December 2022 | Volume 2 Issue 4 |
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From Dr. Catherine Spong: |
I hope you will all find time to rest, relax, and recharge with friends, family, and loved ones over the next few weeks. To send you into the holiday weekend with a smile, here's a short poem I think you all will enjoy:
'Twas the night before Christmas and up on OB,
A nurse yelled, "Thick mec, I need a DeLee!"
IVs with Pitocin were all hung with care,
In hopes patients would deliver and stop pulling their hair.
The women were screaming in their birthing beds,
While visions of epidurals danced in their heads.
The staffing is short, with no one on call.
Every warmer is dirty and sitting in the hall.
Just when we thought, "there's no end to this mess!"
Our patient in triage is in major distress.
So we rush with a gurney and race to the back,
The O.R. is dirty! Not one section pack!
I dropped to my knees, and I started to cry,
Then I heard the bells jingle and I looked to the sky.
There was Saint Nick on his sleigh with his deer.
He had 12 smiling nurses - THE DAY SHIFT IS HERE!
-Anonymous
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Welcome our new team members! Make sure you say hello and introduce yourself. |
Academic Faculty and Staff |
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Renee Toscano
GME Program Coordinator II
Residency Program
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Meera Vanmali
Financial Analyst I
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PACT cards honor UT Southwestern employees and faculty who demonstrate superior organizational values through quality customer service. Recognition can come from managers, co-workers, internal or external customers, faculty, patients, or visitors. |
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The PACT program has three pin award levels: Blue (four PACT recognitions), Silver (eight PACT recognitions), and Gold (16 PACT recognitions). Submit a recognition online for UTSW members each time great service is noticed. Congratulations to all our recipients! |
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Recent PACT Pin Recipients: |
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Blanca Barron
Sr. Administrative Assistant II
Silver PACT Pin
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Crystal Preza
Sr. Administrative Assistant II
Silver PACT Pin
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Bekele Tekle
Accountant III
Blue PACT Pin
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Recent PACT Card Recipients: |
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Alana Burns, Department Project Specialist
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Toshia Lee, Education Programs Manager
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Dr. Salvatore LoCoco, Division of Gynecologic Oncology
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Star Mason, Sr. Administrative Assistant II
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Ungelica Moses, Advanced Practice RN
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Kiesha Parker, Certified Medical Office Assistant
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Video: Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Program |
The specialists behind the Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Program take comprehensive patient histories and tailor treatments unique to each patient. As the only program of its kind in North Texas, our RPL program delivers the most comprehensive, evidence-based medical care available to ensure every patient has the best possible outcome.
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Other Signature Gynecology Programs |
Pictured from left to right:
- Pelvic Floor Evaluation and Treatment around Labor and Delivery, led by Rachael Medrano
- Complex Family Planning, led by Dr. Courtney Baker
- Gynecologic Impaired Mobility, led by Dr. Melissa Crochet
- Recurrent Pregnancy Loss, led by Dr. Abey Eapen
- Chronic Pelvic Pain, led by Drs. Jessica Shields and Kim Kho
- Endometriosis, led by Drs. Jessica Shields and Kim Kho
- Vulvology, led by Dr. Meredith McClure
- Gynecologic Hereditary Cancer Surveillance, led by Dr. Jayanthi Lea
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Dr. Patricia Santiago-Munoz: Interim Service Chief for PHHS Obstetrics |
Dr. Patricia Santiago-Munoz has been announced as interim Service Chief of Parkland Obstetrics, effective December 2, 2022.
She is a Professor in our department and member of the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, as well as the Program Director for the UT Southwestern Maternal-Fetal Medicine Fellowship.
Please join me in thanking and congratulating Dr. Santiago-Munoz in assuming this leadership position at UT Southwestern.
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Dr. Sendukas Awarded at AAGL |
Chief Resident Dr. Emily Sendukas was awarded the Franklin D. Loffer, M.D., FACOG, Exceptional Resident Award at this year's AAGL 2022 51st Global Conference on MIGS.
Established in 2018, the Exceptional Resident Award recognizes a resident who demonstrates leadership qualities and an exceptional commitment to empowering progress in minimally invasive gynecologic surgery.
Congratulations, Dr. Sendukas!
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News Release: Risk of severe COVID-19 symptoms remains throughout pregnancy, UTSW study finds |
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A UT Southwestern study of more than 1,300 pregnant women diagnosed with COVID-19 found that just 1 in 10 developed moderate, severe, or critical illness and that COVID-19 symptoms and severity were similar across all trimesters.
“In the rapidly evolving landscape of the COVID-19 pandemic, this study provides information regarding the natural course of COVID-19 infection in pregnancy,” said Rachel Schell, M.D., Assistant Instructor in Obstetrics and Gynecology at UT Southwestern and first author of the paper. “This may be useful for clinicians to effectively counsel patients and direct care.”
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News Release: New drug combination offers hope for improved treatment of cervical cancer |
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A new combination of drugs slowed the growth of cancer cells by an unexpected mechanism that may one day lead to improved treatment of cervical cancer, a UT Southwestern-led study published in Molecular Cancer Research suggests.
“Our work shows that when combined, platinum-based therapies and PARP inhibitors can induce new cellular pathways in cancer cells and potentially open up new therapeutic opportunities,” said the study’s Principal Investigator, W. Lee Kraus, Ph.D., Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Pharmacology, a member of the Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Director of the Cecil H. and Ida Green Center for Reproductive Biology Sciences.
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Dr. Spong: Served as panelist for a congressional briefing and webinar hosted by the Society for Women's Health Research |
Dr. Spong represented UT Southwestern alongside colleagues from ACOG, the NIH, the FDA, and Novartis as a panelist discussing the inclusion of pregnant and lactating women in research.
Additionally, the webinar discussed how to ensure the appropriate inclusion of these populations and the current state of this type of inclusion in research, both within the federal government and the corporate sector.
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Dr. Nelson and team: Posture-related changes in sympathetic baroreflex sensitivity during normal pregnancy |
Sympathetic baroreflex sensitivity, or the measure of how effectively the body handles blood pressure changes through nerve activity, has been reported to be reduced during pregnancy in animal models, but the findings from most case studies in humans are inconclusive.
This study examined the impact of posture on sympathetic baroreflex sensitivity in 24 pregnant women who were had normal blood pressures for their weight.
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Dr. Grubman and team: ED visits and emergency-to-inpatient admissions for abnormal uterine bleeding in the USA nationwide |
Abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) is a common but understudied gynecological problem
This project aims to further the understanding of the burden of AUB on patients and the healthcare system by establishing the number and characteristics of women with AUB in the ED and evaluating predictors of AUB-related inpatient hospitalization in the USA.
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Dr. David Nelson: Gillette Professorship of Obstetrics and Gynecology |
Congratulations to Dr. Nelson on his new appointment as holder of the Gillette Professorship of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
This endowment was established by a donation from the Fred G. and Maggie R. Gillette Foundation, together with the late W. Everett DuPay and his wife, Margueritte Gillette, and is to be used to support Dr. Nelson's research efforts.
Previous holders of the Gillette Professorship of Obstetrics and Gynecology include Drs. Catherine Spong, Kenneth Leveno, Susan Cox, and Brian Casey.
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Microsoft Teams Lunch & Learn |
Microsoft Teams is built for hybrid collaboration.
Join us in-person in J6.102 on Thursday, January 12 at 11:30am for a Lunch & Learn Training about Microsoft Teams.
Learn how you and your team can stay informed, organized, and connected — no matter where you are.
Feel free to bring your laptop. Lunch provided to those who RSVP.
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Faculty, Fellows, and Residents: Submit Content for BroadcastMed |
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UT Southwestern has partnered with BroadcastMed to actively engage physicians, provide peer-to-peer education, advance CME, and deliver patient-focused health information in order to improve our U.S. News & World Report rankings. |
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If you have videos, lectures, short research abstracts, articles, or other scientific content for a physician audience, please let Morgan Phillips know so that it can be submitted for the portal. |
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Schedule Your UTSW Headshot |
All department members:
If you have not taken an official UTSW headshot since 2019, please sign up for your free headshot session.
The department is working on a number of projects for which having updated headshots of the members of our team will be integral.
A few of these projects include staff and faculty listings on our Intranet and faculty academic and clinical provider profiles.
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Pictured: Dr. Jason Jarin, Assistant Professor
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Compliance Champion Spotlight: Isabel Lopez |
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Employee Engagement: Holiday Fun |
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Cookie and Dessert Exchange |
Our Cookie and Dessert Exchange took place on Monday, December 5 from noon to 1pm. Staff brought various homemade and store-bought desserts to share.
Treats were brought by Justine Petros, Melissa Lopez, Claudia Brock, Tricia Johnson, Amy Leng, Toshia Lee, Maria Garcia, Joanie Riley, Tracey Peacock, Yvette Stewart, Mary Culbreth, Candi Hecht, Christina Dowden, Meera Vanmali, Crystal Preza, Andrea Rizkallah, Kortney Campbell, and more!
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Admin, Education, and Finance Staff Holiday Party |
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Our support staff holiday party took place on Thursday, December 15 at Cane Rosso pizzeria in Carrollton.
Staff were encouraged to wear ugly Christmas sweaters for a chance at a prize. Our winners (pictured together at the top of the newsletter) were: Toshia Lee (third place), Regina Williams (second place), and Christopher Jennings (first place).
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There was also a White Elephant gift exchange emceed by Crystal Preza. Participants brought wrapped gifts of up to $20. A few of this year's hottest prizes were an Amazon gift card, a cocktail set, and one shot at a double-or-nothing coinflip with Dawn Wilson for a chance at $40. |
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Future Employee Engagement Activities |
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Join us for our future employee engagement activities! More details to come.
- January 2023: Group walking days
- February 2023: Chocolate extravaganza
- March 2023: Office BINGO
- April 2023: Door decorating contest
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Upcoming Events & Conferences |
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Our faculty are often interviewed or referenced by journalists regarding a range of topics. See some examples of recent features below:
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Our faculty have been busy writing excellent patient-centered information for UT Southwestern's MedBlog. Check out our recent blogs below!
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Did You Have Your Baby at UTSW? |
If you've had a baby at UT Southwestern (CUH or St. Paul), we would love to feature your family in a photo gallery on our patient-facing website.
Pictured: Dr. Ashley Birmingham and her husband with their two daughters, both born at CUH.
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Past Issues of The Monthly |
Did you miss us last month? Want to share with a friend? See all of our past issues below.
If you have any feedback or suggestions, feel free to reach out. We want this newsletter to be useful to you and we appreciate your ideas.
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Morgan Phillips
Marketing and Communications Specialist
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