DOM CONNECT:
Your Department, Your Colleagues, Your Stories
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December Chair's Spotlight | |
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In this month’s Chair’s Spotlight, we highlight the work of Neal Silverman, PhD, research director and professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, faculty in the Program in Innate Immunity, and director of the First Year Basic Biomedical Sciences Umbrella Pathway in the Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.
Dr. Silverman’s research primarily focuses on the mechanisms by which the innate immune response recognizes and responds to microbial challenges, and how microbial pathogens manipulate these responses. Using the Drosophila model, his lab investigates how bacteria, viruses, and parasites are recognized by innate immune receptors, the molecular and biochemical mechanisms used by both the host and microbe to respond to infection, and the role of peptidoglycan sensing in inflammatory responses and diseases.
In addition to his research, Dr. Silverman demonstrates great dedication to the educational and diversity, equity, and inclusion missions of the DoM and UMass Chan through his service in the Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and longstanding participation in diversity initiatives for students and faculty.
We are most appreciative of Dr. Silverman’s vast contributions and commitment to our research, education, and diversity missions of the Department of Medicine.
Read the full spotlight here.
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Team Spotlight: Hospital at Home | |
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The Hospital at Home team has had much to celebrate this fall!
In late October, the UMass Memorial Health (UMMH) Hospital at Home (HAH) team was awarded the “Hospital at Home Program of the Year,” and the “Hospital at Home Patient Video of the Year,” by the American Academy of Home Care Medicine (AAHCM) HAH User’s Group, a professional society that oversees and advocates for hospital at home services across the country. On receiving these honors on behalf of the UMMH HAH team, Constantinos (Taki) Michaelidis, MD, MBA, MS, medical director for the UMMH HAH program, and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine, Candra Szymanski, MSN, RN, AVP for the UMMH HAH program stated, “The number of people who have been reaching out to [our team to] congratulate [us]…has just been deeply humbling. We are proud of our team and are truly just getting started!”
The UMMH HAH Program – approved by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services hospital at home waiver program – launched in August 2021 and provides hospital-level care to patients in the comfort of their homes through a combination of in-person and telehealth visits, tailored to the specific needs of the patient. The program has seen strong outcomes, improving patient satisfaction and safety and lowering readmissions and mortality.
Dr. Michaelidis and his team recently attended the AAHCM Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida, where they presented a poster on the outstanding quality and safety outcomes in some of the most complex HAH patient admissions, as they center their work on reducing 30-day readmissions in patients with Medicaid. He and his team also led a panel, “Hospital at Home-View from the C-Suite!”, where they highlighted the critical importance of the C-Suite level efforts by Eric Alper, MD, chief quality officer, chief clinical informatics officer, vice president, and professor of medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine, David McManus, MD, ScM, chair, and professor of medicine in the Department of Medicine, Justin Precourt, chief nursing officer at UMMH, Eric Dickson, MD, MHCH, FACEP, president and chief executive officer of UMMH, among others, who advocate for and support the HAH team. Additionally, during the panel, one of their HAH patients joined to speak about their positive experience of being cared for by their team.
Along with their AAHCM awards and presentations at the Annual Meeting, HAH team nurses Melissa Ohman-Ramadan, RN, and Lisa DeBoise, RN, have also been recognized with Daisy Awards for their extraordinary care. Melissa and Lisa were praised for their recent patient care, spending their day off at the home of a patient living with heart failure who was struggling with social determinant, nutrition, and medication challenges. They went above and beyond to provide excellent patient care, while also working to improve safety in the home, share educational resources and refer the patient to community-based resource to combat these challenges.
Congratulations to the entire HAH team for their extraordinary work. These accolades are well-deserved!
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Cancer Research Office Celebrated for Outstanding Performance |  | |
Congratulations to The Cancer Research Office (CRO) at the UMass Cancer Center, which for the fourth year in a row, has been commended for its outstanding performance by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) and the American College of Radiology Imaging Network (ACRIN). The ECOG-ACRIN is an organization that plays a key role in the National Cancer Institute’s mission through its National Clinical Trials Network and offers memberships to institutions with expertise in clinical research and translational science. Re-evaluation is conducted every year to ensure institutions meet their rigorous performance standards, assessing institutions on data quality, management, timeliness, imaging compliance, and committee service. This year’s commendation for the CRO specifically highlights the excellent data management and patient accruals of the center, enrolling five times as many patients as required.
The CRO includes members of the Department of Medicine and is overseen by Danielle Howard, director of clinical research operations for the Center for Clinical and Translational Science, William Walsh, MD, medical director and associate professor of medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Jan Cerny, MD, PhD, FACP, assistant medical director and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology, who also serves as the ECOG-ACRIN institutional principal investigator at UMass Chan. In addition, the team includes Cara Gregoire, RN, BSN, MHA, CRO nurse manager, and her group of clinical research nurses and coordinators.
Learn more.
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Excellence in Clinical Care | |
UMass Cardiologists Honored at Best of Central MA Awards | Left to Right: Drs. Lyons and Tighe | |
Congratulations to David Lyons, MD, physician and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, who recently was awarded “Best Cardiologist” at the Telegram & Gazette’s Best of Central MA Awards Gala, on November 10th, at the DCU Convention Center in Worcester. The Best of Central MA program polls the Worcester County community each year to vote for the best of what the area has to offer.
We would also like to congratulate Dennis Tighe, MD, physician and professor of medicine in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, who was also nominated for “Best Cardiologist.”
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Margaret Cabral Goes Above and Beyond Assisting UMass Residents
The Department of Medicine would like to recognize the great work of Margaret Cabral, a cardiology APP working on the Heart Failure service, who recently stayed after hours at UMass Memorial Medical Center to assist current residents with the many admissions assigned to them. We thank Margaret for dedicating her time to the residents and applaud her for her professionalism and teamwork.
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2022-2023 Medical Grand Rounds
The Department of Medicine Grand Rounds series continues to impress this season, with recent presentations from Admiral Rachel L. Levine, MD, Assistant Secretary for Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, who spoke on "Health Challenges and Opportunities for Adolescents: Perspectives from the Assistant Secretary for Health," Jennifer M. Radin, PhD, MPH, Epidemiologist, Scripps Research Translational Institute, on "Harnessing wearable data to improve viral illness detection," and Yevgeniy Popov, DO, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Rheumatology at UMass Chan, who presented on a Morbidity and Mortality Conference.
View this year's line-up of speakers here. Please join us in person for these presentations if you are able. Light refreshments will be available.
Interested in watching our Grand Rounds presentations? Click on the links below.
November 3 - Grand Rounds: Health Challenges and Opportunities for Adolescents: Perspectives from the Assistant Secretary for Health
November 10 - Grand Rounds: Harnessing Wearable Data to Improve Viral Illness Detection
November 17 - Grand Rounds: Rheumatology Morbidity and Mortality Conference
Not Authorized for Recording
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Service to our Local Community | |
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Anna Gubala Leads Food Drive for Thanksgiving Season
The Department of Medicine would like to recognize Anna Gubala, MD, an Internal Medicine resident, who recently led a Thanksgiving food drive this month. With the help of medical students and the IM Residency Program, Dr. Gubala was able to collect a total of $1,605 for the Worcester County Food Bank. We thank Dr. Gubala and other members of the community for their generosity this holiday season!
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Appointments, Promotions, and Recruitment | |
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Appointments and Promotions
Congratulations to the following faculty on their recent appointments and promotions:
Appointments
Madhuri Chandnani, MD
Hospital Medicine
Assistant Professor
Gayathri Thampatty, MD
Hospital Medicine
Assistant Professor
Promotions
Shwetha Adhikari, MD
General Internal Medicine
Assistant Professor
Lorissa Smulan, PhD
Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine
Assistant Professor
Christine MacGinnis, DO
Community Internal Medicine
Associate Professor
Lara Kovell, MD
Cardiovascular Medicine
Associate Professor
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Recruitment
Please join us in welcoming our upcoming new hires:
Ryan Quarles, MD
Hospital Medicine
Assistant Professor
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