Kathleen Coyne, director of critical care for UConn Health’s John Dempsey Hospital, is the 2014 recipient of the Peter J. Deckers Employee Appreciation Award – one of the highest employee honors awarded each year.

“Kathleen promotes positive change at UConn Health with great energy and enthusiasm. For example, she was part of a project to improve patient throughput in the Emergency Department. The team effectively decreased the time it takes for a patient to be seen in the ED, reduced the number of patients who leave the ED without being seen, decreased the time a patient gets admitted to a patient unit, and improved the hand off of a patient from the ED to the admitting floor,” hospital leadership wrote in her nominating letter.

“Kathleen embodies our mission and vision for teaching and education by mentoring staff at work, and pursuing an advanced degree to further her own education,” they added.

This award was named to recognize the legacy of Deckers, who previously served as executive vice president for health affairs and dean of the UConn School of Medicine and continues to see patients in the Carole and Ray Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center. Employees were nominated by senior leaders based on three primary criteria:

• Commitment and passion to the mission of UConn Health
• Leadership skills
• Exemplary professional skills and personal attributes

“The spirit of this award embodies Dr. Decker’s legacy and is really at the heart of who we are: a caring, compassionate community,” said Dr. Frank M. Torti, UConn Health’s executive vice president for health affairs and dean of the UConn School of Medicine.

A total of eight employees were nominated for the award:

• Kathy Black, administrative officer, Center for Quantitative Medicine, School of Medicine
• Kathleen Coyne, director of critical care, John Dempsey Hospital
• Barbara Cusati, administrative officer, School of Medicine
• Victor Hesselbrock, professor, Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine
• Karen Metersky, nurse practitioner, Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Michael Petruzzi, technical analyst II, Institutional Support
• Joseph Pirog, business systems analyst, Department of Public Safety, Institutional Support
• JoAnn Sica, performance improvement project leader, Performance Improvement & Operational Integration, Ambulatory Services

Upon learning that Coyne was the 2014 recipient, Deckers thanked her for taking good care of him when he was a patient in 2005.

The Touchstone Awards, sponsored by Shared Governance, are to acknowledge and honor individuals who have made significant contributions to the practice and provision of the allied health disciplines at UConn Health. The eligible candidates must be nominated by their colleagues or peers. Nominees must be a UConn Health employee or UConn Health contracted employee in an allied health discipline (non-nurse, non-physician)).

There are three winners in each of the three award categories this year: Service, Innovation and Teamwork.

“Touchstone Service Award”
Nominees should have significantly influenced the process, principles, and/or techniques of provision of service. This can include service to patients, internal and external customers, and the community.

o    John C. Dobbins, RPh, BS – Central Pharmacist

o    Jaroslaw Dybinski, CAN- Float Pool

o    Kimberly H. Silverman, PT, CLT – Inpatient Rehabilitation Supervisor

“Touchstone Innovation Award”
Nominees should have been instrumental in the development or execution of an innovation that positively impacts either their practice area or UConn Health as a whole. This can include; but is not limited to, program development, process improvement, service provision, etc.

o    Michael S. Desrosiers, RT, (R)(CT) – Lead Technologist – CAT Scan

o    Brittany Gancarz, MS – Certified Genetic Counselor

o    Marge Murphy – Clinical Coordinator, UConn Medical Group

“Touchstone Teamwork Award”
Nominees should have demonstrated an exceptional ability to work as a team in a way that serves as an example of the spirit of cooperation to the UConn Health community.

o    Materials and Logistics Management – Transportation

o    24 Hour Telecommunications Operators

o    John Dempsey Hospital – Blood Bank

The award letter sent to the winners says, “This honor is a testament to your accomplishments, commitment, and tireless efforts to raise the standards of excellence in your profession. It is also a testament to the high regard in which you are held by your colleagues.”

Congratulations to UConn Health’s Radiation Oncology Practice for successfully completing the Radiation Oncology Practice Accreditation process with the American College of Radiology.  This accreditation covers more than one machine or a single procedure.  It encompasses the entirety of the Radiation Oncology Practice and attests to the quality of care provided by all members of the team and all the other departments supporting the effort. The practice received the maximum three-year accreditation which will extend through Nov. 30, 2017.

Dr. Biree Andemariam was recently honored by the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame for her work “in designing and transforming our world.”

Andemariam is an assistant professor of medicine and medical director of the region’s only clinical and research center for adults with sickle cell disease. She is a fierce advocate for her patients, a highly regarded educator and an innovative researcher. Earlier this year, she was also recognized as a recipient of a Woman of Innovation Award from the Connecticut Technology Council and was honored by the School of Medicine’s Group on Women in Medicine and Science (GWIMS).

“I am extremely proud of Dr. Andemariam and her work to help patients with sickle cell disease in Connecticut. The systems that she has help to build with others serves as a model for others. The award from the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame is richly deserved,” said Dr. Paul Skolnik, chair of UConn Health’s Department of Medicine, who attended the Hall of Fame ceremony.

Also attending the ceremony was UConn Health’s Dr. Marja Hurley, associate dean and director, Office of Health Career Opportunity Programs, as well as chair of UConn’s GWIMS chapter; Dr. Jessica Clement, assistant professor, Department of Medicine and medical director of the Clinical Trials Office; Dr. James J. Grady, professor, community medicine and health care; and Amy Chesmire of the UConn Foundation.

 

Stigma surrounding psoriasis has persisted as long as people have manifested its dry red scaly patches on their skin. Doctors suspect that this includes references in the Bible to “lepers.”

Current medication for this chronic autoimmune disease clears the symptoms from only about half of patients, and older treatments such as methotrexate have been shown to cause organ toxicity over time. As a result, just one-third of people with moderate to severe psoriasis seek treatment.

But Dr. Bruce Strober, vice chair of UConn Health’s Department of Dermatology, says treatment of this common disease has experienced a “renaissance” in the past decade, with the development of more advanced therapies with minimal side effects.

Strober recently testified before the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) about a new medicine that could dramatically improve the lives of the nearly 7.5 million Americans with psoriasis.

“The reason these new injectable therapies represent a renaissance is that they effectively treat a high percentage of patients,” explains Strober, who was recently recognized by the National Psoriasis Foundation for his commitment to cure psoriatic disease. “And more advanced therapies are in the pipeline.”

Strober answered questions for the FDA about secukinumab – a novel medication for the treatment of adult moderate to severe psoriasis. In clinical trials, Strober found the drug highly effective – clearing or nearly clearing the skin of 80 percent of patients.

“This has really changed psoriasis therapy,” says Strober. “These therapies have widened interest in medical dermatology in general, because the knowledge base that goes into using these medicines creates an environment and interest in all serious skin disease, not just psoriasis.”

With psoriasis, it’s not just a patient’s skin that is inflamed but also often joints, ligaments, tissues, and organs, such as the liver and blood vessels. Unchecked inflammation throughout the body creates sticky blood vessels, which means a greater chance of clotting, and therefore an increased risk for heart attacks or strokes.

That’s one reason why people with moderate to severe psoriasis live an average of five years less than people in the general population, Strober says.”Patients come in and they’re focused on the risks of the medicines, and I tell them they need to focus on the risks of the disease when it’s untreated.

“These patients are suffering,” Strober adds. “They become reclusive, they have high absenteeism. If they go to work they are not productive, because they’re incredibly self-conscious and experience physical discomfort.”

Yet, even while psoriasis medications are improving, there is a lack of information about the patients themselves, which is why Strober is also working on the development of a new registry for psoriasis patients.

As scientific director for the project, Strober hopes to enroll thousands of patients in the National Psoriasis Foundation and Corrona Registry. The registry will collect data on patients, following them over many years, chronicling their therapies and any issues that arise.

“A good registry has patients on many different treatments, and you compare them to see how each therapy works in the real world,” he says. “Importantly, registries provide information about the safety of each treatment.”