Research with Kate Tracy, Ph.D. Larner’s research champion outlines her plans
On the cover
Cassandra Chin illuminates the effects of injury on knee cartilage. Read the story on page 22.
Jessica Gagne, Class of 2028, volunteers at the Intervale Center during Orientation Week.
Based on our history of serving the Green Mountain State, we can expect that around 45% of our medical graduates will eventually practice in New England; in Vermont, over 30% of the specialists and over 40% of the primary care workforce either graduated from Larner or were trained at UVM Medical Center.
Here at the Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine, we mark the passage of time by significant milestones: Orientation, White Coat Ceremony, Match Day, and of course, Commencement. As I reach a personal milestone, beginning my seventh year as Dean of this college, I could not be prouder of the Larner community and our many accomplishments that advance education, research, and clinical care. Nor could I be more grateful for the support we receive from our friends and alumni.
The medical Class of 2028 arrived in August, with an energy that is both unique and contagious. Hailing from Vermont, New England, throughout the country and across the world, they bring a level of accomplishment, academic excellence and diversity that has already enriched our college. In October, the class received their white coats in the beautiful, historic Ira Allen Chapel. Based on our history of serving the Green Mountain State, we can expect that around 45% of our medical graduates will eventually practice in New England; in Vermont, over 30% of the specialists and over 40% of the primary care workforce either graduated from Larner or were trained at UVM Medical Center.
More and more of our medical students are engaging with our growing research enterprise. For eight years, each fall we have hosted the Dean’s Celebration of Excellence in Research, and this September the event spanned an entire week. We showcased the exceptional research of faculty, postdoctoral fellows, staff, and medical and graduate students, in varied formats that ranged from poster sessions to the annual Stetson Lecture, to an evening of TED-style rapidfire presentations. In the pages to follow, we have included an interview with Kate Tracy, Ph.D., our senior associate dean for research, who was the driving force behind our research week.
In this edition of Larner Medicine, there are features highlighting Larner’s impact on medicine, research and education, including a piece discussing the current and potential future impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on health care—which already seems to have reduced burnout for primary care physicians. Moving from the science to the art of medicine, these pages also include a discussion of the great benefit that humanities bring to our medical curriculum.
The accomplishments highlighted herein, and our future success, would not be possible without the generous financial support of our alumni and other friends, who last year provided more than $19 million in gifts to our college. On behalf of the entire Larner community, I am immensely grateful for these investments in the future of healthcare.
Thank you for taking the time to read about the amazing work being conducted here at the Larner College of Medicine. Please let us know what you think, and if you would like to learn more about partnering with us as we aspire to ensure education, research, and health care that are second to none.
Please stay well and keep in touch.
With warm regards,
RICHARD L. PAGE, M.D. Dean
Dean Page snaps a selfie with BioLabs founder and CEO Johannes Fruehauf, M.D., Ph.D. during the Dean’s Celebration of Excellence in Research.
New Larner Leadership
Department Chairs named
Shalina Nair, M.D., M.B.A., executive vice chair of clinical services and innovation at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and medical director for Population Health Outreach at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, has been appointed as the new chair of the Department of Family Medicine at the Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at University of Vermont and UVM Health Network, effective November 1, 2024.
Since 2011, Dr. Nair served first as an assistant professor, and from 2019 as an associate professor of Clinical Family Medicine in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. She was appointed primary care clinical lead of the Medical Center eConsult Program at The Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center in 2018. In 2023, Nair was named both the executive vice chair of Clinical Services and Innovation for the Department of Family and Community Medicine at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and medical director, Population Health Outreach, for The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center’s Office of Health Equity.
Nair received her medical degree from Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine and also obtained a Master of Business Administration degree from the Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University.
She has held leadership positions in several national premier family medicine professional committees, completing a term as chair and now serving as vice chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee for the Association of Departments of Family Medicine. She has also served on their board of directors. In addition, Nair was selected as a member of the AAMC Health Equity Workgroup for eConsults.
Anne Dixon, M.A., B.M.B.Ch.
Jeffrey F. Peipert, M.D., Ph.D., Clarence E. Ehrlich Professor and chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Indiana University School of Medicine (IU) and Indiana University Health, has been appointed the next chair of the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences at the Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at the University of Vermont and the University of Vermont Health Network, effective June 1, 2024.
Since 2016, Dr. Peipert has served as the Clarence E. Ehrlich Professor and chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at IU. He was named executive director of IU’s National Center of Excellence in Women’s Health in 2021. From 2006 through 2016, Peipert was the Robert J. Terry Professor and vice chair of Clinical Research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. Prior to this role, he was a member of the faculty at Brown University School of Medicine in Rhode Island from 1992 to 2006. Peipert is an internationally renowned physician-scientist with over 300 publications. He serves as the deputy editor (Gynecology) for the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology. For 36 years, Peipert has held various roles in the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, and other organizations.
Peipert received his medical degree from Emory University School of Medicine and completed his residency at Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia. He subsequently obtained an M.P.H. from the Yale School of Public Health during his time as a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar at Yale. He also received an M.H.A. from University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management, and in 2007, Peipert was awarded a Ph.D. in epidemiology from Brown University.
Dixon Appointed E. L. Amidon, M.D.’32, Chair of Medicine
Professor and Chair of Medicine Anne Dixon, M.A., B.M.B.Ch., was appointed the E. L. Amidon, M.D.’32, Chair of the Department of Medicine on March 29. A UVM faculty member since 2001, Dr. Dixon is director of the Vermont Lung Center. She served as Chief of the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine from 2009 to 2023. She served as interim chair of medicine from fall 2022 until her appointment as permanent chair in fall 2023.
Dixon holds an M.A. from the University of Cambridge, England, and earned her medical degree from the University of Oxford, England. Established in 1989, the Amidon Chair honors Dr. Ellsworth Amidon, a revered teacher and who led the Department of Medicine from 1942 to 1964.
CAR T-Cell patient Eric Bergeron
Innovative New Cancer Treatment
is Saving Lives
Innovative New Cancer Treatment is Saving Lives
UVM Cancer Center’s CAR T-Cell therapy delivers world-class care close to home.
UVM Cancer Center’s CAR T-Cell therapy delivers world-class care close to home.
When the University of Vermont Cancer Center launched its CAR T-Cell therapy program in February 2023, it was the only health care institution in Vermont and northern New York to provide the treatment. Now, 12 patients have been treated under the care of program director James Gerson, M.D., assistant professor of medicine, at the University of Vermont Medical Center—and many of those patients are still free of cancer today.
The therapy, which uses genetically modified T cells from the patient to attack cancer cells, was approved by the FDA in 2017 for a variety of blood cancers. Though longterm data for CAR T-cell therapy is not yet available, the treatment has the potential to cure some types of cancer. Of the first patients treated more than 10 years ago with CAR T-cell therapy in clinical trials, few of those who achieved a complete response have seen their cancer return.
I remember over Labor Day weekend I was helping my neighbor move, and the next day at work, I just felt off.
– ERIC BERGERON
Eric Bergeron of Colchester, Vermont, hopes to be one of these success stories.
In 2006, Bergeron was diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with brain involvement. After a five-month course of grueling inpatient chemotherapy treatment, Bergeron received the “all clear” in September 2006.
“I was in remission for 16 years, until September of 2022,” said Bergeron. “I remember over Labor Day weekend I was
helping my neighbor move, and the next day at work, I just felt off.”
Sensing something was wrong, Bergeron called his primary care doctor and was prescribed medication for mild vertigo, but the medication didn’t help. Bergeron returned to the UVM Medical Center, and, within three hours, MRI scans showed his cancer had likely returned in his brain. “I remember I was admitted on the spot that Thursday,” said Bergeron. “On Monday, a brain biopsy confirmed my cancer had returned, only in a different area of my brain.”
Treatment began immediately, and Bergeron once again received five months of inpatient chemotherapy, this time followed by a stem cell transplant. When the transplant failed to produce the results the care team was hoping for, Dr. Gerson recommended CAR T therapy.
World-class care, close to home
Bergeron began treatment in 2023 and was prepared for a long hospital stay and difficult side effects, but he was home in 11 days without an adverse reaction.
CAR T works by training a patient’s own T cells—a type of white blood cell used by the immune system to kill viruses and other foreign bodies—to recognize and attack cancer cells.
For Bergeron, the treatment had several steps. First, T cells were removed from his blood. Then they were modified in the lab by adding a receptor gene—a “chimeric antigen receptor” or CAR—that can recognize a protein on the cancer cell, latch onto it, and kill the cell. Finally, these engineered cells were multiplied and given back to Bergeron. Bergeron’s first scan after the infusion showed no sign of cancer. Scans in January and April 2024 also looked clear. “I feel hopeful, and I’m staying positive,” said Bergeron. The data has shown that if patients are cancer free for three months, around 80 percent of patients will go four years without relapsing, and it could be longer as well. “I hope to be in the 80 percent.”
New Green and Gold Professorships
The UVM Larner College of Medicine celebrated faculty with six investitures
Six endowed Green and Gold Professorships were conferred through October of this year upon members of the UVM Larner College of Medicine community. Endowed positions, which are among the highest academic honors that UVM can bestow on a faculty member, recognize and celebrate academic achievement, further encourage scholarship, service and clinical excellence, and help recruit and retain the most creative researchers, effective teachers, finest clinicians and leaders.
1 Gary An, M.D., FACS
Professor of Surgery Gary An, M.D., was invested on July 29, 2024, as the inaugural holder of the Department of Surgery’s Green and Gold Professorship of Trauma and Critical Care. Dr. An is also vice chair of surgical research at the college. This endowed professorship was established in 2013 through the generosity of the faculty in the Department of Surgery, who collectively established Green and Gold professorships in each of their divisions to demonstrate their high regard for their history and a commitment to the department’s future.
2 William Tharp, M.D., Ph.D.
On October 4, 2024, assistant professor of anesthesiology
William “Gabe” Tharp, M.D., Ph.D., was invested as the inaugural holder of the Michael O’Reilly, M.D., M.S., Green and Gold Professorship in Anesthesiology. The professorship was established by Dr. O’Reilly who received his M.D. and M.S. degrees at UVM and has taught at premier medical institutions such as the University of California, Irvine and the University of Michigan. For the past few years, O’Reilly has been a professor of anesthesiology at Stanford University while also working for Apple on medical technology and health related special projects.
3 Robert H. Millay, M.D.
Robert H. Millay, M.D., professor of surgery in the Division of Ophthalmology, was invested on October 7, 2024, as the inaugural Green and Gold Professorship of Ophthalmology. In 2013, the Department of Surgery’s faculty collectively established Green and Gold Professorships in each of their divisions, to invest in faculty leaders and demonstrate their commitment to the department’s future.
4 Patrick M. Forgione, M.D.
Associate Professor of Surgery Patrick Forgione M.D., in the Division of General and Gastrointestinal Surgery, was invested on October 10, 2024, as the inaugural holder of the Green and Gold Professorship of General Surgery. Dr. Forgione is also the director of surgery student education at Larner. This endowed professorship was established in 2013 through the generosity of the faculty in the Department of Surgery, who collectively established Green and Gold professorships in each of their divisions.
5 Michelle M. Sowden, D.O.
On October 14, 2024, Michelle M. Sowden D.O., associate professor of surgical oncology in the Division of Surgical Oncology, was invested as the inaugural holder of the Green and Gold Professorship of Surgical Oncology. Dr. Sowden is also the clinical director of surgical oncology at the UVM Medical Center. In 2013, the Department of Surgery’s faculty collectively established Green and Gold Professorships in each of their divisions.
6 Donald R. Laub, M.D., M.S.
Donald R. Laub, M.D., M.S., professor of surgery, was invested on October 14, 2024, as the inaugural holder of the Linda A. and David W. Leitner Green and Gold Professorship of Plastic Surgery. The Green and Gold Professorship of Plastic Surgery, established in 2013 with a gift from the Department of Surgery, was renamed the Linda A. and David W. Leitner Green and Gold Professorship of Plastic Surgery, following an additional gift by David W. Leitner, M.D. (1948–2024), and his wife, Linda. Dr. Leitner joined the University of Vermont’s Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in 1984, retiring in 2015. He twice served as chair of the division and founded the UVM Medical Center Microvascular Reconstructive Surgery and Replantation Service.
Celebrating Research Excellence
From September 23-27, the Larner College of Medicine hosted its eighth annual Dean’s Celebration of Excellence in Research, a weeklong celebration dedicated to showcasing the exceptional research endeavors of faculty, research fellows, medical students, and graduate students. This collective celebration has become a platform to highlight both academic discovery and collaboration among the 16 departments, 17 centers, and 8 institutes and programs at the Larner College of Medicine, said Kate Tracy, Ph.D., senior associate dean for research.
“By highlighting the research being conducted by junior and senior faculty, postdoctoral trainees, current students and alumni, we hope to inspire curiosity, foster innovation, and create a culture of continuous learning,” Dr. Tracy said.
... we hope to inspire curiosity, foster innovation, and create a culture of continuous learning.
– KATE TRACY, PH.D.
The celebration launched with more than 60 graduate and medical students presenting their research posters in the Hoehl Gallery and Given Courtyard. A mid-week research rally provided a platform for Larner’s emerging faculty researchers to give brief “Ted-Talk” style presentations about their investigations, ranging from racial and sociodemographic disparities in mental health care access for children after a firearm injury, to solving acute critical endotheliopathy in shock patients, to intersectionality in health and medicine.
Awards spotlighted outstanding research publications among medical students, graduate students, post-doctoral trainees and residents, clinical research coordinators, scientific research staff, clinical trials, research mentors, new investigators, mid-career investigators, research laureate and junior and senior investigator of the year. Tracy delivered a Research Celebration address and unveiled a video showcasing the array of research at the college.
At a lecture on “The Science of Service,” Jennifer Musa, Ph.D. ‘94, professor of biology at SUNY-Broome Community College shared her work as co-creator of Health for Haiti, SUNY-Broome’s first faculty-led, credit-bearing, global service-learning course. The Larner College of Medicine Alumni Executive Committee honored and presented Musa with the Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award.
The celebration culminated on Friday with a focus on the new UVM BioLabs Innovation Center. Johannes Fruehauf, M.D., Ph.D., founder and CEO of BioLabs and LabCentral, delivered the annual Stetson Lecture, sponsored by John Stetson, UVM’56, M.D.’60, and Roberta B. Stetson UVM’57. Fruehauf described life science innovation hubs and outlined the ways universities play a role in blending innovation with entrepreneurship. A panel discussion followed with Fruehauf, Tracy, University of Vermont vice president for Research and Economic Development Kirk Dombrowski, Ph.D., and Chris Pacheco, Ph.D., vice president of Venture Partnerships at Ginkgo Bioworks. Dean Richard Page, M.D., moderated the panel.
“At the College of Medicine, research is at the core of everything we do. And the BioLabs Innovation Center represents an amazing opportunity for innovative biotech startup ventures right here, at our university and in our state,” Dean Page said. “This is an exciting time of discovery in medicine.”
(left to right) Jake Ayisi ‘27 presents research on stroke risk; Dr. Musa highlights service learning in Haiti; Dr. Fruehauf explains life sciences innovation hubs.
DEAN’S CELEBRATION OF
SEPTEMBER 23 – 27, 2024
A Weekend of Celebration and Commitment
Students, family, friends, faculty, and staff gathered on May 18 and 19, to celebrate the next generation of biomedical scientists, health professionals, and doctors during the University of Vermont’s Commencement Weekend.
On Saturday, May 18, master’s and doctoral degree recipients were hooded at the Graduate College Ceremony, held in the Gutterson Fieldhouse.
The following day, Sunday, May 19, more than one hundred of UVM’s newest medical degree recipients were celebrated at the Larner College of Medicine Ceremony in Ira Allen Chapel. Leading the faculty into the chapel was faculty marshal Jillian Sullivan, M.D.’04. Class of 2024 graduate Elise A. Prehoda, M.D., served as student marshal and led her classmates into the ceremony, where Richard L. Page, M.D., dean of the Larner College of Medicine, delivered the first remarks.
Praising the new physicians on the grace and professionalism with which they adapted to new learning modalities and upheaval during the pandemic, he said, “The Class of 2024 is special. They applied to medical school before anyone had heard of COVID, but they started their medical education in the thick of a pandemic. Instead of our usual greeting of the entire class in one large classroom, Dean Zehle and I greeted the Class of 2024 wearing masks, visiting them in the individual pods of a dozen or so students that defined their first preclinical year. The first months of medical school are always hard, but nobody would wish upon them the added challenges they endured.”
Prior to the awarding of degrees, the ceremony also featured remarks from President and Chief Executive Officer of the University of Vermont Health Network Sunil Eappen, M.D., M.B.A., and Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education Christa Zehle, M.D.’99, who introduced Class of 2024 student speaker Tyler Landman, M.D.
The Larner College of Medicine Ceremony also featured a keynote address by James J. O’Connell, M.D., president of the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program and assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.
“Welcome, Class of 2024, to our amazing profession. I wish you exciting lives, full of balance, promise, failure—yes, failure; without which we cannot grow—compassion, fun, and love,” said O’Connell.
“Cherish your family and friends. Embrace uncertainty, cherish failures, and always remain open to the serendipity that sprinkles each of our lives with grace. You have so much to give … especially to those who are vulnerable, excluded, lonely, and shunned by our society. Now, more than ever, the world desperately needs you.”
Class of 2024 graduate Ally Sarkis receives her diploma in the Ira Allen Chapel
UVM Commencement for the Class of 2024
Keynote Address James J. O’Connell, M.D.
BioLabs Innovation Center
University of Vermont and BioLabs to launch startup incubator
In late September, the University of Vermont (UVM) announced a partnership with Cambridge, Massachusetts–based BioInnovation Labs (BioLabs), an internationally known innovation laboratory platform with a network of shared lab and office workspaces, to launch a dedicated incubator at UVM’s Colchester facility.
The BioLabs Innovation Center at UVM will support entrepreneurs and startup companies specializing in all areas of life sciences research and development with fully equipped combination office and laboratory space to test and scale their research. Through this strategic partnership, UVM will oversee the new facility and provide technology, equipment, and direct collaboration with faculty at the Larner College of Medicine. The college includes nearly 200 research faculty and more than 700 clinical faculty who practice in the UVM Health Network. BioLabs will support UVM with facility operations, access to industry partners, and networking and programming events.
Currently, BioLabs partners with an elite group of universities, pharmaceutical companies, and other engaged stakeholders worldwide. The UVM–BioLabs partnership reinforces the university’s steadfast commitment to research, education, and innovation. Additionally, UVM is the first rural university to join the BioLabs ecosystem.
The center will offer select tenants nearly 7,000 sq. ft. of shared wet labs, common areas, and flexible office space, which will allow approximately 10–20 early-stage companies to tailor their laboratories according to their needs. The location—a short drive from UVM’s main campus in Burlington—provides convenient access to UVM and the Larner College of Medicine’s core facilities, public transit options, and the Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport, as well as numerous local amenities.
“Admission to the BioLabs Innovation Center at UVM will be a highly competitive process,” Kirk Dombrowski, Ph.D., vice president for research and economic development at UVM, said. “And with access to the full research enterprise at UVM, these startups will join the more than 500 companies BioLabs has supported since its launch, ultimately creating jobs and furthering our regional economic development.”
Although the center is expected to open in late 2025, the BioLabs Innovation Center at UVM will begin accepting applications and hosting tours in the coming months.
This will provide a kick start to advancing local scientific discovery to clinical investigation and supporting patient care.
–
RICHARD PAGE, M.D., DEAN
“I am excited for UVM and the Larner College of Medicine to work with Vice President Dombrowski in this important partnership, which will provide critical incubator space for scientists both at UVM and in our community. This will provide a kick start to advancing local scientific discovery to clinical investigation and supporting patient care,” said Richard L. Page, M.D., dean of the Larner College of Medicine.
“Working with the team at UVM is an extraordinary opportunity, and we are proud to be part of expanding access to state-of-the-art facilities for the scientists and entrepreneurs in Vermont and in the UVM ecosystem. Like all our facilities, this site is designed to stimulate creative interaction and collaboration with a bonus of offering access to the wide resources of UVM’s world-class facilities and teams,” said BioLabs founder and CEO Johannes Fruehauf, M.D., Ph.D.
Frietze Laboratory, Firestone Medical Research Building
Simulation Education: A Real Legacy
Founder of Larner’s Clinical Simulation Lab retires
Growing up on Long Island, Cate Nicholas, Ed.D., M.S., PA, could not have imagined the legacy she would build at the Larner College of Medicine. “When I was in my twenties, the thought ‘Oh, I’ll be a simulation educator’ never crossed my mind. This method of teaching—and learning—didn’t even exist at that point.” More than 37 years later, Nicholas has seen thousands of future and current health care professionals pass through the doors of the Clinical Simulation Laboratory (CSL), a program she both founded and directed during her tenure at Larner.
Nicholas’s journey to UVM began at the University of Bridgeport, Connecticut, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in medical laboratory science. She then pursued a master’s degree in medical technology at UVM. One day after class, she noticed a flyer for a small women’s clinic
Shani Legore ‘26 in the Clinical Simulation Laboratory
seeking someone to run their lab. Nicholas successfully applied, quickly realizing she needed to move beyond the lab to provide the necessary level of care. Nicholas advanced from a health care assistant to a physician assistant (PA), learning about abortion care, contraceptives, and performing colposcopies.
From the ʼ70s through the ʼ90s, Vermont and Montana were the only states where PAs were allowed to provide abortions. When Vermont requested a formal and standardized curriculum for the apprenticeship training program, Nicholas wrote it—with the guidance of her mentor, Diane Magrane, M.D., then clerkship director for OB/GYN. Magrane subsequently asked Nicholas to start a Standardized Patient (SP) program, and together they designed the Given Assessment Center and recruited family members as SPs until they established a professional cadre. The collaborative effort of the UVM Larner College of Medicine, the UVM College of Nursing and Health Sciences, and the UVM Medical Center led to the groundbreaking CSL.
The CSL’s first training involved a simulated case on central line insertion. Nicholas and her team saw the need to standardize central line kits and protocols, resulting in a significant reduction in complications. A subsequent paper on the topic, co-authored by Nicholas and published in the American Journal of Infection Control, highlighted the realworld impact of simulation education.
Under Nicholas’s leadership, the CSL achieved full accreditation from the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and the Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSH). At the time, Larner’s CSL was one of only nine simulation centers worldwide to receive this level of recognition. In 2021, SSH inducted Nicholas into the SSH Fellows Academy, recognizing her role in establishing a world-class facility and program. The Association of Standardized Patient Educators named her Standardized Patient Educator of the Year in 2011, and in 2015, she was inducted into the Larner College of Medicine Teaching Academy as a Distinguished Educator. Demonstrating her expertise, Nicholas co-edited the influential work Comprehensive Healthcare Simulation: Implementing Best Practices in SP Methodology in 2020. In 2024, Nicholas was honored by the Northeast Group on Education Affairs as a recipient of their Distinguished Educator Award.
Additionally, Nicholas serves as the associate editor for SP methodology for MedEdPORTAL, an open-access journal published by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), and is also an editorial board member for the International Journal of Healthcare Simulation.
Despite her many professional accolades, Nicholas’s goal has always been simply to help others. Many former students have spoken about how the CSL has enhanced their clinical and bedside skills, feedback that Nicholas never tires of hearing. But to Nicholas, it’s not about her. “At the end of the day,” she stated, “everything we do is for the patient.”
Class of 2028
White Coat Rite of Passage
For more than thirty years, the White Coat Ceremony has become a rite of passage at U.S. medical schools. It is a ceremony that officially welcomes students into the medical profession and emphasizes the obligations and responsibilities they assume as they don the traditional physician’s white coat.
On October 18, 2024, medical students in the Class of 2028, gathered at UVM’s historic Ira Allen Chapel to receive their first white coats.
Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education Christa Zehle, M.D.’99, welcomed the students and an audience of more than 600 attendees, which included the students’ families, loved ones, mentors, and Larner faculty and staff. Larner Dean Richard L. Page, M.D., UVM Medical Center Chief Medical Officer Isabelle Desjardins, M.D., professor of psychiatry, and Michael Upton, M.D.’94, president of the Larner College of Medicine Alumni Association, also shared their reflections on the significance of the day.
Welcome Class of 2028!
124
new medical students welcomed on August 5, 2024
On August 5, 2024, the Larner College of Medicine welcomed 124 new medical students in the Class of 2028 to campus.
Students in the Class of 2028 were selected from a pool of more than 9,300 applicants. The new cohort arrive with some impressive medical and scientific involvement, including more than 400,000 hours of clinical experience, 140,000 hours of research experience, and almost 40,000 hours of community service. Just over a quarter of the new medical students are Vermonters, and 27 percent identify as LGBTQ+. In addition, 24 percent of UVM’s newest medical students are people underrepresented in medicine—referred to in higher education as “URiM”—a category that includes African American/Black, Hispanic/Latino/a, and Native American/ Alaskan Native. The student body draws from 20 states.
Students in the Class of 2028 were selected from a pool of more than 9,300 applicants.
Larner Dean Richard L. Page, M.D., addressed the incoming students in his welcome message, stressing the importance of maintaining a good work-life balance, and emphasizing the core values of professionalism. “This is an amazing group. You bring such excellence, diversity, and different perspectives on the world. We are just as excited as you are that you are here, and we are all working together to provide for you an education— that our namesake, Dr. Robert Larner, used to say—we aspire to be second to none,” he said.
From August 5 to 9, the first-year University of Vermont medical students participated in Orientation Week. During the week, each day was packed with interactive activities and exercises designed to familiarize students with different facets of their upcoming journey.
One highlight was the coordinated community service and wellness activities. The class assisted local partners performing such tasks as weeding a bed of native tree species affected by recent floods at the Intervale Conservation Nursery, helping to reclaim historic gardens by weeding and mulching at the Ethan Allen Homestead, and working at the Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity ReStore.
Dean Page at Orientation Week’s welcome lecture
Pauline DiGianivittorio in her lab
A Researcher is Born
A lifelong fascination with exploring the unknown leads to science and a biomedical research future
Pauline DiGianivittorio, a graduate research assistant and Ph.D. candidate in the cellular, molecular, and biomedical sciences (CMB) program at the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine, reflects on her journey pursuing a career in biomedical research.
An Early-Stage Scientist
My name is Pauline DiGianivittorio, and I grew up in New Jersey, where life lessons made me want to become a scientist and explore the unknown. I knew I wanted to be a scientist since I was small. I was always fascinated by the unknown and unanswered questions. I remember when I would continuously ask my parents why something worked the way it did, or even how something came into existence. Of course, as parents, they could only appease me so much. Which, in retrospect, is why I started to love science from an early age. I always joke with myself that it was either this or astronomy and astrophysics.
I attended the University of New England and graduated in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in science, thinking at the time I wanted to be a physician. I next wanted to explore the world of scientific research, and so attended Thomas Jefferson University and graduated in 2019 with a master’s degree in science. Here, I researched mechanisms of spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy (SMBA), a motor neuron degenerative disease. I knew from this moment on that I wanted to be a researcher and a first-generation scientist, so I joined the CMB Ph.D. program at the Larner College of Medicine in the fall of 2019.
A Passion for Pathogens
It was at UVM, particularly under the mentorship of Matthew Wargo, associate professor of microbiology and molecular genetics, where I found a passion for understanding hostpathogen (bacterial) interactions. My graduate research focuses specifically on the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa and how it can metabolize key host-derived sphingolipids, promoting the pathogen’s survival and virulence. Within this scope, my project focuses on (1) how Pseudomonas aeruginosa’s sphingolipid metabolizing capabilities can promote its phagocytic evasion from macrophages, and (2) how Pseudomonas aeruginosa
behaves and responds (through changes in metabolism, biology, and virulence strategies) to numerous host-derived sphingolipids. The goal of this research, on an in-vitro level, is to further understand the pathogenesis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and its ability to exploit host-derived resources. The larger goal of this research is to find a druggable target to aid in stopping Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection. There are many experiences that stand out in my doctoral program. Most of them all relate back to having a superb supporting network. This supportive network included not only faculty (in addition to my thesis committee), but also, largely, the postdoctoral fellows and trainees, and other graduate students within the program. No matter when I needed them, they were always there to answer my many questions. Toward my senior years in the program, it was really the postdoctoral fellows who helped me never give up in the search for a job after grad school, as this can be quite a brooding process. Additionally, throughout my entire Ph.D. journey, my PI, Matt Wargo, was incredibly supportive. For this I will forever be grateful.
Postdoctoral Journey Beyond Vermont
To come full circle, I will be graduating this coming November of 2024 from the CMB program and will continue my scientific research training in host-pathogen interactions through a postdoc either at the University of Pennsylvania or at the University of Delaware. Here, my research focus would be either on understanding how the microbiome regulates the immune response and how this is altered in disease states, or on understanding bacterial infection in cystic fibrosis. I want to enhance my training not only in science and grant writing, but also in teaching and mentoring. After this training, a large goal of mine is to become research faculty and run my own lab, mentoring undergraduate, graduate, and medical students in their scientific journey.
Besides research, some of my outside interests include reading Marvel comics, crafting (e.g., crocheting, sewing, making jewelry), trying new restaurants and food, golfing, and spending time with family and friends. I try to nurture my well-being when I can, as this substantially improves my daily motivation.
Student Voices
Larner Students Selected as 2024-25 Schweitzer Fellows
Recipients’ projects focus on addressing existing health disparities throughout the region
Five teams of UVM Larner College of Medicine Class of 2027 medical students, along with five teams from the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth College and Vermont Law and Graduate School, have been selected to participate as 2024–25 Schweitzer Fellows through the New Hampshire/ Vermont (NH/VT) Schweitzer Fellows Program. As fellows, the students will spend hundreds of hours over the next year completing projects with community partners that focus on addressing existing health disparities throughout the region.
Founded in 1996, the NH/VT Schweitzer Fellows Program is one of 13 currently active Albert Schweitzer Fellowship (ASF) program sites across the U.S. dedicated to developing a pipeline of emerging professionals who enter the workforce with the skills and commitment necessary to address unmet health needs. To date, more than 350 Schweitzer Fellows have provided over 50,000 hours of service to Vermont and New Hampshire’s most underresourced communities.
The following Larner students and projects were selected for 2024–25:
Claire Baptiste and Hamza Mirza
Baptiste and Mirza are working to improve blood pressure management for Jamaican farmworkers in Vermont. The students are organizing community conversation circles to understand treatment approaches used by this population and to facilitate access to follow-up care. Their efforts aim to enhance treatment adherence and overall health outcomes in this migrant population. Community Partner: Bridges to Health.
Cliff Bauman and Julia Hurley
Bauman and Hurley are developing methods of tracking individuals’ progress in addiction treatment longitudinally, their recovery successes, and referrals to treatment programs. They will collaborate with the Turning Point Center Outreach Recovery program to help provide low-barrier addiction coaching and support to individuals and families in Vermont. Community Partner: Turning Point Center of Chittenden County.
Benjamin Koren and Alison Chivers
Koren and Chivers aim to address the disproportionate and increasing incidence of type 2 diabetes among Vermont’s migrant farmworkers. In collaboration with partners at the Open Door Clinic and from within the migrant farmworker community, they plan to give community members the knowledge necessary to take charge of their metabolic health while also fostering conversations about how to do so in ways that stay true to migrants’ cultural values. Community Partner: Open Door Clinic.
Eunice Suberu and Sulekha Kilas
Suberu and Kilas aim to make a meaningful impact on preschoolers from refugee and newly immigrated families through a social-emotional learning program. Their project integrates age-appropriate teaching methods that provide children with tools to express themselves, regulate their emotions, and expand their emotional vocabulary. They plan to utilize play, narration, observation, reading, and art to foster positive emotional development. Community Partner: The Janet S. Munt Family Room.
Greta Joos and Naomi Burhans
Joos and Burhans aim to organize foot care clinics in shelters for the unhoused in Burlington to forge connections and improve foot health through foot baths, callus removal, and distribution of nail clippers and socks. They also plan to collaborate with Community Health Centers of Burlington to promote health literacy and health care accessibility for unhoused community members. Community Partner: Champlain Place.
Naomi Burhans at a foot care clinic
(back) Julia Hurley, Claire Baptiste, Hamza Mirza (middle) Cliff Bauman, Greta Joos, Benjamin Koren, Alison Chivers (front) Eunice Suberu, Naomi Burhans, Sulekha Kilas
Frances Carr, Ph.D. and Seth Frietze, Ph.D.
Carr and Frietze Collaboration Leads to Department of Defense Impact Award
Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine cancer worldwide, with incidence rates increasing rapidly during the past few decades. Due to a lack of effective and enduring therapies, patients who are diagnosed with advanced metastatic disease have a high mortality rate and survival time of only six to nine months from the time of diagnosis. Now, through a new Impact Award from the U.S. Department of Defense, Frances Carr, Ph.D., professor of
Glass Secures NSF Mid-Career Advancement Award
pharmacology, and Seth Frietze, Ph.D., associate professor of biochemistry, will complete foundational and translational research, developing novel therapeutic strategies for thyroid cancer. The grant will allow Carr and Frietze to continue work on a collaborative project with Aimee Franco, Ph.D., at the University of Pennsylvania, to understand how the transcription factor (a regulator of protein expression) Thyroid Hormone Receptor Beta (TRb) acts as a tumor suppressor.
The National Science Foundation’s Mid-Career Advancement (NSF MCA) program provides mid-career investigators in science and engineering with opportunities to significantly boost their research programs through collaborative partnerships, often with institutions other than their own. The program favors projects that offer fresh perspectives on existing issues or investigate new, previously unexplored questions, leveraging expertise and methodologies from diverse fields.
Previous work from the group, supported by a UVM Cancer Center Pilot Award, demonstrated that reductions in the aggressive characteristics of thyroid, breast, and other endocrine cancers are possible with selective activation of TRb. The team will investigate further to uncover differences in gene expression and regulatory patterns that arise with activation of TRb. The patterns identified will serve as the foundation for subsequent clinical trials.
Associate Professor of Pharmacology Karen Glass, Ph.D., recently received an award totaling more than $380,000 from the MCA program for her project, “Application of Cryo-Electron Microscopy to Deter-
Karen Glass, Ph.D.
mine the Structure of Epigenetic Regulatory Complexes.” Glass is the first UVM faculty member to receive an MCA award.
Single-particle cryo-electron microscopy (CryoEM) is a powerful tool for obtaining high-resolution images of proteins and other molecules in cells. Glass, working with experts at the University of Michigan and the National Center for CryoEM Access and Training (NCCAT), aims to use CryoEM to understand epigenetic gene regulatory mechanisms.
Glass plans to share her new knowledge by training faculty, lab personnel, and students in this cuttingedge technique.
“I am thrilled to have the support and protected time offered through this award to take my research program in a new direction, and I am honored to be the first faculty member to receive it. I hope to inspire other colleagues at UVM, to apply to this program,” Glass said.
(left)
This drug makes it so that relaxation helps the heart relax faster. Everything right now looks very promising … This is a really exciting thing because it does appear to work and it doesn’t appear to have a lot of harmful effects so far.
– MATTHEW CAPORIZZO, PH.D.
New Hope for Heart Failure
Revolutionary small molecule inhibitor shows promise in treating heart failure
Heart disease, including heart failure, has been the leading cause of death in the United States since 1950, with more than one million new cases diagnosed each year, according to the American Heart Association. Approximately 50 percent of Americans diagnosed with heart failure (HF) also presents with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), a condition for which there are limited therapeutic options.
HFpEF occurs when the heart’s left ventricle becomes stiff and fails to relax properly during the filling phase (diastole). Although the heart pumps out a normal percentage of blood with each contraction (ejection fraction), the overall blood volume pumped is deficient due to insufficient ventricular filling.
Scientists at the Larner College of Medicine and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have recently made a groundbreaking discovery to address this HFpEF, and partnering with the pharmaceutical company, MT-Act, they have developed
a new small molecule inhibitor to repair the failing heart’s microtubule network (MTN).
Matthew Caporizzo, Ph.D., assistant professor of molecular physiology and biophysics, along with researchers at the University of Pennsylvania, created a powerful small molecule vasohibin inhibitor (VASHi) to block MTN detyrosination. Detyrosination is the enzymatic removal of the tyrosine (an amino acid that is used by cells to build proteins) residue, which makes the microtubules sticky, impeding the heart cells from relaxing properly.
Caporizzo and colleagues’ findings may be integral in the treatment of HFpEF, and could even be extended to other forms of heart failure where stiffening of the heart occurs.
“This drug makes it so that relaxation helps the heart relax faster,” Caporizzo said. “Everything right now looks very promising … This is a really exciting thing because it does appear to work and it doesn’t appear to have a lot of harmful effects so far.”
Matthew Caporizzo, Ph.D., in his UVM laboratory with Emmaleigh Hancock
The Power of Mentoring
How mentoring strengthens scientific careers and community engagement
BY JEFF WAKEFIELD
By Jeff Wakefield
Jason Stumpff, Ph.D., and Katie Queen, Ph.D., outside the Health Science Research Facility
More than
50 percent
of Vermont high school students attend a rural school, and geographical constraints limit their access to state-of-the-art science facilities.
Beginning next year, the UVM Cancer Center will help overcome this barrier with a new high-tech mobile laboratory that will visit rural high schools and provide students with a comprehensive research experience. Students will participate in the entire scientific process from generating hypotheses to conducting experiments in the mobile lab to sharing their findings in a community event.
The project, which the Cancer Center hopes will inspire students to pursue careers in cancer research and treatment, was developed by Katie Queen, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine, who facilitates the UVM Cancer Center’s science educational outreach and communication initiatives. It is a direct outgrowth of her doctoral work in UVM’s Cellular, Molecular, and Biomedical (CMB) Sciences program.
At first glance, the educational outreach program’s genesis in the research-intensive Ph.D. program might seem odd— but only if you don’t know CMB.
The program places its fair share of graduates in post-doctoral positions at other schools. But CMB is equally adept at helping students launch careers outside academia, a necessity today when science Ph.D. programs graduate far more students than higher education can absorb.
At first glance, the educational outreach program’s genesis in the research-intensive Ph.D. program might seem odd — but only if you don’t know CMB.
CMB’s secret is a culture of faculty mentoring, a hallmark of UVM’s Graduate College and Larner College of Medicine, that takes a personalized approach to every student, Queen says. “Our faculty are really good at seeing how things have changed and adapting their mentoring to the needs and career goals of individual students,” she says. Queen is a case in point.
She came to the CMB program expecting to pursue a career as a research scientist. But as successful as she was in the lab, she was even more passionate about “bridging the gap between scientists and broader communities,” a love she discovered talking with friends about her work and via projects she launched on her own, like the “Science on Tap” program at Burlington Beer Company that brought UVM experts to the Burlington watering hole to discuss topics like “So, Why Haven’t We Cured Cancer Yet?” and “Growing Gains: How Lab-Derived Muscle Can Improve the Next Generation of Medicine.”
But until meeting with her advisor, Jason Stumpff, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics and co-leader of the UVM Cancer Center’s Cancer Host and Environment research program, Queen wasn’t
sure how to obtain the experience necessary for a career in science communication.
“Without hesitation, he supported that shift in my career endeavors and helped me get the experience I needed,” she says.
Stumpff suggested Queen apply for a highly competitive National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, in part because the grant put a premium on outreach. She became the first CMB student to be awarded one. Queen excelled at both the science—publishing three papers in peer-reviewed journals—and the outreach, developing a program aimed at Vermont high school teachers that gave her the experience and contacts she needed to build the mobile lab program.
And he helped her fill a hole in her resume—the lack of a science writing portfolio—by connecting her with the UVM Cancer Center’s communications director, Kate Strotmeyer, M.Ed., who gave her a steady stream of writing assignments. Soon after Queen completed her Ph.D., the UVM Cancer Center hired her.
Queen couldn’t be happier rolling out the mobile lab pilot—which she hopes to expand in the future with a grant she submitted and another in the works—writing about cancer research, and coordinating a variety of training and education programs.
“The Cancer Center is just an incredibly exciting place to be right now,” she says. As is the field of science communications. “I’ve seen lots of instances where you have brilliant people whose work is critical but isn’t accessible. I like being a person who can take complicated work and bring it to a level that’s understandable for a general audience.”
(top) Jason Stumpff, Ph.D., and Katie Queen, Ph.D., in the lab. (bottom) Rendering of UVM Cancer Center mobile laboratory.
AI
IN MEDICINE
A NEW PARADIGM?
As the subject of almost unrelenting hype, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is arguably the hottest technology of our time. In the past few years, AI has evolved from a futuristic concept into an inescapable juggernaut of innovation emerging from technology companies that impacts many facets of our lives.
It is not unreasonable to expect the use of AI in medicine to have a significant impact, and potentially revolutionize patient care, biomedical research, and health care systems. A compelling argument can be made that AI will allow the business of health care to automate large chunks of time-consuming tasks and spark a new era of medical and scientific breakthroughs.
AI is already being widely adopted in medicine and the provision of health care. As of August 2024, the FDA had approved 950 AI and machine learning (ML) enabled medical devices. It’s estimated the number will only continue to grow every year. Every day, patients send hundreds of thousands of messages to their doctors through MyChart, a communications platform that is nearly ubiquitous in U.S. health care systems, with approximately 15,000 physicians and assistants at more than 150 health systems using a new AI feature in MyChart to draft replies to such messages.
BY JOHN TURNER
Despite the enthusiasm for, and promise of AI, there is skepticism in some quarters about how much transformation is possible when AI solutions are layered on top of fragmented or flawed systems that are widespread in health care. When coupled with concerns about privacy, the possibility of bias, device accuracy, ethical considerations, and some well-publicized AI hallucination patient incidents, it is no surprise that a chorus of voices calling for a more measured perspective tempering the technologies rollout and expectations, is rising.
REDUCING PHYSICIAN BURNOUT AND IMPROVING PATIENT CARE
While the majority of FDA-approved devices are in the imaging and radiology fields, AI-powered communication and transcription tools are quickly emerging as easy-to-deploy possible antidotes to addressing ever-piling paperwork mountains and clinician burnout. The University of Vermont Health Network (UVMHN) recently piloted and tested ambient AI products with primary care providers from both Vermont and New York that record a natural conversa-
tion between patient and clinician to automatically generate the clinical note.
The key results from the pilot and deploying the AI solution, Abridge, were encouraging in impacting contributing factors to physician burnout:
• Improved professional fulfillment - Clinicians’ professional fulfillment increased by 53 percent based on the Stanford Professional Fulfillment Index
• Significant time savings - Clinicians reported a 60 percent decrease in time spent on documenting patient encounters
• Decreased cognitive load - Clinicians experienced a 51 percent reduction in cognitive load, allowing for more focus and attention with patients
Laura McCray, M.D., M.S.C.E., professor and interim chair of family medicine, who helped operationalize the pilot said, “I really love using the AI product, in that I’m able to put away the computer and the keyboard and really focus on my conversation with the patient, who anecdotally seem to really love it. They feel heard and
understood. Also, my notes are done by the end of the day, which is a huge time saver, and it takes the focus away from documentation in the computer and puts it more on the essentials of patient care, so that’s been awesome. In fact, we’re rolling it out across all the UVMHN primary care sites now.”
McCray is already looking to future opportunities to use the technology in clinical care. “I think we’ll be able to leverage AI to help us not only with the note writing, but with capturing billing and coding data, interfacing with insurance companies, language translation, orders, or taking new medication prescriptions, and tee those things up for the human provider to always cross-check, make sure it’s accurate, and then sign off to get things accurately moving forward for the patient.”
She adds a note of caution, however. “While it will improve efficiency, I think it’s critical to the use of AI and patient care, that there’s always a human set of eyes at the end to confirm accuracy before things are signed off or sent.”
THE ETHICS OF AI CARE
As AI is increasingly being deployed in health care, it promises substantial benefits but also poses risks that could exacerbate existing disparities and ethical challenges.
“One interesting challenge is inadvertent incorporation into AI of human bias,” says Tim Lahey, M.D., M.M.Sc., professor of medicine, director of ethics at the University of Vermont Medical Center, and a member of the UVMHN AI governance board. “AI is trained on our behavior and trained on our scientific literature. Since humans are biased, and our scientific literature and clinical practice have some bias in them, there may be biases that AI could adopt in a way that perhaps we’re not even aware of. We could be hardwiring bias into the future practice.”
“Let’s say you have an AI scheduling software trying to efficiently book people into the clinic. Maybe it turns out that patients of a given demographic are less likely to make their appointment— single parents, for instance, might be less likely to show up for an appointment than members of two-parent households, for legitimate reasons. Maybe then the AI says, ‘I’m going to prioritize
the person who shows up for appointments more because I want to fill the schedule more reliably and make sure clinicians are maximally efficient.’ That sort of system would, unintentionally, make it even harder for that busy single parent to get the health care they need. It would exacerbate an existing challenge unintentionally, because AI has no intentions, but that would be the output. It’s going to be our duty while we’re using this hopefully effort-saving technology, to make sure it’s not saving us on the backs of people who are already disadvantaged in our system.”
Lahey continued, “The way I approach it is that with any new technology there’s always promise and peril. AI is no different. These benefits could really alter health care for the better in many ways, but also can make things worse ... I think that it’s going to boil down to investing in making sure that we know what the outcome of the use of AI is at a population level, that we formally ask whether it’s leading to biased outcomes or whether it’s neglecting the needs of patients with less common conditions.”
Beyond the risk of bias, Lahey pointed out an additional AIrelated risk that users will have to manage—patient data breaches. Clinical AI accesses and learns from patient information at a faster pace and while making more connections than in traditional software. That means privacy protections and monitoring for breaches will have to be intensified as the flood of software entrepreneurs sells new AI products to health care institutions.
SUPERCHARGING RESEARCH
On October 8, 2024, Geoffrey Hinton of the University of Toronto, and Princeton University’s John Hopfield were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for their work with machine learning—in essence providing building blocks for developments in AI. And just one day later, scientists David Baker of the University of Washington, and Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper of Google DeepMind, were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for discoveries that show the potential of advanced technology, including AI, to predict the shape of proteins and to invent new ones. It’s safe to say that, as far as the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences is concerned, AI and research have officially arrived.
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry honored a real-world example of how AI is helping research today unearthing enormous discoveries in protein structures—insights that have far-reaching implications. The AlphaFold Protein Structure Database that Hassabis and Jumper developed has thus far predicted more than 200 million protein structures, nearly all catalogued proteins known to science. As the Nobel committee pointed out, proteins “control and drive all the chemical reactions that together are the basis of life. Proteins also function as hormones, signal substances, antibodies and the building blocks of different tissues.”
To design new drugs and vaccines, scientists need to know how a protein looks or behaves. While the AlphaFold database and its partner, AlphaServer, currently only predict how proteins will interact with other molecules throughout cells, such predictions can accelerate biomedical research, with the potential to save millions of dollars and years in research time.
Kate Tracy, Ph.D., senior associate dean of research at the Larner College of Medicine, believes AI will fuel an acceleration in research to unlock new discoveries, supercharging our ability to explore previously intractable problems. “Scientifically there have been some seismic shifts related to the human genome project mapping, the development of immune therapies, and the sequencing of large
amounts of data and being able to use that information to match treatments and therapeutics to the personal genetic code of the individual. And these are amazing innovations,” she said.
She continued, “If we’re going to generate this massive amount of data about your basic biology and genetic code, you must have a method for harnessing it all. And that’s where big data and AI come in. How do you digest tens of millions of bits of data about an individual and make sense of it? You need supercomputing for that. AI and machine learning will become a fundamental tool of medicine, and for research.”
Tracy also noted, “While machine learning and AI have so much to offer for advancing science, it is essential that the design and implementation be transparent so results can be scrutinized, and validity of conclusions weighed.”
IMAGINING THE FUTURE
If the ultimate goal of medicine is to provide the right treatment for the right patient at the right time and be able to provide a treatment for every patient, patient-centered precision health care is top of mind for many physicians. Precision health considers differences in people’s genes, environments and lifestyles, and formulates treatment and prevention strategies based on the patient’s unique background and conditions.
In theory, precision medicine will allow doctors and researchers from across medical disciplines to:
• Determine the best care for each individual patient
• Identify disease mutations (changes in genes that cause disease) in patients with undiagnosed conditions
• Avoid serious side effects from medications
• Identify genetic risk factors to guide lifestyle/environmental recommendations that can improve the health of each patient
With health care’s quest for precision medicine now in the era of AI, the creation of medical “digital twins,” sometimes called virtual twins, that can mimic physical situations have become an increasingly popular goal and hold even greater promise for helping diagnose and treat populations in the future.
Pioneered in the 1960s, the idea of a digital twin was born at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as a “living model” of the Apollo mission. In response to Apollo 13’s oxygen tank explosion and subsequent damage to the main engine, NASA employed multiple simulators to evaluate the failure and extended a physical model of the vehicle to include digital components.
The size of global digital twins in the health care market in terms of revenue was estimated to be worth $1.6 billion
in 2023 and is forecast to reach $21.1 billion in 2028.
This so-called digital twin allowed for a continuous ingestion of data to model the events leading up to the accident for forensic analysis and exploration of next steps. This concept has subsequently been adopted by various industries and is now critical to the success of assembly lines worldwide.
The size of global digital twins in the health care market in terms of revenue was estimated to be worth $1.6 billion in 2023 and is forecast to reach $21.1 billion in 2028. Digital twinning has come of age in medicine during the last several years, moving into models for livers, brains, joints, eyes, lungs, and other body parts. The technology is also being used to test new medical devices and even drugs, with computer models powerful enough to predict a new molecule’s impact on organs and cells.
In a December 2023 report, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), the independent panel founded by Congress to advise the federal government and the public on advances and implications of science, engineering, and medicine issues, evaluated the rapidly spreading technology. It defined a digital twin as a virtual replica that “mimics the structure, context, and behavior of a natural, engineered, or social system … is dynamically updated with data from its physical twin, has a predictive capability and informs decisions that realize value.” The Food and Drug Administration, which reviews and approves medical devices, has been developing standards for the software in this emerging technology, as well as methods of evaluating it as it progresses.
As a surgeon, as well as a computational biology and mathematical modeling expert, Gary An, M.D., Green and Gold Professor of Trauma and Critical Care and vice chair of research in the University of Vermont’s Department of Surgery, has been working on developing and researching digital twins and computational models for such diseases as sepsis and COVID-19 for more than 20 years. In short, he uses a combination of mechanism-based computer sim-
This is where big data, machine learning, and modern AI works.
– GARY AN, M.D.
ulation, artificial intelligence, and high-performance computing to help “develop therapies for the injured and critically ill,” he says. An participated in the NASEM report; however, from that position and experience, he strikes a note of caution with respect to the hype swirling around AI and the advances it will make. An, who currently serves on the National Institutes of Health’s Multiscale Modeling Consortium Working Group on Digital Twins says, “People just want to believe in magic, that if you could collect enough data, and you threw it at a large enough supercomputer and a sophisticated enough algorithm, the answer would magically appear, and it obviously is not the case.”
“We have become much better at extracting data with all our experiments, analyses, and sensors, and very good at constructing hypotheses from these things. This is where big data, machine learning, and modern AI works,” says An.
“Where you have all this data that was previously daunting and now you have these methods that you can use to construct hypotheses about why that would be … and then the testing of whether or not your particular belief that results from your analysis is actually true. And you do that through experiments, by representing your hypothesis in some sort of form and then evaluating it. Ever since Francis Bacon and Sir Isaac Newton, this is the scientific cycle. And there’s no shortcut around that process. So that’s where the bottleneck and an impetus to want to believe in magic occurs.”
NASEM also warned of runaway enthusiasm for virtual twinning in its comprehensive report. “The publicity around digital twins and digital twin solutions currently outweighs the evidence base of success,” the panel of experts said.
Whatever the future holds for the use of AI in medicine, there are numerous health care applications already in various stages of development. A sampling of recent headlines includes a firstof-a-kind AI system that enabled a stroke survivor with paralysis to communicate in two languages, both Spanish and English. AI has shown significant promise in improving the accuracy of cancer diagnosis and X-ray analyses, and Google is testing a method that uses audio signals to anticipate initial symptoms of sickness and has utilized 300 million audio samples, including coughs, sniffles, and labored breathing, to train its AI foundation model to identify signs of diseases like tuberculosis.
Anyone who has used ChatGPT knows that AI is in its infancy, sometimes prone to “hallucinations,” yet its promise of a brave new world—a new paradigm in health care—is alluring and undeniable. Whatever the future holds for the impact AI will have on medicine and health care, the hope is that if nothing else, the technology will be able to unlock more of the humanity in patient care—and the human touch will always remain.
Humanities and Medicine
BY STEVEN C. SCHLOZMAN, M.D., AND NATHALIE FELDMAN, M.D.
The world of medicine is increasingly recognizing the importance of explicit attention to the humanities. After all, if medicine is devoted to making sense of what it means to be sick, then it is the job of the physician to tease out the nuanced spaces between wellness and disease. The study of the humanities is distinctively suited to this challenging task. Each person’s illness is unique because each individual is unique, and this means that accurate diagnosis is only part of the doctor’s job. A 78-year-old woman with pneumonia is not the same as an eighth-grader with the same condition. In fact, the 78-year-woman with pneumonia isn’t the same as the 78-year-old woman with the same infection in the next bed. People are wonderfully individualized, and the art of medicine rests in the doctor’s ability to keep in mind the science of common symptoms and at the same time to toggle from one person’s experience to another’s. As the famous physician Sir William Osler said to his students more than a hundred years ago, “To know the patient that has the disease is more important than to know the disease that the patient has.”
Each person has a story, and the critical skills inherent in the appraisal of the humanities is especially applicable to the appreciation of the individual. This is what makes the practice of medicine so daunting and rewarding. In “Ode on a Grecian Urn,” the romantic poet John Keats wrote that “Beauty is truth, truth beauty.” Each person’s story is central and beautiful, and these stories therefore retain their own, unique truth. It is only through attention to this beauty that the physician can best understand how to help a patient to heal. And Keats would know a thing or two about healing—he was also a physician. These lofty ideas call for some more honed definitions. What do we mean when we refer to the humanities, especially with regard to the practice of medicine? Put simply, medical humanities focus on what it means, literally, to be human. To this end, physicians benefit from skilled attention to literature, poetry, philosophy, history, ethics, art, artistic performance, and even the social sciences. All of this begs an important and ironic question: If humanities are so important to the work of the physician, why is emphasis on the humanities a relatively new phenomenon in United States medical education?
(above) Mary Lacy "Anatomical Heart " collected ceramics, dishware, mortar, and cement. Image courtesy Soapbox Arts.
Studies continue to show that attention to the humanities helps physicians in all fields of medicine to increase their clinical skills and to decrease the increasingly present threat of burnout.
To some extent, the answer is that emphasis on humanities has always been part of medicine. We already mentioned the physician-poet Keats, and the list of physician-writers and artists is much longer than most people realize. The playwright Chekov was a physician. So was the sculptor Francois Emile Camu. The enlightenment philosopher John Locke was a physician, and the award-winning writer Daniel Mason continues to practice medicine. Even George Miller, the wonderfully versatile Australian director and writer who brought us both Mad Max and Babe: Pig in the City, was trained and practiced as a physician. Doctors have long been drawn to the humanities, and for every famous physician-humanities figure, there are literally thousands of doctors who are focused, daily, on the humanities. The difference in medical education over the past few decades has been the explicit integration of the humanities into medical curricula and post-graduate training. This is for some very good reasons. Studies continue to show that attention to the humanities helps physicians in all fields of medicine to increase their clinical skills and to decrease the increasingly present threat of burnout.
The Larner College of Medicine has multiple extra- and intra-curricular programs that emphasize the humanities. These include the annual StorySlam Rx, an engaging evening during which faculty, staff, and students share personal narratives related to health, wellness, and patient care. The Performing Arts Night showcases the talents of students and faculty, demonstrating the healing power of performance in expressing complex emotions and experiences. The Teaching Academy hosts faculty development conferences and Grand Rounds on humanities based on pedagogic principles, for example on the use of improv in medical education. Narrative medicine plays a crucial role within the longitudinal Professionalism, Communication, and Reflection course. This includes a “First Patient” experience on day one of medical school, focused on building active listening and reflective writing skills. Narrative Medicine is also featured in a fourth year global health elective, encouraging students to challenge their thinking and assumptions, and to appreciate and be curious about different cultures and perspectives.
Art of Observation events, utilizing visits to the nearby Fleming Museum or local artist exhibits within the medical school itself, invite participants to sharpen their observational skills through art through visual cognitive strategies that
cultivate critical thinking skills. In addition, the visual arts provide sociological and historical context to health and wellness that might otherwise be unexplored.
An elective on Graphic Medicine is also offered providing fourth year medical students with the opportunity to read a range of graphic novels to learn about psychiatric conditions and reflect on lived experiences through comics. There are activities where students are encouraged to draw their own comics, reflect on content, and consider the role of humanities in their overall learning.
Larner even boasts its own literary journal, fittingly titled The Red Wheelbarrow in honor of a poem by William Carlos Williams, a pediatrician and one of the most famous poets of the 20th century. This journal provides a platform for students, staff, and faculty to express their reflections and experiences through poetry and visual art, further emphasizing the intersection of creativity and medicine. Given the invaluable ways in which the arts and humanities contribute to the training and development of compassionate physicians and health care providers, our next step is to expand our current programming to include the entire university in the establishment of a Health Humanities Consortium.
We read and hear a lot these days of the increasing use and promise of technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), in medicine. The paradox remains, however, that the implementation of technology in medicine can only succeed if the technology itself is fueled by the kinds of inquiries that characterize the study of the humanities. By the same token, the humanities themselves will reflect the growth of technology in the art of healing. This is because technology in medicine and humanities in medicine are most useful when they focus on the experience of individual patients. This emphasis, after all, is at the very heart of what it means to be a doctor.
Associate Professor of Psychiatry Steven C. Schlozman, M.D., is chief of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and medical director of the Vermont Center for Children, Youth, and Families. Associate Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Medicine Nathalie Feldman, M.D., is director of the Learning Environment at the Larner College of Medicine.
(left to right) Story Slam, crocheted microbe "Brucella" by Amber Goerner, The Red Wheelbarrow 2023
Behold,
the knee
BY JANET ESSMAN FRANZ
The largest joint in the human body, the knee is a complex system of bones, muscles, cartilage, ligaments, and tendons. It bends and extends a leg, propelling us forward, backward, and sideto-side. It allows us to sit, stand, and pivot. It absorbs the impacts of walking, running, and jumping. It enables us to leap, lunge, peddle, schuss, swim, climb, and kick.
Yet, the knee is so fragile and vulnerable. Each year across the U.S., about 2.5 million people present to emergency departments with knee injuries, according to National Institutes of Health data. The injured are typically teenage athletes and young adults, 13-44 years old.
Regardless of age, people whose injury includes a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)—which connects the femur to the tibia— will likely develop post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA) of the knee within 10–15 years postinjury, causing severe pain, joint stiffness, and disability. About 5.6 million young people in the United States currently suffer from PTOA. >
Osteoarthritis (OA) occurs because the load bearing surfaces of the knee—such as the articular and meniscus cartilage—wears out. Cartilage acts as a shock absorber, allowing bones to withstand weight-bearing movements. When knee cartilage wears out, OA sets in. Although researchers have investigated this for decades, the biological mechanism responsible for progression from ACL tear to OA is not well-understood, says Bruce Beynnon, Ph.D., professor of orthopaedics and rehabilitation and director of research in the McClure Musculoskeletal Research Center at UVM.
“We’ve made huge advances in the treatment of the injury, but not in the prevention of the [OA] disease,” Dr. Beynnon says. His research examines risk factors for knee and ankle injuries and the body’s response at various stages after an injury. “It’s the ligament that gets injured initially, but then the cartilage wears away and leads to arthritis. If we can understand the early mechanism, maybe we can develop interventions to prevent loss of cartilage.”
Six students in the medical class of 2027 joined Beynnon in the musculoskeletal research center last summer to explore risk factors for knee trauma and investigate how ACL tears lead to OA, mentored by Beynnon and Nic Fiorentino, Ph.D., associate professor of mechanical engineering and associate professor of orthopaedics & rehabilitation. Each student pursued a separate research topic, fueled by their personal passions, experiences, and curiosities. The students presented their research at a poster session during the Dean’s Celebration of Excellence In Research in September, and they will submit their work for publication in orthopedic research journals.
MARIE KIMBERLY LIM: Differences in Female and Male Quadriceps Muscle
As a ballet dancer, Marie Lim understands the suffering and setbacks associated with leg injuries. She experienced chronic shin pain that hindered dancing and witnessed a good friend rupture an ACL during ballet class. These experiences made Lim curious about the factors that precipitate injuries and why some people are more prone to injury than others.
As a medical student, Lim is channeling her curiosity into research analyzing quadriceps muscle tissue in limbs that experienced ACL ruptures and reconstruction surgery. She is evaluating muscle stiffness, or fibrosis, that occurs after ruptures and comparing the differences that may exist between females and males ages 18–37. She hypothesizes that fibrosis in the quadriceps alters a person’s gait and impacts loading of the knee joint, which may be associated with onset and progression of PTOA.
“What excites me about this topic is that the findings could have large implications for developing effective rehabilitation programs,” Lim says. “Current physical therapy exercises could be improved by tailoring them based on one’s sex and understanding that a one-sizefits-all approach should not necessarily be the paradigm.”
AARON DEES: Predicting ACL Tear
Risk
With Geometry
Rupturing an ACL substantially increases the risk of a secondary injury, including an ACL tear on the opposite knee, known as a contralateral ACL (CACL) tear. Aaron Dees knows this well: Starting as a teenager and into adulthood, he tore ACLs in both of his knees while playing basketball. His research aims to determine whether geometric measurements of tibial articular cartilage surface can help predict whether CACL tears will occur in people who have experienced ACL reconstruction surgery and return to sport.
Dees analyzed a subgroup of MRI scans of tibial articular cartilage from 200 individuals who underwent ACL reconstruction surgery. He then used polynomial equations to characterize the cartilage geometry and will determine how geometric characteristics relate to repeated injury.
“Insights from this study could lead to improved injury prevention and patient management strategies,” Dees says. “Such advancements would not only benefit athletes by extending their active careers, but also decrease health care costs associated with these injuries, offering more personalized approaches based on individual risk profiles derived from knee cartilage geometry.”
NICK JOWKAR: Adaptive Response of Bone and Cartilage to ACL Disruption
After an ACL ruptures, changes occur in the affected leg’s muscles, bones, and knee cartilage. Scientist do not fully understand these changes, says Nick Jowkar, and better understanding may help improve treatment to prevent PTOA onset. His research aims to illustrate the adaptive changes that occur in skeletal muscle size and function, bone architecture, and articular cartilage in response to ACL rupture.
“These knowledge gaps make it significantly more difficult to develop effective treatment options,” he says. “The sooner we can understand the pathophysiology of these factors leading to the severity of PTOA, the sooner we can begin advancing treatments.”
Jowkar examined MRI scans of injured knees and healthy contralateral knees shortly after ACL injury and prior to ACL reconstruction. He conducted post-processing statistical analysis to assess changes in thickness and matrix components of articular cartilage in the injured knee and examined the data to see if alterations in cartilage thickness and matrix components correlated with concurrent injuries to the meniscus, the patient’s sex, body mass index and knee joint geometry. The findings may contribute to the development of PTOA treatment strategies.
CASSANDRA CHIN: Changes in Cartilage Thickness After ACL Trauma
Cassandra Chin was 14 years old the first time she injured her knee. As a soccer athlete, she sustained two ACL tears and knew many teammates with this injury. Chin has long wanted to better understand the factors that lead to ACL trauma and affect return to sport.
“It took me more than two years and three surgeries to get back to playing soccer. I spent a lot of time around orthopedics and doctors who gave me back my ability to be active. I want to be able to give others the same,” Chin says. “Over a decade later, it’s really cool to see the advances in ACL procedures from the perspective of a medical student.”
Chin’s research project investigated articular cartilage changes in the knee following ACL injury with and without additional injury to the meniscus. She made measurements on baseline MRI scans of injured knees using medical imaging software called OsirX. The measurements were processed into three-dimensional thickness maps and matrix components of the cartilage on the ends of the femur and tibia. These measurements will help illuminate the effects of injury on the cartilage before the subjects undergo surgery.
OONA DAVIES: Left-to-Right and Visit-to-Visit Repeatability
Oona Davies worked as a scribe, medical assistant, and manager at orthopedic clinics in Virginia and Utah prior to attending medical school. Through these experiences, she learned about the musculoskeletal system and became curious about how doctors can track meniscal degeneration and the onset of OA.
Davies endeavored to determine whether a series of MRI scans of a healthy meniscus can produce reliable biomarkers for monitoring OA progression. She examined left and right knee MRI scans of 10 participants with no known history of knee injury. Each knee was scanned without load, and then with a 40 percent body weight load. Davies segmented the anterior and posterior horns (where they attach to the knee joint) of both menisci and calculated correlation coefficients with an aim to quantify repeatability of imaging in left and right legs, and from visit to visit. Preliminary results show a low visit-to-visit reliability, says Davies. Her next steps will quantify
“Insights from this study could lead to improved injury prevention and patient management strategies.” – AARON DEES
repeatability from visit to visit and between left to right knees. She says this project has fueled her passion for research to prevent, treat, and diagnose musculoskeletal disease.
IVAN DAVIS: Risk Factors for Contralateral ACL (CACL) Injury
A lifelong skier, Ivan Davis understands the prevalence of ACL injuries: His mother and his sister tore their ACLs while skiing. He wants to learn more about this injury, and why after the initial injury the risk of tearing the ACL in the opposite knee is 30-40 times higher after ACL reconstruction.
Davis investigated risk factors for contralateral injury, focusing on geometric characteristics of the femoral notch (a shallow groove at the junction of the femur). He examined MRI images of knees taken on 199 athletes ages 13–26 who underwent ACL reconstruction and measured femoral notch width, ridge thickness, and volume. His next
steps will be to perform a statistical analysis and interpret the data to identify geometric risk factors.
As a future doctor, Davis wants to support patients in keeping their musculoskeletal systems healthy: “Spending time in the orthopedic department has definitely spurred my interest in pursuing orthopedics in the future.”
While the medical students wrap up their research projects, the quest to understand the biology of the knee continues. Each individual investigation contributes to better understanding of the body’s response to knee trauma and the post-traumatic osteoarthritis disease process. Ultimately, these insights will improve injury prevention, rehabilitation methods, and optimal long-term health of people’s knees, to keep us leaping, lunging, peddling, pivoting, standing up, and stepping forward.
Clockwise from top left: Marie Lim observes a hand and wrist assessment; Nick Jowkar learns about motion capture and dual fluoroscopy; Oona Davies watches a post-operation follow-up; Cassandra Chin tests out a knee strength testing machine.
LARNER RESEARCH CHAMPION CHAMPION
AN INTERVIEW WITH KATE TRACY, PH.D., SENIOR ASSOCIATE DEAN FOR RESEARCH AT THE LARNER COLLEGE OF MEDICINE AND DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH FOR THE UVM HEALTH NETWORK.
Kate Tracy, Ph.D.
Dr. Tracy joined the Larner College of Medicine in February 2023, bringing extensive experience in science and leadership to the college. Her research focuses on cervical cancer prevention in underserved populations and informatics methods to support multidisciplinary team science. She has published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles in a variety of fields and been principal or co-investigator on research studies totaling nearly a 100 million dollars in funding from organizations that include the National Institutes of Health and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Vermont Medicine: What was the appeal of joining Larner College of Medicine and moving to Vermont?
Kate Tracy: As the pandemic began, I had the opportunity to ascend to the Maryland University System level advising our 12 universities on their COVID-19 response. I appreciated that operating at that level enabled the ability to influence thought leadership, and that really hit my radar. I thought, what’s my next chapter?
I am a product of public education and its mission, and I hoped to find an opportunity with a public organization so I could continue to invest in that space. I wanted a place doing high-impact, innovative research and with values aligned with mine. At the UVM Larner College of Medicine, I found everything I was looking for in an opportunity, and so much more.
Can you share with us your own personal research journey?
As a trained health psychologist, I am very interested in the biomedical research space and the role that behavior plays. Early in my career I became interested in cancer, in particular cervical cancer. Because cervical cancer is, I think, the only cancer that we know the definitive cause of, and we have effective ways to prevent it.
What I was most curious about was, if we had these great ways to prevent cancer through screening and the HPV vaccine, why are some women still getting it? Why are they not screening? Why are they not getting the vaccine? That led me to investigate how we get more women screened and informed, and consequently my passion for cervical cancer prevention emerged. What grew from there was an interest in women’s health and team science because I’m curious and like to try different things and I enjoy collaboration.
Please share with us the portfolio that a Senior Associate Dean for Research at the Larner College of Medicine holds. The position includes the stewarding and strategy for the research enterprise of the college; currently that amounts to almost a 100 million dollars’ worth of research funding a year. We submit about 300 grant proposals per year, and I oversee that process. I’m also one of the college’s lead thought-partners on developing strategies to continue to grow our research portfolio.
We have aspirations of seeing our research funding climb, so I think about charting that strategy, knowing resources are never unlimited at public institutions. One of the things I didn’t fully appreciate was the responsibility of space stewardship. The Larner College of Medicine has 350,000 square feet of research-oriented space, filled with nearly 50 million dollars’ worth of very specialized equipment and people.
Tell us about your role as Director of Research for the Health Network. What I’m trying to do is foster research as a partnership with the Network, Larner, and UVM. In my first year, I got to know the landscape and some of the unique qualities of the Health Network. One of the amazing things I learned about Vermont is it’s a single health network that covers the state, so we can ask some interesting research questions. We prioritize how to connect with our patients and pull them into the research mission. The whole idea is to strengthen that research relationship in support of clinical care. The other big priority— and as a cancer researcher, this is dear to my heart—is to be a part of helping us recapture our designation as a National Cancer Institute (NCI) Cancer Center, hopefully in fall of 2026.
Speaking of the progress we’re making toward NCI designation, why don’t you share with us your perspective on what that means. It’s a specialized designation given to a limited number of cancer care centers in the country. Currently, there are 72 NCI Cancer Centers in 36 states. It would be prestigious for us to be part of that specialized ecosystem. First and foremost, it’s great for patients and access to care, including unique treatments that might not otherwise be accessible. Then, there’s the research community, dedicated resources, and specialized funding that come with being an NCIDesignated Cancer Center. It’ll make UVM Cancer Center, UVM, and the Health Network a more desirable place to work. We believe it will be a real draw for recruiting and retaining people. And it will expand collaborative opportunities for everybody involved in cancer care and cancer research.
In addition to cancer, what other areas of research might you highlight in our college?
One is the Cancer Center. It’s a jewel that we’re iterating and imagining. I’m confident the application will go in 2026 and will be successful. We, as a rural state, are eligible for special funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to establish Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBREs). UVM, and specifically the College of Medicine, has held four COBRE grants for almost two decades. The purpose of those programs is to build specialized expertise in research excellence and attract top talent. We have done that in behavioral health, in cardiovascular and brain health, in translational infectious diseases, and in clinical translational research. So, to have four crown jewels attracting top talent is an amazing thing.
Dr. Tracy speaking at Research Rally
If we give research entrepreneurs the tools and support structures and create an ecosystem, we can help more scientific discoveries move to market, which is good for citizens in Vermont and beyond. – KATE TRACY, PH.D.
You’ve been at this research thing for a while now.
How has research changed over the years?
Starting post-World War II, there was a big push to invest in the research enterprise of the U.S. A great deal of funding was put into biomedical and other types of research. Research was typically advanced by one very strong, very successful researcher (PI role), and he or she built up their program and their collective group of students, staff, and junior faculty worked under them. In 2000, Elias Zerhouni became the head of NIH. He worked to foster a new framework—team science—where we can solve complex problems more effectively and faster if we use multiple disciplines and have more people sitting at the table.
Scientifically, there have been some seismic shifts related to the human genome project mapping, human genome gene editing capabilities, the development of immune therapies, genomics in general, and the sequencing of large sums of data and using that information to match treatments and therapeutics to the personal genetic code of the individual.
Coming on the heels of that is AI and big data. To generate massive amounts of data about your basic biology and genetic code, you must have a method for harnessing and digesting tens of millions of bits of data and be able to make sense of it. You need supercomputing for that.
What are other challenges?
NIH funding is critical to what we do, especially in the College of Medicine. For many years, UVM and NIH budgets have been flat. Not keeping pace with inflation is a challenge everywhere and is a unique challenge for Larner and UVM. Because we’re a small rural state, we don’t have the resources to compensate for contraction of the federal budget research enterprise.
Other challenges include the translation gap. Researchers everywhere continue to produce great science and make wonderful discoveries, but many of those findings and discoveries don’t turn into patient care or a product, drug, device, or therapy. This has people wondering, why are we putting our tax dollars into this and how is it benefiting real-life people in the community? So, it’s on us to talk
about the value of research and scientific discovery. We need to teach scientists to tell their stories to broader audiences—including the general public—and explain how this work is making a difference.
What are the opportunities you see locally, nationally, or in general? We have so many great researchers doing important work that I would put under the brand of aging research. There’s significant investment being made in this area because of the aging baby boom generation, and from the NIH channeling grants in the direction of aging. So, there are strategic opportunities related to available funding. But aging research is especially relevant for Vermonters. Vermont’s population is one of the oldest in the U.S. and it’s a rural state. Health care is tough in rural states for aging folks. How do we come up with solutions that have real impact for Vermonters and improve the lives overall of everyone?
A major campus initiative I’m excited about is shrinking the translation gap by encouraging research entrepreneurism. We just announced that UVM is starting a bioincubator. The bioincubator will create opportunities for our faculty to take scientific discoveries and turn them into marketable products, whether it’s devices, drugs, or therapeutics. If we give research entrepreneurs the tools and support structures and create an ecosystem, we can help more scientific discoveries move to market, which is good for citizens in Vermont and beyond.
How has the opening of the Firestone Medical Research Building affected the college’s research mission?
The Firestone Building is a bold physical commitment to team science and the recognition that we can do much greater things as teams. The building was architected by design with 35,000 net square feet of premier team science–oriented space. Already I can see the collaborative results happening as a function of teams being co-located together and sharing labs together.
This interview has been edited for length.
l asT ing f riendships
C lass of 1967 K eeps C lose T ies
by Janet Essman Franz
Class of 1967 friends (front row) Pam MacPherson, Ursel Danielson, Mimi Reardon, Geoffrey Smith, John Dick, (back row) Bruce MacPherson, Kathy Dick, Stuart Alexander, and Roger Wilson
Geoffrey Smith, M.D.’67, remembers vividly the first time he met his UVM classmate Ursel Danielson, M.D.’67. His eyes well with tears as he tells the story.
“We were first-year medical students, walking out of the medical school building at the corner of Prospect and Colchester Avenue. Ursel was with her son, who was six years old. Seeing them hand in hand, turning right at the bottom of the steps and heading downtown ... It’s one of my favorite memories. It’s the emotional attachment we have for the years we spent together becoming physicians.”
Danielson and Reardon arrange the meeting dates and locations and send out emails inviting people to attend.
“It’s not an official thing, we just love each other,” said Smith, who arrived this day sporting a UVM cap and a Bernie for President T-shirt. A public health specialist, Smith served as state epidemiologist in Vermont and New Hampshire. “Being graduates of the Larner College of Medicine means so much to us, we wouldn’t trade that for anything else.”
Dr. Smith, Dr. Danielson, and a half dozen other alumni from the medical class of 1967 gather every three months or so to catch up, check in with each other, and reminisce about their days together at the University of Vermont. They have been meeting regularly for the past two years, typically at a coffee shop or one of their homes. The now-retired physicians collectively represent about 450 years of clinical practice. If you include their accompanying spouses who are nurses, those years surpass 600.
On a sunny day in July, the friends met at the home of 1967 classmate Mimi Reardon, M.D., on the Lake Champlain shoreline in Ferrisburgh. Dr. Reardon, professor emerita of medicine, was associate dean for primary care and led the establishment of the Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) in Vermont.
“Mimi is the spark that pulls us together,” said Danielson, a psychiatrist and former medical director at the Vermont State Hospital in Waterbury. “For 55 years, we only saw each other once every five years or so, at the reunions. We found each other at our 55th reunion. We were all retired, so we thought, ‘let’s get together more often.’”
Regular attendees from the class of 1967 include Stuart Alexander, M.D., with spouse, Emily; Jim Austin, M.D.; John Dick, M.D., with his spouse, Kathy, a graduate of the UVM College of Nursing; Bruce MacPherson, M.D., professor emeritus of pathology and laboratory medicine and former dean of graduate medical education, with spouse, Pam, a graduate of the UVM School of Nursing; Irving Peyser, M.D., with spouse, Dahlia; Roger Wilson, M.D. And once, classmate Bill Burrows, M.D., who lives in California, visited with avocados grown in his yard.
“I very much enjoy these gatherings. We reminisce and talk about people we know,” said Dr. Alexander. “We always get into ‘Do you remember ...’ It’s a common past we have, and so interesting, the distillate of these memories.”
For Reardon, staying connected is paramount. “We will continue to meet and invite classmates to contact me so we can arrange coffee with classmates,” she said. “We have memories and treasures to share.”
All 1967 alums living in or visiting Vermont are invited to attend by contacting Mimi Reardon at mimi.reardon@uvm.edu.
(above) John Dick and Ursel Danielson enjoy coffee and conversation in Mimi Reardon’s dining room. (right) Bruce and Pam MacPherson remember old friends pictured in their UVM College of Medicine 1967 yearbook.
UVM Larner College of Medicine Alumni Association
Executive Committee Officers (Two-Year Terms)
President Michael D. Upton, M.D.’94 (2024–2026)
President-Elect
Heidi Schumacher, M.D.’10 (2024–2026)
Secretary
Pramila R. Yadav, M.D.’99 (2024–2026)
Executive Secretary
John Tampas, M.D.’54 (Ongoing)
Members-at-Large* (Six-Year Terms)
Halleh Akbarnia, M.D.’98 (2024–2030)
JJ Bivona, Ph.D.’22 (2022–2028)
Annie Coates, M.D.’07 (2024–2030)
Brian Cuniff, Ph.D.’14 (2020–2026)
Desiree N. DiBella, M.D.’19 (2024–2030)
Seth Dorsky, M.D.’10 (2020–2026)
Janice M. Gallant, M.D.’89 (2021–2027)
Danie Leahy, M.D.’17 (2024–2030)
Anand Parthasarathy, M.D.’02 (2022–2028)
Cordelia Ross, M.D.’16 (2022–2028)
Nicholas J. Sears, M.D.’78 (2024–2030)
Andra S. Stevenson, Ph.D.’01 (2024–2030)
Community Member (Three-Year Term)
Paul J. Mayer, M.D. (2024-2027)
Ex-Officio Members
Richard L. Page, M.D., Dean
Ginger Lubkowitz, UVM Foundation
*Members as of October 1, 2024
IPresident’s Corner
begin my term as president of the UVM Larner College of Medicine Alumni Association with great enthusiasm. I would like to start by thanking Mary Cushman and Omar Khan for their guidance and leadership, as it has helped me feel prepared for the role and what I can contribute.
My personal journey at UVM began in August 1990, when I joined my class in Hall A and embarked on a medical education that has served me well over my career. After completing my residency in psychiatry at DartmouthHitchcock Medical Center, I returned to Burlington and began my new affiliations with the UVM medical school: I became a member of the clinical faculty in the Department of Psychiatry. I was asked to serve as an advisor to the Medical Student Wellness Committee, on which I served for more than 15 years. I became a member of the Foundation Leadership Council and the Larner Alumni Executive Committee. I worked closely with the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODEI) and eventually became the faculty development liaison. Since 2004, I have worked as a psychiatrist at the UVM student health center.
From the start of my time working at the student health center and serving as an advisor to the student-led Wellness Committee, I heard firsthand what medical students felt they needed to support them in their demanding academic endeavors. They talked often about the benefits of having a fitness center and a space to gather and socialize close to or within the college. The committee itself had many discussions, as well as with Deans Moran and Page, and ultimately the students were instrumental in bringing these initiatives to realization, culminating in the recent opening of a new student lounge and a fitness center, both located in Given. I’m proud to say alumni support helped make them possible.
ClassNotes
Another new addition to student and community wellness at our college is the newly opened Larner prayer and meditation space, a creation of ODEI. This quiet space is something I am particularly excited about. I was honored when ODEI staff suggested that a gift commitment I had made could support the creation of a place in which students, faculty, and staff could pause, reflect, and rejuvenate so they can all do their best work.
Over the next two years, I look forward to increasing my connection to the campus, programs, and people that continue to create an environment where we can come together to learn, work, and grow. I hope you will take the opportunity to see all the wonderful changes at Larner and join me in supporting the college in whatever ways suit you.
My memories from medical school are fond and crystal clear. I see the current students creating similar memories that they can take into long and productive careers in medicine. My hope is that they will find their careers as rewarding and meaningful as I have found mine.
Michael Upton, M.D.'94 President, University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine Alumni Association
We’d love to hear what you are up to at home, work, with family—etc! The UVM Alumni Association offers an easy-to-use online form to submit class notes to share your story. You can also browse class notes by year, school or college, or note type. Submit your class note and read more from classmates at go.uvm.edu/medclassnotes
UVM Continuing Medical and Interprofessional Education
For information, please contact: University of Vermont Continuing Medical and Interprofessional Education 802-656-2292
UVMCMIE@med.uvm.edu med.uvm.edu/cmie
401 Water Tower Circle, Suite 102 Colchester, VT 05446
Reunion 2024
Alumni visiting campus for Medical Reunion 2024 reconnected with classmates and caught up with the latest college news through many activities and events, including:
• class dinners • medical student-led tours of the college and facilities
• Larner College of Medicine Alumni Association Awards Ceremony
• Alumni Town Hall with Dean Page
• celebratory picnic
• 50th Reunion Medallion Ceremony and Luncheon
• presentations and discussions with staff, faculty, students and leadership.
OBESITY – A NEW PRIMARY CARE CONFERENCE
November 8, 2024
Burlington, Vermont
STOWE EM25 – EMERGENCY MEDICINE CONFERENCE
January 21–24, 2025
Stowe, Vermont
36TH ANNUAL EASTERN WINTER DERMATOLOGY CONFERENCE
January 30–February 2, 2025
Stowe, Vermont
HOSPITAL MEDICINE CONFERENCE 2025
February 5–7, 2025
Stowe, Vermont
2025 STEM CELLS, CELL THERAPIES, AND BIOENGINEERING IN LUNG BIOLOGY AND DISEASES
July 7–10, 2025
UVM, Burlington, Vermont
Jen Nachbur, with her daughter Anna ‘16
GIVING INSPIRED BY DEEP TIES TO UVM
FIRESTONE MEDICAL RESEARCH BUILDING: A PERSONAL HISTORY
The seeds of inspiration for the Firestone Medical Research Building were planted by its lead donor, Larner College of Medicine alum and retired anesthesiologist Steve Firestone, M.D.’69, who several years ago began exploring where to focus a gift in memory of his mother, S. Bobbie Firestone, and his father, Dr. Frederick Firestone.
A new exhibit of donated Firestone family memorabilia— including family photographs, some of the elder Dr. Firestone’s original medical equipment, bag, and military honors that tell his journey from Vienna, Austria, to building a family life in the United States–underscores a commitment to service of country, community and medicine. The exhibit can be found at the south entrance of the Firestone Medical Research Building.
(clockwise, from top left) Frederick Firestone in 1936 as a medical student at the University of Vienna, Austria; Silver Star awarded to Dr. Firestone 1944; Oak Leaf Cluster (second Silver Star), awarded 1945; Steve Firestone, M.D.’69; Dr. Frederick and S. Bobbie Firestone in 1942, pictured in the Firestone Family Practice exam room, Long Island, NY.
Newly retired as public relations director for the UVM Larner College of Medicine, Jen Nachbur understands the funding challenges many gifted Ph.D. candidates face. Having lost her mother to leukemia in 2008 and inspired by the opportunity to help fuel breakthroughs and cures, Nachbur made a gift to the UVM Cancer Center Research Fund which the Cancer Center then matched to amplify its impact. In 2025, the award will be granted to a single Ph.D. candidate to cover core expenses such as bench (laboratory) supplies, graduate student stipends
and travel for conference presentations, conducting interviews and collaborating with other centers.
“I love supporting research toward cures and the possibility that my charitable support could translate into relief and hope for tomorrow’s patients. We are fortunate to live in a community that’s home to a cutting-edge academic cancer center. If we are to attract and retain top cancer researchers and receive the immediate benefits of their findings, we must invest in them,” says Nachbur.
UVM Connect allows UVM graduates and students across the University to join groups based on interests or affinity. There’s a UVM Larner College of Medicine specific networking area you may find very valuable. Stay connected at: uvmconnect.org
Vermont
(Above)
The Magic Man
A tribute by his son, Michael
John Abajian
John Christian Abajian ’65, M.D.’69, Professor, Pediatric Anesthesia, 2007
John Christian “Chris” Abajian, M.D., Professor of Anesthesiology at the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine, passed away on June 24th, 2024.
Anesthesiology was a natural career decision for Chris. His father John, the founder of the University of Vermont Department of Anesthesia, was a major influence in his life.
Upon his father’s urging, Chris found himself in London, England, as an anesthesia resident. There, he met and married Margaret Jones, a young nurse from Perth, Australia. Next, Chris spent a fellowship year at the Toronto Sick Children’s Hospital before returning to Vermont, with his lifelong companion in tow.
Chris spent his entire professional career at the University of Vermont Medical Center as a pediatric anesthesiologist. He achieved national recognition in 1984 with the publication of the seminal paper “Spinal Anesthesia for Surgery in the High-Risk Infant,” highlighting and repopularizing a technique that had not been attempted since the early 20th century, helping to save countless young lives over the years. Chris traveled the nation and the world participating in conferences, teaching the technique to hundreds of residents, making him one of the most wellknown and influential pediatric anesthesiologists of his generation. In 1978, Dr. Abajian and his colleagues created the Vermont Infant Spinal Registry; today, this registry remains the largest single institutional database for pediatric
spinal anesthesia in the country.
For those who trained and worked with Chris, you will remember the magic coloring book, which remained a staple in every pediatric operating room at the University of Vermont for years. Chris advocated for providing pediatric anesthesia care in a simple, effective, and safe manner, and he strove to make the induction of anesthesia less frightening. Known as “The Magic Man,” he could be frequently found doing magic tricks for hospitalized children, while adorned in colorful scrubs covered with cartoon characters and other playful patterns. In 2013, he received the Robert M. Smith Award, recognizing the individual who has made outstanding contributions to the field of pediatric anesthesia, from the American Academy of Pediatrics. In 2019, the Department of Anesthesiology at UVM established the Chris Abajian, M.D., and Margaret Abajian Green and Gold Professorship in Pediatric Anesthesia to honor their years of service to the department, the institution, and the community.
In Armenian, one of the words commonly used for goodbye translates to “good success” or “good luck.” Chris cherished his role as a loving husband to Margaret, his partner for 47 years. His family was the center of his world, and he took immense pride in their accomplishments. Together, Chris and Margaret built a foundation of love and support that extended to their children and grandchildren. There are no words adequate to describe how much this kind, gentle man will be missed.
Alumni Association Awards
The UVM Larner College of Medicine Alumni Association Awards are presented every year at the Celebration of Achievements Awards Ceremony during reunion weekend. More details about the awardees can be found at go.uvm.edu/lcom-awards
A. BRADLEY SOULE AWARD
Presented to an alumnus/a whose loyalty and dedication to the Larner College of Medicine most emulate those qualities as found in its first recipient, A. Bradley Soule, M.D.’28.
DR. PAM GIBSON announced at a very young age she wanted to be a doctor given her keen interest in biology. She attended Hood College in Frederick Maryland, majoring in Biology, and although was originally wait listed at UVM College of Medicine, she was thrilled to be accepted into UVM 2 weeks before the start of medical school. Pam was very familiar with Burlington, Vermont as her mother was born and brought up in Burlington. In fact, Pam’s great uncle graduated from UVM College of Medicine Class of 1927 (A.C. Gervais).
Disillusioned with medicine after the first 2 years of medical school, Pam decided to step out of the College of Medicine to do the post sophomore fellowship in Pathology. Her eyes were opened to the importance of diagnostic medicine during this year, and she fell in love with the field of pathology. She returned to the College of Medicine excited about finishing medical school and started her Anatomic and Clinical Pathology residency at the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont/Fletcher Allen Health Care in 1990 after graduating from the College of Medicine (she still considers herself a member of the Class of 1989 however having matriculated with this class). Following the five-year residency, she stayed locally and did a fellowship in Cytopathology.
She joined the faculty at the University of Vermont in 1996 and has developed broad clinical expertise in general surgical pathology including medical renal disease, head and neck pathology, cytopathology, and autopsy pathology. In addition, over the last 25 years or so, she has held numerous leadership positions, including Associate Director of Surgical Pathology, Director of Surgical Pathology Quality Assurance, and Medical Director of the School of Cytotechnology, as well as serving as
Pamela C. Gibson, M.D.’90 (matriculated with the Class of ’89) Professor, Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine; Vice Chair for Departmental Culture & Inclusion, Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Burlington, VT
the Division Chief of Anatomic Pathology for 9 years. Because of her passion and commitment to promoting connection and belonging, she was selected by Debra G.B. Leonard, M.D., Ph.D., Chair of the Department to be the first departmental Vice Chair for Culture and Inclusion, a position she has held for the past 10 years. In this role she leads the People First Council and the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts of the department.
Pam has worked to create a more inclusive institution for many years, including serving on the LCOM Gender Equity Steering committee, and co-leading the Environment Workgroup which has been instrumental in helping initiate the changes to “Who’s on our Walls” in LCOM.
Pam is clearly passionate about making connections and inclusion as well as continuous learning, growth and improvement be it through her patient care, leadership, service, or teaching and mentorship. She has been an active member of the LCOM Advancement Committee for several years. In addition, she has received numerous accolades and awards for her excellence in teaching. Her role as an educator and mentor extends beyond the classroom, including as a faculty mentor to the medical student Gender Sexuality Alliance (GSA) group.
Pam is so touched to be honored with the A. Bradley Soule Award and wishes to thank all who have guided and encouraged her in her career.
ROBERT LARNER, M.D.’42 STUDENT AWARD
Chellie Nayar
UVM Larner College of Medicine, Class of 2025
Richard Q. Vuong
UVM Larner College of Medicine, Class of 2025
DISTINGUISHED ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Susan Apkon, M.D.’94
Fischahs Chair in Pediatric Rehabilitation, Children’s Hospital Colorado (CHCO); Professor and Executive Vice-Chair, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Colorado School of Medicine
EARLY ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Nicole M. Benson, M.D.’14, MBI
Medical Director for Digital, Massachusetts General Brigham Behavioral and Mental Health Psychiatrist and Associate Chief Medical Information Officer, McLean Hospital; Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
James F. Howard, Jr., M.D.’74, FAAN Professor of Neurology, Medicine and Allied Health, Department of Neurology; The University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Medicine; Adjunct Professor of Clinical Sciences (Neurology), North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine
Chelsea Harris, M.D.’14, M.S.
Assistant Professor of Plastic Surgery, University of Utah
Karen L. Huyck, M.D.’04, Ph.D.’03, MPH, FACOEM Associate Professor, Section of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth; Medical Director, VT RETAIN, Vermont Department of Labor
Peter Nalin, M.D.’89, MBA, CPE, FAAFP Professor and Department Head, Family Medicine and Biobehavioral Health, University of Minnesota Medical School
James L. Huang, M.D.’09, FAAFP Director of Student Health Services, Gallaudet University
Kevin Kuruvilla, M.D.’14
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV; Program Director, Surgical Critical Care Fellowship, Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV; Medical Director, Trauma Intensive Care Unit, University Medical Center of Southern Nevada
SERVICE TO MEDICINE AND COMMUNITY AWARD
Kym Boyman, M.D.’99, FACOG
Founder and President, Vermont Gynecology; Board Certified Obstetrician Gynecologist, specializing in Gynecology
Nancy E. Cornish, M.D.’89
Medical Officer and Senior Advisor for Quality and Safety in the Division of Laboratory Systems at Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Stephen M. Greene, M.D.’89
President and Founder, Hope for Ghana; Pediatrician 1992-2023
DISTINGUISHED
GRADUATE ALUMNI AWARD
Jennifer Musa, Ph.D.’94 Professor of Biology, SUNY Broome Community College
’46
Phillip H. Backup, M.D.
Dr. Backup died on March 9, 2024 in Redmond, Oregon. He was 102 years old. Although born in Tacoma, Washington, he grew up in Vermont and graduated from Middlebury College and the University of Vermont Medical School. He specialized in the then-emerging field of anesthesiology and spent most of his career as head of the anesthesiology department at Tacoma General Hospital. As a new doctor, he received medical training at Madigan Army Medical Center and continued in the Army Reserves until retirement as a full Colonel. He retired at 61 and lived on Vashon Island with his wife Ruth.
’52
Nathan Glover, M.D.
Dr. Glover, aged 106, died on April 23, 2024. Born in Portland, Maine, he earned his undergraduate and master degrees with honors from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Boston University respectively. He secured his Ph.D. in Biochemistry at the University of Rochester before medical school at UVM. His career included serving as a research assistant in the Atomic Energy Project, chairman of the Department of Anesthesia at both Coral Gables Hospital and South Shore Hospital, 30 years at Cedars Hospital, and two terms as president of the South Florida Society of Anesthesiologists.
’55
Bernard N. Gotlib, M.D.
Dr. Gotlib died on July 8, 2024. He was 96 years old. Born in Bangor, Maine, he graduated from the University of Maine and University of Vermont Medical School before completing his ENT training at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear in Boston. With his wife Sarah, he lived most of his life and raised their children in Longmeadow, Massachusetts and moved to the Altamonte Springs, Florida area in 2014 after retirement. He was an avid lover of classical music and a talented clarinetist. He was a Captain in the United States Air Force Medical Corp.
’56 Don Richard Lipsitt, M.D.
Dr. Lipsitt died on December 2023 at Mt. Auburn Hospital, where he had been Founding Director of the Psychiatry Department. He was 96 years old. A pioneer in the field of consultationliaison psychiatry, Dr. Lipsitt was widely published as an author and editor of articles, chapters, and books on general hospital psychiatry, factitious illness, hypochondria, and somatization, and was a clinical professor at Harvard Medical School. His most recent book was published in March 2023, and he was at work on his next book at the time of his death. A graduate of Tabor Academy, NYU, Boston University, and University of Vermont Medical School, he was a lifelong, avid lover of jazz and
classical music. He led his own swing band in high school, joined his college orchestra, and played chamber music in medical school.
’61
John B. LaFave, M.D.
Dr. LaFave died on December 29, 2023. He was 87 years old. Born in Malone, N.Y., he graduated Franklin Academy and UVM where he majored in Psychology and went on to receive his medical degree. He spent his internship and first year of residency at Boston City Hospital before moving with his wife Bonnie to San Francisco, where they both worked at University of California-San Francisco Medical Center. In 1964, he moved to Fort Knox, Ky., where he served as a captain in the United States Army. In 1966 he moved to Martinsville, Va., where he joined the pediatric practice which became known as the Children’s Medical Center. He retired in 2011 after caring for thousands of children in Martinsville and the surrounding area where he was remembered fondly. He was active in the community including serving as president of the Martinsville-HC Medical Association, president of Chatmoss Country Club and chairman of the board of trustees of Carlisle School and was on the board of the Memorial Hospital of Martinsville and Henry County. He had many interests over the years, was an
excellent photographer while golf was a true passion.
’70
Norbert Joseph Gilmore, M.D. Dr. Gilmore died on June 8, 2024. Born in in Lowell, Massachusetts, he grew up in Burlington, Vt. After graduating from the College of the Holy Cross he studied medicine at UVM, interrupting his studies there to earn a Doctorate of Philosophy (1968) in pharmacology at the University of London where he conducted research with the Nobel Prize winner Sir John Vane. Dr. Gilmore returned to UVM to complete his medical degree. He completed his internship and residency at the Royal Victoria Hospital and was appointed to McGill’s Faculty of Medicine in 1975, becoming a Professor of Medicine in 1991 and a Professor Emeritus in 2010. He has 150 publications as author, co-author or editor in pharmacology, allergy, immunology, issues related to drug use, prisons, immigration, and especially the clinical, ethical, legal, and policy aspects of HIV infection and AIDS. Perhaps best known for his pioneering work in the latter at the height of the AIDS epidemic, he has been a director of the McGill AIDS Centre, a member of the McGill Centre for Medicine, Ethics and Law, and directed or served on many university, provincial, national, and international committees, including chair of Health Canada’s
National Advisory Committee on AIDS from 1983 to 1989. His academic contributions include lecturing on HIV and AIDS topics in Canada, Europe, Africa, Australia, India, and elsewhere. After retiring in Victoria, B.C., he was a member of the board of the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria.
’71
Charles M. Belisle, M.D.
Dr. Belisle died on July 8, 2024. Born in Biddeford, he was a graduate of St. Louis High School, the University of Maine, and the UVM College of Medicine, where he was commissioned as a U.S. Navy Medical Corps officer. Dr. Belisle completed an internship at Portsmouth Naval Hospital in Virginia and a residency in Family Medicine at the Naval Regional Medical Center in Jacksonville, Florida. He was board-certified in Family Medicine in 1974 and became a faculty member of the residency program. He joined the private practice of a UVM classmate in Yarmouth, and became the Family Medicine Residency Program Associate Director at Maine Medical Center (MMC) in Portland. In that role, he trained over 200 Family Medicine residents, as well as countless medical students and other clinical learners. After leaving the Navy, in 1987 he was re-commissioned with the Maine Air National Guard and served in South Portland and with the 101st Medical Group in Bangor. He served stateside during Desert Storm in 1991, and mobilized to assist with humanitarian relief in Honduras in 1998. After his military retirement, he supported Guard recruiting efforts at Maine Medical Association. He retired from MMC after 40 years, who named the classroom at the India Street clinic in his honor, and each year awards a scholarship in his name to Biddeford students interested in medicine. His professional dedication inspired five of his children and one of his grandchildren (so far) to become doctors.
’74 Neil Alan Lachant, M.D.
Dr. Lachant died on April 7th, 2024. He was 75 years old. Born in Bennington, Vt., he graduated from the University of Vermont before entering UVM’s College of Medicine. Dr. Lachant completed his residency and fellowship in Hematology/Oncology at SUNY Upstate University in Syracuse, N.Y. His 44-year long career as a hematologist took him to UCLA, Medical College of Ohio, Wayne State University, Geisinger Health System, Cooper University Hospital, and the University of Rochester. He contributed to several textbooks and published many articles related to his research and colleagues
and patients remember him for his dedication to providing the best care possible, kind and calming demeanor, generous personality, and sense of humor.
’75 Palmer Quintard Bessey, Jr., M.D.
Dr. Bessey, Jr. died on March 14, 2024. He was 79 years old. Raised in Montclair, N.J., he was a graduate of Montclair High School, Williams College, the University of Oregon and the UVM College of Medicine. He completed his surgical residency and a special fellowship in surgical critical care at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), followed by a research fellowship in surgical metabolism at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. He was Board Certified in both General Surgery and Critical Care. He joined the faculty in the Department of Surgery at UAB and continued his career with faculty appointments at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the University of Rochester School of Medicine, before joining the faculty at the
Weil Cornell Medical College in New York City, where he served as the associate director of the William Randolph Hearst Burn Center. While working full time as a surgeon, he completed Master’s studies in Epidemiology at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. He retired from Cornell in 2022, as the Aronson Family Foundation Professor of Burn Care. He was part of the team at New York Presbyterian Hospital Burn Center that helped care for the major burn survivors of the World Trade Center attacks on September 11, 2001. He served as a director of the American Board of Surgery and as a state chair and region chief on the Committee on Trauma of the American College of Surgeons. He served as president of the American Burn Association from 2013-2014, and was awarded the ABA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020. He was a member of a number of surgical societies and published numerous academic articles.
’82 Jerold Derkaz, M.D.
Dr. Derkaz died on August 12, 2024. He was 67 years old. Born in
Warwick, Rhode Island he graduated from Toll Gate High School and Boston University. After graduating from the UVM Medical School, he relocated to the Panhandle to begin his career. Dr. Derkaz is known by countless people in the area for his more than 40 years of taking great care of patients. He enjoyed sharing his best-loved hobbies of sailing, traveling, and eating in top restaurants with loved ones.
’94
Michelle Leigh Perron, M.D. Dr. Perron died on May 17, 2024. She was 56 years of age. Born in Northfield, Vermont and raised in Montpelier, she was a graduate of Montpelier High School, Colby College, and the UVM College of Medicine. Dr. Perron was a dedicated partner in the Timberlane Pediatrics Group providing care for many families in the community. Her greatest passion in life was being a pediatrician. She exemplified her passion for her work and care for others through her focus, commitment, and tireless dedication.
Moment in Time
August 6, 2024 3:19 p.m.
As part of Orientation Week, Class of 2028 students work on a community service project organized through Burlington Parks and Recreation, at the Ethan Allen Homestead.
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