Department of Medicine News
Craig Lilly, MD, Pulmonary Medicine, vice chair, critical care operations and director of the eICU Program, is quoted in an October 27 Wall Street Journal online article examining the trends in eICU technology at hospitals nationwide. UMass Memorial Medical Center, HealthAlliance Hospital, Marlborough Hospital and Wing Memorial Hospital use the eICU system. In the article, Dr. Lilly describes the substantial reduction in mortality, lengths of stay and costs eICU technology provides as specially trained intensivists use voice, data and video technology to enhance the patient care provided by the ICU bedside staff. Read full article (October 27, 2009, Wall Street Journal)
Jonathan Kay, MD professor of Medicine and Director of Clinical Research in the Rheumatology Division leads investigation resulting in New SIMPONI(TM) Data Show Long-Term Efficacy in Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Read full article (October 19, 2009, Reuters)
Robert Finberg, MD professor and chair of medicine, received a grant from the National Institutes of Health as part of the federal government's economic stimulus program. Dr. Finberg, who specializes in adult infectious diseases, will study how the innate immune system fights infection. Read full article (October 13, 2009, Telegram & Gazette)
Mary Costanza, MD, Hematology/Oncology, and Roger Luckmann, MD, MPH, Family Medicine, were recently quoted in the Milford Daily News in an article titled, “Mammograms: Once Is Not Enough.” The article discusses women leading busy lives, having one mammogram and then not getting follow-up screenings. Drs. Costanza and Luckmann are researching ways to encourage women to get follow-up mammograms. (News & Views, October 5, 2009) Read article.
Dianne Silvestri, MD, Dermatology, was recently chosen to receive a Mid-Career Development Award from the American Contact Dermatitis Society. Thanks to this grant, Dr. Silvestri was able to develop patient-friendly handouts on almost 100 common allergens used in patch testing referral centers, including the Contact Dermatitis Clinic she opened on the Hahnemann Campus last year. (News & Views, September 30, 2009)
Matilde Castiel, MD, General Medicine, and Tom Kramer, medical student, presented Addiction in the Latino Community: A New Approach in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month. Their talk focused on the Hector Reyes House, a new substance abuse treatment facility for Latino men in the Worcester Community. Dr. Castiel and Mr. Kramer were instrumental in the project, which is the only one of its kind in Worcester. (News & Views, September 29, 2009)
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases granted Shan Lu, MD, PhD, $18 million to lead a research effort into further development of a vaccine for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Dr. Lu, practices internal medicine at the Medical Center and is a professor of medicine and biochemistry and molecular pharmacology at UMass Medical School. (Telegram & Gazette, September 25, 2009) Read more.
Teaching geriatric medicine: New curriculum initiatives. The brainchild of Bonnie Vallie (SOM ’11) the Navigator Program pairs elderly patients with volunteer medical and graduate nursing students who accompany a patient into the exam room during their doctor’s office visit. Afterward, the student “navigator” meets with the patient to review and clarify key points about the medical visit. Designed to facilitate patient comprehension of complex health conditions and enhance patient–physician communication, the Navigator Program is currently being used with geriatric patients seen in the cardiovascular clinic, under the leadership of Dennis Tighe, MD, professor of medicine (Cardiovascular Medicine). (Focus, September 2009) Read more.