BIDMC News and Notes
12/16/2011 (10:05:03am)Tags: noneComments: (9)
With eyes wide in amazement five Boston Public Schools 8th graders studied a normal prostate and one with prostate cancer. A hushed silence fell on the room as urology researcher Simo Arredouani, PhD, explained the condition found in men.
"How can I stay healthy? Are there exams to check your prostate?" asked Cullen Lee, who was visiting BIDMC as part of the annual Red Sox Scholars Shadow Day. He and his male classmates breathed a collective sigh of relief when Arredouani told them prostate cancer was not an illness they needed to be screened for until they were 50.
"But it is important to have a healthy lifestyle," Arredouani told the group in his lab. "There are also studies that show eating broccoli can decrease your chance of getting prostate cancer."
The urology cancer lab was one of four units hosting the 35 8th grade students from middle schools around the city. The Red Sox Scholars program is the educational cornerstone of the Red Sox Foundation, the team charity of the Boston Red Sox, and is presented by BIDMC, the Official Hospital of the Boston Red Sox and Red Sox Nation. Each year, a new class of eighth graders is selected to receive a college scholarship, along with access to tutoring and mentoring from Red Sox Foundation staff members and other after school enrichment activities.
BIDMC provides volunteers to serve as "Medical Champions" for the scholars. These generous health care professionals help introduce the youngsters to health professions and serve as hosts of a "Shadow Day." This year, the students visited Arredouani's lab, the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, the blood bank and gastroenterology.
"I really enjoyed how they are working in the lab to find a cure for cancer," said Lee, who attends the Josiah Quincy Upper School and hopes to attend medical school.
After touring Arredouani's lab, the students headed to the NICU where Neonatoly chief DeWayne Pursley, MD, shared how BIDMC cares for premature babies. Respiratory therapists Michael Jackson and Glenn Housefield explained how ventilators worked to help the babies breathe and each student practiced inserting a breathing tube into a model of a premature baby.
"I learned today how you feed babies in the NICU and check their blood sugar," said Shakeena Crooks, an 8th grader at Boston Latin Academy. "I was surprised at how small the babies are in the NICU."
12/8/2011 (1:06:28pm)Tags: noneComments: (11)
Yesterday's rain didn't dampen spirits on Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center's Transplant Unit as the annual Red Sox Caravan rolled in to supply holiday cheer.
Hitting coach, Dave Magadan and Red Sox players Michael Bowden, pitcher, Ryan Lavarnway, catcher, Darnell McDonald, outfielder and Jarrod Saltalamacchia, catcher visited more than a dozen pre- and post-transplant patients.
"This is my first time on the caravan," said left fielder McDonald who carried along a bag of Wally dolls to share with patients. "It's a great experience. The patients put a smile on our face just like we try to put a smile on their faces."
12/6/2011 (3:26:23pm)Tags: noneComments: (15)
Boston Magazine has published its annual "Top Doctors" issue, which includes 73 Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center physicians (see list and specialty below).
This year's Top Docs issue also highlights 14 medical breakthroughs of 2011 including a discovery by Seward Rutkove, MD, Neurology of a method of tracking the progression of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
"I was obsessed with the idea that we need new ways to evaluate muscle health," says Rutkove in the article. He collaborated with two Northeastern University physicists to develop a new method to measure the health or sickness of a muscle and track its changes over time. Called electrical impedance myography or EIM, the technique is based on the observation that as a muscle becomes more diseased, electrical current moves through it differently. Rutkove's discovery has the potential to facilitate rapid development of treatments for ALS.
Boston Magazine's 2011 "Top Docs"
Allergy and Immunology: Frank J. Twarog
Cardiac Electro-Physiology: Alfred E. Buxton; Mark Eric Josephson
Cardiovascular Disease: Frederick C. Basilico (Primary Affiliation-New England Baptist); Patricia C. Come (Primary Affilation-Atrius); Joseph P. Kannam; Warren Manning
Clinical Genetics: Susan P. Pauker (Primary Affiliation-Harvard Vanguard)
Colon and Rectal Surgery: Deborah A. Nagle
Dermatology: Kenneth Arndt; Jeffrey Dover; Michael Kaminer; Alan S. Rockoff; Robert S. Stern
Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism: Martin J. Abrahamson (Primary Affiliation-Joslin Diabetes Center); Richard S. Beaser
Gastroenterology: Adam S. Cheifetz; Michael P. Curry; Douglas K. Pleskow; Sunil G. Sheth
Geriatric Medicine: Lewis Arnold Lipsitz
Gynecologic Oncology: Christopher Awtrey
Hand Surgery: Charles S. Day
Hematology: Murray M. Bern
Internal Medicine: Mark D. Aronson; David M. Eisenberg; Judith A. Waligunda
Interventional Cardiology: C. Michael Gibson; Roger Laham
Medical Oncology: Michael B. Atkins; Glennn J. Bubley; Stephen A. Cannistra; Steven E. Come; Marc B. Garnick; Roger F. Lange; Lowell E. Schnipper
Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine: Dara D. Brodsky; James E. Gray; DeWayne Marques Pursley; John A. Zupancic
Nephrology: Martha Pavlakis
Neurology: Michael P. Alexander; Louis R. Caplan; Seward B. Rutkove; Clifford Saper
Neuroradiology: David B. Hackney
Opthalmology: Peter A. D. Rubin
Orthopedic Surgery: Mark Gebhardt; Mininder S. Kocher (Primary Affiliation-Children's Hospital)
Pain Medicine: Christine Peeters-Asdourian
Pathology: James L. Connolly; Stuart J. Schnitt
Pediatrics: Karen E. Klein
Plastic Surgery: Richard A. Bartlett; Sumner Slavin
Psychiatry: William E. Greenberg; David C. Jimerson; Carl Salzman
Radiation Oncology: Irving D. Kaplan; Abram Recht
Reproductive Endocrinology: Selwyn P. Oskowitz; Alan Stewart Penzias
Rheumatology: George Tsokos
Sports Medicine: Lyle J. Micheli (Primary Affiliation-Children's Hospital)
Surgery: Michael John Cahalane; Mark P. Callery; Daniel B. Jones; Benjamin Schneider
Urology: Anurag K. Das; Abraham Morgentaler; Martin G. Sanda
Vascular Surgery: Elliot L. Chaikof; Allen D. Hamdan
10/18/2011 (12:37:33pm)Tags: ALS Lou Genrig's DiseaseComments: (104)
One of the most debilitating side effects of battling a serious illness is the isolation many patients and family caregivers experience. That's why last week's celebration of the 50th ALS Clinic Connection luncheons at BIDMC was such a major milestone.
What started four years ago as an alternative to patients grabbing a quick jelly donut between numerous day-long appointments has grown into an important support group.
Walter Bentson, a patient with primary lateral sclerosis (PLS), in the same family as ALS, a progressive, fatal, neurodegenerative condition also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, noticed that he kept seeing many of the same faces in the waiting rooms on monthly clinic days. One patient in particular caught his eye, Richard Hackel, a friendly fellow who always wears red socks.
"I probably saw Richard on clinic days for two years before we finally met," Benston recalled. "I saw that he wears an ALS bracelet so I said, ‘Hey, we've got to pull together somehow.'"
Hackel agreed, and the two men that share a mischievous spirit, a love for baseball and an ability to stare adversity in the face and press on, soon became fast friends.
"It's invaluable to us to supplement the therapy we get at the clinic, and these lunches enable the patients and caregivers to have a large circle of friends and supporters who can assist them, and advise them," said Hackel . "We're forever grateful that the hospital has supported Walter in this endeavor."
Bentson approached Cynthia Wise Wagner,Manager of BIDMC's Voice, Speech and Swallowing Service, with the idea of starting the monthly luncheons.
"He said, ‘You get the conference room and I'll get the food,' and that's what we did," she said.
While the food is great -- and safer for patients who have trouble swallowing -- it soon became obvious that these lunches were more just a nice meal.
"When it first started I had this idea it would be good to give patients a respite in the middle of the day, but I didn't know it would become a patient resource," said neurologist Elizabeth Raynor, MD. "This has become a patient-to-patient and family-to-family resource that is much more meaningful to patients than the food. Many patients come even when they don't have appointments so that shows you how important it is."
BIDMC Trustee Meg Grossman, a longtime friend of Bentson from his days as an umpire and President of the Boston Park League, took notice as well.
"At the time I was chairing the Board of Overseers and I wanted the board to know about patient-generated programs like this that are so successful," she said. "I started attending and reporting back to the board about what goes on here that's so beautiful and so wonderful. Now I'm a trustee and I do the same thing. I invite people to see what's happening because programs like this need funding. I invite people to attend, learn and enjoy."
In addition to Benston, Grossman and Elizabeth Lane, whose daughter, Andrea Battit Fisher died of ALS in 1999, have helped underwrite the cost of the lunches. Grossman has also funded a program that helps provide hotel rooms for patients and caregivers who travel long distances on clinic days. Lane also funds the Legacy Project that offers a free documentary service to BIDMC patients with ALS who wish to create a lasting message for family members before they lose control of their speech.
Celebrating the 50th luncheon, Wagner announced that Bentson - "our team captain" - had recently convinced the organizers of the annual 100 Innings of Baseball fundraising marathon event for ALS research and services to donate this year's proceeds to BIDMC's ALS Clinic. "That means we'll have enough for another 50 luncheons and I hope you all are here for every one of them," said Bentson.
To facilitate the fundraising, Bentson and the 100 Innings organizers teamed up with BIDMC's Grateful Nation. So far, close to $16,000 has been raised to help fund ALS Clinic programs. To learn more or make a donation, go to the Grateful Nation Web site.
"Hearing or reading about these lunches is not the same as being in the room," said Marsha Maurer, RN, Senior Vice President of Patient Care Services and BIDMC's Nurse-in-Chief. "It's all about patient engagement and patients taking control of their own care."
10/17/2011 (11:00:38am)Tags: smartphones mobile websiteComments: (37)
Smartphones are everywhere. In fact, the Pew Research Center reports that 35 percent of Americans have a smartphone, with one quarter of those people using them to do most of their online browsing.
With this in mind, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center has become the first hospital in Boston to launch a new mobile website, allowing visitors to more easily navigate to information they need when on-the-move.
The new, easy-to-use, smartphone-friendly website provides quick access to information like:
• Emergency Room location with map integration to view on your phone's native map application
• Directions to both campuses by car and MBTA bus
• Automatic phone number dialing with the click of a link
• Patient and visitor information including visiting hours
• Our centers and departments and off-site locations and affiliates
• Job opportunities
• Our free Find a Doc and pedometer apps
• Access to connect with us from our Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and e-letter pages
When you visit bidmc.org from an iPhone, Android or newer-generation BlackBerry, you will be automatically directed to the mobile website. The full site is still just one click away, if users need to access it.
The mobile version, which is powered by BlueTrain Mobile's content management system, was developed by looking statistically at what people searched most when visiting bidmc.org from their smartphone.
Not surprisingly, analytics showed people accessing the site from their hand-held device are looking for directions, in particular, the best way to get to the Emergency Room.
While the new site is available on the latest smartphone versions, it will soon have universal support so that even users of older-generation, Internet-ready BlackBerry phones will be able to access the mobile-friendly website.
Please visit bidmc.org from your smartphone for an in-depth look.
10/14/2011 (11:38:05am)Tags: noneComments: (10)
The BIDMC Board of Directors has presented the 10th annual Robert M. Melzer Leadership Awards to Helen Chin Schlichte and Mark Aronson, MD, for their contributions "leading constructive, lasting and all-embracing change" at the medical center.
The awards, named in recognition of former Board Chair and Interim CEO Robert Melzer, were announced at the recent BIDMC Annual Meeting.
Chin Schlichte, a member of the Board of Directors, is "a powerhouse of commitment to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center," said current Board Chair Stephen Kay in making the presentation.
"Helen has long been an integral part of the BIDMC community, serving with unrivaled intensity at the Board level for more than 30 of her incredible 50 years of involvement at the medical center. As one of the first Asian women to achieve prominence as a public administrator, Helen has applied her vast political, corporate, and community leadership experience to bring out the best in everything we do. Her approach to any task, be it compelling or challenging (or both!), is steeped in wisdom, enthusiasm, and conviction.
"And her tasks have been too numerous to count simply due to the length of her tenure and her genuine willingness to contribute anywhere she thinks she might be of help, from community benefits to governance to compensation. ... Helen has had a particular soft spot for promoting and advancing our community relationships and our community health centers, a penchant she attributes to her parents and her long-standing commitment to Boston's Chinese residents. Her noteworthy contributions in this area have been instrumental to our ongoing efforts to reach the underserved and reduce health disparities.
Aronson, who came to the Beth Israel Hospital in 1976, has "proved himself to be a master clinician, both in the ambulatory and inpatient settings, and an absolutely superb teacher, directing several crucial courses," said Mark Zeidel, MD, Chair of BIDMC's Department of Medicine.
Among his accomplishments are: helping to create the problem-oriented record in the Online Medical Record in the mid-1970s; setting up and directing the Brookline practice of Healthcare Associates, BIDMC's hospital-based primary care practice; and being the "father and godfather of our world renowned hospitalist program. Mark not only makes important changes, but he describes them in the literature, so that others around the world can follow in his path," Zeidel said.
Aronson serves as Vice Chair for Quality in the department, where "he has created the groups and meetings that identify areas for improvement and define how to make permanent positive change.
"He is the one who assures that we provide the kind of care to every patient, under every circumstance, that we would each want our family members to receive. In doing so he has saved many, many lives."
9/23/2011 (2:55:26pm)Tags: ALS baseballComments: (17)
Walter Bentson did not get much sympathy when he started to show signs of slowing down. As a competitive athlete in his mid-40s, his peers thought it was about time his age caught up to him. A few months later he was diagnosed with primary lateral sclerosis (PLS), in the same family as ALS, a progressive, fatal, neurodegenerative condition otherwise known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
Fortunately for Bentson, his PLS diagnosis has progressed much slower than the ALS counterpart.
While the disease has slowed him down, it has not completely controlled him. The average ALS patient lives three-to-five years after diagnosis. Bentson is going on 13 years in January. "I still have it probably as easy as anyone. I walk with a cane. I work full time. I am still far better off than most of the patients who are in the clinic, so I need to be their voice. And if we can do anything that can help them, I try to make sure we get it done," he says.
The former interscholastic, collegiate and amateur baseball umpire will call balls and strikes for three batters as part of the 100 Innings of Baseball Spectacular at midnight on Oct. 8. Proceeds from the eighth annual event, which boasts 100 straight innings of baseball and lasts approximately 33 consecutive hours, will support the ALS Clinic at BIDMC, where he continues his fight against the debilitating disease. Benston has teamed up with BIDMC's Grateful Nation program to help support and coordinate the fundraising effort. (See details below for information on how to support or take part in 100 Innings of Baseball at Adams Field in Quincy.)
The 100 Innings of Baseball Spectacular was developed in 2004 by the Boston Men's Baseball League in coordination with former Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling and his charity, Curt's Pitch for ALS. The event has raised $488,000 for ALS. "It's a group of guys playing a game, raising some money, and at the end of the day if you pick up some money for ALS, it's all worth it," Bentson says.
Bentson is a major supporter of ALS treatment and care at BIDMC and is the reason the game will benefit BIDMC's ALS Clinic for the first time this year. He started the Bentson Scholarship Fund in 2006 to ease the cost of higher education for children of patients with ALS; a lunch support group, Clinic Connections, for patients and caregivers to take a break from a grueling appointment day schedule; and a hotel accommodation program to help patients who travel long distances to BIDMC for appointments. The former Boston College athlete is hoping funds raised from the 100 Inning game will support state-of-the-art equipment, administrative help, and social programs in the clinic.
Walter is no longer an active umpire due to his physical limitations caused by primary lateral sclerosis, but he is still very much involved in baseball as the president of Boston Park League and umpire chief for amateur leagues in Boston, managing more than 400 umpires in the region. He has been a regular participant in the 100 Innings game since 2006 when he officiated 62 innings of the 100 Innings game.
The eighth annual 100 Innings of Baseball Spectacular will begin on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 9 a.m., at Adams Field in Quincy. The event will continue for more than 30 hours, ending Sunday afternoon. Registration is underway for baseball players ages 18 and above to play one inning or all 100 to support patients with both PLS and ALS. The cost to play is $40, payable at the field, and all spectators are welcome! A minimum donation of $60 will also be collected at the field. For more information or to register, visit www.bostonbaseball.com/100innings.php. To make a donation, visit http://www.gratefulnation.org/100innings..
9/19/2011 (11:31:16am)Tags: thoracic surgery interventional pulmonologyComments: (37)
Following a national search by BIDMC and Harvard Medical School, Sidhu Gangadharan, MD, has been named Chief of the Division of Thoracic Surgery and Interventional Pulmonology within the Roberta and Stephen R. Weiner Department of Surgery at BIDMC.
Gangadharan, who served as Acting Chief of the division since 2009, is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School, Associate Program Director for the Cardiothoracic Residency Program and Assistant Program Director for the General Surgery Residency Program.
Gangadharan was recruited to BIDMC in 2005. As a clinical innovator, he has been responsible for initiating the minimally invasive thoracic surgery program with a particular emphasis on video-assisted thoracoscopic lobectomy (VATS) for lung cancer, as well as the development of a complex airway surgery program for patients with benign and malignant tracheal and bronchial disease. In collaboration with Interventional Pulmonology, he developed a nationally recognized center for the evaluation and treatment of tracheobronchomalacia, a condition that leads to airway collapse, breathlessness and repeated pneumonia or bronchitis.
Gangadharan is an active clinical investigator with research programs that are focused on the development of innovative techniques of tracheal replacement to allow long-segment tracheal resection, new techniques for the diagnosis and treatment of tracheobronchomalacia, endobronchial ultrasound for staging of non-small cell lung cancer, as well as the efficacy of CyberKnife for the treatment of lung cancer. surgeon at hospitals around the country.
As a Rabkin Fellow in Medical Education, Gangadharan has also been a leader in redefining the surgical curriculum at BIDMC, creating rotation-specific educational sessions. He consistently receives the highest reviews from medical students and surgical residents, and has received a number of prestigious teaching awards, including the Francis D. Moore, MD, and the John L. Rowbotham Awards. His career goal is to marry the pursuit of clinical excellence with effective teaching of this clinical knowledge. He intensely enjoys both his own surgical practice, as well as observing the progress of his trainees as they successfully develop their own clinical skills.
Gangadharan received his AB with honors from Dartmouth College and his MD from Dartmouth Medical School, where he was elected Alpha Omega Alpha. He completed his internship and residency in general surgery and thoracic surgery at Brigham and Women's Hospital, as well as a two-year research fellowship.
Gangadharan has also been recognized for his poetry, receiving the Academy of American Poets Prize and the William Carlos Williams Poetry Prize.
9/19/2011 (10:49:58am)Tags: surgery simulationComments: (23)
Neel Kantak is a first-year plastic surgery resident at Beth Israel Deaconess. "I don't think that anything we do in surgery is natural," he said. "I think most of the movements are things people are not born with the coordination to do."
So Kantak and others come to BIDMC's skills lab to practice laparoscopic surgery -- procedures done through tiny incisions. The hope is extra surgery training can lower complication rates for patients and costs for insurers.
Watch a CBS Evening News story in which Kantak and Dan Jones, chief of BIDMC's minimally invasive surgerry program, talk about the new variation on the old rule of "see one, do one, teach one."
9/8/2011 (11:14:29am)Tags: noneComments: (11)
Want to quit smoking, but don't know how to begin? Tried to quit in the past, but found yourself relapsing? A new program launching this September at BIDMC is designed to meet you at any stage of the quitting process, whether you are just starting to think about a life without cigarettes or if you are ready to snuff out your habit.
Sean Gilman, MD, has teamed up with tobacco treatment specialist Kate Kooperman, to offer the six-week class on Tuesdays beginning Sept. 13 from 6-7 p.m. at BIDMC. The class is open to staff, patients and the public. It costs $100 and includes parking, class materials and snacks. To register, call 617-667-5864 or email tobaccotreatmentgroup@bidmc.harvard.edu.
"There is a definite benefit to people coming together as a group to stop smoking," says Kooperman, who has led a similar program at Brigham and Women's Hospital. "It is difficult to quit smoking on your own, especially if you have friends and family who smoke. In a group setting, you can support each other."
Kooperman says the program is appropriate for participants at any stage in the quitting process and is designed to take a gradual approach to kicking the habit for good. "We prepare you for the shift," she says. "First, you try not smoking in your car. Then you try not smoking in your car and your home."
She and Gilman agree that stress is a major motivator for lighting up. The class will teach alternate ways of coping with stress and managing urges to smoke. And since Gilman is a pulmonologist, a supervised approach to quitting with prescription medication is an option.
"This class is unique in part because it is a medically supervised group," Gilman says. "Nicotine affects the brain in profound ways and often results in significant withdrawal symptoms during quit attempts. Nicotine replacement and newer medications that suppress the urge to smoke are available and very helpful to many individuals as a supplement to counseling. Our program will aim to be as comprehensive as possible including a session on how to avoid weight gain after quitting."
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death. Gilman says quitting smoking is also one of the only ways to prolong life in patients with chronic lung disease.
"It's rewarding when a longtime smoker quits and remains abstinent from cigarettes," says Gilman, whose brother recently celebrated eight years smoke-free. "The group dynamic of the class should enhance the ability to quit for good."
