Halloween Spirit 2018
October 31, 2018
Making Strides 2018
UConn Health November 2018 Programs, Events
October 26, 2018
Here is a list of UConn Health programs scheduled for November and early December 2018. This information will be updated with any additions or other schedule changes. (Last updated 11/16)
Living Well With Epilepsy: A Support Group for Young Adults
Saturday, Nov. 3, noon to 1:30 p.m., UConn Health Outpatient Pavilion, 2nd floor large conference room S2010
The Epilepsy Foundation of Connecticut, in partnership with the UConn Health Department of Neurology, offers a support group for young adults who live with epilepsy. This group is open to those aged 18 to 30 who would like to join others to share experience, gain peer support, and learn together about epilepsy and overcoming its challenges to live well. The group generally meets on the first Saturday of the month. Please call 860-346-1924 or email manzelone.efct@sbcglobal.net for more information.
Bladder Cancer Support Group
Saturday, Nov. 3, 2 to 3 p.m., UConn Health, Onyiuke Dining Room
Patients, family members and caregivers (not limited to UConn Health patients) are invited to join others whose lives have been touched by bladder cancer. This support group, established in partnership with the Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network, usually meets on the first Saturday of the month and is the only group of its kind in New England. Call 888-901-BCAN for more information.
Free Hospital Maternity Tours
Saturday, Nov. 3, 2 p.m., UConn Health, University Tower lobby
A representative will guide you through labor and delivery, postpartum, and the nursery at the UConn John Dempsey Hospital. Children and grandparents are welcome. Call 800-535-6232 to register or for more information.
Breastfeeding Class
Wednesday, Nov. 14, 6 to 8 p.m., UConn Health Outpatient Pavilion, 3rd floor large conference room S3301
A certified lactation consultant leads a discussion of topics including the benefits of breastfeeding, how to get started, and how the rest of the family can help the breastfeeding mother as well as how to continue breastfeeding and working. Fee is $25 per couple. Call 800-535-6232 to register or for more information.
Breast Cancer Support Group
Thursday, Nov. 15, 7 to 8 p.m., UConn Health, Onyiuke Dining Room
This is a support group intended for women under the age of 45 who’ve been diagnosed with non-metastatic breast cancer. Women at any point in their cancer survivorship journey are welcome. Meetings are the third Thursday of the month. To register or more information, call 860-679-7820 or email tillinghast@uchc.edu.
Infertility Peer Support Group
Thursday, Nov. 15, 7 to 8:30 p.m., Center for Advanced Reproductive Services, 2 Batterson Park Road, Farmington.
The Greater Hartford chapter of RESOLVE, a national nonprofit resource for those facing the challenges of infertility, offers support, information and confidential, informal, peer-led discussions on the third Thursday of the month. To learn more or to check for weather-related cancellation, call 860-523-8337.
Free Hospital Maternity Tours
Saturday, Nov. 17, 2 p.m., UConn Health, University Tower lobby
A representative will guide you through labor and delivery, postpartum, and the nursery at the UConn John Dempsey Hospital. Children and grandparents are welcome. Call 800-535-6232 to register or for more information.
Free Workshop: “Things to Consider Before Joining a Research Study”
Monday, Nov. 26, 5 p.m., UConn Health, Onyiuke Dining Room
The UConn Health Human Subjects Protection Office offers an educational session about the rights and responsibilities of participants in research projects on the last Monday of the month. Registration is required: 860-679-8802 or cagganello@uchc.edu.
Stroke Survivor Group
Wednesday, Nov. 28, noon to 1 p.m., UConn Health Outpatient Pavilion, 3rd floor
The UConn Health Stroke Center invites stroke survivors, families and caregivers to a monthly group meeting to discuss topics such as prevention, coping methods, support systems, rehabilitation tips, resources, and promoting independence. The Stroke Survivor Group generally meets on the fourth Wednesday of the month. Call 860-679-4846 for more information.
Living Well With Epilepsy: A Support Group for Young Adults
Saturday, Dec. 1, noon to 1:30 p.m., UConn Health Outpatient Pavilion, 2nd floor large conference room S2010
The Epilepsy Foundation of Connecticut, in partnership with the UConn Health Department of Neurology, offers a support group for young adults who live with epilepsy. This group is open to those aged 18 to 30 who would like to join others to share experience, gain peer support, and learn together about epilepsy and overcoming its challenges to live well. The group generally meets on the first Saturday of the month. Please call 860-346-1924 or email manzelone.efct@sbcglobal.net for more information.
Bladder Cancer Support Group
Saturday, Dec. 1, 2 to 3 p.m., UConn Health, Onyiuke Dining Room
Patients, family members and caregivers (not limited to UConn Health patients) are invited to join others whose lives have been touched by bladder cancer. This month, UConn Health’s oncology dietitian joins as a guest speaker. This support group, established in partnership with the Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network, usually meets on the first Saturday of the month and is the only group of its kind in New England. Call 888-901-BCAN for more information.
Free Hospital Maternity Tours
Saturday, Dec. 1, 2 p.m., UConn Health, University Tower lobby
A representative will guide you through labor and delivery, postpartum, and the nursery at the UConn John Dempsey Hospital. Children and grandparents are welcome. Call 800-535-6232 to register or for more information.
(Added 11/16)
Auxiliary Festival of Trees
Tuesday, Dec. 4, through Thursday, Dec. 6, UConn Health, University Tower, mezzanine
The UConn Health Auxiliary brings back its display of holiday-themed trees donated by UConn health faculty, staff, students, and Auxiliary members. The trees are on display for three days before a drawing is held for each to be taken home. For more information please call 860-679-2963.
(Added 11/16)
Auxiliary Holiday Bazaar and Basket Raffle
Friday, Dec. 7, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., UConn Health, main building, cafeteria
The UConn Health Auxiliary’s annual winter holiday shopping event includes local crafters and artists offering unique holiday gift ideas, including, home décor and personalized ornaments. At 3 p.m., the winners will be drawn for the popular raffle of gift baskets created and donated by UConn Health employees. For more information please call 860-679-2963.
Breastfeeding Class
Wednesday, Dec. 12, 6 to 8 p.m., UConn Health Outpatient Pavilion, 3rd floor large conference room S3301
A certified lactation consultant leads a discussion of topics including the benefits of breastfeeding, how to get started, and how the rest of the family can help the breastfeeding mother as well as how to continue breastfeeding and working. Fee is $25 per couple. Call 800-535-6232 to register or for more information.
Free Hospital Maternity Tours
Saturday, Dec. 15, 2 p.m., UConn Health, University Tower lobby
A representative will guide you through labor and delivery, postpartum, and the nursery at the UConn John Dempsey Hospital. Children and grandparents are welcome. Call 800-535-6232 to register or for more information.
Directions to UConn Health are available at health.uconn.edu/locations.
Congressional Visit to UConn School of Dental Medicine
October 25, 2018
U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney recently came to UConn Health to meet with UConn dental student members of the American Student Dental Association (ASDA).
“He came to meet with us as ASDA aims to discuss legislative issues that pertain to us as current students and future health care providers,” says Taleen Kalajian, a second-year dental student and UConn ASDA delegate. “We wanted to gain insight into what is currently being done at the Congressional level in order to pass different bills and raise awareness about current issues that have the potential to impact our education and future.”
Chief among those issues is student debt. By some estimates the average American dental student graduates with nearly $300,000 in debt. Courtney, a senior member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, discussed the Aim Higher Act, which his committee introduced in July. It’s a reauthorization of previous legislation that would provide students with a chance to earn a debt-free degree.
“One pillar of the Aim Higher Act is to protect and expand public service loan forgiveness programs,” says classmate Marina Zoghbi, a UConn ASDA legislative co-chair. “The Aim Higher Act also allows students to refinance high-interest loans to lower rates. I really appreciated that he is committed to advocating for students pursuing higher education.”
The congressman held a roundtable with seven members of UConn’s ASDA chapter: Zoghbi, Kalajian, Jessica Rudman, Mariamma Chaluparamabil, Eric Ress, Shiyuan Mao, and Cameron Christiansen. They met for about 30 minutes in the dental admissions office following a tour of the renovated dental care center and the simulation lab Oct. 18. Other topics of discussion included access to care and the opioid epidemic.
Chaluparamabil, the chapter’s president, and Rudman, a legislative delegate, had invited Courtney to visit during an ADA lobbying engagement in Washington, D.C., in the spring. Because of scheduling conflicts, it took several months to orchestrate.
“He’s very down-to-earth, really listens to problems, and you really feel like he’s listening to you,” Rudman says. “It can be nerve-wracking when you’re meeting someone like this, but he makes you feel at ease and able to talk about the issues that are important to you. It really helped us be comfortable.”
Honoring 25-plus Years of Service
UConn Health hosted a dinner on Wednesday night, honoring employees who have given 25 years or more of service. Dr. Alan Lurie, chair of the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Diagnostic Sciences was the guest of honor, having served for 45 years. (Photos by Alexis Crean)
Spotlight on Services: Diabetes Education
Diabetes educators are an essential part of the care team for people with diabetes. The UConn Health Diabetes Education Program includes nurses and dietitians – some of whom are certified as diabetes educators (CDE) – as well as physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, exercise specialists, social workers, and other health care professionals. All work together to ensure the best care and management of diabetes.
Jean Kostak is a diabetes education specialist and the program’s coordinator.
How do CDEs fit into the larger care picture?
CDEs are health professionals who work with providers to support patients’ day-to-day efforts managing their diabetes. We can be registered nurses, registered dietitians like myself, pharmacists, exercise specialists or social workers. We take the time to get to know the patients, help them develop a plan, and give them to the tools to take control of their diabetes. Part of that is, as our name suggests, educating patients about their type of diabetes and how it progresses through their lifetime.
What’s the most common question you get?
“What can I eat?” We probably get that the most. We work with patients to individualize their meal plan to help them meet their blood sugar goals and lose weight if needed. Often times they can still enjoy their favorite foods, in reasonable moderation. If you think about it, it’s really not that different than those don’t have diabetes, because really we all should be careful about what – and how much – we eat.
How do you help with the self-management of diabetes?
Good lifestyle choices go a long way in managing diabetes, and the cases of people who have prediabetes, good lifestyle choices can slow down or even prevent progression to type 2 diabetes. This includes of course exercise. We work with patients to teach them how to fit physical activity and exercise into their daily routine regardless of their restrictions. We educate them about their medication and how to take it correctly. And we can assist with choosing the right blood glucose testing monitor and show them how to use it and interpret the results.
Why is this an effective care model?
Managing diabetes can be stressful. Adding to that stress is, if not managed properly, diabetes can lead to other complications. When you have someone to work closely with as you face these challenges, you can build confidence in you ability to self-manage you diabetes. And that can help you feel your best. We have an ongoing relationship with our patients. They don’t have to go through it alone, which can make a big difference in not letting their diabetes get in the way of leading a full, healthy life.
What are the qualifications of a certified diabetes educator?
We must prove our knowledge and skill in diabetes self-management education by completing at least 1,000 hours of patient education and pass a challenging certification exam. Patients can be sure that when they’re working with someone with CDE credentials, they’re in good hands.
November is Diabetes Awareness Month, and this year, National Diabetes Education Week is Nov. 4-10.
Learn more about diabetes care at UConn Health at health.uconn.edu/diabetes.
Spotlight on Services: UConn NeuroSport
Whether an athlete suffers a traumatic brain injury (TBI) or a persistent neurologic condition, he or she can turn to UConn NeuroSport for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation. Located in downtown Storrs and part of UConn Health Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, NeuroSport enlists multiple specialties to deliver personalized care. Dr. Anthony Alessi, a neurologist who specializes in sports medicine and neuromuscular disease, is the director of UConn NeuroSport.
What kinds of conditions do you see at UConn NeuroSport?
Although everyone is focused so much on concussion and head injuries, and rightfully so, we also take care of athletes with other neurologic injuries, like migraine headaches, epilepsy, and multiple sclerosis. We’re not limited to high-velocity contact sports. Other athletes – runners, non-contact sports athletes, any of those who they feel have a neurologic problem, whether it be acute or chronic – we’re happy to see, even if it’s just to give them a second opinion. Or people who are getting symptoms, as they’re running they’re starting to develop neurologic symptoms, we’re happy to see them.
Who are your candidates for care?
We see all ages, including high school and younger, from throughout the region, including other states. We have elite athletes who fly in and stay at the hotel out here, at the Nathan Hale Inn, and will stay for several days. We put them through the regime based on what we see and who they’re going to see next in the same day. If we need imaging we get that done quickly – we’re now able to do MRI imaging here. We have everything right here in Storrs, including athletic fields to assess athletes on. It’s exciting because it’s growing pretty fast.
What is UConn NeuroSport’s approach to care?
We are familiar with what medications need to be used that are legal, from the standpoint of performance-enhancing drugs, and we have to modify our treatment based on their performance. Some drugs that we would use typically for, say, migraine or epilepsy, will impair performance. Some will cause patients to gain weight, some to lose weight.
We look at all the neurological aspects of sport. When someone comes here with head injury, we typically look at that, verify the diagnosis, and then try to implement a program of getting them back to their sport, working with athletic trainers. It’s a multidisciplinary approach to getting an athlete back. It’s crucial to all of sports medicine, and neurology is no different. UConn, here in Storrs, is one of the few places where we do that through the Department of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine. We’re a growing of group of subspecialists within neurology who do sports.
Which other specialties are involved?
We work with primary care sports medicine specialists, orthopedic surgeons, physical therapists, and athletic trainers.
Who refers patients to UConn NeuroSport?
We get most of our referrals from athletic trainers. When you’re an athletic trainer for a team, your job is to get that athlete back as quickly and safely as you can. Those are the people who are closest to the action.
Second to them are primary care physicians, who evaluate their patients and then send them to us when appropriate. Anytime a physician is faced with a patient who they’re not able to get back in a timely fashion, or they keep meeting obstacles with, those are the people we want to see.
We have athletes with neurologic conditions who compete at the highest level of sport. Who would even imagine that someone could be playing at the highest level of their competitive sport with a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis? But that is going on.
More information about UConn NeuroSport is available at health.uconn.edu/orthopedics-sports-medicine/specialties/neurosport.
Keep Calm and Get Your Mammogram
October 18, 2018
Your co-workers throughout the UConn Health community ask you to join them in raising breast cancer awareness by wearing pink on Friday. Shout out to the UConn Health Internal Medicine sites in East and West Hartford for participating in the cancer center’s Community Breast Navigation Program this year! With their help and expertise, the grant funded outreach program was able to educate women on the importance of screening and provide seamless navigation to screening.
Looking at Us: In Compliance With Deb Abromaitis
October 11, 2018
One of the reasons for the UConn John Dempsey Hospital’s high marks in the latest Joint Commission survey is the work of the Office of Healthcare and Regulatory Compliance. Longtime UConn Health nurse and nurse administrator Deb Abromaitis serves as its interim compliance officer, and she credits her staff (and many others) for the successful visit. Today we get to know Deb a little better. She lives in Unionville with her husband, and has two grown sons and two grandchildren.
Deb Abromaitis
Favorite sport:
Figure skating
Favorite holiday:
Christmas. I love giving puzzles to my nieces, nephews and my children to figure out how to solve the puzzle to get a gift.
Favorite place(s) to visit:
Istanbul, Turkey. I also love to vacation in the Outer Banks with friends.
Favorite dining spot:
I love going out to different restaurants for breakfast on the weekend with my husband and friends.
Interest outside of work:
I always love and treasure spending time with my family.
Describe your role here, and how your roles have changed/evolved over the years?
I’ve been the Interim Compliance Officer in the Office of Healthcare and Regulatory Compliance for less than a year. The first time I worked at UConn Health was about 30 years ago, and I have been in many positions over the years, starting as a per diem nurse then a nursing supervisor, manager, and director.
Some of the areas where I have managed include the Nursing Supervisors, Bed Control, Float Pool, Transportation, Emergency Management, Environment of Care, Patient Relations, Volunteers, Spiritual Services, Interpreters, Quality and Regulatory.
When you were first starting as a nurse, if someone told you that you’d be a hospital compliance officer, how would you have reacted?
I would never have believed it! I love people and knew that as long as I was a nurse I would never be anywhere but at the bedside!
What are the most challenging and rewarding aspects of your job today?
The most challenging would be having others understand that we are trying to be helpful when we work with areas to meet the needs and regulatory requirements for the patients, the staff and the institution.
The most rewarding is watching patient care improve, staff pride and satisfaction grow, and the institution get recognized for the great work that we do and the care that we provide.
We recently had an unannounced accreditation survey by The Joint Commission. What goes into preparing for and dealing with that, and what made it successful?
In the hospital we say that we are always prepared for a survey. It’s working hard every day to do everything possible to educate and train all staff to meet all regulations to provide the highest level of care to all patients.
What made it successful is the commitment of everyone at UConn Health to remain regulatory compliant and provide the highest level of care to our patients. We hear that it takes a village….and it truly does! There are so many employees who work very hard and are willing to do whatever they can to help have a positive impact on our survey. They are sincerely appreciated!
I don’t want to name individuals as I know I would feel terrible about leaving out the many, many people who were instrumental in this success. I do need to recognize Dr. Agwunobi’s constant support of the readiness process, including his commitment to securing repeated visits from The Joint Commission Resource consultants who helped us prepare for the actual survey. In addition, I do need to highlight:
- My staff in the Office of Healthcare and Regulatory Compliance, who worked tirelessly for months training and obtaining all documents needed.
- Senior leadership, who provided a plethora of time and support as well as vision.
- Chapter leaders, who ensured compliance and readiness with Joint Commission standards.
- Nursing and all staff who worked tirelessly to prepare their units and the entire hospital to be ready for the survey each day. Those who willingly spoke with Joint Commission surveyors and shared the positive aspects of what we do were terrific!
- Support staff who assisted day in and day out as ambassadors, scribes, runners, drivers, catering, maintenance, facilities, housekeeping.
Everyone worked together to ensure we showed The Joint Commission the best of UConn John Demspey Hospital. The work of so many wonderful, dedicated staff made the entire survey an incredible success!
And when you’re not working, you’re often volunteering?
I love to volunteer, including being the opening ceremonies and figure skating competitions director and coordinator for the Connecticut Special Olympics for many years, volunteering on the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), fundraising for the American Heart Association, and I’m very proud that I brought and chaired the first Relay for Life in Farmington!
Your family seems to have several connections with UConn basketball.
My husband played basketball at UConn (Jim Abromaitis, 1975-1980). My older son played basketball at Yale (Jason Abromaitis, 2003-2007), and married Ann Strother, who played basketball at UConn. They have two children, a 3-year-old boy and 1-year-old girl. My other son played basketball at Notre Dame (Tim Abromaitis, 2007-2012). I never played basketball, but was a UConn cheerleader.
Fall Festival and Pumpkin Palooza 2018
October 4, 2018
Wet weather didn’t dampen the spirits of all who attended this year’s Fall Festival. More than 1,000 enjoyed the annual autumnal treats and voting for their favorite Pumpkin Palooza entry. Thanks to those who volunteered and quickly turned the cafeteria into a delightful venue for this fall favorite. Photos by Tina Encarnacion.