Volume 2 | Issue 4 - June 2019

Peds R Us Department of Pediatrics Rutgers RWJMS

Enjoy our updated Quarterly newsletter. You feedback and comments are welcomed!

INTRODUCING THE DIVISION OF POP ULATION HEALTH, QU ALITY, AND I MPLEMENTATION S CIENCES Division Director: Larry Kleinman, MD, MPH Welcome to the Department of Pediatrics’ very own PopQuIS . This new Division is building from the Department’s strong and deep roots in Primary Care to consider the health and well-being of the whole child in the family, community, and policy contexts. PopQuIS will continue to deliver first rate primary care, develop multi- and trans-disciplinary teams to conduct research into maternal, child and community health, work to evaluate and improve programs that support health and health care, and advance the science of providing high quality, safe, and highly reliable health care. We are eager to partner within the Department across Divisions and throughout Rutgers University with those who share our commitment to improving the health and well-being of children, their families, and the communities in which they live. The picture is a draft vision for our strategic architecture. There is still time to influence our directions and our shape. Read more

R utgers study observes tuberculosis screening in South Asian population in NJ From the Daily Targum 2/14/19

A recent Rutgers study on South Asian populations in New Jersey found that only 54 percent of respondents had been screened for tuberculosis.  The study, conducted by doctors at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Saint Peter’s University Hospital, which specifically focused on South Asians who were not born in the United States, sought to understand the attitude toward tuberculosis, as well as how it could be prevented and controlled in the future. “The first step of the process was to understand how much the community knows about latent tuberculosis,” said Sunanda Gaur, the co-director of the South Asian Total Health Initiative and member of the research team. Read more

Boggs Center Represented at Autism CARES Press Conference Hosted by Senator Menendez

Deborah M. Spitalnik, PhD , director of The Boggs Center on Developmental Disabilities, University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities and New Jersey's Leadership Education in Neurodevelopment and Related Disabilities Program (NJLEND), spoke at Senator Bob Menendez' press conference about the reauthorization of the Autism CARES Act on Feb. 8 at Quest Autism Programs in Midland Park, N.J. Dr. Spitalnik  (pictured second from left) highlighted the importance of Autism CARES 2019 in supporting education through the LEND programs and how the reauthorization broadens the lifespan focus to include adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and addresses health issues and disparities.  Read more

Black History Month Celebration 2/14/19 The  Department of Pediatrics  and the  Office of Diversity and Inclusion  hosted a Black History Month Cultural Celebration, which included presentations on the history of the diaspora and the Atlantic slave trade, along with the evolution of African music, dance, art and food from regions in South America, the Caribbean, Cuba and southern United States. Faculty and residents performed an African dance; African drummers engaged the crowd; African and Caribbean artifacts were on display; and West African and Caribbean foods were served. The celebration ended with the singing of the Negro National Anthem accompanied by a video depicting black history from the slave trade up to the inauguration of President Barack Obama, the country's first black president.

Newark Doulas Take on Disparate Birth Outcomes for Black Mothers--Head First   –   Barbara Ostfeld, PhD   –  WNYC radio (from The Dean's Weekly View 3/1/19) Exclusive: Eagles Autism Challenge to expand its beneficiary applicant pool  –  Emanuel DiCicco-Bloom, MD   –  Philadelphia Business Journal (from the Dean's Weekly View 3/1/19)

Katherine McMahon, RN works in the division of gastroenterology and was selected as Employee of the Month for the month of March. Kate is pictured with Division Director Soula Koniaris, MD and Robert L. Johnson, MD Interim Dean RWJMS.

Baby Cuddling Increases Health Medical students Anne Levine, Anya McDermott, Sally Tarabey and Samantha Freedman started a "baby cuddling" program - providing skin-to-skin contact for babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children's Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital.

Manuel Jimenez, MD Inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society Alpha Omega Alpha, founded in 1902, is the national medical honor society. Election of medical students, residents, and faculty to AΩA is a lifelong honor signifying a lasting commitment to scholarship, leadership, professionalism and service. Criteria for membership include academic excellence, leadership, professionalism, a firm sense of ethics, promise of future success in medicine, and commitment to service.

Ian Marshall, MD Clement A. Price Awardee The medical school's  Gender Center of New Jersey , led by  (pictured l-r)   Ian Marshall, MD , associate professor of Pediatrics, and  Gloria A. Bachmann, MD , professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, and associate dean for women's health, will receive the  Clement A. Price Human Dignity Award  at a special ceremony next month. Read more

Department Contribution to Scholarship Gala Silent Auction Kathy Faup, Practice Plan Support Manager donated 4 tickets for Golf with a Cart from the Cranbury Country Club, to the Scholarship Gala Silent Auction which was held on April 6, 2019.

What if we knew when people were lying?   --  Michael Lewis, PhD, University Distinguished Professor --  bbc.com(from the Dean's Weekly 4/5/19)

Statewide Advocacy Collaborative Comes to New Jersey: The Founding of NJPRAC written by Shilpa Pai, MD The New Jersey Pediatric Residency Advocacy Collaborative (NJPRAC), in conjunction with the NJ Chapter of the AAP and Community Pediatrics Training Initiative was awarded a $1,000,000 grant from the Nicholson Foundation. NJPRAC was founded in 2014 by Shilpa Pai, MD FAAP with the support of a grant from the AAP CATCH Visiting Rome Professorship.   Read More

Use of Piperacillin-Tazobactam (Zosyn) Please read letter from Amisha Malhotra, MD, Director Pediatric Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee and Jessica Lise, Pharm D, BCPPS Zosyn Letter Kudos to Minh-Tu Do "Dr. Minh-Tu Do Moderated Day 1 of the Frontiers Meeting of Global Expert, in Pediatrics and Neonatology, held in NYC on 4/18/19. Dr. Do has gained National notoriety for his work on Reducing Radiation expose in Mild Head injuries in New Jersey hospitals. He has presented at multiple conferences included, PAS in Toronto, The National AAP meeting, and now in NYC." Ernest Leva, MD Division Director Pediatric Emergency Medicine

Division of Neonatology & Nephrology at the 2019 Pediatric Academic Societies Meeting in Baltimore MD April 24 - May 1, 2019

Click here for the list of posters presented by Neonatology.

Michael Lewis, PhD, University Distinguished Professor received the Rutgers Board of Trustees Award for Excellence in Research on May 2, 2019.

Shilpa Pai, MD received the Excellence in Teaching Award at the medical school awards dinner held on May 2, 2019.

New Faculty/Staff February 2019 Lawrence Kleinman, MD, PhD, Professor - POP QuIS March 2019 Aisha Baig, MD, Assistant Professor - Pediatric Pulmonology Kalgi Mody, MD, Assistant Professor - Pediatric Critical Care April 2019 Philip Giampietro, MD, PhD, Professor - Medical Genetics Megan Romano, MSW, LSCW - Pediatric Gastroenterology

A reception was held on Friday April 2, for Helen Mundy, LPN in the Division of Nephrology who retired after 19 years of service in the department.

On May 2, 2019 the Department of Pediatrics hosted an appreciation luncheon in CHI 3101. Department Chair Sally Radovick, MD thanked everyone for all of their hard work and dedication that ensures the success of the department.