Department of Medicine
Connecting Tec h n olog y, Educ ation a n d D iscov e r y w i t h H u m a n i s m i n M e d i ci ne
Vol. 2 Issue 3 July 2013
Education: Pulmonary Division
Pulmonary specialty training is arduous. It requires four years of medical school followed by three to four years of Internal Medicine residency and then two to four years of Pulmonary and Critical Care training. Fellows must assimilate an extensive fund of knowledge on a broad range of topics, including COPD, lung cancer, pneumonia, asthma, interstitial lung diseases, pulmonary vascular disease, cystic fibrosis, sleep medicine, pulmonary rehabilitation, chest radiology, and critical care medicine, to name a few. To complement this broad curriculum, they must become adept at a variety of procedures necessary to diagnose and treat diseases of the respiratory system. Additionally, fellows are expected to be involved in research, teach residents and students, present interesting cases, and publish under the mentorship of their faculty. The results are impressive. This program, one of four in Tennessee, has graduated six fellows beginning with the first class which finished in 2010. All fellows have mastered the required knowledge base as evidenced by a 100% board examination pass rate. Each fellow has added clinical research, publications, and presentations at national meetings to their experience. Several graduates have been accepted into highly respected, competitive Critical Care fellowships. All are currently practicing Pulmonary Medicine, with half the graduates currently associated with an academic institution. By their own acknowledgement, the fellows have been very satisfied with their training experience. They often cite the diverse interests of a gifted pulmonary faculty as a strength of the program. Dr. Dudney credits the success to the quality of applicants, the untiring dedication and talent of the division’s faculty, and the support of both the Graduate School of Medicine and University Health Systems in fostering an environment of discovery. She states, “While the effort required to develop a new training program was substantial, the rewards of watching these young physicians make their journey of personal discovery and develop into highly qualified pulmonary subspecialists have been immense.”
Program Director, Tina Dudney, MD, and Associate Program Director, Michael McCormack, MD, pictured with pulmonary fellows in the bronchoscopy suite
The philosopher Socrates taught by asking questions. In this way, his students were given the opportunity for personal discovery, which enhanced their ability to acquire and retain knowledge. This approach to teaching is embraced by the faculty in the Pulmonary/Critical Care Division at the Graduate School of Medicine (GSM). In addition to maintaining a robust clinical practice in a competitive marketplace, Tina Dudney, MD, Program Director of the Pulmonary Disease Fellowship, and Division Chief, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, and her talented colleagues have integrated teaching into their work culture. The history of progressive academic achievement of the Pulmonary Division at the GSM naturally led to the development of a Pulmonary Disease Fellowship. Dr. Dudney and her faculty spent several years laying the foundation for this training program before receiving the accreditation needed to accept their first class of two fellows in 2008. The collective goal was to provide fellows with a learning experience of the highest quality, which would allow them to be successful either in the private practice of general pulmonary medicine or in an academically focused environment.
Points of View
Rajiv Dhand, M.D., Chair
Over the past 35 years of training medical students, residents and fellows, I have had the privilege of experiencing the fulfillment of trainees’ growth to become independent, competent, and outstanding clinicians and consultants. One of the rhetorical questions that I ask my students is to think of three people, other than parents or relatives, who have had a major influence on shaping their lives. The next question I pose to them is how many of these people were teachers. We cannot underestimate the influence teachers have on young people’s minds
and the awesome feeling of reward in shaping their future. A few years ago, one of my former students--let’s just call him “Brad”--approached me at the American Thoracic Society conference. Brad reminded me that he had done a pulmonary rotation with me some years ago. As we talked, I recalled that he had been in an MD/PhD program and that he was interested in Hematology/Oncology. When I questioned him about it, Brad informed me that my memory served me well, but after his pulmonary rotation he had decided to change career paths and was now a pulmonary and critical care fellow. I vividly recall the goose bumps I got when Brad revealed that he had chosen my specialty. I felt humbled by Brad’s decision, yet this was probably one of the most gratifying moments of my life as a teacher. Many teachers will recall similar experiences, and there can be no substitute for the uplifting feeling of contributing to the career development of one’s students in a meaningful way. 1
UTK Medicine Residents Shine at American College of Physicians Annual Meeting There were seven poster presentations by associate members of the Tennessee Chapter of the American College of Physicians (ACP) at the national meeting which convened in San Francisco, CA, April 11-13. Five of these were residents representing the UT Department of Medicine in Knoxville.
Basic Research Category
Brian C. Reed, MD, PGY-2, Internal Medicine resident, described his unique research project, An Assessment of Coliform Bacteria in Water Sources near Appalachian Trail Shelters within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Dr. Brian Reed combined his love of the outdoors with a research project.
Clinical Vignettes
Sister Mary Gretchen Hoffman, MD, PGY-2, presented A Common Problem with an Unlikely Suspect about a rare and often lethal presentation of acute liver failure caused by herpes simplex virus. Stanley Tyler Pace, MD, PGY-1, transitional intern and future ophthalmology resident, presented Psoas Abscess as the Initial Presentation of Crohn’s Disease: An Unusual Case. Drs. Sister Mary Gretchen Hoffman and Stanley Tyler Pace pictured with their posters and Dr. Mark Rasnake.
Clinical Research Category
Swara Afiniwala, MD, PGY-2 Internal Medicine resident, presented Risk Factors, Complications, and Mortality among Infective Endocarditis Patients at a Tertiary Care Medical Center. Dr. Swara Afiniwala with her mentor Dr. Mark Rasnake.
Matthew D. Stone, MD, PGY-2 Internal Medicine resident, presented a Novel Approach with a Novel Product: Aerosolizing Phytobacteria for Disinfection. Dr. Matt Stone with his poster describing his disinfectant research.
New Clerkships
Academy of Scholars
The University of Tennessee College of Medicine (UTCOM) recently approved the addition of three core clerkships in Neurology, Pediatrics, and Psychiatry to be offered on the Knoxville Regional Campus of the UT Health Science Center. These clerkships will be in addition to those in Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Obstetrics/Gynecology, and General Surgery that are currently available. These additional clerkships will allow many more medical students to complete their full third and fourth years of medical school clinical training in Knoxville after completing their two preclinical years studying basic sciences on the Memphis campus. The UT Graduate School of Medicine is collaborating with East Tennessee Children’s Hospital to offer the Pediatrics rotation, which will be directed by Shannon Cohen Haskins, MD. Blount Memorial Hospital will be home for the Psychiatry rotation, which will be codirected by Brent Coyle, MD, and Paul Miller, MD. The Neurology clerkship will be at UTMCK under the direction of Upinder Dhand, MD, Professor of Medicine at UTGSM.
The UT Graduate School of Medicine has established a local fellowship of faculty physicians called The Academy of Scholars. The mission of this association is to recognize and promote teaching excellence and educational scholarship, and to strengthen the quality of medical education by providing opportunities to work with other faculty members who share an intense interest in improving the educational process here at UT. The academy will address all facets of instruction, including direct teaching; advising and mentoring; creating and implementing educational tools and materials; developing innovative approaches to teaching, learning and assessment; and building systematic studies of teaching and educational processes and their outcomes. William Metheny, PhD, Assistant Dean, Graduate Medical and Dental Education, who led the initiative said, “This is all about teaching, regardless of rank. When physicians come to practice here, they are typically interested in teaching. It’s what sets the University of Tennessee Medical Center apart from other hospitals in the area. The faculty who have joined the Academy of Scholars are setting an even higher standard for teaching physicians.” We proudly acknowledge that Drs. Daphne Norwood and Mark Rasnake will represent the department in the academy. 2
Awards and Honors Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award
embodies the spirit of teaching and possesses excellent clinical skills. This award is given in fond memory of Freeman Rawson, MD, who was a Clinical Ryan Kerr, MD, PGY-2 Shane Kelley, MD, PGY-3 Professor EmeriRawson Award recipient Rawson Award recipient tus and founding member of the Knoxville Cardiovascular Group. Dr. Rawson was a physician known for his compassion and clinical expertise. He practiced medicine in Knoxville for 47 years and was one of the first teaching faculty in the Department of Medicine in 1956. Rawson passed away in 2003.
Members of the UT Health Sciences Center College of Medicine, Class of 2014, selected Shane Kelley, MD, PGY-3, to receive the 2013 Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award. This award honors the empathy, Dr. Shane Kelley pictured with Dr. Daphne compassion, respect, altruism, Norwood, Internal Medicine Associate and integrity he displays in Program Director and Transitional Year Program Director, and Medical Student, his daily life and when caring Daniel Roubik. for his patients. He accepted this award at the Student Clinician’s Ceremony Thursday, May 2, 2013, in the Student Alumni Center on the Memphis campus. The Department of Medicine extends its congratulations to Shane for receiving this prestigious award.
Graduate School of Medicine Excellence Award Susan B. Burchfield, CAP-OM, won the Graduate School of Medicine Excellence Award for 2013 in the category of “Job Performance.” This award is given each year to a graduate school employee who has demonstrated excellence, commitment, and dedication.
Rawson Award Shane Kelley, MD, PGY-3 and Ryan Kerr, MD, PGY-2 Internal Medicine residents, won the Rawson Award presented at the 2013 Department of Medicine Residents and Fellows Awards Dinner, which was held on Saturday, June 15, at the Ft. Loudon Yacht Club (venue provided courtesy of Drs. Rick Gibson and Bill Smith). This award is presented annually to a deserving 2nd and 3rd year resident who
Susan B. Burchfield
Comings and Goings Internal Medicine The faculty in the Department of Medicine interviewed more than 100 medical students for the expanded Internal Medicine residency program this year. We now have a group 2013 Internal Medicine Class pictured with of 12 overachievers Drs. Mark Rasnake, Juli Williams, and Dan Ely comprising the PGY-1 resident class joining us this summer. Those who made the final cut include Charles Allderdice, Nathan Smith, and Jennifer Winbigler, presumably carpooling in on Interstate 40 East from the University of Tennessee, Memphis, while Kendra Black, Niva Misra, and Brock (TJ) Mitchell roar down Thunder Road from Quillen College of Medicine, Johnson City, TN. Neena Agrawal comes from the Medical University of South Carolina. Sachin Amin hails from St. George’s University. Joshua Hayes arrived by way of Florida State University. William Kittrell brings greetings from the University of South Alabama. Andrew Streicher will speak, when necessary, for the University of Arkansas, and Rafaela Toniolo followed the prevailing winds in a southerly direction from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. These neophytes will eventually replace the graduating Internal Medicine PGY-3 Residency Class of 2013, several of whom will continue their education in the
Recent group photo of Department of Medicine faculty and residents
Southeastern Conference. Tonya Baker, MD, went to the University of Kentucky to do a Rheumatology fellowship. David Graham, MD, will start the second of many midlife crises in his second residency as an Anesthesiology resident here at the GSM. Adrianne Netterville, MD is smiling all the way to her Allergy/Immunology fellowship with the LSU Tigers. Soham Patel, MD, will attempt to add a modicum of equanimity to the University of Alabama in an Endocrinology fellowship. Shane Kelley, MD, has followed his dream of being a Norman Rockwell styled primary care physician with Summit Medical Group. Owaisur Rahman, MD, will join his big brother as a hospitalist at Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge. Dr. Erick Edwards will continue to go quietly about doing great work on the night shift here as a UTMCK hospitalist. Deepti Reddy, MD, demanded, received, then graciously accepted a teaching hospitalist position at Ochsner in New Orleans. John Lambert, MD, has not had to decide his future yet since he will graduate in December 2013. Our graduating transitional year residents, Austin Faulkner, MD, Craig Robinson, MD, and Jonathan Suther, MD, will remain in Knoxville at the Graduate School of Medicine to complete residencies continued on page 4
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in Radiology. Ryan Fisher, MD, will move to the University of Kansas to complete a Dermatology residency. Both Jordan Masters, MD, and Tyler Pace, MD, will move on to Ophthalmology residencies at the University of Tennessee Hamilton Eye Institute in Memphis and the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, respectively. We will replace them with their generic equivalents, Scott McElroy from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine, Hunter Pearson, Quillen College of Medicine, Jeremy Rawson, University of Mississippi School of Medicine, John Prenshaw, Rupert Stanborough and William Tidwell, all from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis. Outgoing Cardiovascular fellows include Pat Crawley, MD, who will move to Brooklyn’s SUNY Downstate for an Interventional Fellowship and JB Bains, MD, who has accepted a position at Cumberland Medical Center in Crossville, Tennessee. They will be replaced by two new Cardiovascular Fellows: Madhur Roberts, MD, who completed his Internal Medicine residency at Winthrop University, NY, and Steven Dolacky, MD, from the Internal Medicine residency at the University of Connecticut. Syed Gilani, MD, and Arseniy Tsapenko, MD, will graduate from the Pulmonary Fellowship. Their replacements are Dipaben Modi, MD, who is finishing a Critical Care Fellowship at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York and Farhan Khan, MD, who is concluding an Infectious Disease Fellowship at Orlando Health, Florida.
Faculty William Paulsen, MD, will retire this summer as Division Chief of Neurology. He has been at UTMCK since 1970 after completing medical school and Neurology training at the University of Wisconsin. Members of the Department of Medicine past and present appreciate and admire him for his many years of dedicated service and excellent teaching. Dr. Paulsen will be replaced as Division Chief of Neurology by Steven Rider, MD. Dr. Rider graduated from Indiana University School of Medicine where he also completed his residency in Neurology. He came to UT in June 2005 after completing an EEG/Epilepsy fellowship.
Additions to In Touch Editorial Staff Christen Fleming, MD, PGY-1 Internal Medicine resident, has accepted a newly minted position on the In Touch editorial committee. Dr. Fleming has a wealth of experience, having served as an editor-in-chief of her high school newspaper, The Blue and White. We are also pleased to announce that Jane Obenour will be assisting with the production of this newsletter. Jane has a Master’s degree in English and many years of proofreading and editing experience. We look forward to both of their contributions.
In Touch
Volume 2, Issue 3: July 2013 Publishers James Neutens, Ph.D., Dean Rajiv Dhand, M.D., Chair Editor Ronald Lands, M.D. Administrative Director Susan Burchfield, CAP-OM Contributors Susan Burchfield Rajiv Dhand, M.D. Christen Fleming, M.D. Ronald Lands, M.D. Jane Obenour Design J Squared Graphics In Touch is produced by the University of Tennessee Graduate School of Medicine Department of Medicine. The mission of the newsletter is to build pride in the Department of Medicine by communicating the accessible, collaborative and human aspects of the department while highlighting pertinent achievements and activities. Contact Us In Touch UT Graduate School of Medicine Department of Medicine 1924 Alcoa Highway, U-114 Knoxville, TN 37920
Presentations, Publications, Awards
Department of Medicine faculty, residents and fellows share their knowledge and experience by publishing and presenting across the world. For a list of our most recent accomplishments, visit http://gsm.utmck.edu/internalmed/scholars.cfm.
Thank You for Your Support For information about philanthropic giving to the UT Graduate School of Medicine Department of Medicine, please contact the development office at 865-305-6611 or development@utmck.edu. If you would like more information about any of the information in this issue of In Touch, please contact the Department of Medicine at 865-305-9340 or visit http://gsm.utmck.edu/internalmed/main.cfm. We look forward to your input. Thank you.
Stay in Touch! Alumni, please update your contact information by completing the simple form at http://gsm.utmck.edu/internalmed/alumni.cfm or by calling the Department of Medicine at 865-305-9340. Thank you! 4
Telephone: 865-305-9340 E-mail: InTouchNewsletter@utmck.edu Web: http://gsm.utmck. edu/internalmed/main.cfm The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/ Title IX/Section 504/ADA/ ADEA institution in the provision of its education and employment programs and services.