October 23, 2015
MEDICAL UNIVERSITY of SOUTH CAROLINA
Vol. 34, No. 9
Inside Honoring employee service, dedication ReseaRch Impact
By Mikie Hayes
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Public Relations
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Four MUSC researchers take on meaningful projects.
mUsc health
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New system introduces efficiencies and partnerships.
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Applause
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Meet Darrell
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photos by Anne Thompson, Digital Imaging
MUSC Medical Center and university employees with 20 years service pose for a commemorative photo with MUSC President David Cole and first lady Kathy Cole.
hen Nina Epps, a medical technologist in Laboratory Services, began working at MUSC in 1974, she was 19 years old and weighed 106 pounds. Four decades and a couple of extra pounds may have snuck up on her, but she will tell you, “MUSC feels like my home.” A lot of change takes place in 41 years, and Epps has seen her share both in health care and at MUSC. She refers to the advancements in technology as unbelievable. “Tests that are now being performed on a hand–held instrument were being performed on a huge instrument that took up an entire room.” She’s also proud of how MUSC has become the hospital
See Employees on page 9 Flashback to the early 80s: Beth Welling, left, and Nina Epps celebrating together at a Christmas party.
Food Day
t h e c ata ly s t OnlIne http://www. musc.edu/ catalyst LIKE US
Left photo: Nina Epps, left, and Beth Welling celebrate 41 years at MUSC at the Oct. 20 MUSC Service Awards reception held in the Drug Discovery Building lobby.
Medical University of South Carolina — FOLLOW US
@ Catalyst_MUSC
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Applause Program The following MUSC employees received recognition through the Applause Program for going the extra mile: Medical Center
Mary E. Johnson, DDC; Faye Parker, Guest Services; Paulette Green; Patient Transportation; Donald Fox, General Internal Medicine; Tiombe Plair, Clinical Effectiveness; Lisa Foster, Revenue Cycle Operations; Stacy Messersmith, 7B; Kameisha Miles, Registration Admin; Richard Heming, Ophthalmology Outreach; Ali Golden, Storm Eye Institute; Angie Brown, Parking Management; Michael Andaya, Guest Services; Melissa Bixby, Specialty Care North; Josiah Smalls, Radiology; Madison Henry, ART 6 West; Allison Osborne, PCICU; Angela Chisolm, GI Clinic; Erin Ray, NSICU; Steven Swift, Obstetrics-Gynecology; Adrian Gadsden, Medical Records; Lori Morris, 9 West; Seth Wetter, MICU; David Carter, Residents Surgery; Kimberly Beach, 6 East; Aletra Bowen, 6 East; Betty Swinton, 6 East; Kevin Freeman, Environmental Services; Ashley Owens, 6 East; Moya McFadden, Radiology; Cherita McNeil, Hollings Clinics; Melissa Justice, Hollings Clinics; Greg Buck, Gastroenterology & Hepatology; Kim Gadsden, Radiation Oncology; Kaitlyn Morrissey, 6 West; Kristin Strickland, 6 West; Carrie Cooney, 6 West; Maylin Taylor, 6 West; Leslie Adams, STICU; Olivia Garza, 6 East; Samekia White, Mail Order Pharmacy; Dorothy Weiss, ART 6 West; Deborah Jones, PAS; Mary Collins, Medical Records; Jennifer Keevern, Physical Therapy; Jamie Russo, 9 East
Editorial of fice MUSC Office of Public Relations 135 Cannon Street, Suite 403C, Charleston, SC 29425. 843-792-4107 Fax: 843-792-6723 Editor: Cindy Abole
catalyst@musc.edu Catalyst staff: Mikie Hayes, hayesmi@musc.edu Dawn Brazell, brazell@musc.edu J. Ryne Danielson, daniejer@musc.edu Helen Adams, adamshel@musc.edu Sarah Pack, packsa@musc.edu Jeff Watkins, watkinsj@musc.edu
Fall means FlU VaccIne tIme
Josh Kulawy, 9 East; Jordan Ponder, 9 East; Nathan Snider, Meduflex Team; Ashley Ryan, Radiation Oncology; Darren Gordon, Patient Transportation; Deeana Burr, NSICU; Megan Summers, 7East; Marshall Kearney, Anesthesia, Laura Holt, 6 East; Julie Santos, 8 West; Kim Egbert, Pulmonary, Critical Care, Allergy & Sleep Medicine; Stephanie Chismar, Anesthesia & Perioperative Medicine; Stephen Lowe, Residents Neurosurgery; Mary Collins, Medical Records; Michael Gage, Radiology Murray Passo, Pediatrics –Rheumatology; Marie Thompson, ART Pre-op Surgery; Mike Howard, UIM; Michelle Hayes, UIM; and Gina Garrett, UIM University
Richard Anderson, Pediatrics; Karen Fulghum, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Stephanie Haney, Hollings Cancer Center; Carlos Herrera, Comparative Medicine/Laboratory Animal Resources; Alfred Miller, Comparative Medicine/ Laboratory Animal Resources; Ricardo Ortega, Comparative Medicine/Laboratory Animal Resources; Tina Pinckney, College of Dental Medicine; Trisha Reichle, College of Dental Medicine; Allen Simmons, Comparative Medicine/ Laboratory Animal Resources; Myrikk Thomas, University Grounds; Laura Walters, Office of Research Operations; and Vivian Wertz, Dental Faculty Practice.
The Catalyst is published once a week. Paid adver tisements, which do not represent an endorsement by MUSC or the State of South Carolina, are handled by Island Publications Inc., Moultrie News, 134 Columbus St., Charleston, S.C., 843-849-1778 or 843-958-7490. E-mail: sales@moultrienews.com.
MUSC employees and students lined up Oct. 7 and Oct. 8 to receive their flu vaccines at the annual flu tent event in front of the Library and Ashley River Tower. Employee Health administeredd the vaccines also at other locations throughout campus. Bottom photo: Geraldine Moultrie braces as she receives her flu shot from nurse Sarah Branoff at 135 Cannon Street lobby. Employees and staff must present their MUSC badges to receive the flu vaccine. For information, contact Employee Health Services, 792-2991.
Nominations currently being accepted for honorary degrees The Office of the President is accepting nominations for people to receive honorary degrees from MUSC, to be awarded at Commencement in May 2016. MUSC’s honoarary degrees are aimed at recognizing and honoring distinguished individuals who have made an extraordinary and positive impact in education, science or health care on the state of South Carolina, MUSC or nationally. In general, honorary degrees go to individuals in the following broad
categories: Contribution(s) to the nation; Contribution(s) to science; and Contribution(s) to the state or MUSC. Consider submitting nominations of candidates along with supporting materials such as letters, articles, curriculum vitae, etc., in the above mentioned categories. The nominations should be forwarded to Marcia Higaki, Office of the President, Colcock Hall, 179 Ashley Ave., MSC 001, higakimc@ musc.edu, no later than Oct. 30. Nominations of MUSC alumni are generally discouraged.
THe CaTalysT, Oct. 23, 2015 3
Cyberawareness: Don’t get hooked by phishing emails By Melanie RiCHaRdson OCIO Communications October is National Cyber Security Month, and one of the most important topics of cybersecurity is phishing. A phish is an email that tries to trick you into disclosing your credentials. Criminals know that it is far easier, quicker and cheaper to trick someone into giving their login information than to try and hack through an entity’s cyber security defense systems. While OCIO’s security teams blocks the vast majority of phishes, there are always a few that will slip through. YOU are MUSC’s first line of defense against hackers. hOw tO IdentIFy phIsh emaIls q Email has a generic greeting or no greeting at all q Email requests for you to confirm, verify, authenticate, etc. your credentials q Email asks you to take some kind of action in order to increase your email quota or other storage space q Email asks you to view or access a document that requires you to log in to view it can’t tell IF an emaIl Is legItImate OR nOt q Call the sender before clicking on any links in an email q Call the sender before opening any
attachments sent to you in an email q Call the sender before you enter your credentials into a form sent to you via email Recent examples OF phIsh emaIls If you respond to a phishing email by disclosing your NetID and password, hackers can use that information to get into your email account and access any PHI you have in your email. Further, and potentially more harmful, they can log into MUSC systems with your login. Once it is detected that your account has been hacked, as directed by Compliance, OCIO’s security team will have to disable all access to your MUSC account. Which means you will not be able to access your MUSC email or any MUSC system, including Epic. If you receive an email you suspect is a phishing attempt, please forward it to phishing@musc.edu. To learn more about phishing and other cybersecurity topics, visit www. BeginsWithMe.musc.edu or stop by one of the Information Security Awareness Pledge Centers located around campus. Do you want to have someone talk to your work team or department about Cyberawareness? Contact the MUSC Office of the Chief Information Officer cyber security team at http://www.beginswithme@ musc.edu.
Cyber Security Pledge Center locations q Main Hospital lobby q Library q Ashley River Tower
q Harborview Office Tower q College of Health Professions q Parkshore
4 THe CaTalysT, Oct. 23, 2015
Research Impact Dr. Kelly C. Harris q Assistant professor, Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery q NIH R01Award $370,384 (Year 1 cost) q April 1, 2015 to March 31, 2020
Kelly Carney Harris, P.hD., assistant professor, Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, plans to study, “neural determinants of sound encoding in the aging ear and brain.” Age–related changes in speech recognition are common for older adults and pose serious consequences for quality of life, which include a variety of poorer health outcomes. Despite the growing importance of understanding the effects of age on the central auditory system and speech recognition difficulties, studies linking these related phenomena in humans are rare. This project uses complementary measures that have specific neural activity, microstructure and metabolic bases to help identify underlying neuropathologic determinates that contribute to speech recognition difficulties in older adults. By identifying specific neural deficits that contribute to age–related speech recognition difficulties, this research may lead to improved diagnoses of age–elated auditory deficits, which will guide the development of new and individualized intervention and remediation strategies. Marcelo Vargas, Ph.D., assistant professor, Department of Cell and Molecular Pharmacology, was awarded an NIH R01 to conduct a study titled, “NAD metabolism and mitochondrial dysfunction in ALS models.” Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s disease accounts for about 1 in 500 to 1 in 1,000 adult deaths in the United States.
ALS is caused by the progressive degeneration of motor neurons in the motor cortex, brain stem and spinal cord that control muscle movement leading to paralysis and eventual death. Dr.Marcelo Vargas q Assistant professor, Department of Cell and Molecular Pharmacology q NIH RO1 Award $320,188 (Year 1 cost) q Aug. 1, 2015 to Mary 31, 2020
Malfunction of the mitochondria, the powerhouse of the cell, may be responsible for the observed neurodegeneration, which is loss of nerve cells. This proposal will investigate the role of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD), a redox molecule found in all living cells, as a key player for mitochondrial function in the context of ALS and its potential therapeutic applications. The long-term goal of the project is to develop new therapeutic strategies using mechanistic insights drawn from understanding astrocytemotor neuron interaction in Lou Gehrig’s disease or ALS. In particular, the primary objective of this proposal is to establish whether increased NAD availability ameliorates motor neuron degeneration in ALS models. Sudie E. Back Ph.D., Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, was awarded an NIH grant for $778,836 to study comorbid addiction and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This K02 Independent Scientist Award will afford Dr. Back the opportunity to gain specialized training in the neurobiology of substance use disorders (SUD) and PTSD, including the use of neuroimaging
Dr. Sudie E. Back q Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences q NIH K02 Award: $155,636 (Year 1 cost) q July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2020
methodologies, in order to explore the neurobiologic interface of SUD/PTSD in ongoing and future research efforts targeting U.S. military veterans. A potential outcome of this grant is to improve the standard of patient care, advance the comorbidity science in this area, decrease public health expenditures and improve the military readiness and overall health of our U.S. military families. Judson Chandler, Ph.D., a professor of Neuroscience and Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, received a new R01 award for $336,375 (from May 2015 to April 30, 2020) to study the cognitive impairments associated with chronic alcohol consumption and dependence. This National Institutes of Health grant will advance knowledge of the neural mechanisms contributing to ethanol–associated impairments in synaptic plasticity and cognitive function and identify novel therapeutic targets for more effective treatment of alcoholism and alcoholrelated problems. The data collected from this project will advance our understanding of neuroadaptations that underlie cognition impairments associated with chronic alcohol consumption and dependence. The Research Impact column showcases the research community’s grant activities. For information about awards, visit the Office of Research & Sponsored Programs’ Monthly Reports at http:// academicdepartments.musc.edu/research/orsp/ reporting/ or email stories to research@musc.edu.
THe CaTalysT, Oct. 23, 2015 5
Meet Darrell
Darrell Brown Department and how long at MUSC Environmental Services; 10 months How you are changing what’s possible at MUSC With our motto in EVS, “We save lives.” Family, pets and their names Mom and dad, Dorothy and Johnny; sons, Jabar and Kristofer; daughters, Shira and Brittney Last book read Cross Country by James Patterson What music is in your player now “Classic Man” by Jidenna Favorite football team Dallas Cowboys Your ideal of a dream location A trip around the world Greatest moment in your life The birth of my children Words of advice “Do your best, try hard and never give up.” —Johnny Brown, my dad
6 THe CaTalysT, Oct. 23, 2015
MUSC Health helps to build healthy communities New integrated health system enhances care, makes leadership more nimble By J. Ryne danielson Public Relations What is a community? These days, that’s a question foremost on the mind of Patrick Cawley, M.D., CEO of the Medical Center and the newly–created MUSC Health system. Building healthy communities is one of five key goals of MUSC’s new five–year strategy, Imagine 2020, and Cawley is challenging the organization to reexamine its concept of community and how best to serve the communities of which MUSC is a part. “Health care is changing,” Cawley said. “Health care reform has been taking place over the past ten to fifteen years, and the Affordable Care Act has been a catalyst to accelerate that change. In order to stay ahead of the curve and continue our mission, we have to begin to work together more closely as one organization.” Because of efforts to constrain rising health care costs, health care providers are facing a crisis as their revenue streams dry up. “As a nation we’re spending a lot of money on health care,” Cawley said. “And most economists, most politicians, most policymakers will say that we’re spending too much. Health care costs, as everyone knows, continue to expand at a rate greater than inflation. And that’s hard for everybody. It’s hard for government. I’ts hard for businesses. It’s hard for individuals. Every dollar we spend on health care is a dollar we don’t spend on education or other things, so we have to get costs under control.” As a health care provider, MUSC faces a unique dilemma. “If we’re going to continue to survive and fulfill our mission, which is to teach, conduct research, and take care of people – we’re going to have to work together in a different way.” MUSC President David J. Cole, M.D., FACS, understands that dilemma well. He also understands the opportunity it provides. “By implementing this new organizational model,” he said, “we
become more nimble and enhance our ability to decrease the cost of care and increase the level of convenience our patients expect and deserve.” In the past, Cawley explained, the Medical University Hospital Authority and MUSC Physicians have functioned like siblings. “That’s not good enough anymore,” he said. “We need to be almost married. We need to make decisions together, and we need to spend our resources together.” MUSC Health will marry MUHA and MUSC-P together as an integrated health system, modeled on leading national health systems.
“When we have one leader responsible for the entire system, we’ll be able to build partnerships much faster than we could have in the past.” Patrick J. Cawley, M.D. “Health care is changing very fast, and we need to be able to make decisions just as fast,” Cawley said. Some of those decisions, he explained, will involve how to partner with other organizations in order to use resources more efficiently. “The pressure to control costs is not just on us; it’s on everybody. We’re approached almost daily by potential partners looking to work with MUSC: ambulatory services, surgical centers, imaging centers, palliative care centers, nursing homes. When we have one leader responsible for the entire system, we’ll be able to build partnerships much faster than we could have in the past.” Building such partnerships not only helps MUSC manage its revenue more efficiently, it makes health care more affordable for patients and allows MUSC
photo by Sarah Pack, Public Relations
Neurosurgery’s Dr. Alex Spiotta rides an exercise bike while Dr. Raymond Turner runs on a treadmill in a space next to their operating room. The residents are part of the Department of Neurosurgery’s Operation La Sierra which encourages exercise among employees and promotes healthy workplaces. The effort was supported by the Office of Health Promotion. to invest in underserved communities and life-saving research. “We could stay the course and simply continue to be the great, quaternary referral center that we are today,” Cawley said. “We’ll always have that niche. But, we’re not just a care provider. We have two other missions. We have a teaching mission and a research mission. A lot of the revenue we make on the clinical side gets reinvested right back into academic programs and research. We want to be able to continue to do that. An integrated health system is the best way
for us to control our own destiny.” Initially a virtual concept, MUSC Health, now has a real structure. As a non–profit organization with its own board of directors, chosen from the boards of MUSC and MUSC–P, MUSC Health will function as a management company. “MUSC Health doesn’t take over the hospital or the physician group, but it helps us manage both,” Cawley said. This new integrated leadership
See System on page 7
THe CaTalysT, Oct. 23, 2015 7 Continued from Page Six
structure, which Cawley will head up, will allow for better collaboration across the enterprise. “One of our challenges is developing leaders that understand both sides,” Cawley said. “Someone might be very good at managing the hospital, for example, but might not be great at the practice plan side. Vice versa, someone might be very good on the practice plan side, but might not know the hospital business as well.” Bridging the gap, he said, takes time and education. “But, we have some great leaders who understand both sides already and we’ll continue to build on their expertise.” The MUSC Health board of directors includes Cawley and Cole, as well as Donald Johnson, M.D., Donna Johnson, M.D., Scott Reeves, M.D., Charles W. Schulze, G. Murrell Smith, M.D. and Thomas Stephenson, Esq. The board met for the first time Oct. 14 to choose its officers and officially confirm Cawley as CEO. “As we’ve developed MUSC Health, we’ve developed our own strategy that is in concert with Imagine 2020, which sets common goals to deploy across the hospital and the clinical practices,” Cawley said. “This will be the first fully–integrated strategic plan across the entire enterprise. The university, hospital and MUSC Physicians practices are all together on this.” Cawley said Imagine 2020 is an important step toward making sure all entities within MUSC share the
same goals and that each is empowered to meet those goals efficiently and effectively. “On the clinical side, we have initiatives to meet all of the broad goals of Imagine 2020,” he explained.” For example, we have a diversity and inclusion plan tailored specifically for the clinical enterprise. We’ve begun to focus on interdisciplinary education and collaboration to promote innovative learning. We’ve started an innovation center to promulgate more research and innovation in the clinical enterprise.” Where the MUSC Health system will truly shine, he said, is in helping to build healthy communities. “A lot of what we do today is taking care of people when they’re sick,” Cawley said. “We’ll always do that. But, we also need to get ahead of illness and use preventive medicine. One of the best ways to help people improve their health is to go out to their communities and provide an environment so they can get better faster or not get sick in the first place.” To remain competitive, MUSC must better understand the social determinants of health, Cawley said — which include access to safe housing, proper nutrition, education, economic opportunities and affordable health care — and it must work with communities to provide them. “To give one example, we’re partnering with local churches to provide preventative medicine, conduct health screenings, and hold health fairs,” he said. “An integrated system like MUSC Health makes that easier because, as a single entity, we can more easily develop
relationships and form partnerships.” But, it’s not always necessary to go looking for a community to serve. One exists right here. “MUSC is a community in and of itself,” Cawley said. “If we’re going to try to improve the health of other communities, we need to start at home first. There are almost 18,000 people enrolled in the MUSC Health plan, and we’re looking for new and better ways to improve health across those 18,000 individuals. As an integrated health system, we’ll be able to work as a team to do that more efficiently.” Cawley said he has challenged each of the senior leaders in the hospital, colleges and practice plan to develop wellness initiatives to improve the health of the MUSC community. “These wellness initiatives could be many things,” he explained. “They could be things like getting people to exercise more, eat better, teaching them stress management or sleep hygiene.” One early example is the La Sierra initiative, a 10–month nutrition and exercise program created by faculty members in the Department of Neurosurgery and modeled after a 1960s fitness program at La Sierra High School in Carmichael, California. The program requires participants to walk 10,000 steps per day and dials up that baseline intensity over the following months until participants are able to run five miles or bike 20 miles per week. Participants also take part in team sports and learn how to maintain a healthy diet and develop good sleep habits.
See System on page 11
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The pressure’s on to lower your BP number By Helen adaMs Public Relations Ruth Campbell, M.D., associate professor in the Division of Nephrology, was surprised when a study she’s involved with found big benefits for some people who got their systolic blood pressure under 120, which is well below existing guidelines. “Honestly, I was not anticipating those results,� she said. Now she wants to make sure people across the state with high blood pressure talk with their doctors about how the research might impact their treatment. Patients may even want to print out news articles about the study, she said, and take them to their next appointment “I think there’s going to be a little lag,� Campbell said. “The NIH is trying to get this out there.� The NIH, or National Institutes of Health, funded the study that involves about 100 medical centers, including MUSC, where Campbell serves as principal site investigator. The study is known as SPRINT, which stands for
Systolic Blood Pressure Researchers put about 9,000 people over 50 with cardiovascular risk factors and hypertension into one of two groups. One group had a goal of getting systolic blood pressure under 140, which was the existing guideline for people under 60, and the other group would try to get under 120. What researchers found was so striking that federal health officials took the unusual step of sharing the results before the study was initially planned to end. People in the group with the lower goal of 120 had dramatically reduced their risk of heart attack, heart failure and stroke. “I’m actually thrilled,� Campbell said, “because when you as a provider can talk with someone and say we have a way to reduce your risk of dying by almost a quarter or your risk of having a stroke, heart attack or developing heart failure by almost a third, that’s really big. It’s a huge reduction.� She and her fellow researchers used a combination of methods to reduce
people’s blood pressure. “We didn’t care how you got your blood pressure lower. It was a combination of healthy lifestyles, which for many people involved low salt diet, some exercise after talking about it with their provider and then choosing a combination of medications that works well for them.� Most of the medications they used in the trial are generic, she said, which keeps the cost down. “Calcium channel blockers, ace inhibitors, Angiotensin II receptor blockers, diuretics, some beta blockers and a drug called spironolactone usually made up the core group of what we used.� Now, Campbell said, the focus shifts to questions yet to be answered by the study. The final data should be published by the end of the year. Campbell said it will help doctors decide if the lower goal is appropriate for their patients. “Not everyone was able to get their blood pressure to the desired level,� Campbell said. “Why not? How do you identify that so you don’t run the risk of challenging someone and knowing
they’re not going to get their blood pressure to the desired level?� She said the SPRINT group is also interested in looking at the effect of blood pressure control on cognitive function. “We want to know if it affects the development of dementia,� Campbell said. The final question is one that doctors have struggled with for as long as they’ve been prescribing medication: How do they get patients to actually take their medicine when and how they’re supposed to? “Some people think medicines are a sign of illness or weakness or don’t want to be reminded they have this condition,� Campbell said. Others just have a hard time remembering to take their medicine. Solutions include encouraging patients to make lifestyle changes so they can minimize the amount of medication they have to take and use devices that remind them to take their medicine, such as customized pill bottles being tested at MUSC.
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patients choose to come to for their care. “In the early 70s, in my opinion, MUSC was not the first place a patient would choose for a hospital. In 2015, MUSC is a center of excellence and the hospital one would choose.” Even with all the changes in technology in that time, putting patients first hasn’t changed for her. “Each day when I walk into work, I see our patients going for their various procedures or appointments. It always makes me stop and count my blessings. One of the greatest blessings is that what I do that day may have an impact on that patient’s visit, even if it is just a smile.” Epps counts learning from her mentors and the relationships she has built with colleagues as two of the most rewarding parts of her job. “I love the people I work with and have worked with over the years and the many mentors I have been privileged to know. Laboratorians are extremely talented and committed.” Perhaps the most special part of her 41–year career at MUSC has been working with her best friend, Beth Welling, also a medical technologist. “Beth and I started together just two weeks apart, and we’ve been best friends all these years.” The two went through training together at Trident Technical College from 1972 to 1974 and began working in the Serology Laboratory in 1974. At that time, it was located in the Quadrangle Building; today that building is Hollings Cancer Center. Currently, they are located in the Children’s Hospital. “We moved to the Children’s Hospital in 1987, and I still call it ‘the new building,’” she said with a laugh. The friends got married the same year – 1977. In fact, it was Welling who introduced Epps to her first husband. “She is the Godmother of my son, and I am the Godmother of her son,” she said. “We have been through so many of life’s passages together: marriage, births, divorce and deaths.” Welling feels the same way and can’t believe she and Epps have worked together in the same department since 1974. “When Nina and I started medical laboratory techniques school together in 1972, I had no idea that I would be working here for over 41 years.” Building friendships didn’t end there. In 1978, two more technologists came to work in the Serology Laboratory: Ellen Frisch and Susan Barrett – along with Epps and Welling, they call themselves the “Fab Four.” “The four of us still work in the same department and have remained the best of friends. We have ‘girls’ weekends’ as often as we can. When we are together, we have the best time and laugh until we cry. We know how blessed we are to have each other.” Stephen Nelson started at MUSC in 1975 and remembers when he had an assigned parking space. He can’t even imagine that today with all the growth and the sheer number of people employed at MUSC. Things at that time were very collegiate, he said. Nelson, who is both an instructor in the department
Thirty-year veteran Jacquetta Gethers of the Controller’s Office received a framed print from MUSC President David Cole and first lady Kathy Cole. of Radiation Oncology, conducting lectures and in–services for the radiation oncology and physics residents, as well as the department’s engineer, has seen dramatic changes – especially as it relates to technology and the size of the department. “When I started my career in the division of Radiation Sciences and Safety, Dr. Jimmy O. Fenn was my mentor. I was exposed to all things producing or measuring radiation,” he said, pun intended. “As time went on, our group was divided, and I ended up working for what is now Radiation Oncology. Medical linear accelerators had begun to become the workhorse for treating cancer.” When he started, he remembers MUSC only had one simple linear accelerator (linac) and two resonant transformer X–ray machines. “MUSC now has five state–of–the–art linacs that are far more precise and sophisticated than I ever thought possible and gamma knife technology that treats brain tumors precisely, as well. Equipment is amazing compared to what we had in the old days.” He will tell you that 40 years of building or renovating vaults for increasingly complicated equipment has been fun for him, and he’s enjoyed being part of the tremendous growth. “I’ve seen this area grow and grow. Our radiation oncology team is top notch. We’ve hired so many good people. We’ve gone from a small department to a bustling department. ” Linda Monroe is a licensed practical nurse (LPN) who works in Internal Medicine’s Rapid Access Clinic in Rutledge Tower. Over the past 44 years, she too has seen major changes happen at MUSC – and practices that would be unimaginable today. “When I started working at MUSC in 1971, the university was called the Medical College,” she said.
During those years, nurses and doctors smoked on the unit and nurses stood when physicians entered the nurse’s station. The west wing of the hospital was for private patients, and the east wing was for the indigent. My how things have changed. The university has grown by leaps and bounds.” Cathy Rogers, R.N, a clinical analyst for the Office of the Chief Information Officer, has enjoyed her 40 year journey at MUSC, including the many colleagues she has had the pleasure of working with over the years. “I have worked with so many excellent people from my start as staff nurse in the Burn and Trauma Unit in 1975.” Today, Rogers maintains the fetal monitoring system for Women’s Care. Her job over the decades has changed and grown. In that time, she has “bounced between nursing and information services,” she said. Computers and computerized charting have been the biggest changes she has seen since her burn and trauma days. Back in the early 80s, Rogers noticed in the nursing journals that measurement systems were taking root in nursing practice and shared that observation with her supervisor, imagining it was an area MUSC should investigate. Her supervisor agreed and told her to take the lead on the project, which she did, happily. Ultimately, it led her to a different career path. “I started working with nursing computers services from
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10 THe CaTalysT, Oct. 23, 2015
MUSC to kick off Lowcountry Food Day on Oct. 24 Every Oct. 24, thousands of events all around the country bring Americans together to celebrate and enjoy real food and to advocate for improved food policies. Food Day is a day to resolve to make healthier and more sustainable dietary choices and to take action to solve food–related problems in communities at the local, state and national level. This year’s theme, “Toward a Greener Diet: Choices to Protect our Water Sources” addresses the key role water plays in every aspect of our food system, including the farmer, chef and consumer and how responsible choices can protect water sources. For the second year in a row, MUSC’s Office of Health Promotion has organized the Lowcountry Food Day Crawl, bringing Lowcountry organizations together to offer fun and educational activities throughout the Charleston area. q Food Day Kick off: Join MUSC Office of Health Promotion and our Food Day partners to celebrate the start of the 2015 Lowcountry Food Day Crawl on Friday
the Lowcountry from 11 October 23rd, 4:00pm – a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday 6:00pm in the MUSC Urban Oct. 24 at the Charleston Farm. Activities will include Farmers Market in Marion a Cooking Demonstration Square. Interactive booths featuring the award–winning will offer activities for all MUSC/Sodexo Culinary ages and a scavenger hunt team including samples of will encourage participants their delicious shrimp and to learn facts at each booth cauliflower grits; a Zumba for an opportunity pick a demonstration led by MUSC grab bag prize. At noon, Wellness Center’s James attendees will gather at the Johnson; a fresh herb spa CTDA booth to cheer on water demonstration led Susan Johnson local media personalities as by MUSC Dietetic Interns; they compete in the Celebrity and several other interactive Water Challenge, an stations led by MUSC interactive, education and fun game with Wellness Center and Urban Farm staff. plenty of spectator engagement. To commemorate the Imagine 2020 q Block Party: Join Revelry Brewing Healthy Communities Goal, a brief from noon to 6 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 25 dedication program will begin at 4:30 for a Food Day Block Party in celebration with remarks by Susan Johnson, Ph.D., of their one–year anniversary and Ramita Bonedonna, Ph.D., R.N., and benefiting the Green Heart Project. MUSC President David Cole, M.D., followed by a reception with healthy hors Employee Wellness d’oeuvres and music. q Food Day Festival: Join health q Throughout October—(at both promoting organizations from across cafeterias) Purchase a mindful salad or mindful entree and enter to win $25 on your badge and a water bottle with infuser. One winner from each cafeteria will be drawn at the end of the month. q October Monthly Mindful Challenge — Use water wisely: Hydrate without waste and limit your water footprint.
Health at work
Find your starting number at www. watercalculator.org/. Take the initial survey at http://tinyurl.com/nn3zsdt. q Worksite Screening — Thursday, Oct. 29, Colbert Education Center & Library, Room 107. This screening, valued at $350, is available to employees on the State Health Plan (including MUSC Health Plan) at no charge for the test. Employees and spouses without insurance can participate for $46. Register online at www.musc.edu/ohp/ employee-wellness/worksite-screening. html. q Chair massages — Free massages are offered to employees midday Wednesdays. Check broadcast messages for new locations and times q Farmers Markets — Fresh fruits and vegetables are available from local farmers on Friday from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Horseshoe.
MUSC Urban Farm
q Midday Work and Learn — 12:15 to 12:45 p.m., Tuesday q Early Bird Maintenance — 7:30 to 8:30 a.m., Wednesday q Sunset Work and Learn — 4 to 5 p.m., Thursday q Saturday Work and Learns — 9 to 11 a.m., Nov. 7 and Nov. 21
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eMployees
CLASSIFIED PAGE
• Household Personal Items for MUSC employees are free. All other classifieds are charged at rate below. Ads considered venture-making ads (puppy breeder, coffee business, home for sale, etc.) will be charged as PAID ADS •• PROOF OF ELIGIBILITY REQUIRED * NO MORE THAN 3 LINES * FREE ADS RUN 2 WEEKS ONLY!
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Furniture
Items For Sale
Flu shot available through October MUSC employees can still get the flu vaccine at flu satellite locations and at Employee Health Services from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The vaccine is available for all MUHA, MUSC, MUSC–P, Crothall, Sodexo employees and volunteers. Upcoming dates and locations: q Oct. 27 —10 a.m. to noon, Dental Med. , DC 601 q 1West ED and ART–Chest Pain Center, 4 a.m. to 7 a.m. Employees and staff must present their MUSC badges to receive the flu vaccine. There are no paper consent forms as badges will be scanned. There is no department vaccine sign out available for the flu vaccine. For information, contact Employee Health Services, 792-2991 or email ehs1@musc.edu,
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there.” She laughs as she remembers, “We had no computers in nursing services at the time. Secretaries, in fact, were still using typewriters. Electric — but they were still typewriters. It’s incredible. We went from no computers in those days to one at every desk and at most bedsides, today.” Bob Poyer knows exactly how long he’s been working at MUSC, which is not surprising for an associate professor in the Department of Library Science and Informatics, someone who every day deals with data. “I’ve been here for 40 years, three months and 20 days on Oct. 2, and if someone were to ask how I am doing, I would say, ‘It’s just another day in paradise at MUSC,’” he said with a laugh. He stays busy working with students, faculty and staff. He remembers how onerous one single search for an abstract or citation was just 20 years ago. When he came to MUSC in 1975, and for the first 20 years of his career, when anyone wanted a Medline (PubMed) search, he or she had to submit a search request form. A reference librarian would then execute the search, and within 24 hours a scroll of references was ready to hand over. “I probably executed 3,000 or so searches a year for 15 to 20 years. I still execute searches but not even close to that many. For those who wanted to execute the searches and bypass the reference librarians — which was fine with us —” he said jokingly, “they could take the daylong, three–day–long or weeklong course at
sysTeM
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“We have to educate people that these things are important,” Cawley said. “Sleep hygiene is a big problem in health care because of the stress of the job and changing shift schedules. There is increasing evidence that good sleep habits lead to better blood pressure control, better weight management, more alertness.” Cawley explained that lifestyle interventions are much more successful when people work on them in groups, developing mutual accountability and even friendly competition. “We need to develop programs that people want to take part in, because people are much more successful together than trying to tackle these things alone.” That’s the theme MUSC is trying to build on, at all levels and across all areas of the enterprise. “MUSC Health is about solving problems together as one team,” Cawley said. “We are more diverse together. We learn better together. We discover more together. We are healthier together as a community.” Focusing on the health of the MUSC community, Cawley said, not only benefits employees, it’s also the best way to put patients first. “If a doctor or nurse is well-rested, alert and healthy, they’re going to take better care of our patients. In the end, everything we do is about the patients.”
“Dr. Cole told us we were a very integral part of MUSC and how grateful he was for our many years of service. When they called out our names, he and Mrs. Cole took a picture with each of us. That meant a lot to me” Valerie Bailey the National Library of Medicine (NLM) or Emory when it was scheduled. Most if not all of them who did that eventually would ask us to do their searches. That tells you how much things have changed from a technological point of view. A little bit different than today.” Valerie Bailey is the unit secretary in the pre–op clinic in Rutledge Tower and has been with MUSC just shy of 41 years. Known by coworkers for getting the job done and going the extra mile, Bailey is always willing to do whatever is needed and with a smile. In her time at MUSC, she has seen many examples of the goodness of MUSC people. One particular day that that stands out in her mind was September 22, 1989; the day Hurricane Hugo hit Charleston. “The morning that Hugo was going to hit Charleston, I left for work at MUSC. I worked on 5 Center and 5 East that day. I left my 5–year–old and 1–year–old daughters at home with their father. Hugo hit that night, and we only had a few windows blown open. I worked for 24 hours. When I left it was something to behold. The devastation was all around. My family was all right; I thank God for keeping them safe. But I’m grateful for the children’s day care center that was set up on the fifth floor of the Children’s Hospital, which allowed me to bring my children with me to work. I and other employees staffed it. We all pulled together and did what we had to do to help one another. And we volunteered to do it on the days that we had off. That was making things possible.” A total of ten MUSC and MUHA employees celebrated reaching the 40 year mark this week. Those who reached 10 years celebrated on Oct. 19 and 20 years and beyond on Oct. 20. They each received 40– year pins and a photo frame with a print of the MUSC hospital. President David Cole, M.D., FACS, met with them before the ceremony and personally thanked them for their commitment, letting them know how much they mean to MUSC. Bailey was excited to be the first name called of the MUHA 40–year employees. “Dr. Cole told us we were a very integral part of MUSC and how grateful he was for our many years of service. When they called out our names, he and Mrs. Cole took a picture with each of us. That meant a lot to me.”
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