Pathways to Excellence | Fall 2022

Pathways to Excellence

helping students 'connect the dots'

Not many teenagers choose to spend their summers learning about careers in medicine, but our returning Explorations in Pathology program gave seven teens the opportunity to do just that.

EIP is a program hosted by the department and offered as part of the University’s pre-college summer programs. It is open to rising high school juniors and seniors interested in science and medicine, who participate in all-day intensive pathology and laboratory medicine instruction for three weeks.

Jennifer Findeis-Hosey, M.D., Vice Chair of Education, founded EIP four years ago with the support of the University and department. Two of those summers were unfortunately lost due to COVID restrictions, so it was especially exciting to welcome this year’s group of students who came from across the U.S. and beyond

to the University.

“I really appreciate how the department and University support students to come learn,” said Findeis-Hosey. “The students that they recruit to the program are just top-notch learners, and they come away with a working knowledge of pathology that is on par with our medical students, which is very impressive for high school students.”

The program combined tours of clinical and anatomic pathology areas at Strong Memorial Hospital and the central laboratory at Bailey Road and hands-on instruction led by faculty and trainees. Students were assigned a faculty mentor and finished the three weeks at a poster session, where they presented their individual projects.

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OF PATHOLOGY AND LABORATORY MEDICINE | WWW. PATHOLOGY. URMC. EDU | FALL 2022

High school students in the Explorations in Pathology program spent three weeks learning about how pathology fits into medicine and patient care.

Summer pathology education program draws teens who are ready to learn

For many, this was their first encounter with the behind-the-scenes parts of medicine. While some came into the program knowing they want to pursue careers in science or medicine, it exposed them to a field that continues to operate outside of the limelight.

Arianna Tan, 16, came from Ontario, Canada to participate in EIP.

Her favorite area of study was immunology, and looking at diseases under the microscope. She admitted that before coming to EIP, she didn’t know how important the role of the pathologist is in determining patient diagnoses and treatment.

“It has helped me connect the dots to more visible parts of medicine,” she said. “Before, I thought all doctors did stuff by themselves, but really, the pathologists are behind everything. I learned that here and have a newfound appreciate for pathology.”

When asked about her plans for the future, she is interested in working in internal medicine or ophthalmology. But still: “If I make it to medical

school, I want to do something in pathology because I think it’s really necessary to be a better doctor.”

While some participants ventured far from out of state, some came from close to home. Gil Poleshuck Kinel is a junior at Brighton High School. He was drawn to the program because it offered the chance to complete a final project (his was on familial adenomatous polyposis, a rare form of inherited colorectal cancer).

“I signed up thinking this was a good way to explore things,” he said. “It ended up being really fun. We got to touch all sorts of organs. Overall it was a really good experience.”

Creating space for this sort of learning takes time and resources, but the results are always inspiring—whether or not any students go on to become pathologists, said Findeis-Hosey.

“Most of our identity formation actually happens during high school,” she said. “We’re just so lucky to be able to bring this to them at a time when they’re figure out what they want to do, so they know that pathology is an option.”

A group poster session featured student projects, which they presented to their peers and mentors.

Gil Poleshuck Kinel, a junior at Brighton High School, presents his project on familial adenomatous polyposis.

“It has helped me connect the dots to more visible parts of medicine.” - Arianna Tan, 16

Bruce Smoller, M.D.

In September, I announced to the department and Medical Center my intentions to step down as chair of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine after eight years. I made this decision after much careful consideration, and while it is bittersweet to step back, I continue to be grateful for the opportunity to have made an impact.

Dr. Christa Whitney-Miller will serve as the Interim Chair while Dean Mark Taubman puts together a committee to conduct a national search for my successor. Christa has been a fabulous Vice Chair in charge of Anatomic Pathology, demonstrating a sense of fairness and equanimity that will serve her well in her next endeavor. Certainly, I will do everything in my power to help her to get “up to speed” in rapid order. I will provide my utmost support to Dr. Taubman as he seeks the next Chair. Meanwhile, I plan to remain on faculty as a practicing dermatopathologist and teacher for the near-term future, and thus, I am not really saying good-bye.

Despite the transition in leadership, our work continues apace. We are thrilled to have successfully recruited many new members of our faculty who are introduced later in this newsletter. Our new residents are off to a great start, having completed their boot camp rotations. Our phlebotomy training program is rapidly training lots of enthusiastic new recruits which will help us to re-open many of our Patient Service Centers and we have begun our histotechnology training program, admitting our first class this month.

Thanks to the support of our entire department,

I hope that I am leaving our department a

stronger, bigger, and better place than it was when I arrived over eight years ago.

While fiscal concerns have slowed down the continued move to Bailey Road, we continue to make progress with the goal of having greatly expanded and improved space for our non-stat anatomic pathology functions. It is, as always, a busy time for the department.

Thanks to the support of our entire department, I hope that I am leaving our department a stronger, bigger, and better place than it was when I arrived over eight years ago. I can certainly attest to the devotion of all involved in the strengthening of our programs. Since it’s not possible for me to personally thank each and every one of the 1,100+ members of our team, as well as the alumni and friends of the department from afar, please accept this message with my sincere thanks.

I appreciate your ongoing support, in reading and following our work via this newsletter, which will continue each quarter. I wish everyone the very best of luck and the best of health as we continue to navigate through our international health and financial crisis. In closing, I want to express my sincerest gratitude to all for allowing me the tremendous honor of serving as your leader over these years. It has been the highlight of my career and I hope that our paths may cross in the future!

GIVE BACK

We are grateful for your continued support.

To make a tax-deductible gift to Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, visit www.pathology.urmc.edu and click "Make a Gift." You can also contact Melissa Head at (585) 273-2890 or melissa.head@rochester.edu.

WELCOME, NEW FACULTY!

In October we welcomed three new faculty to the department: Akua Asante, M.D., who comes from Rochester Regional, joined our Blood Bank and Transfusion Medicine team. Mark Lusco, M.D., who is our former trainee, joins our renal pathology unit—most recently from Vanderbilt. Anna Israel, M.D., joins our ENT division, after completing residency with us and a fellowship at Cleveland Clinic.

ASCP RECOGNIZES HICKS FOR EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING

David Hicks, M.D. has received the 2022 H.P. Smith Award for Distinguished Pathology Educator, from the American Society for Clinical Pathology. The award honors ASCP Fellow members who have had distinguished careers in pathology and laboratory medicine embracing education, research and administration, as well as service to organized pathology. Hicks was honored at the ASCP Meeting in Chicago on Sept. 9 and recognized in the ASCP’s virtual Hall of Fame.

RESEARCHERS BUILD A NEW 3D MODEL FOR LEUKEMIA

Ben Frisch, Ph.D., assistant professor of Pathology and Biomedical Engineering, and members of his research lab have developed a new microchip modeling technology to study leukemia. They hope to use the chip to quickly evaluate how human leukemia cells respond to drug treatment. Frisch and lab member Azmeer Sharipol have shown proof of principle that the pre-clinical 3D model is a cost-effective tool for rigorous analysis of bone marrow cells in the laboratory. The model has been published in Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology.

PERKINS RECEIVES GRANT FOR MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROME

Archibald Perkins, M.D., Ph.D., has received $693,000 from the Department of Defense, which has a long tradition of funding high-impact projects in medical research. Perkins, who is part of the clinical Hematopathology service, studies chromosomal abnormalities in blood cancers is investigating myelodysplastic syndrome, a pre-leukemia condition.

SUMMER EVENT BRINGS STAFF, FAMILIES BACK TOGETHER

After a two-year hiatus, the department was pleased to host more than 1,400 members of Pathology & Lab Medicine and their families at Seabreeze Amusement Park for our annual employee appreciation event on Sunday, Aug. 14.

PAVES THE WAY FOR STRONGER WORKFORCE

There have been several great changes in the department’s education sphere over the past few months. As happens every year, we welcomed new residents, graduate students, fellows, CMT, and phlebotomy students. We have also welcomed two new staff members to the education unit. Cordelia Smith and Nayilah Williams have joined Melissa Sullivan and Leslie Antinarella as coordinators for the fellowship and residency programs, respectively. The addition of two new program coordinators reflects the continued growth of the educational programs within the department over the past few years.

The Clinical/Medical Technology Advanced Certificate Program has also seen great growth over the past few years, now with 15 students enrolled in the year-long program. I consider the expansion of the CMT program to be a reflection of the department’s commitment to workforce development programs. With a retention rate of 90 percent of our CMT students into fulltime jobs in our department following graduation, I think that we should be proud of our ability to attract and retain students!

Jennifer Findeis-Hosey, M.D.

Just as was done in the past with the development of the CMT program, our department has taken on an active role in developing new workforce development programs. The phlebotomy certification course has been

a great addition as we look to fill the multitude of open phlebotomist positions across the enterprise. And the need for histotechnologists has prompted the institution to work hard to develop a model where we hope to bring in regional students to complete their clinical training at Strong Memorial Hospital. If our experience with the CMT program is any indication of the strength of the people of our department, I am hopeful that we will be able to welcome many of these students on as staff following their successful graduation. All of this could not be possible without the hard work of our faculty and staff. Over the past few months, several of our colleagues were recognized for their exceptional efforts by students in our educational programs. Siba El Hussein (featured on page six) received the Eric A. Schenk Award for Excellence in Teaching. Stephanie Lassere won the Dr. Tai Kwong Excellence in Teaching Award for their outstanding efforts in educating and mentoring future medical technologists. Many congratulations to these award winners for their exceptional efforts! And many thanks to all of the members of our department for all of the work that you do. Education remains an important pillar within the departmental missions and while it takes a lot of time and effort to train students, I think many of us would agree it is well worth it.

FOCUS ON FACULTY

“As human beings, we’re very insecure when we talk with a more experienced person,” she said. I want to lower those barriers so it can be helpful.”

Her primary interest within hematopathology is integrating artificial intelligence (AI) to make diagnoses. As she explains, the tools that recommend what to watch on Netflix can be applied to pathology. It removes some subjectivity by applying objectivity to disease pattern interpretation, for example.

It’s still a new concept, and there remains plenty of resistance to going digital—which often comes with the fear of being replaced by technology. On the contrary, El Hussein and others championing whole slide imaging and use of AI in pathology say digital pathology won’t replace pathologist, but rather, lighten their workload so they can focus on research and other things they wouldn’t otherwise have time to do.

Continued from page 6

“The job is morphing into something new, not going away,” said El Hussein. “The more AI can take from us, the more time we’ll have to think about deeper things. Ultimately, patients will benefit.”

While plugged into technology at work, she makes a point to unplug outside of work with hobbies that include long-distance running and deep sea diving. The latter was something that she has enjoyed since childhood, and continued while living in Miami. Every few months she still goes scuba diving.

“When you go down deep, it’s another universe. You’re completely disconnected,” she said. “This is one thing I really love about it. When you see stuff that is hidden, it changes your perspective on life, seeing a lot of creatures living together. It teaches you a lot of things, and then you come back to the surface.”

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

of Rochester Medical Center

Elmwood Avenue, Box 626

NY 14642

ON FACULTY SIBA EL HUSSEIN, M.D.

Sometimes it only takes one person to steer the course of another’s whole life. That’s something Siba El Hussein has learned—and it’s shaped the way she works to make a positive impact as a hematopathologist.

Unlike many who discovered that they liked the often-unknown field of pathology during medical training, her “aha!” moment came much earlier. Her father gave her a microscope when she was 10 and she quickly became obsessed. She started researching careers that used microscopes and in 2005, went online and did what any millennial teenager would do. She typed, “What is pathology?” into YouTube and watched what came up.

One video featured an interview with a pathologist at MD Anderson. As fate would have it, El Hussein ran into her in the elevator years later, where she was finishing a fellowship at the same institution. She seized her moment and introduced herself to the doctor. “I said, ‘This is going to be weird, but I’m here because of you,’” she recalls. They hugged and laughed—the older woman

incredibly humbled to learn that her interview on YouTube sparked something that made a little girl in Lebanon choose her career.

Of course, pathology isn’t the only career that uses microscopes. Why not go into basic science? El Hussein says she was drawn to medicine and pathology specifically because it ties directly into patient care.

“When you make the right diagnosis, the next day treatment starts,” she said. “This is something that was very appealing to me. That I can be useful immediately.”

She completed her residency at Mount Sinai, in Miami and fellowships in cytopathology and hematopathology at Albert Einstein and MD Anderson. She joined the URMC faculty in July 2021 and has already garnered recognition for her work in her first year. Our department residents voted to give her the Excellence in Teaching Award, and she was also named to the American Society for Clinical Pathology’s 40 Under Forty for 2022.

Teaching, of residents and externally via social media, is one way she can provide a space that she wishes she’d received as a trainee. Her didactic lectures are very interactive (unlike a traditional PowerPoint slide presentation) and importantly, there are never "stupid questions."