Digital Edition of System News - Feb. 2016

Volume 15

Issue 3

February 2016

SYSTEMnews Distinguished NURSE CLINICIANS

ACADEMY

 The six inaugural members of the Distinguished Nurse Clinician Academy are (from left) Diane Lawson, Jennifer Perno, Denise Sees, Mary Frances Quinn, Socorro Smigo, and Sharon Kirkby.

SPREADING NURSING EXCELLENCE THROUGHOUT PENN MEDICINE

CEO’s corner RALPH W. MULLER

CEO, University of Pennsylvania Health System

At Penn Medicine, a commitment to fostering intellectual, racial, social, and cultural diversity is one of our core values. Respecting and encouraging diversity not only makes us a stronger organization but also ensures that patients receive the best care.

Health care professionals who know, respect, and understand the traditions, languages, and ways of life of the patients they serve produce better results and more satisfied patients.

This commitment takes many forms. First, there are numerous diversity-based global training initiatives throughout the Health System, including newemployee orientation and professional-development trainings and workshops offered regularly by Human Resources.

Second, we work hard to recruit and retain physicians, nurses, and staff members who are representative of the patients we serve. We regularly engage in targeted recruitment efforts, including posting all jobs on our website and participating in job fairs aimed at attracting women and minorities. (continued on page 6)

Nurses provide over 90 percent of frontline patient care, so it’s no surprise that the higher the quality of a facility’s nursing staff, the better its patient outcomes and the higher the patient satisfaction rates.

Penn Medicine has long encouraged and supported nursing excellence. Indeed, all five of its hospitals have received Magnet status, the highest level of recognition nursing services can receive. Only seven percent of health-care organizations in the nation hold this prestigious designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, a subsidiary of the American Nurses Association.

Now, a new program — the Distinguished Nurse Clinician Academy — will help spread this level of clinical excellence throughout the Health System as well as into the practices of future nurses. Academy members will have exceptional clinical knowledge and interprofessional skills as well as a passion for their work. As Kathleen Burke, PhD, RN, corporate director of Nursing Professional Development and Innovation, noted, “It’s that nurse on the unit who everyone knows, the best of the best. The person who can negotiate and work with the team, gets things done, and loves working at bedside with patients.”

Remarkable Clinicians The Distinguished Nurse Clinician Academy is based in part on Penn Medicine’s Academy of Master Clinicians, which John Glick, MD, president of the Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute and VP of the Health System, helped create in 2013. (see article on page 2). To shape the new program, nursing leaders and clinical nurses from throughout the Health System worked with Glick and members of the Patient and Family Advisory Council.

INSIDE

The call for nominations brought in 32 submissions from across Penn Medicine. “They were nominated by their peers because they are truly remarkable clinicians,” said Regina Cunningham, PhD, RN, HUP’s chief nurse executive, at the event announcing the Academy’s inaugural class. “Their nursing practice and behavior is consistently above and beyond. They exemplify the best nurses can be and serve as role models who can influence colleagues and have a lasting impact on others.”

Nomination letters were filled with examples of these nurses’ dedication to patient care. Socorro Smigo, BSN, RN, of the Heart and Vascular surgical floor at HUP, who is an inaugural member of the Academy, is “widely recognized as both an expert clinician and leader on the unit. You will often hear her speak of how she truly values spending time and caring for patients and families… Her knowledge base and input into the plan of care is valued by the entire team.”

Sharon Kirkby, MSN, RN, of the Neonatal ICU in Chester County Hospital “always has the ability to see the big picture and initiates strategies to improve any process which benefits patients and families. Although [she] would be an asset in any area of nursing, especially in research, her preference to stay at the bedside reflects her commitment to her patients and their families.”

VP Kicks Off Cancer “Moonshot” at Penn ................2 Abramson Cancer Center Now at CCH...............................2 LGH Opens Women’s Specialty Center .......................2

“The persons nominated epitomize the call to nursing,” Glick said. “They are people you’d want to take care of you or a member of your family.”

Penn Medicine@Work .............3 Newsmakers .............................4

(continued on page 2)

PennChart: The Power of One ..5 HUP and PAH are Now “Baby Friendly”........................5

 Sharon Kirby of CCH with new mom Amber and baby Sloane.

 Denise Sees of PAH (l) discusses a case with her nurse manager, Stacey Price.

Awards and Accolades ............6

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LGH OPENS

Women’s

SPECIALTY CENTER

VP KICKS OFF CANCER

“ M O O N S H O T ” AT PENN  (From left) Vice President Biden with Bruce Levine, Carl June, and University president Amy Gutmann.

Days after President Obama announced the “moonshot” to find a cancer cure during his State of the Union, Vice President Biden visited Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center to kick off the national effort he said aims to “accelerate the progress already underway — much of which is happening right here.”

Carl June, MD, director of Translational Research at the ACC, and Bruce Levine, PhD, director of Penn’s Clinical Cell and Vaccine Production Facility, took Biden on a tour of the research hub that will serve as the epicenter of its pioneering personalized T cell therapy program. After, Biden led a roundtable discussion with Penn experts in immunotherapy, cancer prevention, surgery, genomics,

and more, as well as ACC director Chi Van Dang, MD, PhD. Biden was also joined by University President Amy Gutmann and National Institutes of Health director Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD. “Cancer politics,” Biden said, are keeping people in their respective corners. Data sharing needs to continue but expand, and silos at and among academic medical centers and drug companies need to be broken down, he said, in order to speed up progress. Biden stressed that more support from the private and public sector and philanthropists is essential to get us closer to cures and better treatments for the host of cancers diagnosed every day.

In December, Lancaster General Health opened the LG Health Women’s Specialty Center at Women & Babies Hospital. The Center’s all-female staff takes a holistic approach to care, not only addressing women’s medical needs, but also offering education, nutritional counseling, and stress management therapies like yoga and message to help keep patients well. It is the only center in the region where female physicians and staff offer both primary and specialty care to women at every stage of life.

Said Michelle Schori, executive director at Women & Babies Hospital, “It was a natural progression for our organization, which had already created a women’s specialty hospital, to move into general women’s health service offerings.”

The team focuses on wellness and preventive care, and guides the management of chronic conditions. As nurse navigator, Phyllis Hennessy serves as an intermediary between the patients and doctors. “Especially when you receive a diagnosis of a chronic disease, you can talk to family or go on the Internet, but when it comes down to it, you want answers, and I help with that.”

Announce MASTER CLINICIANS

NEW MEMBERS

Launched in 2013, the Academy of Master Clinicians recognizes Penn Medicine clinicians who exemplify the highest standards of clinical excellence, humanism and professionalism. Election to the Academy is the highest clinical honor to be bestowed on a Penn physician.

Since its inception, Master Clinicians have been developing and implementing innovative programs focusing on career mentoring for medical students, professionalism, promoting and enhancing a culture of clinical excellence at Penn Medicine, and exploring barriers to providing exceptional patient care.

 From left: Chi Van Dang, MD, PhD, director of the Abramson Cancer Center; Michael J. Duncan, CCH president, Dennis A. Berman, MD, director of the CCH cancer program; Lynn M. Schuchter, MD, chief of Hematology Oncology and CEO Ralph W. Muller.

Abramson Cancer Center Now at CCH For 34 years, Chester County Hospital’s cancer program has provided accessible cancer treatment close to home for its patients. Now, as part of Penn Medicine's Abramson Cancer Center, the hospital’s physicians and clinicians involved in cancer care can offer even more advanced therapies and expertise to their patients.

“We treat each cancer patient as if they were a member of our own family,” said Michael J. Duncan, CCH president and CEO, at the event celebrating the new relationship. “Now part of the Abramson Cancer Center, our hospital has expanded its range of services by offering innovative treatments and programs aimed at enhancing the health and well-being of the community it serves.”

Distinguished

NURSE CLINICIANS A C A D E M Y

(continued from cover)

Academy members will work with the Chief Nursing Officers council to help promote excellence at the bedside.

“We are recognizing nurses who have chosen to continue to practice at bedside. Beyond being the best clinical nurse, they have a passion for patient care,” Burke said.

“They will be our role models, our mentors … It’s all very exciting where this can go.”

“We recognize the 32 nominees but we celebrate all of you … nearly 8,000 nurses,” said CEO Ralph Muller at the inaugural event. “The legacy you all created is known throughout the region.… people look to us, trust us and value us. I admire you for all you know and all you do.” (continued on page 5)

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 Diane Lawson of HUP confers with Matthew Kelly, MD.

The newest members of the Academy of Master Clinicians are: Emily A. Blumberg, MD .............................Medicine David J. Bozentka, MD.............Orthopaedic Surgery Ara A. Chalian, MD ................ Otorhinolaryngology: Head & Neck Surgery Marie Gleason, MD.....................................Pediatrics Thomas J. Guzzo, MD, MPH ........................ Surgery Mariell Jessup, MD.......................................Medicine David A. Lenrow, MD, JD ........ Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Kathleen T. Montone, MD................... Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Stephen E. Orlin, MD ....................... Ophthalmology Jeanmarie Perrone, MD ...........Emergency Medicine Parvati Ramchandani, MD ....................... Radiology Wanda Ronner, MD ........... Obstetrics & Gynecology Misha A. Rosenbach, MD .................... Dermatology Matthew H. Rusk, MD ................................ Medicine Dahlia M. Sataloff, MD ................................. Surgery Kim Smith-Whitley, MD............................Pediatrics Eric L. Zager, MD ................................. Neurosurgery

“We want to make it easier for the provider to do the right thing for our patients.”

(continued from page 2)

CONGRATULATIONS

to the 32 nominees to the inaugural Distinguished Nurse Clinician Academy: Having access to a patient’s complete medical history is vital to providing the best health care, but retrieving that information isn’t always easy or even possible. Patient data systems are often in silos that do not “talk” with one another. But, thanks to a new initiative, treating physicians, nurses and other health-care providers throughout Penn Medicine will have a patient’s entire medical history at their fingertips.

PennChart is the name for the common electronic medical records system that will integrate information from across Penn Medicine. Instead of searching for patient information in disconnected systems, everything will be found in one centralized location. “It will follow patients from their portal of entry [such as the emergency department or outpatient clinic] through office visits and home health care. PennChart provides a singlerecord Penn Medicine experience across the inpatient and ambulatory settings,” said William Hanson, MD, chief Medical Information officer for the Health System During the course of this several-year project, the IS team has been working with thousands of users from across the Health System — and across multiple disciplines — “to design, build, and test PennChart in a manner that most appropriately supports user workflows,” said Michael Restuccia, the Health System’s chief information officer.

The move to total electronic medical records will require significant changes in documentation practices. For example, physicians still write patient care notes in loose-leaf notebooks on patient care units today. All entries will be entered online with PennChart. But, Hanson stressed, “we’ve designed templates that allow for flexible documentation, accommodating surgery’s needs for information about wounds and drains on the one hand, and more extensive elaboration on diagnostic problems by the medical services on the other. Documentation templates will be designed for efficient data review and a combination of structured and unstructured information.”

With PennChart, a patient’s medical record will be prepopulated with information the system already knows.

“We don’t want to just reproduce in electronic form what is done today on the paper form. We want to modify the electronic version so people can take advantage of what an EMR does best,”

Nicole Brice, BSN, RN, PCCN Melissa Cargan-Bodnar, BSN, RN, CMSRN Sharon Kirkby, MSN, RN, RN-NIC

Nancy Mirarchi, MSN,RN,CNOR Lindsay Pritchett, BSN, RN, CMSRN

Clinical Practices of the University of Pennsylvania

This is PennChart.

The Right Data in the Right Place

Chester County Hospital

he said. “Today, information the nurse collects about family history is rewritten in resident and attending notes. We want to make sure the next guy can take advantage of the previous person’s work but there will also be text boxes so staff can elaborate where appropriate.”

Ensuring Continuity and Efficiency of Care PennChart helps meet two imperatives of Penn Medicine’s Blueprint for Quality.

“It ensures continuity of care from the time a patient enters the Health System through discharge,” Hanson said. “And it increases efficiency — patients’ data is captured once and then it follows them throughout their care.”

The system can also provide data for research and pattern recognition, “like characteristics that make a patient susceptible to readmission or developing sepsis,” Hanson explained. For example, based on a patient’s lab results and vital signs, the system’s algorithms suggest they might be at high risk for sepsis. “We’d get the information in real time, analyze it, and then put signals out to the care providers to do the right thing earlier.”

PennChart will be rolled out throughout Penn Medicine starting later this year and will ultimately touch every one of Penn Medicine’s 21,000 employees. “Everyone needs to know about it, to understand what it offers and how it’s used.” To that end, everyone who requires access to patient information — from clinicians to social workers to patient billing — will receive training on the new system. Just as the system has been customized according to the needs of the services, so will the training be specific to each person’s needs.

“We are thoughtful about trying to make everyone’s work more efficient,” Hanson said. “We want to make it easier for the provider to do the right thing for our patients.”

To learn more about PennChart, go to http://pennchart.uphs.upenn.edu/.

Markus Carter, BSN, RN, DNC, WCC

Good Shepherd Penn Partners Lisa Jarrett, BSN, RN

Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Kaileen Burke, MSN, RNC-NIC Cherise DeBouse, BSN, RN Zachary Ferris, BSN, RN Koungim Juong, BSN, RN, PCCN Diane Lawson, MSN, RN, CEN Anissa Magwood, MJ, BSN, RN Nakia Merriweather, MSN, MBA, RN Takira O’Connor, BSN, RN, PCCN

Michele Otto, BSN, RN, PCCN Jennifer Perno, BSN, RN, CMSRN Mary Frances Quinn, BSN, RN, CCRN Diana Santangelo, BSN, RN, CMSRN, WCC Kristen Sigafus, MSN, RN, CCTN Socorro Smigo, BSN, RN, CCRN Simone Watson, BSN, BA, RN, CCRN

Penn Home Care & Hospice Services Carolyn DeLuca, BSN, RN

Deborah Simmons, BSN, RN, CHPN

Pennsylvania Hospital Catherine Blinebury, BSN, BA, RN, CEN Robert Haney, BSN, AAS, RN-BC Jessica Neff, BSN, RN-BC

Denise Sees, BSN, RN, CMSRN AnnMarie Stopyra Deeley, BSN, RNC-NIC

Penn Presbyterian Medical Center Adam Boroughs, BSN, RN Danielle LaFlam, BSN, RN

Linda Petrella, MSN, RN

HUP and PAH Are Now

“Baby-Friendly!”

Congratulations to the Women’s Health staff at both HUP and Pennsylvania Hospital! Thanks to their tremendous efforts, both hospitals recently received designation as a Baby-Friendly Hospital, an international award founded by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Three Penn Medicine hospitals now have this designation among only five in the state. Lancaster General Health’s Women and Babies Hospital was Pennsylvania’s first hospital to receive the designation, in 2014.

The Baby-Friendly initiative encourages and recognizes hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for breastfeeding mothers and their babies and recognizes birth facilities that offer new mothers the information, confidence, and skills needed to successfully meet their breastfeeding goals.

“Being designated a Baby Friendly hospital recognizes the collective efforts of our multidisciplinary teams to help ensure that the babies we bring into the world are receiving the healthiest possible start to life,” said Jessica Lazzeri, MSN, interim associate clinical director for Women’s Health at HUP. “This designation confirms that our care practices empower every mother with the education to make the most informed choices about infant feeding and supports them every step of the way from prenatal care through follow-up postpartum care,” said Pamela Power, DNP, clinical director of Women’s Health at PAH.

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penn medicine

work

IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR OTHER WAYS TO KICK-START THE YEAR, HERE ARE A FEW NEW CHALLENGES: »

KEEP YOUR NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION Keep your resolution to eat less junk food, get more sleep, and experience less stress.

»

7 HOURS OF SLEEP Make sure to get in at least 7 hours of sleep a night.

»

IN THE NEW YEAR! »

Last November, the Healthy Rewards Wellfocused program rolled out “Build A NEW You,” a campaign to help build awareness of your current health status and help you take steps to improve or maintain your good health. Throughout November and December, the focus was on emotional health and well-being.

There were new challenges in the Healthy Rewards site focusing on sleep, setting your schedule, and other things to reduce stress. There were also Stress Management techniques lunch n’ learns offered onsite at nine locations across the Health System.

During the months of January, February, and March, you will see new programs and initiatives focusing on knowing your numbers, physical health, and good nutrition.

Make sure you know your numbers and health risks by completing the online wellbeing assessment in the Healthy Rewards site and by receiving an onsite biometric screening (when they are offered) or regularly checking in with your doctor. You’ll learn about your BMI, cholesterol, blood pressure and glucose levels. You’ll also earn 500 Healthy Rewards points when you complete the well-being assessment and get your annual biometric screening!

CREATIVE SPARK SEEKER Finding time for yourself is the key to your own sanity. Draw, sculpt, code, bake, design or create something new each week.

EXERCISE CHALLENGE January is a great time to treat your body right and make the most of those membership dues!

»

HEALTHY CHOICES Make healthier choices with your meals on at least 15 days this month!

If you visit your doctor during the year, don’t forget to take the Health Provider Screening with you and fax it in after you receive your results. You can download it from the Know Your Number Challenge under “My Plan” when you log onto the Healthy Rewards web site (www.pennmedicine.limeade.com).

Be on the lookout for more onsite activities to participate in to help you earn some extra healthy reward points.

Whether you like to make resolutions or not, we can all agree that the New Year provides us with a fresh start. Use that energy to continue to Build A NEW You with the Healthy Rewards program!

It’s never too late to start participating in the Healthy Rewards Program! Log in today to get started at www.pennmedicine.limeade.com

A New Focus on Customer Service AT T H E F I R S T PA R A C A D E M Y

Academy played a critical role in creating the PAR Academy’s syllabus. “I think what makes the curriculum work is that we connect all different parts of the Health System and people who embody this expertise,” she said. “We were able to tailor some of the courses we already offer specifically for this Academy.”

 Mikara Guy of Neurology was part of the first cohort of the new Patient Access Representative Academy.

Penn Medicine Academy, in partnership with CPUP and the Ambulatory Access Center, recently graduated the first cohort of Penn Medicine’s new Patient Access Representative (PAR) Academy. The success of the Patient Service Representative Academy, which began in October 2012, and operational needs for the access center, brought the idea of a PAR Academy to life. This program aims to recruit individuals with customer service backgrounds in non-health care fields to further develop the supplemental skills needed to be successful in Penn Medicine’s Access Center.

“The use of recruiting and training people through the Academy approach has really given us the ability to take individuals from non-health care industries focused on customer service and retrain and acclimate them to the health care industry, taking full advantage of those transferable skills,” explained Jan Rossi, Chief Human Resources Officer for CPUP. “We’re using these creative strategies to bring good, talented people into the organization even if they don’t have a background in health care delivery.”

By taking all of the skills that are needed to succeed in the Academy and in the position, content experts from throughout the Health System were able to come together to create a practical and dynamic curriculum for all the candidates who go through the Academy. Kerry Nihill, Workforce Development consultant from Penn Medicine

By investing in these individuals early on, graduates are able to gain an edge and the leverage needed to excel in the workplace. “It’s been a great experience. The Academy did something extra. It gave me more insight on the people here, how they grow. I learned so much. I couldn’t do what I’m doing now if I didn’t have that training,” said PAR Mikara Guy of Neurology. “They invested in us and without that investment we all wouldn’t be as successful. That five weeks couldn’t have prepared us any better.”

Tiffany Smith, manager in the Access Center, said that she was very excited for this Academy since she started as a PAR as well. “I definitely think it went well. We are very excited about how quickly they picked up the material.”

All of the skills and content that went into the Academy pushed graduates to raise the bar for the positions that they hold. “They graduated from the Academy with the skillset and the understanding of what it takes to be a PAR in the Access Center, and, more important, how to interact with patients during challenging times. By us investing that five weeks of extensive training, they were able to hit the ground running as soon as they graduated,” said Mark Lari, director of Ambulatory Access.

In only her first couple of weeks in the Access Center, Mikara has already applied the exemplary skills she developed in the Academy. In a recent call, her outstanding customer service inspired a patient to independently contact her manager to celebrate the great help she lent, earning her “a perfect 10.” She explained, “I like to connect with the patients in some way so they know I’m not just another voice on the phone and that I genuinely care. I engage with them. When I’m on the phone with patients, nothing else matters.”

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Penn Medicine

NEWSmakers / / / End-Of-Life Care Costs in U.S. Comparable To Europe and Canada

/ / / At Penn, Battling Little-understood Disease, as Researcher and Patient

Ezekiel J. Emanuel, MD, PhD, chair Medical Ethics and Health Policy, and Justin E. Bekelman, MD, an associate professor of Radiation Oncology, Medical Ethics and Health Policy, received widespread coverage from national media outlets for a study published in JAMA which compared end-of-life care practices for patients dying with cancer in seven countries. The study refuted the reasoning behind the United States’ poor reputation for end-of-life care.

When it comes to a stillmysterious condition known as Castleman disease, David Fajgenbaum, MD, a research assistant professor of Hematology/Oncology, is more than an advocate or a physician/scientist: He is also a patient. The Philadelphia Inquirer profiled Fajgenbaum, who is also the associate director of Patient Impact for the Penn Orphan Disease Center. Former Dean Arthur Rubenstein, MBBCh, was also mentioned.

/ / / Sugar Warning Labels Get a Boost from Science Health warning labels on sugary beverages might make parents less likely to buy such beverages for their kids, according to research published today in the journal Pediatrics and led by Christina Roberto, PhD, an assistant professor of Medical Ethics and Health Policy.

Roberto’s research was covered by NPR, Reuters, TIME, CNN, and many other outlets.

/ / / Location a Key Factor in Violence Risk, Penn Study Finds Research led by Douglas J. Wiebe, PhD, an associate professor of Epidemiology, suggests that environmental predictors and behavioral choices — where you go and how you get there — can mitigate or increase the risks of exposure to violence by gunfire and other weapons.

The work was featured in The Philadelphia Inquirer, WHYY and other news outlets.

/ / / Financial Incentives Don’t Spur Employee Weight Loss, Study Finds HealthDay, CBS3 and other local and national outlets reported on a study showing that financial rewards meant to encourage obese employees to lose weight don’t work. The authors of the study include Mitesh S. Patel, MD, an assistant professor of Medicine and Health Care Management, Kevin Volpp, MD, PhD, director of the Penn Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics, and David Asch, MD, MBA, director of the Penn Center for Health Care Innovation.

COMMUNICATIONS

/ / / Wanted: Brave Volunteers for Major Alzheimer’s Study Penn Medicine researchers will play a large role in GeneMatch, a national effort to recruit people at high genetic risk for Alzheimer’s disease, reported The Philadelphia Inquirer. Angela Bradbury, MD, an assistant professor of Hematology/Oncology, and Beth McCarty Wood, a genetic counselor in the Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research, are quoted in the piece.

/ / / High Response Rates Seen With CAR T-Cell Therapies Many outlets covered the latest results of Penn Medicine clinical trials utilizing personalized T cells to treat blood cancers. Stephan Grupp, MD, PhD, a professor of Pediatrics and director of the Cancer Immunotherapy Frontier Program at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and Stephen Schuster, MD, an associate professor in the division of HematologyOncology in the Abramson Cancer Center, presented data during the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology demonstrating high response rates and long-lasting remissions among patients with pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

/ / / Practice Pays Off in Reducing Medical Malpractice Lawsuits The Philadelphia Inquirer profiled a care team from Obstetrics & Gynecology who, like faculty and staff in other departments, participate in regular simulation training sessions to prepare for high-risk situations.

Patricia Sullivan, PhD, vice president of Quality and Patient Safety, and Kate O’Rourke, MSN, RNC-OB, a clinical practice leader for labor and delivery at HUP, were quoted in the piece.

WINS AWARDS!

The Penn Medicine Communications team received awards in six different categories at the 47th annual Pepperpot Awards of the the Philadelphia Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). The event, held in early December, honors public relations campaigns and tactics submitted by public relations and communications professionals across the Greater Philadelphia region. Penn Medicine’s award-winning projects and categories are: BLOGGING .............................................................................................................................. Penn Medicine News Blog MAGAZINE ....................................................................................................................................................... Penn Medicine BROCHURES ................................................................................................................................................. Facts & Figures * NEWSLETTERS ......................................................................................................... System News* and What’s New* PUBLIC SERVICE .............................................................................................................................. Penn Medicine CAREs *Designed by Creative Services in the Department of Marketing.

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/ / / Route to the Future Adrian Popescu, MD, an assistant professor of Clinical Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, commented to The Philadelphia Inquirer about how a $700 million upgrade to the city’s trolley system to make it ADA compliant would positively impact health care accessibility.

/ / / Yoga May Lessen Side Effects in Men Undergoing Prostate Cancer Treatment Penn researchers found that men undergoing radiation treatment for prostate cancer can stabilize and even decrease the side effects of the treatment with yoga, reported Yahoo! News. The study, led by Neha Vapiwala, MD, an associate professor in Radiation Oncology and Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center, found that general quality of life and side effects often experienced by prostate cancer patients — including fatigue, sexual health, and urinary incontinence — were stable throughout a course of radiation therapy among the men participating in yoga. Several other outlets also covered the study.

/ / / Task Force: Doctors Should Screen All Adults for Depression The U.S. Preventative Services Task Force advocated in JAMA for the screening of all adults for depression at their primary health visits. Michael Thase, MD, a professor of Psychiatry and chief of Mood and Anxiety Disorders Treatment and Research Program, wrote the accompanying editorial, advocating for the same and his work was covered extensively in the media.

/ / / Reprogramming Social Behavior in Carpenter Ants Using Epigenetic Drugs A Penn-led team found that ant caste behavior can be reprogrammed, indicating that an individual’s epigenetic, not genetic, makeup determines roles in ant colonies.

The lab of Shelley Berger, PhD, University professor in Cell and Developmental and Biology, was featured in articles from outlets around the country, including The New York Times.

Visit the Penn Medicine news website at www.PennMedicine.org/news

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES PENNSYLVANIA HOSPITAL ACHIEVES MAGNET! Last month, Pennsylvania Hospital achieved Magnet status — the highest institutional honor awarded for nursing excellence — from the American Nurses Credentialing Center. All five Penn Medicine hospitals have Magnet status, which has been shown to improve clinical outcomes. Less than seven percent of health care organizations in the United States have the Magnet designation.

CEO’s corner

Said PAH chief nursing officer Mary Del Guidice, MSN, BS, RN, “I’m so proud of how our incredible staff worked together to become the living embodiment of what it means to be Magnet and am grateful for the support we’ve received from our Pennsylvania Hospital team and throughout our Health System and the Penn School of Nursing.”

In addition, UPHS has several programs to promote and widen economic opportunity in all of our contracting efforts.

RUSTGI RECEIVES TOP ACS AWARD Anil Rustgi, MD, chief of Gastroenterology, received the Research Professor Award from the American Cancer Society (ACS). The award is given to outstanding scientists and clinicianscientists who have made seminal contributions to their fields, are thought leaders in their fields, and have made outstanding efforts in terms of service and mentoring. It is the most prestigious national award the organization gives.

The five-year grant that comes with the award will help Rustgi continue to provide leadership in his research on the genetics and biology of GI cancers, including those arising from the colon and pancreas. He is one of only 25 active ACS Research Professors in the country. He was first awarded the ACS award in 2010.

TWO GI AWARD WINNERS Two gastroenterology physicians received awards from The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America.

Gary Lichtenstein, MD, director of Penn’s Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center, received the Scientific Achievement in IBD Clinical Research Award. Gary Wu, MD, won the Scientific Achievement in Basic IBM Research Award.

INFORMATION SERVICES RECOGNITION Penn Medicine’s Information Services team received the Learning Health System Research Pioneer Award from the American Association of Medical Colleges for their work to enhance and align the research and clinical domains of Penn Medicine. Dubbed Clinical Research+, the strategic set of projects leverages technology, processes, and people to analyze, and share clinical and research data within Penn Medicine.

“The combination of leading edge technology, talented IS resources and operational partnership has enabled Penn Medicine to further advance our individualized patient care and research efforts for the benefit of many.” said Michael Restuccia, VP and chief information officer for the Health System.

Restuccia also received recognition, being named one of Computerworld’s Premier 100 Technology Leaders for 2016, for leading IS in support of the strategic precision medicine initiatives.

(continued from cover)

Medical and surgical departments of the Perelman School of Medicine feature tailored programs to promote diversity in education and training offerings. Many faculty members and UPHS nurses and other providers conduct important research to identify sources of racial and ethnic disparities and promote means of correcting them.

The Perelman School’s Program for Diversity & Inclusion includes several cultural affinity groups that support a diverse student body, including Latino, Asian Pacific, and South Asian medical-student associations; Penn Med Veterans; the Maimonides Society; and the Penn Med Christian Fellowship.

UPHS is proud to play a major part in the Penn Medicine Program for LGBT Health. The program raises awareness of LGBT health issues and works to alleviate disparities and improve care for LGBT patients through presentations, research, and education and training. HUP, Penn Presbyterian, Pennsylvania Hospital, and The Chester County Hospital were recognized as 2015 Leaders in LGBT Healthcare Equality by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation for meeting non-discrimination and training criteria that show a commitment to equitable care for LGBT patients and their families.

And just as important as these formal, system-wide programs, numerous diversity-based activities take place year-round at the hospital and unit levels, such as Challah delivery on Fridays to Jewish patients and Ramadan celebrations.

The linking point of these efforts is a commitment to ensuring that everyone at UPHS feels welcome and respected. Drawing on resources from throughout the Health System, we will continue to build on these — and many other — programs with an aim of ensuring full and fair access to high quality care for all patients as well as equal opportunity for professional success for faculty and staff members.

Our achievements to date, as well as our pledge to do even more in the future, are possible because of your continuing support and enthusiasm. Thank you and happy new year.

Jan Bergen, president and CEO of Lancaster General Health, was named among 130 women hospital and health system leaders to know by Becker’s Hospital Review.

Benjamin Abella, MD, vice chair of Research in Emergency Medicine, received the William Montgomery Excellence in Education Award at the Emergency Cardiovascular Care Update annual meeting. The award recognizes the outstanding work of a scholar in educational efforts on topics relevant to resuscitation science.

Charles S. Abrams, MD, director of the Blood Center for Patient Care & Discovery, was named president of the American Society of Hematology, an organization dedicated to furthering the understanding of diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disorders affecting the blood.

Murray Grossman, MD, PhD, director of Penn’s Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, received the Special Recognition Award from the Legal Clinic for the Disabled, its highest honor, for his lifetime commitment to the disability community.

Nishaminy Kasbekar, PharmD, corporate director of Pharmacy Services at PPMC, has been named president of the Board of Directors for the Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association Educational Foundation.

Scott Levin, MD, chair of Orthopaedic Surgery, was named one of the 10 best physicians of 2015

by Medscape.

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