and Immunology
Dr. Cynthia Nau Cornelissen
, Assistant Professor, has been awarded a new RO1 grant from the National Institutes of Health for $1,400,000 entitled "A molecular study of the gonococcal transferrin receptor." These studies may lead to the development of a safe and effective vaccine for the prevention of gonorrhea.Dr. John G. Tew
, Professor, will chair a session and give an overview at The 11th International Congress of Immunology this coming summer in Stockholm, Sweden. The Congress brings together immunologists from all over the world to cover main areas within the rapidly growing fields of basic and applied immunology. Only internationally well known professors will chair the sessions of the Congress. Dr. John G. Tew also chaired a session of the 10th International Congress of Immunology in 1998. He is the recipient of the University Award of Excellence in 2000.Department of Pathology
Pathology Labs Relocate:
After years of planning, three major laboratories will relocate to new and enlarged space. The Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory moved into 6000 square feet of newly renovated space on the 2nd floor of the Clinical Support Center in January. This move nearly tripled the amount of space devoted to this cutting edge technology and will move VCU clearly into the forefront nationally as a provider of nucleic acid based clinical testing. In November, Surgical Pathology, Cytopathology and Transfusion Medicine will move into the new Gateway Building, nearly doubling the amount of space devoted to anatomic pathology. These moves will also place most of our medicine services closer to the patient locations that they serve.Pathology Honor Society Inductees:
Each year, the Department recognizes those students scoring in the top 10% on the Pathogenesis exam by inducting them into the Pathology Honor Society, a national honorary association sponsored by the College of American Pathologists. This year’s student honorees: David Pastel, Erika Woodson, Elisabeth Ashley, Katie Shew, Jon Moussally, Kathleen Powis, Nira Colyn, Todd Bruno, Eric Lyders, Gaelyn Eaton, Vartan Tashjian, Hugh Colvin, Liz Zarkin, Casey Gray, Julia Graves, Jeremy Moore, Devi Chakravorty.Faculty Notes:
After serving for more than twenty years as Chairman of the Division of Surgical and Cytopathology and Medical Director of the Surgical Pathology Services, Dr. William "Jack" Frable has decided to relinquish these administrative responsibilities. He will remain a full-time Professor of Pathology with clinical and teaching responsibilities in surgical pathology and cytopathology. Dr. Frable will continue to occupy the Saul Kay Endowed Chair in Diagnostic Pathology.On 1/1/01, Celeste N. Powers, MD, PhD, became Chair of the Division of Surgical and Cytopathology. She will continue in her role as the Medical Director of Anatomic Pathology Services, where she has served since 10/99.
Also effective 1/1/01, Margaret Grimes, MD, became Medical Director of the Surgical Pathology Service, which includes Accessioning, Gross Room, Core (Histology) Lab, Transcription, and the Specimen Archives.
Michael J Kornstein, MD
, left his position as Professor of Pathology and Director of the Special Studies Laboratory on 1/18/01. Dr. Kornstein will join Clinical Laboratory Consultants in Richmond. We wish him the very best in his new endeavor.Kristen Atkins, MD
, has accepted a full-time faculty position at the academic rank of Assistant Professor in the Division of Surgical/Cytopathology. She is currently a cytopathology fellow here in the Department of Pathology. Her new position will commence on 4/1/01 upon the completion of her fellowship program.John B. Cousar, Jr., MD
, joined our faculty on 1/3/01 as Clinical Professor in the Division of Clinical Pathology. Dr. Cousar earned an international reputation at Vanderbilt University in the field of Hematopathology, and we are delighted to benefit from his clinical and teaching experience.Shawn E. Holt, PhD
, Assistant Professor of Pathology and Human Genetics, was recently awarded a two-year, $100,000 research grant from the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation. The grant is titled "Therapeutic Strategies for the Prevention and Treatment of Breast Cancer Using Telomerase."Web Page Wins Honorable Mention:
The newly redesigned Pathology web page won recognition with an "Honorable Mention for Best Departmental Web Page" at the Pathology Informatics Conference, sponsored by the U. of Pittsburgh Medical Center in Oct, 2000. Katherine Stevenson, M.Ed., Educational Practitioner, presented her electronic poster "Using the New to Revitalize and Capitalize on the Best of the Old."Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology
Dr. Joseph Borzelleca
, Professor Emeritus, is being honored with the Life Achievement in Science Award by the Science Museum of Virginia. Dr. Borzelleca’s work assisted in the development of a treatment for poisoning by the pesticide Kepone.Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health
Dr. Jack O. Lanier
has been invited to be the keynote speaker at two 2001 national conferences: the first presentation will take place on April 4th for the Northeast Regional Leadership Public Health Institute annual meeting at the Rensselaerville Institute in Albany, New York. The second presentation will take place on June 7th for the American Hospital Association Institute for Diversity in Chicago, IL.Dr. Lanier has also been involved in planning a multidisciplinary outreach and education effort known as the Decade of Behavior (2000-2010). Lanier is one of 16 distinguished behavioral and social scientists providing leadership on the National Advisory Committee, which seeks to focus the energy of the behavioral and social sciences on meeting societal challenges like health, safety, and education. One development of the initiative is "FundSource," a searchable database for research funding in the behavioral and social sciences. For more information, log onto www.decadeofbehavior.org.
The Department has nominated the following MPH students for the awards indicated: Nominee for the VCU Award of Excellence: Ann Eischeid; Nominees for the Gates Millennium Scholars "Leaders for America’s Future" Award: Bettye D. Stanley, D.O., Lisa R. Robinson.
Dr. Adefolaju F. Olufuwa
, a Preventive Medicine resident and MPH student, is to present at the 59th Annual Meeting of the Association of Teachers of Preventive Medicine in Savannah, GA in April.Department of Psychiatry
Researcher Xue Zhong Liu, M.D., Ph.D., is to be part of an international team that clones the gene responsible for Usher Syndrome. The disease causes deafness and blindness.
Dr. Sandy Barker
, Inpatient Division, met recently with U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher for an update on the health benefits of companion animals. Dr. Barker is one of only 3 researchers across the country who met with the surgeon general in this regard.Our child fellowship program received 5 full years' accreditation this year from the American Counsel of Graduate Medical Education.
Dr. David Ross
, Chief Resident Dr. Mehrul Hasnain and Inpatient Division Chair Dr. Anand Pandurangi were published in the February, 2001 issue of Psychiatric Services for their article on Subspecialty Training in Schizophrenia.Dr. Dean Parmelee
, Chair, Child and Adolescent Division, was selected on behalf of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and its Committee on Medical Student Education as recipient of the 11th Annual Nancy C.A. Roeske, M.D. Certificate of Recognition for Excellence in Medical Student Education.Drs. Cheryl Al-Mateen and Susan Kornstein
were selected for the inaugural class of Grace Harris Institute Leadership Program. The program was designed to prepare VCU's current and emerging leaders for enhanced leadership and the next phases of their careers.Drs. Cynthia Bulik and Ken Kendler
co-authored an article on "I Am What I (Don't) Eat: Establishing an Identity Independent of an Eating Disorder" in the Nov. 2000 issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry. Dr. Kendler was also first author of a paper entitled "Sexual Orientation in a U.S. National Sample of Twin and Nontwin Sibling Pairs," published in the same journal.Mary Ellen Olbrisch, Ph.D.
, of our Consultation/Liaison Division, presented an invited paper at NIH at a living donor transplantation conference.Department of Surgery
The Residency Review Committee of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery has provisionally reaccredited the cardiovascular surgery residency program. The accreditation is contingent upon submission of appropriate case volumes and experiences of the current residents after the completion of the first year of training in July, 2001. Accreditation runs effective January 2001 to the Fall of 2003.
At the invitation of Kosova’s leadership in Medicine, from 1/1 to 2/6/01, Dr. Ronald C. Merrell, Stuart McGuire Professor & Chairman, and Director of the Medical Informatics and Technology Applications Consortium (MITAC), and Dr. Rifat Latifi, Asst. Professor & Director of Education and Distance Learning at MITAC & President of Kosova Foundation for Medical Development, visited Kosova in pursuit of establishing an International Virtual e-Hospital and a Telemedicine network in Kosova. They met with high-level officials including representatives of the World Health Organization, the Dept. of Health of Kosova, the Medical Association of Kosova, the Dean of the Medical School of the University of Prishtina, the Director of Hospital Directories of Kosova and the Kosova Protection Corps, Medical Battalion in Prishtina. After two days of intensive meetings, on 2/4/01 in Prishtina they signed a memorandum of understanding for the implementation of the International Virtual e-Hospital of Kosova.
Drs. Rifat Latifi and Ronald C. Merrell's
book entitled "Nutritional Support in Cancer and Transplant Patients" was published this month by Landes Bioscience.Welcome to Stuart I. Myers, M.D., FACS, as Professor of Surgery in the Div. of Vascular Surgery and Vice Chairman for Education. Dr. Myers obtained his M.D. in 1976 from Washington University SOM in St. Louis, MO. He comes to VCU from Temple Univ. Med. School, where he was Chairperson of the Dept. of Surgery for five years. Dr. Myers is married to Dr. Patricia A. Lowry, a pediatric radiologist who will also be joining our faculty. They have two children, a 13-year-old son and an 8-year-old daughter.
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In the last NEWSLINE announcing Dr. Thomas Mulligan’s appointment as the new Associate Chief of Staff for Geriatrics and Extended Care, his faculty rank was incorrectly listed; he is a full Professor of Internal Medicine. We regret the error.
