MOMENTUM
with graTitude From our humble origins as a decommissioned Army base, the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus has grown exponentially into one of the newest, most innovative academic medical campuses in the country. Just nine years ago, our hospital partners—UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital and Children’s Hospital Colorado—welcomed their first inpatients on campus. Today, both are ranked among the country's best, and together provide nearly 2 million patient visits each year. The first medical students arrived only eight years ago. Today, more than 4,300 future leaders pursue degrees through our six schools and colleges. This remarkable growth shows no signs of slowing, due in large part to your partnership. In this publication, we highlight some of the advances we are making toward becoming a destination medical center—a vision we will achieve by attracting and retaining the brightest minds and fostering innovation in research, education and clinical care. We hope the stories that follow give you a sense of the exciting work underway at CU Anschutz. From the establishment of a new veterans brain health institute to recent milestones in innovation and successful student-led clinics in our community, we are working relentlessly to deliver the best care today while reinventing the care of the future. Thank you for helping to propel our forward momentum.
BRUCE BENSON
DONALD M. ELLIMAN, JR.
JOHN J. REILLY, JR., MD
University of Colorado President
Chancellor
Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs
Celebrating
impact of philanthropy the
at the
CU Anschutz Medical Campus CONTENTS CARE + COMMUNITY | Serving Those Who Have Served.............................................................................................2 EDUCATION | The Opportunity to Follow a Passion........................................................................................................6 CARE + COMMUNITY | But We're a Medical Campus..................................................................................................8 PROFILE | Lee Newman, MD, MA..............................................................................................................................10 EDUCATION | Nursing in the Community....................................................................................................................12 SPOTLIGHT | The Hurley Walker Family......................................................................................................................14 PROFILES | Bright Minds at Anschutz........................................................................................................................16 INNOVATION | Katy + Paul Rady................................................................................................................................19 SPOTLIGHT | Jo Ann + Claiborne Bickham................................................................................................................20 INNOVATION | A Continuing Legacy of Discovery and Entrepreneurship.......................................................................21 IMPACT | Impact at Anschutz.....................................................................................................................................24
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supportcuanschutz.ucdenver.edu/momentum
Marcus Institute for Brain Health CU Anschutz Health and Wellness Center
“Our intent is to build a network of healing for those who served our country and suffer the invisible wounds of war.” - Bernie Marcus CHAIRMAN, THE MARCUS FOUNDATION RETIRED CO-FOUNDER, THE HOME DEPOT
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A NETWORK OF VETERANS SERVICES AT CU ANSCHUTZ 1. CeDAR 2. CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL COLORADO 3. COLORADO STATE VETERANS HOME 4. C-P.A.W.W. 5. DENVER VA HOSPITAL 6. FISHER HOUSE 7. HEROES CLINIC 8. JOHNSON DEPRESSION CENTER 9. NEUROLOGY & NEUROSURGERY 10. ORTHOPEDICS/LIMB RESTORATION 11. PAIN MANAGEMENT 12. PHYSICAL MEDICINE & REHABILITATION 13. PSYCHIATRY & PSYCHOLOGY 14. UCHEALTH UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO HOSPITAL 15. VETERAN & MILITARY STUDENT SERVICES
CARE + COMMUNITY
Serving Those Who Have Served: Building a Network of Support for Military Veterans A LANDMARK GIFT When The Marcus Foundation, established by retired co-founder of The Home Depot Bernard Marcus, was looking for a way to extend lifesaving traumatic brain injury (TBI) treatment from the military sector to post-9/11 veterans, they knew there was one person for the job. Neurologist James Kelly, MD, led the National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE) at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for seven years. There, the NICoE team has successfully treated 1,300+ service members suffering from TBI and psychological health conditions. When his career brought him back to the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, a historic partnership was born on fertile ground.
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“They didn’t just give me
treatment, they gave me hope, and that was more valuable than anything.” - Pete Scobell
LIEUTENANT COMMANDER U.S. NAVY SEALS (RETIRED)
A FOUNDATION FOR HOPE & HEALING This summer, the Marcus Institute for Brain Health (MIBH) opened its doors on campus, thanks to a historic $38 million commitment from The Marcus Foundation. Located in the CU Anschutz Health and Wellness Center, the MIBH is at the forefront of innovation in veteran TBI research and care. It is also the hub of a burgeoning national network. “This partnership opens up a whole new world of treatment opportunity for those who have selflessly served our country,” said Dr. Kelly, now MIBH executive director. “I am honored to lead the charge in delivering tailored treatment options to the thousands of veterans in need of this care and to bring vital new knowledge to the field.” The MIBH sees veterans with TBI and common co-occurring conditions such as post-traumatic stress, depression and anxiety. The institute is building an interdisciplinary team that will include experts from across campus to focus on creating individualized care plans that help veterans recover and reintegrate into family, community and society. It conducts brain research, educates future generations and works with partners spanning the United States.
BUILT ON FERTILE GROUND You could say we were built for this. There is perhaps no better place in the country for this unprecedented effort. Built on the grounds of the former Fitzsimons Army Medical Center, the CU Anschutz Medical Campus
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has deep connections to the U.S. military and veterans, and an unwavering commitment to serve. With a top school of medicine offering nationally ranked programs in neurology, orthopedics, rehabilitation and more, and centers dedicated to mental health, substance abuse and wellness, CU Anschutz is fully equipped to house the MIBH. The robust network of veterans services already offered on campus includes the Heroes Clinic, C-P.A.W.W., Veteran and Military Student Services and many others. Across the University of Colorado system, 4,000 veterans are enrolled on four campuses, ranking CU among the top 20 percent of military-friendly schools in the U.S.
Home after multiple deployments, Scobell found himself unable to remember basic things, confused and out of sorts, even driving to work one Sunday morning to find an empty parking lot with no idea how he got there. Everyday life was full of frustrations and tension. During one particularly intense argument with his wife, “she said that, after our third son was born, it was a month before I picked him up … and I didn’t remember any of it.” A downward spiral followed. “I thought, I’m going to lose my job, and then I’m also going to lose my family … then what do I have? You definitely don’t feel like a hero at that point. You don’t really feel like a man at that point.”
ELEVATING VETERAN CARE
Shortly before retiring from the Navy, a friend and fellow SEAL told Scobell that it sounded like he had TBI and advised him to go to NICoE. There, Pete said, Dr. Kelly and his team treated the problem, not the symptoms. “They didn’t just give me treatment, they gave me hope, and that was more valuable than anything.” A professional country musician, competitive skier and avid mountain climber, Scobell is now back to doing what he loves with the people he loves.
The patient-centered care model pioneered at NICoE has proven again and again to bring positive outcomes to those in recovery from TBI and related conditions. Retired U.S. Navy SEAL Lieutenant Commander Pete Scobell is a testament to that.
With this remarkable commitment from The Marcus Foundation, thousands of deserving veterans will benefit from the transformative care that returned Lieutenant Commander Scobell to his family, his passions and his life.
“Serving military personnel and veterans isn’t just a good idea, it’s a moral imperative,” said CU Anschutz Chancellor Donald M. Elliman, Jr. “We have the talent, the resources and the track record that make us the ideal place for the MIBH. The Marcus Foundation shares our commitment, and together we are changing lives.”
WEB EXCLUSIVES
360,000
U.S. VETERANS HAVE SUFFERED FROM TBI SINCE 9/11
20
VETERANS COMMIT SUICIDE EVERY DAY IN THE U.S.
$38M
HISTORIC GIFT CREATED THE MARCUS INSTITUTE FOR BRAIN HEALTH
Cohen Veterans Network: Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic Further expanding resources for veterans in Colorado and the Rocky Mountain West is the newly opened Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus. This location will be the 10th to open as the Cohen Veterans Network (CVN) scales up to at least 25 clinics in the U.S. to ensure that veterans and family members have access to high-quality mental health care that enables them to lead fulfilling and productive lives. The brainchild of Connecticut philanthropist Steven A. Cohen, CVN also offers case management support and referrals, providing a safety net for those who do not receive care elsewhere. The Denver Cohen Clinic was made possible through a partnership between CVN and the Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Depression Center at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus.
EDUCATION
The opportunity to follow a passion
“Private support is critical for bringing a CU education into reach for our students, and our commitment to building support for scholarships is strong. Through the Presidential Scholarship Program, alumni and friends created new endowed scholarships that will support CU School of Medicine students for generations.” - Bruce Benson PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO
“My dad always had a keen interest in medicine. He really wanted to be a doctor but came of age in the Depression. There was no money, so he was never able to go to medical school.” – Alan Cogen The inspiration for generosity is personal for Judi and Alan Cogen, siblings dedicated to their communities and continuing a legacy of giving back that started with their parents. Their father was a contractor in the construction industry in Florida. Their mother, born several years after women got the right to vote, was an equal partner in the family business and a community activist. There was never a time that the Cogen family wasn’t communityminded, a trait that has lived on for decades through Judi and Alan. The Cogens came of age in the Jim Crow South, a formative time for both that helped inspire them to become involved in their community. Their mother was involved in social and economic justice issues, advocating for women’s rights, fighting for civil rights and committed to creating a better world for all. Judi recalled, “Politically, as far back as I can remember, she was active, going to the schools and getting out the vote.” Their parents’ passion for community engagement and medicine is something still vivid in their lives. Judi and Alan believe in playing a large role in their communities, just like their parents, and hope scholarships give the next generation of leaders in medicine the opportunity to do the same.
INSPIRING A NEW GENERATION Scholarship support from the Cogens is one of the biggest reasons first-year student Kaitlyn Sweeny is able to attend medical school. She was already feeling some stress from undergraduate debt, and attending medical school was going to add to her debt load. “Some of the financial incentives from the industry aren’t there anymore, and I now have the freedom to choose my passion over a path that pays more,” says Kaitlyn, who wants to pursue pediatric cardiology. This sentiment is echoed by a number of students around campus and each of the other Cogen Scholars. Andrei Gurau, also a first-year medical student, said, “Scholarship support alleviates some of the financial burden and stress during school and my residency. My parents are older, and my grandma has Alzheimer’s, so I’m concerned about caring for them.” First-year medical student Zachary Blea lives in the Stapleton area near campus with his wife and 9-year-old daughter. Scholarship support allows him to make decisions that are in the best interest of his young family— living in a neighborhood with quality schools and putting healthy food on the table. Zachary looks forward to working in emergency medicine and feels he can fully experience medical school without worrying about growing debt. “I think that more people are afraid of getting an education because of the cost, and from a societal standpoint, that is a sad thing,” he said. Each of these Cogen Scholars is in the beginning stages of building a career helping others, and meeting Alan Cogen has inspired them to make the most of their scholarship support. “It was amazing to meet Mr. Cogen, learn about the inspiration for the scholarship and better understand how we can carry that passion forward in our paths of life,” Andrei said.
Top: Cogen Scholars Zachary Blea, Andrei Gurau and Kaitlyn Sweeny
WEB EXCLUSIVES
Bottom: Siblings Judi and Alan Cogen
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“Art is another manifestation of the human imagination, so I always ask ‘why not here?’” - Tess Jones, PhD ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR CENTER FOR BIOETHICS AND HUMANITIES
CARE + COMMUNITY
But We’re a Medical Campus
An academic medical campus may be the last place you’d think to look for a Monet, a Picasso or even a provocative exhibit showing the human toll of military combat operations. But that is exactly what you will find at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus. Visitors often wonder why campus is home to so much art, and the answer is simple: art is healing. Art challenges our assumptions. It catalyzes self-reflection and teaches empathy—skills vital for current and future health care providers. “Art is another manifestation of the human imagination," said Associate Director of the Center for Bioethics and Humanities Tess Jones, PhD, "so I always ask ‘why not here?’” Fortunately for students, faculty and the community, CU Anschutz features art on nearly every corner. From the Fulginiti Pavilion for Bioethics and Humanities and Children’s Hospital Colorado to the CU Health Sciences Library and University of Colorado Hospital, art has found many homes throughout the campus landscape.
ART AS HEALING
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Art is central to healing and recovery. Designers for Children's Hospital Colorado integrated art into the facility to promote a healthy, healing environment for patients and families. From the moment you drive up to the hospital, art is visible in a series of outdoor sculptures. Walk through the front doors and you realize the entire building is a work of art, carefully curated with work from local and regional artists. And it’s not just sculptures and two-dimensional art. The atrium hosts nearly 100 performing arts events each year, and the Ponzio Creative Arts Therapy Program draws upon art, music and movement to promote recovery. Professor of Pediatrics Andy Sirotnak, MD, said, “I saw a child with Down syndrome run to the atrium
maze and follow the red line around to each spot. His mom asked him what he was seeing, and he shouted the names of the pictures he saw.” These interactions and breakthroughs are facilitated by the creative integration of art at Children’s Hospital Colorado and around campus. The Natalie Kutner Palliative Care Creative Arts Therapy Program is new on campus and brings art therapy to patients with advanced illnesses and their families. “Creative art therapy has been an amazing addition to our existing palliative care clinical program,” said Jean Kutner, MD, MSPH, professor of medicine and chief medical officer at University of Colorado Hospital. “Not only can medical providers learn about patients by how they express themselves through art and music, but patients also experience care that allows them to cope with illness in a new and therapeutic way.”
ART AS EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Located in the bustling education quad on campus, the Art Gallery at Fulginiti has hosted 16 exhibits since 2012, boosting community awareness of art on campus. Recently, "Masterworks," from the collection of Drs. Tobia and Morton Mower, featured classic works from Picasso, Monet, Cassatt, Renoir and other prominent artists. “Art can be revolutionary or provoking,” Jones said. “It can also provide opportunities for healing—a place of refuge or the antidote for fatigue and burnout.” This campus houses it all: art that is healing and art that is thought provoking. Creative expression is integrated into the very nature of the campus, and the entire community is stronger for it.
WEB EXCLUSIVES
Encouraging Learning and Discovery Virginia “Ginny” Wilson recently gave much of her American Indian art collection to the Centers for American Indian and Alaska Native Health, to be displayed in the Nighthorse Campbell Native Health Building. It is her hope that students will benefit from the opportunity to learn about American Indian culture. “This collection is an important piece of American history,” she said. “Hopefully it will encourage learning and discovery.”
PROFILE
Lee Newman, MD, MA
COMPLEX PROBLEMS AND THE CREATIVE BRAIN
Creativity, entrepreneurialism, empathy. These were hallmarks of Lee Newman’s childhood in Bayonne, N.J. “It was a household where we were encouraged to do creative stuff … with a purpose,” said Newman, director of the Center for Health, Work & Environment at the Colorado School of Public Health. And he took his parents’ encouragement to heart. When he was still in junior high, Dr. Newman built a veritable jewelry empire along with his older brother. What began as door‐to‐door peddling to Greenwich Village’s trendy 1960s boutiques grew into a coast‐to‐coast business by the time Newman reached high school. “My parents did a good job of preparing me to take chances and to follow a passion,” he said. He moved on from jewelry making to author nine arts and crafts books, work as a newspaper reporter, practice pulmonary medicine for two decades, found and run a successful health information technology company and, for the past 11 years, serve as a professor and leader in public health. 10 16
“I’m a complex problem junkie ... The kinds of problems that we have to solve in public health, you can’t solve with a pure linear approach.” Today, Dr. Newman’s entrepreneurial bent serves him well at the Center for Health, Work & Environment, which is dedicated to improving worker health, safety and well-being. At its core, the center is focused on pioneering novel solutions to tremendously complex problems that face us every day on the job. Three complex problems in particular are keeping Dr. Newman up nights. First is an international epidemic of kidney disease in young men who cut sugar cane for a living. “Heat and dehydration are huge concerns, but there are other things going on that we don’t yet understand,” Newman said. A team from the center is in Guatemala now investigating the problem in order to develop prevention strategies. “A solution for this problem could have global impact for millions of agribusiness workers,” he said. Another complex problem currently defying solution is the opioid prescription epidemic ravaging the country. In what Newman calls "an issue of supply and demand" his team is helping by impacting the "supply side" through educating medical providers on better ways to help patients who suffer from chronic pain. Through a novel, online course, the team has trained over 3,000 providers, 80 percent of whom say it has improved how they help manage patients’ pain. A third complex problem faces small businesses in Colorado. More than half of Americans work in small businesses, yet that’s where most injuries occur and where safety and workplace wellness programs need the most improvement. Through a program called Health Links™, the center has trained community advisors across the state who have already helped more than 350 companies develop better goals and practical solutions. “Employers who help promote good health create happier, more productive workplaces. We help them find both the return and value of their investment in health.”
Through a philanthropic partnership with Pinnacol Assurance, Colorado’s largest workers compensation insurer, these and other programs are making a measurable impact on complex problems facing the state and the world at large. “With Pinnacol’s generous support, we were able to get the center up and running and launch some key initiatives,” Newman said. No matter the problem at hand, assembling the right group to develop evidence-based solutions is the crux of Dr. Newman’s approach. “The creative part of the process is posing the right questions and then figuring out what kinds of expertise you need to surround yourself with to come up with answers,” he said. “I call myself the CMO—'Chief Mentoring Officer.' I love bringing together faculty members, staff and especially our students and our community partners to address the problem and learn from the experience.” Dr. Newman and his wife, Lori Szczukowski, MD, also support the school with their own giving. “I’m a big fan of this place,” he said. “I feel like I should be giving back to an institution that’s given me the opportunity to tackle high‐risk, high‐reward challenges without constraints on creativity and innovation.”
WEB EXCLUSIVES
center for health, work & environment
90,000+
WORKERS REACHED
2,771
STUDENTS AND PROFESSIONALS TRAINED
3,000+
EMPLOYERS REACHED
1 of 6
NATIONAL CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE IN TOTAL WORKER HEALTH®
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EDUCATION
Nursing in the Community University of Colorado College of Nursing students gain valuable hands-on experience during their time in school, and communities throughout the Denver metro area benefit from their service. These future leaders in health are pioneering new methods of care and learning about underserved communities along the way. They offer health services to people who may otherwise go untreated, learn about professional life in primary care settings and develop new ways of caring for the Aurora community. Many of the clinics that partner with CU are designed to treat underserved populations— those who face unmanageable barriers to accessing quality care. In some communities, complicating factors like bus fare, babysitters or time off work can lead to people going untreated for months. By the time they receive care, if they do so at all, recovery can take years. In CU’s innovative community clinics, students are making a difference in the lives of thousands of patients and demonstrating that a holistic approach to medicine is often the most effective.
These students are learning on their feet while bringing health care to those who need it most.
THE DAWN CLINIC The DAWN Clinic is a student-run free clinic that is serving uninsured patients in Aurora. The clinic was born from the idea that students could experience primary care in a real-world setting while providing a valuable service to their communities. The DAWN Clinic care team, comprising student volunteers and faculty mentors, provides individualized care, and links patients and families to other services and major hospital networks throughout the region.
900+
UNDERGRADUATE & GRADUATE STUDENTS ENROLLED IN THE CU COLLEGE OF NURSING APPROXIMATELY
360 NURSES GRADUATE FROM CU ANSCHUTZ ANNUALLY
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Chelsie Yoshioka, a 2017 CU College of Nursing alumna, recalls a patient who had to visit weekly for several months. After he was diagnosed with multiple complex physical conditions, the DAWN Clinic team found that the patient had significant social and legal needs as well. These added personal complications contributed greatly to his unmanaged diabetes and high blood pressure. This case is indicative of the often-complex health situations of patients at the DAWN Clinic. “We saw him weekly for months," Yoshioka said. "Over time we were able to see his blood pressure and blood sugars become more normal and better managed, and he self-reported lower stress levels.” At the same time, professionals at the DAWN Clinic were able to direct the patient to external resources such as diabetes education and cooking courses. They also worked with University of Colorado Hospital for additional testing to ensure the best possible treatment outcome and directed him to legal resources in Aurora. Experiences like these teach valuable lessons to students volunteering in the clinic. “It is extremely important that our students have these opportunities in underserved communities" CU College of Nursing Dean Sarah Thompson, PhD, RN, said. "It teaches them empathy and how to work under stressful situations. They are better prepared to enter the field after this community volunteering experience.” Students who volunteer at the DAWN Clinic experience a large spectrum of health and wellness—from mental and behavioral health to the legal, social and economic issues that can stand as barriers for many. “It was such a good reminder that we were actually making a difference for an underserved patient who had a hard time finding preventative medical care,” said Yoshioka. “The DAWN Clinic is special in that we cater to a patient’s social needs in addition to their physical needs, and provide a holistic and well-rounded patient experience.”
CU HEALTHCARE PARTNERS AT BELLEVIEW POINT One of the most recent expansions of the CU College of Nursing into the community is CU Healthcare Partners at Belleview Point. Nurses at this Aurora facility provide upwards of 80 percent of the services a primary care physician can provide and nearly 90 percent of pediatric care services. This one-of-a-kind clinic provides convenient care in a relaxed environment, while expanding access to behavioral health services in the community. And the care is delivered entirely by nurse practitioners. “The Belleview Point Clinic impacts people’s lives by providing them with a new choice in care. Our nurse-led care model integrates behavioral health counseling
and provides a personalized holistic approach,” said Professor and Associate Dean for Clinical and Community Affairs Amy Barton, PhD, RN. This clinic allows nurse practitioners to diagnose, prescribe and treat without physician oversight, and provide care to those who would otherwise go without. Through community clinics like the DAWN Clinic and Belleview Point, the CU College of Nursing is ensuring that future generations have the experience and perspective required to lead in a changing health care landscape. As tomorrow’s nursing professionals, our students will be charged with continued innovation in their field and with finding effective ways to help people from diverse circumstances and backgrounds access the comprehensive care they need. Community clinics like these help students and nursing professionals do just that.
WEB EXCLUSIVES
Total visits at CU college of nursing clinics januar y -june 2 017
857
BELLEVIEW POINT
276
CAMPUS HEALTH CENTER
3,963
SHERIDAN COMMUNITY CLINIC
1,463
SCHOOL-BASED CLINIC
SPOTLIGHT: the hurley walker family
Raised for Rural Medicine Nestled in the San Luis Valley at the foot of the San Juan Mountains, Monte Vista is a quiet Colorado town of 4,500, surrounded by some of the state’s highest mountain peaks. University of Colorado School of Medicine graduates Kelsey Hurley Walker and Ely Walker have called this community home since their 2011 graduation and the Texas residencies that followed. The Walkers are no strangers to the rich rewards and unique challenges of rural life. Kelsey grew up in Monte Vista and Ely in Walsh. The couple met at Colorado State University, began dating in medical school and shared a desire to return to rural Colorado communities after their training. Today, both practice at Rio Grande Hospital, 14 miles up the road in Del Norte. Kelsey and Ely participated in the CU School of Medicine Rural Track, a program founded 12 years ago to increase the number of physicians entering and remaining in practice in rural Colorado. Medical students pursuing this track take part in a summer preceptorship and gain real‐world experience in rural Colorado practices. Students pay no extra tuition to pursue the track. The program was launched with a combination of private grants from The Colorado Trust and The Colorado Health Foundation, as well as financial commitments from the CU School of Medicine. Alumni, parents and
friends of the Rural Track make a difference as well, helping to bring a CU medical education into reach for future leaders who will fulfill the growing need in rural areas. “There are only about 30 medical schools in the country with a rural track, and CU is a national leader,” said Rural Track Director and Associate Dean for Rural Health Mark Deutchman, MD. “We are grateful for engaged alumni like the Hurley and Walker families who help keep this program thriving and serve as role models for others pursuing lifelong careers in rural medicine." Kelsey is part of the fourth generation of the Hurley family to earn a medical degree from the CU School of Medicine. More than 100 years ago, that legacy began with her great‐grandfather, James R. Hurley (MD 1918), a Michigan farm boy with a dream of becoming a doctor who went on to practice in Alamosa. Her grandfather, G. W. Hurley (MD 1952), delivered more than 5,000 babies over the course of his career and piqued Kelsey’s interest in a CU education. “I remember him saying, ‘I don’t know why you would want to go anywhere else but CU,’” she said. G. W.’s brother also graduated from CU and went on to practice orthopedic surgery in Albuquerque, N.M.
“One of the things I loved about the CU School of Medicine Rural Track was the opportunity to get out of the city, and see and experience rural medicine. I had a phenomenal experience between my first and second year, and that confirmed my commitment to do rural medicine.” - Kelsey Hurley Walker, MD
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Kelsey’s father, Grant Hurley, joined his dad’s Pueblo, Colo., practice after earning his medical degree from the CU School of Medicine in 1979. He moved with his wife, April, to the San Luis Valley five years later to raise a family. Kelsey admired his dedication and hard work as a family doctor there for more than 15 years. “I saw the impact he had on the community, and I always knew I wanted to end up in a small town,” she said. “I like relationships, and I like the fact that family medicine offers the opportunity to develop relationships.” Ely, who grew up on a farm on Colorado’s eastern plains near the Kansas border, never had any doubt about rural medicine. “I like getting to know the community and their stories,” he said. “I think that you understand someone better medically when you know them personally.” “The Walkers are not only excellent family physicians, but they are also interwoven into the fabric of our community," said Rio Grande Hospital & Clinics CEO Arlene Harms. "People in our hospital and our clinics rely on doctors like Kelsey and Ely who have the background to understand them and the nuances of the rural health care landscape. We are fortunate to have Ely and Kelsey as part of our medical staff, committed to serving the community.”
9%
OF COLORADO PHYSICIANS PRACTICE IN RURAL AREAS
1 -3
AVERAGE NUMBER OF YEARS IT TAKES TO RECRUIT A PHYSICIAN TO RURAL COLORADO
73% 13
OF COLORADO CONSIDERED RURAL OR FRONTIER COUNTIES IN RURAL COLORADO WITHOUT A HOSPITAL
A clear love of medicine has been present throughout the Hurley family history. “My father was always so happy to go to work. No wonder I wanted to go into medicine,” said Grant Hurley, MD. “And Kelsey saw the same thing when she was growing up, because I was the same way.” Rural family medicine is suiting the Walkers well and keeping Kelsey and Ely busy and happy. “I always want to have something to offer,” she said. “I know I can really help my community.”
WEB EXCLUSIVES
Kelsey Hurley Walker and Ely Walker
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PROFILES: bright minds at anschutz
Vik Bebarta, MD
Christopher Lieu, MD
DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE
DIVISION OF MEDICAL ONCOLOGY
“There are silos and then there is synergy. There is synergy here. People are looking for ways to work with each other. Here, I have the opportunity to do the work I really want to do, which is developing antidotes against chemical threats and researching acute combat casualty care.”
“I’m proud of the difference that we are making in our patients’ lives. I’m proud to be part of a team offering treatments to patients that were not thought to be possible just five or 10 years ago.”
Robert Valuck, PhD DEPARTMENT OF CLINICAL PHARMACY “I’m proud of the work we are doing right now with the Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention to figure out how to address and solve the opioid epidemic. People across the state are collaborating on this topic.”
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Karen Frankel, PhD DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY “I’m really excited about our work bringing mental health care directly to people who often don’t like coming to a psychologist or psychiatrist. There is enough stigma with taking an older child or adult to a therapist and even more so with babies and young children.”
Daniel Goldberg, jd, PhD CENTER FOR BIOETHICS AND HUMANITIES “I had different aptitudes and a different way of looking at things. Once I realized there was this thing called ‘bioethics’ and this thing called ‘history of medicine,’ I started to get excited and say, ‘this is my lens.’”
Karyn Goodman, MD, ms
Jason Stoneback, MD
DEPARTMENT OF RADIATION ONCOLOGY
DEPARTMENT OF ORTHOPEDICS
“My interest is in improving treatment by using more sophisticated planning techniques and imaging to help us identify where the tumor is and deliver radiation in a very focal way, so we can be effective but also minimize side effects.”
Jeff Stansbury, PhD SCHOOL OF DENTAL MEDICINE “I’ve always been technically curious, and I enjoy learning new things. Being a polymer chemist is ideal, as I create materials from the molecular level up with real-world applications in dentistry and medicine.”
Manali Kamdar, MD DIVISION OF HEMATOLOGY “This is a perfect time to be involved in blood cancer management and research in light of many novel therapeutic breakthroughs. I am proud of my team, since we are at the forefront of offering more effective treatments for our patients with a focus of curing blood cancers.”
“I like tackling incredibly complex problems. That, coupled with my nature of wanting to be an orthopedic surgeon and restore patients’ form and function, led me to be a limb restoration specialist.”
Benzi Kluger, MD DEPARTMENT OF NEUROLOGY “I think when a lot of people hear palliative care, they think of hospice or end of life. But that’s only part of palliative care. It’s a broader approach to relieving suffering at any stage of an illness, no matter the cause.”
Rita Lee, MD DIVISION OF GENERAL INTERNAL MEDICINE “When I was a medical student, I saw a lot of health disparities, specifically for the LGBT population. At the time we pretty much had no training, which meant providers couldn’t adequately care for this population. I began my career incorporating and advocating for LGBT health-related content.”
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Peter Gottlieb, MD
Michael Rice, PhD, APN
BARBARA DAVIS CENTER FOR DIABETES
COLLEGE OF NURSING
“What has been a huge change from when I entered the field to where we are today is the level of collaboration. Just this idea of sharing knowledge instead of keeping it for yourself— to move the field forward with everyone working together.”
“I am thrilled with the progress we have made integrating behavioral health in primary care settings. The innovative practice, research and education programs demonstrate behavioral health’s value. These models are being adopted throughout the region and help direct health care decisions for the next decade.”
Matthew Rioth, MD
Melanie Cree Green, MD, PhD
CANCER CENTER
CENTER FOR WOMEN’S HEALTH RESEARCH
“Cancer has always had the advantage over patients, oncologists and cancer researchers. However, the tide is beginning to change. As we discover more about cancer biology, develop new targeted drugs and use information technology, we are starting to see meaningful improvement in outcomes.”
“I think when you want to be a physician, you want to make people better, and I want to make people better on an individual level. I want to make treating this disease (polycystic ovarian syndrome) better for people across the board, and I feel like I’m doing that.”
Jay Shore, MD, MPH DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY “I'm excited about all the innovative work we are doing with the Centers for American Indian and Alaska Native Health and the Johnson Depression Center to expand access to mental health care through telehealth and telepsychiatry.”
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Uncover
w ha t W e a re
Discovering Our talented faculty are changing lives at patient bedsides, in laboratories and in classrooms. The discoveries they are making here today are the therapies and treatments of tomorrow. These faculty are just a few of the thousands of incredible minds at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus delivering world-class health care and pioneering bold new ideas in medicine.
WEB EXCLUSIVES
INNOVATION Katy + Paul Rady
Fueling Research, Fostering Hope Katy and Paul Rady knew they wanted to do something meaningful when they lost Katy’s brother, Paul R. O’Hara II, to esophageal cancer in October 2015.
Paul R. O'Hara II
“My brother’s cancer journey was grueling and heartbreaking,” said Katy. “Dr. Madeleine Kane was the lifeline of hope that helped us get from one day to the next.”
Paul O’Hara was diagnosed in January 2015 in Michigan. Impressed with the care they had received at CU Anschutz, the Radys encouraged Paul to seek treatment at the CU Cancer Center, so he traveled to Colorado for care. Madeleine Kane, MD, PhD, led Paul’s multidisciplinary care team at University of Colorado Hospital and formed deep bonds with the family over the course of his treatment. “I always enjoyed Paul,” Dr. Kane said. “He had a marvelous spirit and a strong will. It was a pleasure knowing him and a privilege to care for him.”
and respect she gave Paul and our desire to further cancer research at a grassroots level.” One of the five Paul R. O’Hara II Fellowship awardees, Assistant Professor Elena Shagisultanova, MD, PhD, is using the funding to further her breast cancer treatment research. “We live in an exciting time of outstanding developments in cancer diagnostics and therapy, but deeper understanding is needed for effective treatment.” she said. “This seed grant was pivotal, as it allowed me to test novel drugs to treat breast cancer.” Energized by the experience of kick-starting early-stage research efforts, the Radys decided to do even more. Katy and Paul established the Paul R. O’Hara II Endowed
100 %
OF AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY RESEARCH DOLLARS IN THE STATE OF COLORADO AWARDED TO CU RESEARCHERS
“The most rewarding aspect of the work I do is the ability to educate patients and engage them in being part of a team in managing their cancer.” - Madeleine Kane, MD, PhD To honor Paul’s legacy and help pave the path toward a cure, the Radys funded five junior faculty seed grants at the CU Cancer Center. They were motivated by a desire to advance novel research and encouraged by the national-level funding other researchers at the center were attracting. The Radys had the opportunity to meet these faculty members and hear about their research initiatives, alongside Dr. Kane and members of Paul O’Hara’s care team. “It was inspiring to learn about this important research, and the fellowship program began to accomplish our goal of honoring Katy’s brother,” Paul Rady said. “The gift also reflected our great appreciation for Dr. Kane, the kindness
Chair in Esophageal Cancer earlier this year, and Dr. Kane was named the inaugural chair holder. With this tremendous gift, the Radys continue to fuel innovative research with untold potential for rapidly improving cancer care and fostering hope for a cure. By naming the chair in Paul O'Hara's memory, they carry forward his legacy in perpetuity. “The Radys’ gift is emblematic of their love for Paul,” Dr. Kane said. “Their amazing generosity will heighten awareness of esophageal cancer and improve outcomes for people with this disease.”
WEB EXCLUSIVES
SPOTLIGHT: Jo ann AND claiborne bickham
UNLIKELY CONNECTIONS
The camaraderie is contagious. When you walk into the lobby of the Cardiac and Vascular Center at University of Colorado Hospital, you sense friendship—lifelong connections forged during uncertain circumstances.
“These people were all part of Clay’s class,” Jo Ann Bickham says as she catches up with friends. The close-knit group came together during treatment, started a number of years ago at the same time as Jo Ann’s late husband, Clay. Nearly everyone in the waiting room has received a life-altering diagnosis, but every patient is there because they are hopeful. “They don’t have to give up,” says Jo Ann. “They realize that even just walking on a treadmill helps, and life goes on.”
Claiborne and Jo Ann Bickham
Jo Ann and Clay always knew they wanted to give back. They had an investment pool set aside for giving to the University of Colorado. As they dealt with Clay’s deteriorating health, they realized they wanted to begin making an impact on other patients as soon as possible. It was then that the Claiborne and Jo Ann Bickham Cardiac Rehabilitation Education Center was born.
Jennifer Holder, MS, and Jo Ann Bickham
This new center enables more patients with conditions such as valve defects, coronary artery disease, arrhythmias and heart failure to benefit from surgical and non-surgical treatment at the Cardiac and Vascular Center. It also houses educational programs for patients and families, teaching them how to modify nutrition and living habits to help improve quality of life. “The social aspect of cardiac rehabilitation is a large part of the program and extremely important to our patients and their families,” Jennifer Holder, MS, cardiac rehabilitation supervisor, said. The Bickham Cardiac Rehabilitation Education Center provides additional space for these social interactions, and friendships like those Jo Ann enjoys. She can attest that growing a support network through chance encounters at the hospital is crucial to healing. They are happy to give back to the people who knew Clay well and to the countless individuals and families who will walk through the center doors in the future.
“We are just so proud and humbled to be able to do this. Neither of us could have ever thought this would be possible. It’s quite an honor to give back.” - Jo Ann Bickham
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INNOVATION
A continuing legacy of discovery and entrepreneurship Each day in the United States, thousands of patients benefit from openheart surgery. They have University of Colorado surgeon Henry Swan to thank, as he pioneered the procedure through his famous cooling technique. As the first full-time chief of surgery at the CU School of Medicine, Swan completed the first successful series of cardiac surgeries in 1953. He accomplished this by plunging patients into a bathtub full of ice water to induce hypothermia and suspend circulation. While surgeons now routinely use heart-lung bypass machines to achieve this effect, Swan’s innovative technique made such an impact on medical history that the bathtub he used to chill patients has been on display at the Smithsonian Institution. The legendary surgeon passed away in 1996, but at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, his legacy of innovation lives on. A new office, a targeted funding source and strategic partnerships are supporting brilliant and inventive minds like Swan’s.
Henry Swan, MD
Dr. Henry Swan revolutionized open heart surgery as the first to perform a successful series of open heart operations under hypothermia.
1953
Dr. Thomas Starzl performed the first successful liver transplant in the world.
1955
1963
Dr. Theodore Puck successfully cloned the first human cells (known as HeLa from Henrietta Lacks), which reproduce infinitely in a lab and have been used for decades in biomedical research.
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Created the first Child Health Associate/Physician Assistant program in the country.
1968
1965
Started the first Nurse Practitioner education program in the country, created by Dr. Henry Silver and Loretta Ford MS, RN.
Drs. Robert Breeze and Curt Freed were the first to implant fetal cells for Parkinson’s disease.
1976
1988
Developed the first description of Kawasaki syndrome in the U.S. and began clinic trials leading to its successful treatment.
EVOLVING WITH THE LANDSCAPE From human cell cloning to smallpox eradication to child abuse treatment, our university’s history of innovation has led to major contributions to the evolution of health and medicine. Since 2002, more than 1,900 patent applications and more than 50 startup companies have formed based on intellectual property developed by our faculty. Today, the evolving health care landscape demands new approaches to innovation that leverage assets—like our renowned faculty and co-location with University of Colorado Hospital and Children’s Hospital Colorado—to take calculated risks that benefit the university and those it serves. To this end, in July 2016, CU Anschutz launched CU Innovations, which facilitates the translation of science and innovation into marketable products and services. Formerly known as the Technology Transfer Office, CU Innovations is led by Kimberly Muller, JD, who joined CU Anschutz from the Yale Entrepreneurial Institute, and Steve VanNurden, MBA, who serves as executive director of biotechnology relationships and CEO of the Fitzsimons Redevelopment Authority.
“In the past, this work centered on intellectual property and license management, but in today’s market, it’s about so much more,” Muller said. “We’re connecting our people to real marketplaces in Colorado and around the world.” To better engage faculty, Muller, VanNurden and their team hold seminars where faculty work closely with the university’s Entrepreneur in Residence program. At these meetings, scientists, physicians and researchers discuss their ideas with investors and business developers and receive valuable input on their inventions’ marketability. “There’s a lot of great science, research and health care that happens at CU Anschutz,” VanNurden said. “We want to make it easy for faculty to bring in an idea, have a team evaluate it and get an early read on it from the industry.” In 2016, CU Anschutz invention disclosures had already increased by 125 percent, and patent application filings by 25 percent. And nearly 100 companies from around the world visited campus. “We are, basically, re-engineering the innovation development process,” Muller said.
Developed a new vaccine for shingles.
2006
1993
Participated in pioneering pediatrics AIDS research, as one of a handful of AIDS clinical trial groups in the U.S.
Drs. Barish Edil and Richard Schulick were the first to perform a laparoscopic Whipple procedure, a highly complex surgical operation to treat tumors in patients with pancreatic cancer.
University of Colorado Hospital performed the first-ever double lung and liver transplant in Colorado.
2013
2007
A multi-university effort with CU Anschutz, Colorado State University and the University of Northern Colorado created the first and only collaborative school of public health in the region.
2014
Drs. Tom Anchordoquy, Raj Agarwal, Theresa Pacheco and Michael Glode pioneered lotion that prevents skin cancer and repairs DNA damage from sun exposure.
2015 2016
Established the National Behavioral Health Innovation Center as an innovative virtual center to address mental health in Colorado and the U.S.
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PARTNERING TO BENEFIT PATIENTS In order to translate innovations into real-world products and applications benefiting patients, CU Innovations provides more than networking support and idea vetting. It also bolsters wouldbe university entrepreneurs through strong relationships, with both hospitals and industry, that propel impactful innovations beyond the borders of CU Anschutz in the form of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and digital health innovations. These partnerships lead to diversified commercial revenue streams that benefit the entire university—and, of course, patients.
“We
are, basically,
re-engineering the
innovation
development process” - kimberly muller, jd
“The best way to deliver technologies to patients,” VanNurden said, “is to match the business side to the science side.” One of these relationships matches CU Anschutz with New York City-based StartUp Health to create the first StartUp Health hub in the country and bring to campus startup companies and technology development partners. The first local company with which StartUp Health Colorado has partnered is Denver-based RxRevu, which has developed a digital product to help consumers and providers find the most effective pharmaceutical treatment at the lowest cost. Proclaiming itself “the most advanced prescription intelligence platform in the world,” RxRevu brings intelligence to physicians to guide drug prescription in real time.
“Patients deserve better than the current health care system, which is expensive, complicated, inefficient and very user-unfriendly,” said Richard Zane, MD, Boedecker Foundation Endowed Chair of Emergency Medicine and chief innovation officer for UCHealth. “We must partner with industry to advance care and give patients what they deserve—tools like RxRevu.”
MATCHING RESOURCES TO PRIORITIES While CU Innovations matches physician-scientists with private industry, the university is also working to match those faculty with the additional funding needed to commercialize their research breakthroughs. CU Anschutz faculty bring in more than $425 million in research funding each year, but much of this is directed at very specific science and not intended to seed entrepreneurship. The new Chancellor’s Discovery & Innovation Fund (CDIF) prioritizes innovation by providing targeted, early-stage funding to fill these gaps. The CDIF will raise and leverage $10 million in private philanthropic contributions to allocate resources for the most promising discoveries at CU Anschutz. This investment will help move entrepreneurial projects to the bedside and the marketplace, enabling CU Anschutz researchers to unlock the promise of science and technology in health care.
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The launch of CU Innovations and the Chancellor’s Discovery & Innovation Fund has accelerated innovation and catalyzed creativity at CU Anschutz. And patients are benefiting from the big ideas of many more Henry Swans of the world.
Impact at anschutz 2016-2017
CU ANSCHUTZ MEDICAL CAMPUS
21,000 1.7m
GIVING*
$205M 5,452 1
1,866 123
4,697 INDIVIDUALS 755 ORGANIZATIONS
FIRST-TIME BENEFACTORS
NEW FUNDS ESTABLISHED
“Tomorrow’s science is happening today at Children’s Hospital Colorado. Here, our providers and researchers collaborate in a relentless desire to innovate, and that is the beauty of academic medical centers.”
- J e n a H a u s m ann PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL COLORADO
$90m
PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER UCHEALTH UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO HOSPITAL *GENERATED FROM UNAUDITED FISCAL YEAR 2017 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
DONATED CLINICAL CARE
CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL COLORADO
#1
IN COLORADO
TREATS PATIENTS FROM
50
STATES
35+
COUNTRIES
only
LEVEL I PEDIATRIC TRAUMA CENTER IN 7-STATE REGION
1,246
REGIONAL OUTREACH CLINICS IN
3
23
3 STATES
CITIES
CONSECUTIVE MAGNET DESIGNATIONS AWARDED FOR NURSING EXCELLENCE
UCHEALTH UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO HOSPITAL
#1
“As Colorado’s only adult academic medical center, UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital is uniquely able to provide clinical trials and innovative treatments to patients throughout the Rocky Mountain region–thanks to our partnership with the University of Colorado School of Medicine, which makes this advanced care possible."
- Wi l l C o o k
PATIENT VISITS ANNUALLY
4,346 STUDENTS
DOLLARS RAISED BENEFACTORS
EMPLOYEES
IN COLORADO
#15 25,438 3,597 252
4
1,000,522
IN U.S.
(U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT)
SURGERIES 2016
BABIES DELIVERED 2016
ORGAN TRANSPLANTS 2016
OUTPATIENT VISITS 2016
CONSECUTIVE MAGNET DESIGNATIONS AWARDED FOR NURSING EXCELLENCE
“As I look to the future and all that
lies ahead, I’m excited about what’s to come and grateful for all
you’ve made possible. Thank you!”
Momentum
Volume 2 | Fall 2017 Momentum is an annual publication that celebrates the power and impact of philanthropy at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. supportcuanschutz.ucdenver.edu/momentum Vice Chancellor of Advancement: Scott Arthur Writing: Trisha Kendall, Devin Lynn, Amy Ventura Design: Candice Coltrain, Jessica Hui Contributors: Erika Matich Photography: Josh Barrett | Ignite Images, Gregory Campbell Photography, Candice Coltrain, Jessica Hui, Devin Lynn, Lamech Mbise, Eric Stephenson Photography Printing: CU Printing Services
13001 East 17th Place | Aurora, CO 80045 supportcuanschutz.ucdenver.edu anschutzadvancement@ucdenver.edu 303.724.8227