October 13, 2007

SVH Makes Yet Another Big Splash at ACP!

At the Scientific Session of the Annual Massachusetts Chapter of the American College of Physicians, our SVH residents once again proved themselves this year. Of the 54 abstracts that were accepted for posters, 20 were from SVH, including the winning poster by Dr. Yew Xin Teh’s poster on an unusual clue of multiple myeloma. We also earned two of the four honorable mentions - Dr. Joyce Boonchaya-anant on post-partum lymphocytic hypophysitis and Dr. Laxman Prajapat’s poster on eustachian valve infective endocarditis. Dr. Nik Asher’s oral presentation on scrofula was brilliantly presented, and although he came in second, it seemed pretty clear that he deserved the top spot.

Our Jeopardy teams fought as gallantly as ever, but did come up short this year. We learned a lot this time around about the unexpected, and “wait till next year” is the modus operandi. Heartiest of congratulations to Drs. Subarna Dhital, Satish Madiraju, Kriti Mittal, Nuttapong Ngamphaiboon, Smita Padala, Joshan Suri, and Somendra Vaishnav. They put in a huge amount of work and spirit into Medical Jeopardy, and we are all very proud of their efforts. Rehearsal and poster development time was short because this
year’s meeting came two months earlier than last year.

Despite this, in each and every one of their submissions our residents put out masterful work, and we take enormous pride in their accomplishments, as well as that of their co-author peers and attendings. In the future we will distribute copies of all of the submitted abstracts so we can acknowledge everyone who participated

What comes next is the National Meeting in the spring, where we hope to shine
traditionally yet again. In a truly remarkable performance at last year’s national event
(see below), of the seven associate abstracts from all Massachusetts programs chosen for posters, five came from our program (Dr. Laxman Prajapt had two); and two were fro m MGH. Even one of the three student posters (Scott Shainker from PCOM) was submitted by us. Stay tuned for the announcement next April.

There is much more scholastic output to report, including a winning poster by Dr. Ananth Vadde just announced at the national gastroenterology meetings, and a number of high powered publications, with the charge led by Dr. Laxman Prajapat. These achievements will require a future memo.

June 23, 2007
First Ever Internal Medicine Reunion

Not quite as fresh news, but newsworthy for those who missed it. Our Internal Medicine
reunion gathered some 200 alumni and family members for a day that included tours of
the hospital for grads who have been away from our community, a stimulating scientific
session at Tower Hill Botanical Gardens, accompanied by some unique spousal and children activities, evening reminiscences from four decades, and lots and lots of food.
The scientific presentations by our alums were sensational:

Weightlessness in Space: Lessons We Can Learn About Bones on Earth – Azar Khosravi, M.D.
Global Medicine: Creating Dialysis Units In Africa – Wayne Trebbin, M.D.
New Research in Dementia – Carol Lippa, M.D.

The evening reminiscences brought knowing smiles, and at times, moist eyes.
1960’s - Stanley Kocot, MD
1970’s - Thomas Mullins, MD
1980’s - Dom Tammaro, MD
1990’s - Susan George, MD
2000’s - Gary Blanchard, MD

The day simply would never have happened without the dogged support, dedication and
creativity from these stalwarts: Terri Haggerty, Arthur St. Germain, Ray Merva, Zenie
Popkin, Jane Lochrie, Jane Griesbach, Fran Spasaro, Susan Faneuf. And let us not
forget the check from Dr. Gillesby and Mr. Smithhisler!

For all of the above and more, our profound thanks to all of those who have contributed
to making our program and family what it is. And from one who has just retired from the directorship, I am still in awe of the commitment of so many to the residency program. The next reunion should be a “cinch” to pull off!

February 2004
SVH Critical Care Center Receives Prestigious Award
The Society of Critical Care Medicine, the world's largest professional organization of multidisciplinary critical care providers, announced the selection of Saint Vincent Hospital's Critical Care Center, as the first ever winner of the "Patient and Family Focused ICU" award. This award was presented at the convocation ceremony of the American College of Critical Care and the Society of Critical Care Medicine held in Orlando, Florida in February 2004.

November 2003
Dr. Anthony Esposito receives Career Achievement Award from the Worcester District Medical Society
This award was established to recognize a member of the Worcester District Medical Society who has demonstrated compassion and dedication to the medical needs of patients and in addition, has made significant contributions to the practice of medicine.

On November 12, 2003, Dr. Esposito was honored for his many accomplishments in clinical medicine, research, education and administration. His interest and expertise in clinical as well as basic research is reflected in the fifty-one publications in peer reviewed journals and authorship of ten book chapters. His enthusiasm and commitment to these professional endeavors has inspired his
fellow staff members and house officers.

July 2003
Gifted Teacher in Cardiology: David A. Spodick, M.D., FACP
On July 13, 2003, at the opening ceremony of the 3rd World Congress of Heart Disease, Dr. David H. Spodick, was selected by a very prestigious Awards Committee and was awarded the Melvin L. Marcus Memorial Award for his distinguished contribution as a Gifted Teacher in Cardiology by the International Academy of Cardiology 3rd World Congress of Heart Disease - New Trends in Research, Diagnosis and Treatment held in Washington DC. The academy has established five awards to honor the memory of distinguished colleagues who made a major contribution to Medicine and Cardiology and who were members of the faculty for previous International Academy of Cardiology meetings. Past recipients have been Kanu Chatterjee, MD, Shahbudin H. Rahimtoola, MD, Robert A. O'Rourke, MD, A. Jamil Tajik, MD and Daniel S. Berman, MD.

November 2003
Career Achievement Award, WDMS: Anthony Esposito, M.D.
Following his move here from the Brigham and Women's Hospital some 15 years ago, Dr. Esposito quickly became known as a star clinician/scholar, widely respected by housestaff and attendings alike. As if weren't enough to serve simultaneously as Chief of Medicine and Director of Infectious Disease, "Dr. E" took on the extraordinarily demanding role of acting VPMA, among other duties, during a crucial time of administrative transition, allowing SVH to march in stride during a very challenging period.

June 2003
Resident Teacher of the Year: Dimitrios Angelis, M.D.
The 2003 "Resident Teacher of the Year," has been awarded by UMass Medical School to our Chief Resident, Dr. Dimitrios Angelis. As with Dr. Lochrie, such acknowledgment for these superb contributions to student education is a particularly impressive achievement, since only medical students partake in the vote, and less than half of the student body rotates through our program.

May 2003
Outstanding Clinical Educator Award: Jane A. Lochrie, M.D., FACP
The University of Massachusetts Medical School has presented Dr. Jane Lochrie with its "Outstanding Clinical Educator Award." Chosen by the medical students of the Class of 2003, the "award is in recognition of your dedication to the field of medicine, your outstanding qualities as a teacher and a human being, as well as a role model our students would like to emulate." Remarkably, this is the seventh time that Dr. Lochrie has received this award.

Massachusetts Medical Society Clinician of the Year: Robert Bessette, MD
One of the most major recognitions a Massachusetts physician can receive is the "MMS Clinician of the Year." The 2003 vote was an easy one for the society. The unique degree of effort and skill that Dr. Bessette has continually devoted for more than 30 years to his patients, colleagues, and the residents made this award a shoe-in.

President, Worcester District Medical Society, 2003: George Abraham, M.D., MPH, FACP
The medical community's acknowledgments of Dr. Abraham's enormous talents and presence are even more impressive knowing that Dr. Abraham completed his training and chief medical residency at SVH just four years ago. To be honored with the WDMS presidency at this early stage in a career is a record in the long and illustrious history of the Society.

Forty Under Forty Award, Worcester Business Journal: David Weinstock, D.O.
In September 2003, The Worcester Business Journal has recognized our newly-graduated Chief Resident, Dr. Weinstock, as one of the forty young, up-and-coming Worcester leaders, expected to play an influential role in the city. David has a wonderful blend of organizational and people skills, and we expect him to quickly rise in the ranks of our community.

September 2002
SVH's MICU Among Top 10 in Country
Our Medical Intensive Care Unit, directed by David Kaufman, M.D., has been designated as one of the country's 10 best ICU's! The federal Agency for Healthcare Research appointed two committees to identify ICUs that provide exceptional quality of care and/or have implemented innovative ideas, and they chose our unit from among the strongest university hospitals in the nation. At SVH a multidisciplinary Performance Improvement Committee has continuously poured through reams of data, which has resulted in many findings that have very measurably improved morbidity and mortality. Fewer patients have died in the ICU at SVH than would have been predicted on the basis on acuity of illness scales. Congratulations to Dr. Kaufman, the staff, and our medical residents who made this extraordinary honor possible.

September 2002
SVH Number one with Patient Satisfaction
Saint Vincent Hospital scored number one amongst all Tenet hospitals in its combined inpatient and outpatient satisfaction scores for the month of September. While this score is only for one month, it is significant and demonstrates that the hospital can and did achieve a score of this magnitude. Being number one will continue to be our goal. Congratulations to everyone for a job well done.

May 2002
EMS Physician of the Year
At an awards ceremony on May 7, 2002, Dr. John Benanti, Chief of Emergency Medicine, was named "EMS Physician of the Year" by the Central Massachusetts Emergency Medical Systems Corporation (CMEMSC). The CMEMSC is dedicated to "the development implementation, operation and evaluation of an emergency medical services team fot the Central Massachusetts area."

June 2001
Dr. Lochrie Awarded
Dr. Lochrie was named by the University of Massachusetts Medical School as Outstanding Medical Educator. She was also given the AOA's Volunteer Physician Award.

May 2001
Posters Chosen for Honors
At last month's National American College of Physicians' convention our program had the honor of being chosen for 4 posters.  To the best of our knowledge, no other program had more than two posters, and those were few – e.g., Mayo Clinic.  Posters were presented by Mike Reinig, Claude Tonnerre, Deepti Kumar, and Susan George.  Our own Claude Tonnerre was one of the national winners!  Congrats to all!  What a superb job they did!

National ACP Poster Exhibitors and Coaches
A Win at the National ACP	A Well Earned Rest

May 2001
Dr. Popkin Awarded
Dr. Popkin was given the Community Educator Award for 2000-2001 from the University of Massachusetts Medical School as well as an Outstandng Primary Care Educator Award. This was accompanied by a State Senate citation for "excellence in primary care teaching."