N E W S F R O M T H E R E G I O N ’ S P R E M I E R A C A D E M I C M E D I C A L C E N T E R

ADVANCES JUNE 16, 2016

Our Patients:A girl and her dog

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Philanthropist’s gift for new Cambridge North Tower ‘provided tremendous boost’ for hospital’s largest ever capital campaign

Generous donors have ensured the Annette Bloch $10 Million Challenge Grant was met – a month early.

In November 2014, the philan-thropist challenged the community to raise $10 million by June 30, 2016, to support The University of Kansas Hospital’s Cambridge North Tower. She promised to match this with a $10 million gift earmarked to expand surgical cancer care in the new facility.

Individuals, foundations and corporate donors met her chal-lenge by the end of last month.

“I knew support for the hospital was so great it could meet this challenge,” Bloch said during the June 13 announcement. “My hope is this success will add to the momentum of raising even more money to support the project.”

President and CEO Bob Page said Bloch’s gift provided a tremendous boost for the hospi-tal’s largest ever capital campaign. “Thanks to Annette’s $10 million gift and the generosity of count-less others, these gifts have helped us achieve nearly $43 million of our $100 million campaign goal for the new tower,” he said.

Plans for the $350 million Cambridge North Tower were announced in 2014 and expand-ed in 2015. The facility’s plan

now totals 13 floors, including a lower underground level and a mechanical penthouse. 

In addition to housing the fast-growing specialties of surgical oncology, neurosciences and ear, nose and throat, the building will also include imaging, lab and a pharmacy. A 2,200-space parking garage is planned nearby.

The first section of the building will be finished in 2017, while the four-floor expansion will be completed in 2018. Current plans call for only one of the four floors in the expansion to be readied as a patient unit in 2018, with the other three floors available for future growth.

“This project is vital to ex-panding access to cancer services

in surgical oncology, as well as other services in neurosciences and ear, nose and throat,” Bloch said. “Demand in these areas is growing at a rapid rate and the hospital needs the facilities and technology to meet the needs of these patients.”

“A key way to honor Annette’s leadership is to meet our $100 million philanthropic goal for Cambridge North Tower,” Page said. “We are at nearly $43 mil-lion now. Meeting her challenge only motivates us to keep going to meet our goal.”

Challenge met!

Philanthropist Annette Bloch, with hospital President and CEO Bob Page, on June 13 announced her $10 Million Challenge Grant was met. The gift supports the hospital’s Cambridge North Tower project (below right).

Events Heart Walk – The University

of Kansas Hospital again is form-ing a team to participate in the American Heart Association’s annual Heart & Stroke Walk/5K, which is Saturday, June 18, at the Power & Light District. The team is open to staff and the public. Email Nichole Kempf (nkempf@kumc.edu) to join.

HPV Twitter chat – The University of Kansas Cancer Center and Children’s Mercy Hospital will host an online discussion about HPV and the importance of the vaccine to help prevent cancer. The Twitter chat (#HPVchat), which will be moderated by eight medical professionals, is 1-2 p.m. Tuesday, June 21.

London calling – The second annual “Party of the Summer” is Saturday, June 25, under the 12th Street Bridge in downtown Kansas City. The evening, which features a range of London-themed food and entertainment stations, benefits programs at The University of Kansas Hospital’s Turning Point: The Center for Hope and Healing. Go to turningpointkc.org for details.

Ease stress and anxiety – Yoga nidra is deep, conscious sleep. Learn to practice full-body relaxation techniques, breathing tools, meditation and visualiza-tions that allow a stressed and anxious mind to find a sense of ease. The session is 2-3:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 28, at Turning Point: The Center for Hope and Healing in Leawood. Call 913-574-0900 to register.

Ladies’ night – The University of Kansas Cancer Center will host a four-part Ladies’ Night Out series. Local lifestyle special-ists and physicians will discuss healthy living in a comfortable, supportive setting at the South location (I-435 and Holmes Road). The first session, “Jeans/Genes,” is 6-8:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 28, featuring fashion and genetics experts. Go to kucancercenter.org/LNO or call 913-588-1227 to register and for more information.

OUR PATIENTS

A girl, her service dog and our hospitalOf all the high school gradu-

ations last month, the ceremony at St. Teresa’s Academy proved especially poignant for some Pediatrics staff at The University of Kansas Hospital.

The class of 2016 includes Tricia Melland, a young woman who has faced years of inpatient treatment for a range of complex gastrointestinal illnesses, includ-ing mitochondrial dysfunction, intestinal failure and myopathic pseudo obstruction.

The graduating class also includes her dog, Kenny, a slim Italian greyhound-dachshund mix. He’s not only a popular therapy dog at our hospital, he’s also Tricia’s service dog, alerting her when her delicate health starts to decline.

In the fall, Tricia will enter the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s honors program, where she plans to study premedicine and become a physician. And Kenny, rescued from a shelter, will join her in college.

Their remarkable story has its roots at our hospital.

As a patient in Pediatrics and the Pediatric ICU, Tricia first met and fell in love with therapy dogs

10 years ago. She and her mother wanted to give back to the hospital, so they adopted Kenny from the Great Plains SPCA and trained him to join Pets for Life.

The group’s tail-wagging pooches and their handlers routinely visit our hospital and others in the metro, spreading joy among patients, families and staff.

Kenny also became acutely aware of Tricia’s medical needs. He has learned to alert her when she faces medical issues, such as low blood sugar or an autonomic crisis. He once woke her up as her fever rose to 104. She was rushed to the hospital, her

condition spiraling into sepsis.Tricia remains TPN depen-

dent, meaning she is fed through arteries. Despite the months she spent in the hospital, she gradu-ated on time with her class – an A student, of course.

“Tricia is a trooper who has overcome numerous medical challenges and hurdles while staying in school,” said Sarah Hoehn, MD.

“She is an inspiration to other children struggling with chronic illness,” she added. “And Kenny was a source of support and posi-tive energy during her hospital admissions.”

EXPOSURE

BSN research on displayDuring their first year at The University of Kansas Hospital, nurse residents are encouraged to actively evaluate their environment, identify opportunities for improvement and develop action plans. Each spring they display their research in poster presentations for other nurses and physicians. The projects are the final component in their year-long BSN resi-dency. Last week’s poster presentation, the 12th annual, featured 55 posters.

Kenny, who joined Tricia on the school’s graduation stage, has been an important part of her improving health.

Urologists, beer and men’s health talkIn what could be the year’s most creative healthcare educa-

tion campaign, a new website series stars four prominent urologists – including Ajay Nangia, MD, from The University of Kansas Hospital – who sit around drinking beer and talking about men’s reproductive health.

Appropriately called “Urologist Nerds Drinking Beer,” the nine-part series is aimed at getting more young men to pay closer attention to the health of their “junk,” as participants say.

Backed by jaunty music, the four urologists talk openly and lightheartedly about topics ranging from testicular self-exams and testosterone supplements to sperm health and sexually transmitted disease.

The program “is breaking new ground by taking serious sub-jects and lightening them up with humor and language young men can relate to,” according to Path2Parenthood (formerly The American Fertility Association), which created the series.

Studies show most men don’t go for health checkups as regularly as women, even though many common diagnoses, such as testicular cancer, can be cured easily if caught early.

Filmed a year ago in New Orleans, the program is moder-ated by Mark McGrath, lead singer of the band Sugar Ray. To watch the series, go to kumed.com/urology.

KU-London team’s ‘IBM’ discoveryA ray of hope is on the horizon for patients facing the debili-

tating effects of a muscle-wasting disease called inclusion body myositis (IBM). University of Kansas Medical Center researchers conducting a joint study with scientists in London are poised to take the next step in testing a new drug, arimoclomol.

The study, published in Science Translational Medicine, found the drug reversed the disease’s effects at the cellular level and improved muscle strength in mice. The study was a partnership with the Medical Research Council Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases at University College London.

The most common muscle disease in people over 50, IBM is incurable and causes progressive muscle degeneration, leading to severe disability, paralysis and dependency.

The team has secured $1.6 million from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration-Orphan Products Division to conduct a full-scale randomized, controlled clinical trial to formally assess if the drug can slow the disease’s progression.

Clinical trials are tentatively scheduled for later this year, with a projected enrollment of 150 patients among 10 U.S. sites and one in the U.K.

New

s Br

iefsIn the News

A recap of recent articles, TV segments and other media coverage of the region’s leading academic medical center

Researchers working on preventing breast cancer – KSHB, June 8. Two researchers at the University of Kansas Medical Center are on the brink of important breast cancer discoveries. Priyanka Sharma, MD, is studying triple-negative breast cancer. “It has a higher recurrence rate and we don’t have as effective treatment options as we do for the other subtypes,” Sharma said. And Carol Fabian, MD, is focusing on cancer prevention and looking at the effects of high doses of omega-3 fatty acids. “We’ve had very encouraging results,” she said. “We’re seeing both the normalization of tissue as well as the reduction in proliferation.”

Alcohol’s buzz on sleep patterns – Time, June 8. Tossing and turning at night can be caused by temperature, worries, indigestion or sleep apnea. But predictable risings can usually be pinpointed on one factor: alcohol. Brain chemicals that cause wakefulness are stimulated when alcohol is burned off by metabolism. “Depending on your metabolism, alcohol will leave your system after a few hours,” said Damien Stevens, MD, director of the sleep fellowship at The University of Kansas Hospital. “When that happens, you wake up.”

Lawmaker wants changes to transplant policy – KCTV 5 News, June 1. Local physicians and lawmakers are battling efforts to combine the 11 U.S. regions that share donated livers. “Our concern is we want organs donated by generous people here in the Midwest to stay in the Midwest,” said Ryan Taylor, MD, director of liver transplantation for The University of Kansas Hospital. Kansas congressman Kevin Yoder is lending his politi-cal voice to the cause. He questioned the consequences of proposed changes in a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services. Fifty-five transplant centers in 25 states support Yoder’s concerns.

Zika’s long-term effect on parenting – Healthline News, May 31. Parents of babies born with microcephaly caused by the Zika virus will face a lifetime of challenges as they care for their brain-damaged child. “It could become a very complicated life for those parents,” said pediatri-cian Stephen Lauer, MD, PhD, at The University of Kansas Hospital. The damage caused in vitro by the Zika virus can stop or severely curtail the cognitive development of infants. Some may never walk or talk.

Support for staff in the military The University of Kansas Medical Center has received the 2016 Pro Patria Award, which recog-nizes employers in each state that demonstrate the greatest support for their employees who are mem-bers of the Guard and Reserve. Laura Mussulman, MPH, project director in Preventive Medicine and Public Health and a Navy Reserve commander, nominated the medical center for the award; she presented it to Executive Vice Chancellor Doug Girod, MD.

Ajay Nangia, MD (right), with his beer-drinking urology colleagues, praised the show’s strategy “to approach young men using some real life language and humor.”

ADVANCES

is a biweekly publication produced by:

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Bob Page, President and CEO The University of Kansas Hospital

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Kirk Benson, MD, President The University of Kansas Physicians

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Our People Patient care honors – The University of Kansas Health System last month

recognized nurses, social workers and nursing support staff who demon-strate outstanding patient care and clinical expertise.

The annual Nursing Excellence Awards ceremony honors staff in 15 categories:

Nursing• Expert Clinical Nurse – Casey Pickering, RN, Unit 65• Expert Nurse Leader – Heather Figary, RN, Outpatient BMT• Nurse Innovator – Ashley Manning, RN, Cardiothoracic Surgery PCU• Nurse Mentor – Leslie Price,  RN, Unit 65• Nurse Patient and Family Advocate – Allison Lowderman, RN,

Concussion Management• Nurse Patient and Family Educator – Marian Pickert, RN, Unit 53• Nurse Preceptor – Jeff Van Horn, RN, Unit 15• Outstanding New Graduate Nurse – Mallory Mcneal, RN, Unit 15• Licensed Practical Nurse - Lori Mercer, LPN, Internal Medicine-Pulmonary

The University of Kansas Hospital Magnet Nurse of the Year• Teri Banman, RN, Cancer Center Navigation and Intake

Social Work• Social Work Patient and Family Advocate – Van Rickard, LMSW

Nursing Support • Administrative Assistant – Luke Thepthepha, Quality and Safety • Healthcare Technician – Robert LaFave, Cardiothoracic Treatment/Recovery• Patient Care Assistant – Kayla Thompson, Unit 66• Unit Secretary – Laura Tillery, Cardiothoracic Surgery PCU

Excellence in teaching – Two faculty in the University of Kansas School of Health Professions have received the Stata Norton Distinguished Teaching Award as part of the school’s Student Recognition Ceremony last month.

The recipients are Judy Bielby, RHIA, a clinical assistant professor in Health Information Management, and Sandra Billinger, PT, PhD, associate professor in Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science.

Faculty and students vote on the award, which has been given for the past 30 years to recognize excellence in teaching and outstanding contributions by recipients in their professions. The award honors Stata Norton, dean of the school from 1980 to 1984 and a member of the faculty of Dietetics and Nutrition and professor emeritus of pharmacology, toxicology and therapeutics in the School of Medicine.

Bielby, who has more than 25 years of experience in the healthcare industry, has served in a number of local, state and national professional organizations, including the Kansas and Missouri Health Information Management Associations as well as the American Health Information Management Association.

She said the students’ comments “confirm something I truly believe: The real objective of education is not about my ability to teach but rather providing the structure in which students can learn as much as possible about a course topic.”

Among her many activities, Billinger serves as the chair of the Stroke Rehabilitation and Recovery Committee for the American Heart Association and as a member of the organization’s Stroke Council.

“The nomination letter from the students was so meaningful,” said Billinger, who also is director of the Research in Exercise and Cardiovascular Health Laboratory. “Keeping their words in my mind as I teach in future semesters will be valuable to my continued growth as a faculty instructor.”

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Our award-winning caregivers (back row from left): Van Rickard, Marian Pickert, Jeff Van Horn and Leslie Price; and (front row from left): Ashley Manning, Mallory Mcneal, Heather Figary, Teri Banman, Allison Lowderman, Lori Mercer and Casey Pickering.

Bielby

Billinger