January 29, 2016
MEDICAL UNIVERSITY of SOUTH CAROLINA
Vol. 34, No. 20
Inside MUSC Parkshore celebrates with leaders New divisioN
By Cindy ABole
6 chief
aboleca@musc.edu
Di Salvo takes the reins of cardiology.
Ted Talks
9
The ABCs of sharing your message.
2
Around Campus
5
Meet Paul
8
Inventors
photos by Sarah Pack, packsa@musc.edu
MUSC President David Cole, second from left, and MUSC Health CEO Dr. Patrick Cawley, far left, greet a big crowd of employees Jan. 21 as they gather to celebrate diversity at MUSC’s Parkshore Office. Cheryl McWillliams, left, Patient Financial Services manager, meets and talks with MUSC President David Cole as Parkshore co–worker Brandy Anderson, Customer Services supervisor, looks on.
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Excitement was in the air as dozens of employees filled the lobby of MUSC’s Parkshore Office for a Jan. 21 midday event. The occasion featured a special MUSC Imagine 2020 event celebrating Diversity and Inclusion, one the five goals of the strategic plan. MUSC President David Cole, M.D., FACS, MUSC Health CEO Patrick Cawley, M.D., University Chief Diversity Officer Willette Burnham, Ph.D., and members of senior leadership traveled seven miles from downtown Charleston to West Ashley to meet co–workers and share their thoughts. “We’ve spent the last year laying the groundwork for our institution’s strategc direction and common purpose,” said Cole. “Having something that resonates with each individual’s hearts, in terms of who and what we are and what we represent to ourselves and our community, is important and has resulted in MUSC Imagine 2020.” Cole emphasized the plan’s common values for the institution — respect, collaboration, innovation, compassion and integrity — and how these values serve as the groundwork for employees and their daily efforts. “We should embrace diversity as one of this institution’s five goals. Without us accomplishing this goal, we will be less than we ever can be: less as a nation, a community and an enterprise,” he said. Cawley thanked employees who have volunteered and served on various diversity and inclusion sub– committees. “We’ve had a tremendous number of ideas that have been generated by groups led by our diversity leaders Dr. Willette Burnham and Anton Gunn. Please keep this up. We firmly believe we’re only as good as all of us together,” he said. In conclusion, Cawley praised Parkshore employees as members of the greater MUSC care team. “We cannot be MUSC without our non-clinical caregivers. Traditionally, one sees the term ‘caregiver’ and thinks only of a doctor or a nurse. We’re going to begin using the term ‘caregivers’ or ‘caregiving team’ for all MUSC employees. That’s because everyone can care. Everyone can be compassionate.” “When all of us are that, we can do great things for MUSC,” Cawley said.
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2 The CATAlysT, Jan. 29, 2016
PeoPle
Around Campus
Julie Barroso
Oyster Festival – Jan. 31
Julie Barroso Ph.D., R.N., a professor in the College of Nursing, has assumed the position of chair in the Department of Nursing. Barroso has replaced colleague and predecessor Gayenell Magwood, Ph.D., R.N. who will continue as a researcher within the college.
Hazel Breland Hazel Breland, Ph.D., assistant professor and academic fieldwork coordinator, Division of Occupational Therapy, College of Health Professions, has been chosen to receive the American Occupational Therapy Assocation Roster of Fellows. The award recognizes her knowledge, expertise and contributions to continuing education and professional development. Breland will be presented this award at the upcoming 2016 AOTA conference in Chicago from April 7 to April 10.
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
evenTs The 33rd Lowcountry Oyster Festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 31, at Boone Hall Plantation, 1235 Longpoint Road in Mount Pleasant. Advance tickets are $17.50 per person ($25 day of event). Proceeds will benefit The Hollings Cancer Center and other charities. For tickets and information, visit www. charlestonrestaurantassociation.com/ lowcountry-oyster-festival/.
Kids Night Out – Feb. 5 photo by Anne Thompson, Digital Imaging
MUSC Women Scholars Initiative members Drs. Rosalie Crouch, from left, Deborah Deas, Darlene Shaw and Tammy Nowling celebrate the group receiving the 2015 AAMC’s Group on Women in Medicine and Science Leadership Award. A campuswide reception celebrating this award was held Jan. 22 at Colcock Hall.
Ruth Henderson
Ruth Henderson, R.N., has joined the College of Nursing as a clinical instructor in the area of simulation teaching. Henderson has extensive clinical experience in critical care nursing and specializes in cardiovascular and neurovascular nursing. 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., 843-958-7480 or 843-937-4803. E-mail: sales@moultrienews.com.
David Louder
David Louder, M.D., has been selected to serve as Chief of the MUSC Health Clinically Integrated Network (MUSC Health Alliance) and also will serve as Chief of the MUSC Health Primary, Care Integrated Center of Clinical Excellence. He will begin Feb. 1.
Mom and dad looking for a night out? The MUSC Wellness Center is offering a Kid’s Night Out, from 5 to 10 p.m., Friday, Feb. 5. This evening youth program is offered for children, ages 5 to 9. Activities include gym games, swim time, arts and crafts and movie time. Register by Feb. 3 via email at kids@musc. edu or call 792-0767.
Chase After a Cure Gala
Help fight childhood cancer by supporting the Chase After a Cure 8th Annual Gala 7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 6 at the Charleston Gaillard Center. This year’s theme is “Chasing Cures in a Garden of Possibilities.” Tickets are $125 per person. Proceeds from the gala helps fund local research and equipment for treatment at the MUSC Children’s Hospital. For information, visit www. chaseafteracure.com.
MUSC Waring Historical Library Presents Building a Medical Center: The Construction of the 1955 Medical College Hospital
60th Anniversary Web exhibit Visit http://waring.library.musc.edu/exhibits/1955Hospital/index.php Founded in 1824 under the auspices of the Medical Society of Scouth Carolina, MUSC has grown from an initial faculty of seven and student population of five into one of the nation’s top academic health centers. For information, call Brooke Fox, 792-6477
The CATAlysT, Jan. 29, 2016 3
Immunologist remembered fondly by colleagues Dr. Tetsuya Nishimoto in the lab where he pursued cutting-edge treatments for fibrosis prior to his death on Jan. 20. His colleagues and friends remember him as a patient mentor, kindhearted friend and dedicated researcher. In lieu of flowers his family humbly requests donations to cover the cost of transporting his body back to Japan: https:// gofundme.com/efkc7u78
By J. Ryne dAnielson daniejer@musc.edu
T
etsuya Nishimoto, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in MUSC’s Division of Rheumatology and Immunology, died January 20 after a brief illness. He was 32. Nishimoto is survived by his wife, Shino Nishimoto, of Mount Pleasant; and his parents, Yoshio and Yasuko Nishimoto, of Saitama, Japan. He studied at Keio University School of Medicine in Tokyo and joined the laboratory of his mentor, Carol Feghali–Bostwick, Ph.D., the SmartState and Kitty Trask Holt Endowed Chair, at the University of Pittsburgh before relocating with Feghali–Bostwick to MUSC in 2013. His colleagues remember him as a patient mentor, kindhearted friend and dedicated researcher. “Tetsuya loved to teach,” Feghali–Bostwick, said. “He was very good at it.” She explained that Nishimoto was working on cutting–edge research before he died. “We discovered a peptide that may be a potential therapy for fibrosis,” Feghali-Bostwick said. “Tetsuya was working on its mechanism of action — how it works — in advance of phase I clinical trials. He had most of the work drafted. He was preparing a manuscript about it.” Feghali–Bostwick, who is originally from Lebanon, said she knows how difficult it can be living in a new country, especially in a time of personal tragedy. But she also knows how valuable different perspectives can be in the lab. “Having a diverse group of individuals makes us more innovative,” she said. “It makes us smarter.” Besides being an excellent scientist, Nishimoto’s most important contribution, she said, is that he helped inspire others through his dedication and willingness to always lend a hand to anyone who needed it. “He also inspired people to want to learn about other cultures, want to meet people from other countries, want to learn other languages,” Feghali-Bostwick said.
photos provided
“He showed them how much that enriches your life.” Though she has worked at larger institutions in the past, Feghali–Bostwick believes MUSC is unique in how supportive everyone is. “As difficult and tragic as this experience is, it’s made me proud to be at MUSC. Everyone reached out and tried to help in some way.” One of those, she said, was Nishimoto’s doctor and friend, Takamitsu Saigusa, M.D., who stood by him and his wife day and night and has continued to support the family through the mourning process. “When mentees join our labs,” she continued, “they become part of our family. So, in difficult times like this, they should never feel reluctant to reach out and seek help. There is a huge circle of people at MUSC that care. Irrespective of background, ethnicity, age, gender — irrespective of anything — we just care because that is what human beings do toward human beings. Everybody matters and everybody counts, regardless of where you’re from or where you’re going.” A memorial service for Nishimoto was held on Jan. 24; another will be held in Japan. Because Nishimoto was an international scholar, he was not covered by the basic life insurance policy by which most MUSC employees are covered. As such, in lieu of flowers, his family humbly requests that donations be sent to Shino Nishimoto’s GoFundMe page (https:// www.gofundme.com/efkc7u78) to help cover medical costs and the costs of transporting Nishimoto’s body back to Japan. colleagues, frieNds express ThoughTs “He was so brilliant but also patient and kind —always willing to help others and answer questions. He will be missed.” — DeAnna Baker Frost, M.D., Ph.D., rheumatology fellow
Dr. Tetsuya Nishimoto and his wife, Shino.
“I used to ask him a million questions per hour, he never hesitated once to give ample time to explain. I didn’t know him for long, but he sure taught me a lot during this time.” — Maya Malaab, M.D., post doctoral fellow
“Tetsuya was an exceptional colleague, mentor and friend. He taught me many skills in the laboratory and outside of our work. Some of our best conversations involved the exchange of the differences between our cultures and traditions. Understanding where we came from and why we think the way we do helped strengthen our relationship and respect for each other. He was always willing and eager to help everyone no matter how busy he was. He will be greatly missed and forever in our memories.” — Logan Mlakar, lab manager “I moved from Japan to Charleston last September. Tetsuya kindly took care of me and helped me with everything in my new life in Charleston — even arranging my apartment. He quickly became my best friend.” — Atsushi Noguchi, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow “Tetsuya was a dear friend and a part of our family for the past two years. He was a wonderful and loving husband to his wife, Shino. He was an incredible friend to us. He was also so kind, caring and attentive to our three boys. Every time we had a gathering, Tetsuya would disappear outside with the children. He would run around with them for hours playing tag and soccer. Then he would come inside for dinner a little sweaty and with a satisfied and happy smile on his face. He will be missed more than words can express.” — Matthew and Crystal Hawkins, personal friends “Tetsuya was a brilliant, promising scientist and, most of all, a close family friend. We are deeply saddened by this tragedy, and we are going to miss him so much. At the same time, I will pass on Tetsuya’s parents’ feeling that they were so relieved and grateful to see that he was surrounded by so many good friends in life. I extend my deepest condolences to Shino and his family.” — Takamitsu Saigusa, M.D.
4 The CATAlysT, Jan, 29, 2016
Research Impact Dr. Amy Brock Martin q Associate Professor, College of Dental Medicine and director, Division of Population Oral Health q HRSA Award: $1.1 million (Total cost) q Sept. 1, 2015 to Aug. 31, 2018
Amy Brock Martin, DrPH, associate professor in the College of Dental Medicine, received a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) grant to reduce rural oral health disparities for children and high–risk adults with diabetes through medical–dental integration that emphasizes improvements in care and system performance. The Rural Oral Health Advancement and Delivery Systems (ROADS) project is a statewide collaboration of the South Carolina Office of Rural Health, South Carolina Dental Association and the DentaQuest Institute. This HRSA Oral Health Workforce grant requires a 40 percent non–federal match. DentaQuest is providing separate funding for the team to work with rural primary care providers. With these grants, Martin’s team is using quality improvement science to facilitate adoption of oral health interprofessional competencies such as oral health risk assessments, fluoride varnish applications, and dental referral management. To date DentaQuest has committed approximately $525,000 to the project. ROADS is one of the flagship initiatives led by Martin and new Division of population Oral Health. Takamitsu Saigusa, M.D., assistant professor in the Division of Nephrology of the Department of Medicine, received an NIH Career Development Award to study
hypertension and polycystic kidney disease (PKD). PKD is a genetic disorder that results in multiple kidney cysts and hypertension. Currently, there is no cure for PKD, and once kidney dysfunction occurs, there is a universal decline in kidney function leading to end–stage kidney disease. Dr. Takamitsu Saigusa q Assistant Professor, Division of Nephrology, College of Medicine q NIH KO8 Award: $159,233 (Year 1 funding) q Sept. 1, 2015 to Aug. 31, 2020
Hypertension is one early manifestation of PKD, and these studies are designed to determine if cilia and/or polycystin1 dysfunction results in altered protein localization in the kidney and increased intrarenal renin– angiotensin system (RAS), thus leading to increased salt and water absorption and hypertension. One major aspect of this proposal is to test a novel antisense oligonucleotide that suppresses the production of angiotensinogen and determine whether this drug is more effective in lowering blood pressure or slowing cyst progression compared to current RAS blockers. This proposal has important implications in human PKD, as angiotensinogen may become a novel therapeutic target to treat PKD. Gonzalo J. Revuelta, DO, associate professor in the Department of Neurology, was awarded a Mentored Patient–Oriented Research Career Development Award to identify gait and imaging markers for freezing of gait (FoG) in Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients. The objective of this project will characterize the network changes underlying FoG and
Dr. Gonzalo Revuelta q Associate Professor, Department of Neurology q NIH K23 Award: $190,877 (Year 1 funding) q Sept. 15, 2015 to Aug. 31, 2020
identify the quantifiable gait parameters associated with these changes. The central hypothesis is that dopaminergic response in FoG is dictated by the underlying pathology affecting pathways arising from the mesencephalic locomotor region (MLR) to cortical structures (locomotor pathways). The rationale is to quantify connectivity along locomotor pathways and determine which gait parameters are most closely associated to these connectivity changes. This project plans to accomplish this by evaluating the structural connectivity locomotor network using diffusional kurtosis imaging (DKI) in patients with FoG. Next, the plan is to quantify multiple gait parameters (velocity, stride and step length, cadence, time to turn) under varying cognitive loads to determine which parameters are most closely linked to network changes. The study will assess the degree of structural connectivity in the locomotor pathway in three groups of PD patients characterized by their response to dopamine (non–freezers, dopa–responsive– freezers and dopa–unresponsive freezers). At the conclusion of this study, Revuelta expects to have determined how the locomotor pathway connectivity differs depending on doparesponse and which objective gait parameters are most closely linked to these changes. This finding would have a significant positive impact by validating the locomotor network as a therapeutic target for neuromodulators and addressing the most critical issue for the treatment of FoG: dopaminergic response.
The CATAlysT, Jan. 29, 2016 5
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6 The CATAlysT, Jan, 29, 2016
New cardiology chief running on all cylinders By Mikie hAyes hayesMi@musc.edu
S
ome professionals are visionaries, with a gift for conceptualizing innovative and ground–breaking ideas, while others are implementers, taking those possibilities and skillfully designing them and bringing them to fruition — two equally important talents. Throughout his career, Thomas Di Salvo, M.D., has been successful at both. And those valuable qualities ensure the Division of Cardiology is in especially good hands at a time when health care seems to be changing by the day. Assuming the leadership of the division last November, Di Salvo has embraced the opportunity to help the division grow and steer it to the next level of excellence. Considered a leader in the field, advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology is Di Salvo’s specialty. Having practiced for nearly 30 years, he understands South Carolina’s dire reality, where heart disease waffles between being the No. 1 and No. 2 leading cause of death in any given year. He is no stranger to treating heart disease in the South, where deaths from the disease are disproportionately higher. Di Salvo joined MUSC from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where he served as the medical director of the Heart and Vascular Institute and director of advanced heart failure care. On staff there for 11 years, he contributed greatly during a time when that institution went from No. 4 in reputation and volume to No. 1 in both. MUSC Health CEO Patrick Cawley, M.D., is pleased with his appointment. “I am especially excited to have Dr. Tom Di Salvo leading our Division of Cardiology. His collaborative leadership style, coupled with his experience successfully expanding and elevating innovative heart programs around the country, most certainly positions MUSC’s cardiovascular clinical, research, and prevention efforts for unprecedented growth and success. And, he’s a darned good heart failure specialist to boot. MUSC Health is fortunate to have him, as are South Carolina’s heart patients.” Some of the nation’s most distinguished institutions appear on Di Salvo’s curriculum vitae. After graduating from Harvard University, where he majored in English, he attended the University of Cincinnati School of Medicine, and then completed his residency in internal medicine at Johns Hopkins University. Di Salvo completed his fellowship in cardiology at Massachusetts General Hospital and at the same time earned a Master in Clinical Science in Epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health. He joined the staff of the MGH Heart Failure Center in 1995, then leaving to assume the medical directorship at Vanderbilt, where he also completed an MBA. When he first visited MUSC, he saw an increasingly
photo provided
MUSC Division of Cardiology Chief Dr. Tom Di Salvo hopes to start a team “fun run” in the division and encourages participation in runs, 5Ks and marathon events. thriving economic base, rapid population growth and a medical center committed to change and taking the next leap forward. But, in particular, the medical center’s determination to grow by focusing more increasingly on patients and innovation, as well as reinvesting in research infrastructure, caught his attention, as did the national prominence of the Division of Cardiology. “Basic science here in cardiology has always been extraordinarily strong. When I was a fellow, MUSC was one of the places we all looked to for the basic science of some fundamental aspects of heart failure. MUSC was internationally recognized for its contribution to fibrosis and remodeling of the heart — that just needs to be cultivated and taken to the next level of excellence. The clinical division is already really strong. It just needs to grow and expand and become more differentiated.” Overall, he knew he had walked into a very strong division. “I don’t think we are deficient in anything we field… we just need to deepen and strengthen.” His sense is that as an academic medical center, it’s important that heart services stand out in the marketplace. “We’re the only tertiary and quaternary care center in the state. I see even more so our market is the state of South Carolina. That brings many opportunities. We’re looked to by the legislature and populace as the thought leaders in cardiovascular
disease. In Boston, there are three or four who are looked to. But here, we are the leaders.” Before he accepted the position, he put great thought into what truly competitive clinical programs MUSC would need to put into the field that will provide what others are providing. “I thought about this carefully before I took the post to see how far we could go toward that. We don’t want to just be as dominant as we can be in our regional market, we want to be as dominant as possible. Our competitive stage is national, not regional. I actually think that even though some programs are slated for growth, we are already competitive. We just have to enhance what we do in some selected areas – and grow more generally to deliver the volumes and opportunities for research and training, that are core aspects of our mission, in addition to patient care.” His agenda is already heavily inked in with a variety of things he’s concentrating on for the next couple of years. “We are growing a unique resource for the state of South Carolina. But it needs growth. It needs more cardiologists and additional surgical support, and we are recruiting vigorously for both.” For him, that’s job one. “What we need to do now is grow. We are first in reputation in state, by far, but third in volume. That’s a wonderful place to start from.” Now, he said, it’s all about recruiting — recruiting world–class talent. His goal is to aggressively recruit
See Cardiology on page 7
The CATAlysT, Jan. 29, 2016 7
CARdiology
Continued from Page Six
12 to 13 cardiologists and a minimum of three to four scientists within five years. “We hope to get there a little sooner,” he said. “I want to bring in very promising young cardiologists fresh out of training, who will build a career in the community, and mid–career nationally distinguished academic cardiologists who will position us even higher in the national discourse.” Once he’s accomplished that, his aim is to help expand research. “We’re strong,” he said, “but we need to continuously improve. Excellence should only beget more excellence. We have to take all of our missions to the next level — both in the care of patient and research related to patients and more basic fundamental discovery research and our education mission.” To do that, people from various disciplines must work together, and he recognizes that there has long been a history in academic medical centers of departments and divisions working in isolation. He has always leaned toward collaboration and railed against silos. “It’s just part of my nature,” he said. “I understand how fundamental it is to move forward as a service line or as a center of excellence. All divisions of cardiology, all divisions of cardiac surgery, all divisions of vascular surgery have been held back from what we can all realize collectively by some of the barriers that departmental divisional status and legacies of our own training sometimes put before us. If we focus on the reality of our clinical lives - that we care for a patient who is indifferent to our histories — the patient just wants excellence and a focus on their problem. What matters is who has the best possible strategy evolved from all the expertise that the medical center has at its disposal. If we keep our mission focused on the patients and the patients’ families’ needs, we’ll always do better things.” The fuTure Integrated cardiovascular services will become one of the centers of excellence and include cardiology, cardiac surgery, vascular surgery, cardiovascular radiology — both diagnostic and interventional – and clinical areas involved in prevention, an area, with the shift toward population health, that is very important to DiSalvo.
“If we keep our mission focused on the patients and the patients’ families’ needs, we’ll always do better things.”
Tom Di Salvo, M.D. “We are taking patients for a lifetime. There is no magic transition you make at 21. Adult heart disease starts at childhood — actually it starts with our genetic legacy. At some point we have to engage in a broader dialogue and involve developmental biology and pediatric cardiology. We are good at touching patients as needed for crisis intervention, but we are not good at preventing things from happening in the first place, and that starts at birth. Through prevention and risk stratification – even if we can’t correct things — if we can diagnose earlier, over time we’ll do far less interventions because we will have prevented them.” Di Salvo said MUSC is on the vanguard of population health. “Wayne Gretsky always said, ‘Skate to where the puck will be.’ If that’s the strategy, then MUSC has to skate to where the puck will be, looking ahead 25 years. That’s going to be in prevention and developing ourselves as a statewide network. Frankly, Mass General hospital will never be able to do that because they have competition two miles away that duplicates everything they do. They can’t touch a population of 5 million. Mayo Clinic can’t touch a population of 5 million like MUSC can potentially. If folks see that — that that’s where the puck is going to be — and we methodically move toward that — we can really do things to distinguish ourselves and minimize the disease burden in South Carolina.” Di Salvo is a firm believer that MUSC can move the needle, and if more people would just adopt lifestyle changes, it would lead to much improved health. “There is more bang for the buck if people would just stop smoking and start knowing how to treat their blood pressure — it would transform our health care system.”
As a cardiologist and an avid longdistance runner, he has plenty of good ideas about how people can improve their health. He would love to start a team “fun run” in the division. “Everybody, if people were serious about it, could gear up for a half marathon or whole marathon. It’s so much fun to put the time and effort in. If you exercise and put the time and effort in, it’s guaranteed, you will always improve. I’m not a great athlete or runner, but there is something to be said for persistence. Running is one of the most exhilarating things you can do. You’re running through the streets, you’re sweating, you can spit in the street,” he said with a laugh. And at the end, you have the sense you did something very hard to
do. You get a mental discipline that translates into other things in life.” He wasn’t always a runner. He didn’t start until his 40s when he had packed on about 45 extra pounds. He was bound and determined to lose the excess poundage so he took up running, even running home after work in Boston in rain, snow, and sub–zero temperatures. Soon he was able to run long distances, doing the Boston Marathon twice and Chicago once. Because he took the weight off and has kept it off, he personally understands the plight of his overweight patients and friends, and his compassion is genuine. Because he knows first hand it can be done, he has advice for people wanting to shed pounds and get in better cardiovascular shape. “Do it. Start walking. You feel better, your body looks better. When you’re fit, your brain works better. Your sleep is better, your food tastes better, every physical experience you have is better. People are engineered by Mother Nature and evolution to have incredible endurance. We all have great physical capacity to exercise. Our bodies are so miraculously engineered for physical activity and walking. Put one foot in from of the other. Just keep it up. You’ll be surprised. You’ll see how beautiful the world is, and you’ll want to keep doing it.”
8 The CATAlysT, Jan. 29, 2016
MUSC celebrates excellence in innovation, discovery By J. Ryne dAnielson daniejer@musc.edu MUSC inducted 30 new inventors into its chapter of the National Academy of Inventors Jan. 20. As part of the Imagine 2020 celebration, the induction ceremony was paired with the unveiling of a new garden, highlighting the number of patents MUSC has filed. MUSC now ranks fourth among American universities, in terms of patent power behind only Harvard, MIT and the University of California, according to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. The garden features a fountain and a wall displaying each of MUSC’s patents on a black plaque. Michael Rusnak, executive director of the MUSC Foundation for Research and Development, hopes events like this one will change the culture of MUSC by emphasizing the importance of innovation and entrepreneurship. “It’s no longer just about getting grants and
tenure,” he said. “It’s about applied and innovative research that will get us more attention in the area of funding and also make the brightest and best want to stick around. In today’s climate, we need to be innovative and creative.” Rusnak believes MUSC needs to engage the community so that people know what is happening and how to get involved. “MUSC is and can be a better transformational institution for health care, for higher learning and for new ideas,” he said. “It can be a brand that can shape Charleston for the better.” Baerbel Rohrer, Ph.D., the SmartState Endowed Chair in Gene and Pharmaceutical Treatment of Degenerative Diseases, was the ceremony’s keynote speaker. A professor of ophthalmology in MUSC’s Storm Eye Institute, she was named a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors in 2014 and has filed more than a dozen patents, including one that may slow vision loss for patients with retinitis pigmentosa and macular degeneration.
photos by Anne Thompson, Digital Imaging
New inductees to the National Academy of Inventors gather on the steps of the Bioengineering Building.
A new display outside MUSC’s Bioengineering Building features a fountain and a wall of plaques recording MUSC’s many patents.
2016 MUSC National Academy of Inventors new inductees q Cark Atkinson, Ph.D., Microbiology & Immunology q Bashar Badran, Ph.D., student, Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences q G. Hamilton Baker, M.D., Pediatric Cardiology q Michael Caputo, Chief Info Officer q Dean M. Connor, Jr., Ph.D., Radiology q Nancy DeMore, M.D., Surgery q Carol Feghali-Bostwick, Ph.D., Rheumatology & Immunology q Bruce Frankel, M.D., Neurosurgery q Gary Hardiman, Ph.D., Center for Genomic Medicine q Joseph Helpern, Ph.D., Center for Biomedical Imaging q Ayad Jaffa, Ph.D., Endocrinology q Jens Jensen, Ph.D., Radiology q Thomas Keane, MBBCh, Urology q Isuru Kumarasinghe, Ph.D., Pharmaceutical Sciences q Christopher Lindsey, Ph.D., Pharmacy q Bonnie Martin-Harris, Ph.D., Otolaryngology
q Anthony Mennito, DMD, Oral Rehabilitation q Thomas Morinelli, Ph.D., Nephrology q Yuri Peterson, Ph.D., Pharmaceutical & Biomedical Sciences q Philip Privitera, Ph.D., Pharmacology q Walter Renne, DMD, Oral Rehabilitation q Lynn Schnapp, M.D., Division of Pulmonary Medicine q Jonathan Turner, graduate student, Biochemistry & Molecular Biology q Mark H. Van Horn, Ph.D., Center for Biomedical Imaging q Jompobe “Joe” Vuthiganon, DMD, Oral Rehabilitation q Jerry Webb, Ph.D., Pharmacology q Michelle Woodbury, Ph.D., Health Science & Research q Patrick Woster, Ph.D., Drug Discovery & Biomedical Sciences q Jennifer Wu, Ph.D., Microbiology & Immunology q Michael Yost, Ph.D., General Surgery Research
For an inventor to be successful, Rohrer said, they must rely on serendipity and timing. “Serendipity is the occurrence and development of events by chance in a beneficial way,” she said. In her own work, this has manifested as dinner invitations that led to important realizations or chance connections that led to funding for her work. Fifty percent of patents are the result of serendipity, she said, citing a study of European inventors published in 2005. Serendipity is an art that must be cultivated, she added, challenging the
assembled inventors with a question: “How can we learn to cultivate the art of serendipity at MUSC?” Timing is also crucial, she explained. Though her research in macular degeneration went unfunded the first year, exciting publications from worldrenowned researchers sparked new interest and a groundswell of funding the next. “Innovation is a major pillar of our academic mission,” Rohrer concluded. “In today’s research and education climate, we need to be innovative and creative. And MUSC is ready for that.”
The CATAlysT, Jan. 29, 2016 9
How to make ‘Joe Public’ care about your science By Mikie hAyes hayesMi@musc.edu
M
ichael Schmidt, Ph.D., is certain there is gold in the halls and labs of MUSC, but not, perhaps, in the conventional sense of the word. More than the precious metal, the sometimes buried but extremely valuable commodity that MUSC has to offer comes in the way of its faculty successes. And Schmidt, vice chairman of Microbiology and Immunology at MUSC, would like to help MUSC faculty and staff mine those buried treasures. Through his own experience as a speaker at a TEDx event in 2011, and member of the speaker selection team and speaker coach, Schmidt knows just how valuable a well–crafted, 10–minute speech can be in terms of educating the public. He also knows just how hard it can be to whittle down decades of experience, data and material to a precious 10 minutes. Because of his first–hand experience, Schmidt believes that through these talks, speakers can affect not only the community but well beyond, and he wants to share his knowledge and experience at an informational South Carolina Translation Research Institute Lunch and Learn on Feb. 9 at the Bioengineering Building from noon until 1 p.m. “How to Make Joe Public Care about Your Science” will provide an interactive format so faculty and staff can ask questions, throw out possible ideas and get an insider’s view on how the entire process works. “My job is first to be the evangelist, if you will. I want to assure people that they will not die through this process,” he said with a laugh. “It will be a lot of work, and it will be the hardest 10–minute talk you have ever given. But at the end of the day you will have something of which to be extraordinarily proud.” In May of 2013, Schmidt was one of the speakers at Charleston’s inaugural TEDx event. He was fortunate to have two extraordinary coaches help him
through the process: Tom Bradford, former executive producer of Up to the Minute, CBS News' overnight newscast and Rick Throckmorton, former lead strategy partner with Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. They were kind but exacting, essentially forcing the loquacious scientist to condense a lifetime career into mere minutes. Their input was invaluable. The beauty of TED talks is how they excavate the most valuable nuggets from speakers’ stories. Schmidt’s presentation, titled “The Secret and the Solution,” related to translating microbiological results from the lab into practical solutions. Schmidt would explain to the audience how copper was used ages ago and how it can be used today to control health care associated infections. That description might otherwise not have not grabbed everyone’s attention had it not been for a well–practiced and dynamic opening. “If one full wide–bodied jet crashed each day, every day for the foreseeable future, would any of us fly?” Schmidt asked the audience of right around 100 people that day. “We all know the answer to this,” he continued. “No. This is precisely the number of people who will die of a hospital–related infection each day, every day.” “Why,” he asked them, “in an era where we can literally grow kidneys in a bottle, does a problem seemingly solved by Florence Nightingale during the latter half of the 19th century still plague us today? The answer is pretty simple,” he said. “Microbes.” The audience was transfixed. And that’s exactly what he wants for others at MUSC. TED talks, said Schmidt, involve sharing what can be described as “front– page news.” And admittedly, he’s not just a little bit prejudiced; he feels everything at MUSC is front–page news. Schmidt said everybody has a story to tell. “MUSC has so much exciting research, so many important stories that folks just don’t know about. I’m interested in getting out the front page
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Microbiology and Immunology vice chairman Dr. Mike Schmidt is an experienced TED talk speaker and coach. news of MUSC. There are TED events that are trapped in MUSC.” Like an excavator, he wants to help unearth them. But why is it really important to tell these stories? Well, in late August, two and a half years after his TED talk, Schmidt received a call from a Washington Post reporter who wanted to write an article about what copper represents for health care. She interviewed him, which he said was essentially a rerun of his TED talk, and the article ended up on the front page. Doing a TED talk, he said, will be an important arrow in your quiver. It “will” help your research. Last year, the local TEDx event committee received 165 local applications. The selection team chose a total of 15 presenters with whom to work. Three of the 15 were MUSC speakers, and they were videotaped in front of an audience of nearly 800 people. Schmidt would like to see even more MUSC participation. MUSC speakers included Sundaravadivel Balasubramanian, Ph.D., a research assistant professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology, who presented a talk on “The Science of Yogic Breathing.” Hal May, Ph.D., professor of microbiology and immunology, who presented Lightning,
CO2 and a Microbe Walk into a Bar; and Peter Tuerk, Ph.D., director of the PTSD program at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center, who presented Return from Chaos – Treating PTSD. The theme of this year’s event is Tipping Point and will be held Oct. 19 at the Gaillard Center. The deadline to apply to be a presenter at this year’s event is March 15. This year, for the first time, they are also accepting applications from youth speakers between the ages of 9 and 18. At the lunch and learn on Feb. 9, Schmidt will touch on the application process and explain the concept of Tipping Point in detail, as well as why, even if someone doesn’t think they want to do an actual TED talk, it’s important to learn how to effectively share his or her science with the public and media in such a way as to make it more engaging and exciting. Schmidt summed it up, saying, “Please come. Listen. I’m going to tell you what you can do to do to give a great TED Talk. In fact, maybe I’ll bring Sunder and Hal, he said, referring to Balasubramanian, whose video has had more than 35,000 views and May, his colleague in Microbiology and Immunology. “I want to show people that they lived through it and are no worse for the wear.”
10 The CATAlysT, Jan. 29, 2016
MUSC joins healthy academic communities, hearts challenge As a founding member of the Building Healthy Academic Communities Consortium (BHAC), MUSC is leading a national campus wellness movement with Ohio State University and other colleges across the country. In honor of the American Heart Association’s Go Red Month, BHAC is challenging students and staff to join the Million HeartsŽ initiative and help prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2017. To join the competition, simply complete an online educational module about the ABCs of heart disease and stroke prevention including information on aspirin therapy for high–risk individuals, blood pressure control, cholesterol management, smoking cessation and stress reduction. 1. Visit http://go.osu.edu/ millionhearts 2. Select “BHAC Million Hearts Challenge� from the course list 3. Log in if previous user or select “create new account� 4. Select MUSC from the Affiliated Organization drop down list
Park for a free yoga class. For 4. New users will receive a more information, visit www. confirmation email containing musc.edu/ohp/adventure-out an activation link. Once the q Chair massages: Free link is clicked, the enrollment massages are offered process is complete. to employees midday Prizes will be awarded to the Wednesdays. Check top three institutions with the broadcast messages for new most participants. In addition, locations and times. the MUSC Office of Health q Farmers Markets: Fresh Promotion will give away a fruits and vegetables are Fitbit in a random drawing of available from local farmers all MUSC students and staff Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 who complete the Million Susan Johnson p.m. at the Horseshoe. Hearts module. To enter for a chance to win, email certificate of completion to johsusa@musc.edu. For Employee Wellness Center more information about Million Hearts, q “Be The Best You At Any Age� — visit millionhearts.osu.edu, for more group health coaching information on the MUSC Challenge, Are you facing retirement? Living in email johnsusa@musc.edu. an empty nest? Caring for your aging q Adventure Out: The program offers parents? Tired? Stressed? Let’s talk about free fitness classes in City of Charleston it — together. parks and on the MUSC campus to help q The purpose of this program is to: you turn over a new leaf and discover the Empower you to take charge of your benefits of green exercise. Join MUSC health; Wellness Center’s Gail Corvette at 9 q Help you identify all of the demands a.m., Wednesday, Jan. 30 at Cannon and priorities in your life to find a new
Health at work
sense of balance and focus; q Facilitate goal setting, weekly action steps and provide accountability and the tools to become the best you. Program Dates: six weeks — 10 a.m., Thursdays, Jan. 21 to Feb. 25 or 6 p.m., Wednesdays, Jan.27 to March 2. W.I.N. (Wellness and Integrated Nutrition) — individual health coaching and nutrition counseling program; Program dates: Jan. 19 to April 1, Individual meetings weekly for 10 weeks For fee information, call 792-5757.
Employee Wellness Center
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 6 p.m., Thursday q Saturday Work and Learns – 9 to 11 a.m., Feb. 6 and Feb. 20 For more information, email Dr. Susan Johnson at johnsusa@musc.edu or Suzan Whelan at whela@musc.edu.
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MUSC forming teams for Feb. 27 LifePoint med professionals challenge Staff Report LifePoint will be hosting its second Medical Professionals Challenge for the 11th Annual LifePoint Race for Life event on Saturday, Feb. 27, at James Island County Park. Registration deadline is 5 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 25. Hospitals and clinics throughout South Carolina are encouraged to get involved in the annual race. People will participate for joy of exercise and camaraderie, while others will participate in honor or memory of someone. Two MUSC teams have been organized and will compete in this year’s event that features a 10K, 5K and ½ mile fun run. In 2015, Team MUSC was successful
in winning the LifePoint Race for Life Challenge. To sign up or for team information, contact Mattilyn Williams at williama@musc.edu or Jennie Ridgeway at nemcicj1@musc.edu. Team support and participation will enable LifePoint to continue its mission of changing lives through the gift of organ, eye and tissue donation, as well as lend financial support for Team South Carolina (comprised of transplant recipients, living donors, deceased donors’ families and transplant professionals) to attend the Transplant Games of America in Cleveland, Ohio in 2016. The medical group with the most race registrants on its team will be recognized during the Awards Ceremony and acknowledged post–race on the LifePoint website. For information, contact Shirley McAdams, McAdamsS@lifepoint-sc.org or visit www.LifePointRace. com.
SC health care leaders join endorsement of HPV vaccination Staff Report In response to low national vaccination rates for the human papillomavirus, the MUSC Hollings Cancer Center has joined with the nation’s other 68 National Cancer Institute–designated cancer centers in issuing a statement urging for increased HPV vaccination for the prevention of cancer. In South Carolina, more than 25 additional health care providers and advocacy groups praised the statement and offered support highlighting the significant issues related to HPV infections in South Carolina. These institutions collectively recognize insufficient vaccination as a public health threat and call upon the nations’ physicians, parents and young adults to take advantage of this rare opportunity to prevent many types of cancer. “HPV–related cancers pose a serious problem to our state and nation, and thanks to the biggest cancer prevention breakthrough in decades, we have a powerful tool to prevent this. As a cancer center, we feel it is critical to raise awareness of this issue and move the needle on increasing vaccinations against
HPV,” said Anthony J. Alberg, Ph.D., interim director for the Hollings Cancer Center. NCI–designated cancer centers joined in this effort in the spirit of President Barack Obama’s State of the Union call for a national “moonshot” to cure cancer, a collaborative effort led by Vice President Joe Biden. “This initiative is directly aligned with the desire of the president, vice president and all Americans to work constructively together to eradicate cancer,” says Ernest Hawk, M.D., vice president and division head of the Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. “This is one example of actions that can be taken today to make a very big difference in the future cancer burden.” According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HPV infections are responsible for approximately 27,000 new cancer diagnoses each year in the U.S. Several vaccines are available that can prevent the majority of cervical, anal, oropharyngeal (middle throat) and other genital cancers.
Vaccination rates remain low across the U.S., with less than 40 percent of girls and slightly more than 21 percent of boys receiving the recommended three doses, and South Carolina lags behind the nation overall. Research shows there are a number of barriers to overcome to improve vaccination rates, including a lack of strong recommendations from physicians and parents not understanding that this vaccine protects against several types of cancer. To discuss strategies for overcoming these barriers, experts from the NCI, CDC, American Cancer Society and more than half of the NCI–designated cancer centers met in a summit at MD Anderson Cancer Center last November. During this summit, cancer centers shared findings from 18 NCI–funded environmental scans, or detailed regional assessments, that sought to identify barriers to increasing immunization rates in pediatric settings across the country. Jennifer Young Pierce, M.D., an associate professor and gynecologic oncologist at the MUSC Hollings Cancer Center, participated in the summit and drafting of the national statement. “Cervical cancer and other HPV–related
diseases continue to affect many in our state, and we know we can prevent this. It is imperative that we raise awareness of this issue and move forward discussions on what we can do to prevent HPV infections and related cancers,” she said. The published call to action was a major recommendation resulting from discussions at that summit, with the goal of sending a powerful message to parents, adolescents and health care providers about the importance of HPV vaccination for cancer prevention. Healthcare providers and advocates in South Carolina quickly hailed the statement as an important step in raising awareness. South Carolina individuals and agencies on record as supporting the statement can be found at http://hcc. musc.edu/news/pressreleases/2015/ hpvsupporters.htm. For facts about cervical cancer and other HPV–associated cancers, along with facts and other information about adolescent vaccination in South Carolina, can be found at http://hcc. musc.edu/news/pressreleases/2015/ hpvfacts.htm.
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