Patient Care

Commissioner Visits UConn Center on Aging

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From left: Drs. Gail Sullivan and George Kuchel from the UConn Center on Aging discuss geriatric research, education and clinical care with Connecticut Department on Aging Commissioner Elizabeth Ritter. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health)
From left: Drs. Gail Sullivan and George Kuchel from the UConn Center on Aging discuss UConn Health’s geriatric research, education and clinical care with Connecticut Department on Aging Commissioner Elizabeth Ritter. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health)

The exact numbers may vary by projection, but all point to a critical shortage of geriatricians as the U.S. elderly population continues to grow.

It’s what was on the mind of Elizabeth Ritter, commissioner of the Connecticut Department on Aging, on her recent visit to UConn Health.

Ritter met with faculty at the UConn Center on Aging to get a sense of what the University is doing to produce more physicians and other providers who can meet the growing needs.

“It was an opportunity for me to see one of the country’s foremost centers,” Ritter says. “I was interested in learning about geriatrics and where we’re going with it, particularly the projected shortages of people who will be caring for us as we age.”

Dr. George Kuchel, director of the UConn Center on Aging, says while people have been aging since the beginning of time, aging as a field of endeavor for clinical care is relatively young.

“We have major shortages of providers in geriatric medicine and geriatric psychiatry, and not just doctors, but all levels of clinical care,” Kuchel says. “Connecticut does much better, but we’re still facing a shortage.”

According to American Geriatrics Society data from 2014, Connecticut had a shortfall of 113 geriatricians, and has a projected shortfall of more than 200 by 2030.

“In the 30 years the UConn Center on Aging has been here, it has produced research and educated those who will care for the most quickly growing part of our population,” Ritter says. “It was incredibly far-sighted of the founders more than 30 years ago to create this, and now, even more so.”

Her visit included a conversation with Dr. Suzanne Rose, the UConn School of Medicine’s senior associate dean for education.

“We discussed the importance of continuing to integrate geriatrics in all levels of the medical education program,” Ritter says. “There’s no way geriatrics is not going to be integrated in everything we do in medicine.”

Ritter also had lunch with geriatric fellows and got a tour of the UConn Health campus.

 

ENT Surgeons Building Specialty Sinus Program at UConn Health

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Drs. Belachew Tessema (left) and Seth Brown are building a specialty sinus practice at UConn Health. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health)
Drs. Belachew Tessema (left) and Seth Brown are building a specialty sinus practice at UConn Health. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health)

UConn Health is building a specialty sinus practice as part of its ear, nose and throat practice.

Drs. Seth Brown and Belachew Tessema are seeing patients at the UConn Health Outpatient Pavilion, on lower Farmington campus.

They bring their expertise to treat complex problems such as sinonasal disorders, sinusitis, nasal polyps and sinus tumors.

“Drs. Brown and Tessema allow us to offer surgical and nonsurgical treatment of the most complex sinus problems right here at UConn,” says Dr. Denis Lafreniere, medical director of UConn Health’s faculty practice. Both are well known in the community and to our students and residents, as they’ve been part of our faculty for years.”

Brown is a UConn School of Medicine graduate and teaches UConn residents as site director for UConn’s residency program at Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center. He did his residency training in otolaryngology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and completed a rhinology fellowship in advanced endoscopic sinus and skull base surgery at Cornell University’s Weill Medical College.

Tessema also is a UConn School of Medicine graduate who did his surgical and otolaryngology training in New York City – at the Beth Israel Medical Center and the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary. His fellowship training in rhinology and advanced endoscopic sinus and skull base surgery was at the University of Miami. Tessema is a clinical assistant professor in UConn Health’s Department of Surgery, Division of Otolaryngology.

Both are board certified in otolaryngology.

Brown and Tessema currently see sinus patients at UConn Health on alternating Fridays. They expect to extend those hours as the practice grows.

 

New ‘UConn Health’ Landmark

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UConn Health's new hospital tower now features the new UConn Health wordmark. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health)
UConn Health’s new hospital tower now features the new UConn Health wordmark. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health)

You may have noticed a new addition to the UConn Health skyline in recent days.

The new UConn Health wordmark now adorns the north façade of the new hospital tower.

It’s part of the effort to rebrand as UConn Health. The sign is visible from Farmington Avenue and will be lit at night.

The new hospital tower is the centerpiece of the reconstruction of the UConn Health campus under Bioscience Connecticut, the $864 million state investment envisioned by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy to be a catalyst for biomedical research and health care in Connecticut. It is on schedule to open next year.

A view of the UConn Health patient tower from lower campus, days after the new wordmark was added. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health)
The view from lower campus, days after the new wordmark was added to the new hospital tower. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health)

Pearson Named Editor-in-Chief of Nursing Scholarly Journal

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Geraldine Pearson starts as editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association Jan. 1, 2016. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health Center Photo)
Geraldine Pearson starts as editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association Jan. 1, 2016. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health Center Photo)

UConn Health’s Geraldine Pearson will serve as editor-in-chief for the Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association (JAPNA) starting next year.

JAPNA is a bi-monthly peer-reviewed publication with an international circulation of nearly 13,000.

“At an exciting time of growth and increased visibility for the journal, it was paramount to secure an editor who could build upon current momentum,” says APNA President Susie Adams. “With her prior experience as an editor as well as her clearly defined vision for developing JAPNA, the Board of Directors feel confident that Dr. Pearson will be successful as editor-in-chief of JAPNA in meeting readership interests across diverse settings and roles while retaining the quality and rigor of the journal.”

Pearson, associate professor of psychiatry at the UConn School of Medicine, has been the editor of Perspectives in Psychiatric Nursing since 2008.

“My appointment as the editor-in-chief of JAPNA presents an exciting opportunity to work with an association journal that includes a membership from all ranges of psychiatric nurses involved in practice, education, administration, and research,” Pearson says. “I hope to craft a journal that meets a broad range of member needs while maintaining a professional, evidence-based focus.”

Pearson is an advanced practice registered nurse and has a doctorate in nursing research from the UConn School of Nursing. She serves as chair of the medical school’s admissions committee, as director of UConn Health’s Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic in West Hartford, and as director of the HomeCare Program for adolescents involved in the juvenile justice system.

“Dr. Pearson adds this achievement to several other accomplishments in her career,” says Dr. David Steffens, UConn Health psychiatry chair. “This is a recognition of her longstanding leadership in the field of academic nursing, and it speaks volumes about the important roles that nursing leaders play at UConn Health.”

The American Psychiatric Nurses Association focuses on the specialty practice of psychiatric-mental health nursing and wellness promotion, prevention of mental health problems, and the care and treatment of those with psychiatric disorders. Its journal publishes clinical and research articles intended to promote psychiatric nursing, shape health care policy for the delivery of mental health services, and improve mental health care for culturally diverse people, families, groups and communities.

UConn Health Welcomes New Providers

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Meet some of the new clinicians who recently have joined UConn Health.

Dr. Mario Perez
 Dr. Mario Perez, a graduate of the UConn School of Medicine Categorical Internal Medicine Residency Program, is back at UConn Health as a member of the clinical faculty. Perez is a pulmonologist who primarily sees patients in the intensive care unit. He completed a pulmonary and critical care medicine fellowship at the Yale School of Medicine and concurrently earned his MPH at the Yale School of Public Health. His M.D. is from Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogatá, Colombia. Perez is board certified in internal medicine, pulmonary disease, and critical care medicine. He speaks English and Spanish.

Dr. Ethan Bortniker
 Dr. Ethan Bortniker is a gastroenterologist seeing patients at the UConn Health Outpatient Pavilion and the Colorectal Cancer Prevention Center in Farmington. He recently completed a fellowship in gastroenterology and hepatology at the UConn School of Medicine and a residency in internal medicine at the Boston University School of Medicine, where he also earned his M.D. He is board certified in internal medicine and has clinical and research interest in colon cancer prevention and motility disorders. Bortniker holds the additional title of director of colorectal clinical research.

Dr. Ridhi Bansal
 Dr. Ridhi Bansal is a primary care physician seeing patients at UConn Health in Canton. She is board certified in internal medicine and her clinical interests include women’s health, geriatrics, preventive medicine and endocrinology. Bansal completed an internal medicine residency at Danbury Hospital (affiliated with the Yale School of Medicine) and is a graduate of Dayanand Medical College and Hospital in India. She speaks English, Hindi and Punjabi.

Dr. Tilahun Gemtessa
 Dr. Tilahun Gemtessa is an infectious diseases physician who is working primarily with Correctional Managed Health. He also sees patients in the ID practice in the UConn Health Outpatient Pavilion. His areas of clinical interest include HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C and international health. He is a graduate of the UConn School of Medicine Infectious Diseases Fellowship Program, and did his residency training in internal medicine at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx and Howard University Hospital in Washington, D.C. His M.D. is from Jimma University in Ethiopia. Gemtessa is board certified in internal medicine.

Lindsay Osborne, APRN
 Lindsay Osborne is an APRN who sees patients in UConn Health’s family medicine practice in Plainville. She holds a master’s in nursing from the University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford and a bachelor’s in nursing from Simmons College in Boston.

 (First photo by Peter Morenus, the rest by Janine Gelineau)

‘Awake Brain Surgery’ Uses Latest Technology to Preserve Patient’s Speech

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“Why did this have to happen to  me now?”

That’s what Martha Walker kept asking herself after being diagnosed with a brain tumor. The mother of three school-age children had just completed her master’s degree in social work. She had worked extremely hard and was looking forward to a new journey in her life, but the pecan-sized tumor in Martha’s brain threatened to derail those plans.

A major concern was that the tumor was situated dangerously close to the area of the brain that controlled her speech and language center. That’s why Dr. Ryan Zengou, a UConn Health neurosurgeon, recommended a procedure called intraoperative brain mapping or “awake brain surgery.”

Being awake during the operation allowed Martha to talk with speech therapist Karen Collins and answer her questions. Martha’s responses helped Dr. Zengou create a digital map of the functional areas of her brain and identify exactly where the tumor was. Anesthesiologist Fritze Bunke made sure Martha was asleep at the beginning and end of the surgery but sedated and awake in the middle.

Dr. Zengou successfully removed the entire tumor and Martha never lost her ability to speak or process language. Martha is impressed with the care she received along her entire health care journey at UConn Health – from the emergency department to the surgical team and now radiation therapy, where she’s currently undergoing treatments.

National Quality Measure for UConn Health Breast Program

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NAPBC plaque 2015
UConn Health’s Carole and Ray Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center has an accredited breast health program. (Janine Gelineau/UConn Health photo)

UConn Health’s Carole and Ray Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center is celebrating its newly accredited breast program.

The National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers has awarded UConn Health’s cancer center full three-year accreditation, a formal acknowledgment from the American College of Surgeons of UConn Health’s commitment to providing high-quality evaluation and management of patients with breast disease.

The distinction “is only given to those centers that have voluntarily committed to provide the highest level of quality breast care and that undergo a rigorous evaluation process and review of their performance,” according to an NAPBC news release. “A breast center that achieves NAPBC accreditation has demonstrated a firm commitment to offer its patients every significant advantage in their battle against breast disease.”

Standards required for accreditation include proficiency in center leadership, clinical management, research, community outreach, professional education, and quality improvement.

“The breast program is judged and evaluated, not only by the excellence of its doctors, but also the ability of the entire patient care staff as well as clinical trial, outreach and research staff to address the multitude of issues that face women with breast health concerns,” says Dr. Susan Tannenbaum, Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center director of medical oncology. “It additionally means that the program is actively working towards improving the breast health of future generations as well as working towards reducing disparities in our patient populations.”

The surveyor’s report gave UConn Health high marks for its multidisciplinary care, an institutional commitment to basic science research, and strong hospital administrative support for the cancer program.

“Accreditation is something that informs patients or supporters of our program, that we are recognized as a dedicated and capable program,” Tannenbaum says. “In getting our accreditation, our breast program was acknowledged to have all those elements needed, but recognized as well to have many things in place to be used as an example of what others should look at for best practices in a breast program, and that is an accomplishment we are all proud of.”

More information about the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers is available at www.accreditedbreastcenters.org.

 

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UConn Health Hospital CEO Joins State Hospital Association Trustees

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UConn Health’s top hospital executive is now also a Connecticut Hospital Association trustee.

Anne Diamond, who was named CEO of John Dempsey Hospital in December after 16 months as interim CEO, was elected to the CHA Board of Trustees at the association’s annual meeting June 30.

“I am honored to be among the executives elected to represent the dynamic needs of Connecticut hospitals now and into the future,” Diamond says. “I believe my clinical, administrative, research and legal experience brings a unique perspective to the challenging issues of health care today and for the future.”

It’s the first time a UConn hospital executive has been a CHA trustee.

“It speaks to the emerging leadership role that UConn Health is taking in the hospital landscape within the state,” Diamond says. “As a trustee, I will have the opportunity to better understand the pressing issues of hospitals within our state, region and nationally on key health care issues in the areas of quality and patient safety, access and coverage, workforce, community health, health equity, and hospital reimbursement.”

Diamond joins a 21-member board that serves as CHA’s principal policy-making body. Trustees include health care institution chief executives as well as hospital trustees, physicians and other senior health care leaders. Her term runs through June 2018.

“Anne brings to the CHA Board extraordinary experience and commitment to patient care. She is deeply involved in improving population health, serving as co-chair of the CHA Asthma Initiative and as a member of the Committee on Population Health,” says CHA CEO Jennifer Jackson. “Through her leadership, UConn Health John Dempsey Hospital is also a leader in quality and patient safety, and recently won CHA’s John D. Thompson Award for Excellence in the Delivery of Healthcare Through the Use of Data for its project, STEMI Partnership for Patient Outcome Optimization. We look forward to having Anne serve as a member of the CHA Board of Trustees.”

Before her appointment as interim CEO of John Dempsey Hospital, Diamond served for two years as the hospital’s chief operating officer. She joined UConn Health in 2010 as associate vice president of clinical operations.

“This is an exciting time for UConn Health in so many ways, as our new hospital and outpatient pavilion provide true healing environments for our patients,” Diamond says. “As a trustee, I will be able to ensure that the needs of our patients are represented as new statewide initiatives are planned.”

Diamond, who earned an Executive Juris Doctor from the Concord School of Law, began her career as a nuclear medicine technologist.

The CHA Board of Trustees is one of many boards and committees on which she serves:

  • American Heart Association Go Red For Women (past chair 2014)
  • American Heart Association Ball Committee,
  • Leo and Anne Albert Institute for Bladder Cancer Care and Research (treasurer)
  • Capital Area Health Consortium
  • Women’s Choice Award for Healthcare Advisory Board
  • American Red Cross Gala Committee
  • UConn Health Auxiliary
  • CHA Board of Directors Subcommittees on Population Health, Statewide Asthma Initiative (co-chair)
  • UConn Health Finance Corporation

CHA states its mission as representing the interests of Connecticut’s hospitals on key health care issues through state and federal advocacy.

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Vinnie’s Journey Continues: Chapter 2

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“I feel great!” Vinnie Jankowski is thrilled with the progress he’s made so far on his healthier lifestyle journey. The UConn Health surgical technician has lost a total of 30 pounds, his total cholesterol level has decreased from 186 to 147, and he’s lowered his blood pressure from 170/100 to 124/82. These dramatic improvements are potentially life-saving because it greatly reduces the constant pressure being placed on his heart due to an aortic aneurysm.

Vinnie credits his success to Brad Biskup with UConn Health’s Lifestyle Medicine Clinic, and all the support he’s received from his family and colleagues. But his journey continues – Vinnie wants to lose another 30 pounds and get off his meds. So stay tuned…..

UConn Health Honored for Heart Attack Care

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UConn Health is a 2015 winner of the American Heart Association's Mission: Lifeline Gold Receiving Quality Achievement Award for treatment of heart attack patients at John Dempsey Hospital.
UConn Health is a 2015 winner of the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline Gold Receiving Quality Achievement Award for treatment of heart attack patients at John Dempsey Hospital.

UConn Health’s John Dempsey Hospital has received the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline® Gold Receiving Quality Achievement Award for its treatment of heart attack patients.

The award recognizes hospitals, emergency medical services, and referring centers for their efforts to improve quality care for those who suffer severe heart attack, or ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).

“UConn Health is dedicated to improving the quality of care for our patients who suffer a heart attack, and the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program is helping us accomplish that goal through nationally respected clinical guidelines,” says John Dempsey Hospital CEO Anne Diamond. “We are pleased to be recognized for our dedication and achievements in cardiac care, and I am very proud of our team.”

UConn Health earned the award by meeting specific criteria and standards of performance for the quick and appropriate treatment of STEMI patients by providing emergency procedures to re-establish blood flow to blocked arteries when needed. The gold award level recognizes two consecutive calendar years of meeting these criteria.

“We commend UConn Health for this achievement award, which reflects a significant institutional commitment to the highest quality of care for their heart attack patients,” says Dr. James G. Jollis, chair of the Mission: Lifeline Advisory Working Group and president of the North Carolina Chapter of the American College of Cardiology. “We applaud them for their commitment to quality and timely care.”

The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program’s goal is to reduce system barriers to prompt treatment for heart attacks, beginning with the 9-1-1 call and continuing through hospital treatment. The program helps hospitals and emergency medical services develop systems of care that follow proven standards and procedures for STEMI patients. It works by mobilizing teams across the continuum of care to implement American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology Foundation clinical treatment guidelines. For more information, visit heart.org/missionlifeline and heart.org/quality.

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