May 2023

Dear Colleagues,

Thank you to everyone who attended this year's Evening of Scholarship! The whole evening was a great success, with 61 abstracts submitted and around 100 people in attendance. We also had a record number of posters displayed! Thank you to all of our organizers for their hard work in organizing the event, and we extend a special thank you to Kelly Lear, Denita Moore, Robin Howard, Julie Seger, and Kate Matthews.

I enjoyed seeing faculty interact with our learners and loved learning more about the great work that everyone is doing. All of the abstracts and posters I saw were terrific!

I especially would like to highlight the students, residents, and fellows who received one of our 2023 Evening of Scholarship awards. Please join me in congratulating them!

• Jud Van Wyck Award for Best Basic Science Research: "DOT1L: Beyond Mixed Lineage Leukemia" Kevin Field
• Harvey Hamrick Award for Best Case Report: "Loose Bowels and Slurred Vowels: An Atypical Case of Diarrhea, Psychosis, and Rhabdomyolysis" Liz O'Neill and Ghallia Kaouk
• Walter Tunnessen Award for Best Clinical Science Research: "Use of Point of Care Lung Ultrasound for Outpatient Monitoring of Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia" Nicole Stephenson
• Jerry Fernald Award for Best Quality Improvement Research: "Improving the Follow-up of Positive Meconium Drug Screens in Newborns Discharged From the Nursery" Melissa Diaz
• Alan Stiles Award for Best Resident Research: "Cultural Connection and Mental Health for American Indian Adolescents" Alessandra Angelino
• Best Student Award: "DOT1L: Beyond Mixed Lineage Leukemia" Kevin Field
• Johnny Carson Award for Best Overall Research: "Cultural Connection and Mental Health for American Indian Adolescents" Alessandra Angelino

Please congratulate Elisabeth Dellon who received this year's H. Fleming Fuller Award. This award is a permanent memorial to Dr. Fuller, a founding North Carolina Memorial Hospital Board of Directors member and a leader advocating for women's health across the state and nation. This award is given to one physician on the medical staff who best embodies Dr. Fuller's commitment to patient care, teaching, and community. We highlighted Elisabeth’s leadership in pediatric palliative care at UNC Children’s, her scholarly contribution to the field, her exceptional teaching record, and finally, her dedication and limitless compassion. When she received the award, Elisabeth gave a presentation to the UNC Health Board of Directors that was incredibly moving and highlighted her advocacy for patients and UNC Children’s. Congratulations and thank you Elisabeth!

Reelin for Research was extremely successful again this year, raising $1 million dollars for pediatric oncology! 

I also want to remind everyone that the Cooper Alan concert is this Saturday, 6/3, at 7pm at the Raleigh Lincoln Theatre. Please contact Mary Brooks Rice (marybrooks_rice@med.unc.edu) if you have any questions!

Our Chief residents, Christel Wekon-kemeni, Shenell Reynolds, Megan Hoppens and Joanna Glanz did an outstanding job this week presenting their “magic” at Grand Rounds. Congratulations to a great year!

Jack Curran, the Department of Pediatrics Associate Chair for Administration, and family welcomed baby Millie Mae Curran at 3:16p on Thursday, May 18, 2023! Congratulations!

Thank you for all that you do!

Gratefully,

Please Welcome our New Children's Providers!

May is Asthma and Allergy Awareness month!

Asthma is the most common childhood disease impacting 10% of children in North Carolina.  The Pediatric Multidisciplinary Asthma Quality Improvement team lead by Ceila Loughin, MD and Ruth Medlin, BSN, RN, AE-C decided a good way to increase awareness would be to provide education to the Children's hospital nurses (PICU, 5CH, 6CH, 7CH and Pediatric ED). Ruth and Nicoleta Constantin (6H Asthma RN Champion) used an asthma triggers house to make the education more hands on and fun while teaching asthma cases. 

NEW UNC Pediatrics at East Pittsboro

UNC Pediatrics opened at East Pittsboro on May 2, 2023. Our new faculty member in General Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, Dr. Heather Wright Williams, is serving the kids and families of Chatham County as Lead Pediatrician.

New Pediatric Residency Physician-Scientist Training Program Leadership

We are excited to announce that the Pediatric Residency Physician-Scientist Training Program (PSTP) will now be led by Co-Program Directors Drs. Corinne Keet and Misty Good! Drs. Keet and Good are also the Program Directors for the Pediatric Fellowship PSTP.

Announcing the Joseph Bell Endowed Scholarship

We are excited to share information about the Joseph Bell Endowed Scholarship and encourage UNC Children’s faculty and staff to donate as able.

Dr. Bell is a well known pediatrician in the state who for years has worked and served at Pembroke Pediatrics, now part of Carolina Health of Carolina clinics. He finished medical school at UNC in 1986 and after residency became the first native Pediatrician in NC from Lumbee background. He has served as a leader in the state in pediatrics with prominent roles in the NC Pediatrics Society, but importantly has also served as a mentor and advocate for native youth and aspiring pre-health students. Native students and residents from the past 20 years have cited Dr. Bell as a mentor and role model.

Please click here to see the announcement about the Joseph Bell scholarship in the School of Medicine.

Promotion Process Update

DEI statements are no longer required for CVs for promotion; please refer to new March 2023 APT guidelines, which can be found here: https://www.med.unc.edu/hr/epa-2/faculty-appointments-promotions-and-tenure.

Patel Board Certified in Behavioral Pediatrics

Congratulations to Dr. Rohan Patel who successfully completed his boards and is now board certified in Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics!

Weiss Launches B-MED Podcast

Congratulations to Dr. Jasmine Weiss' on her growing body of work fostering diversity along the pathway to medicine. She has just launched the Black Med Connect podcast. Subscribe on your favorite podcast source and/or on YouTube.

Donnelly Receives Awards

Lane Donnelly, MD, Professor of Radiology & Pediatrics, Executive Medical Director of the Pediatric Population Health and Quality, and the Director of Quality for the UNC Children’s Hospital, received multiple honors at the recnet 2023 Socity of Pediatric Radiology Annual Meeting.

Dr. Donnelly received the Presidential Recognition Award for his career contributions in Pediatric Radiology Education as well as Quality and Safety. The Society bestows Presidential Recognition Awards on members or other individuals whose energy and creativity have made a significant impact on the work of the Society and its service to its members.

In addition, Dr. Donnelley received the Caffey Award for Best Non-Clinical Paper for his paper entitled “Imaging is Not a Major Driver of Cost in Pediatric Healthcare”

Congratulations, Lane!

We Want to Hear From You!



We created a place to share your feedback, praise, and concerns, along with information on how to join a subcommittee if you desire. We only ask that you all submitted comments be respectful.

https://go.unc.edu/peds-dei-comment

Association of a Housing Mobility Program With Childhood Asthma Symptoms and Exacerbations

Corinne Keet, MD, PhD, Professor in the Division of Pediatric Allergy/Immunology and Vice Chair for Clinical & Translational Research, was the co-senior author on the publication of original research in the most recent edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) with an accompanying editorial.

Abstract: Structural racism has been implicated in the disproportionally high asthma morbidity experienced by children living in disadvantaged, urban neighborhoods. Current approaches designed to reduce asthma triggers have modest impact.

The Food Allergy Initiative Team – Allergy/Immunology – published:

Open-label study of the efficacy, safety, and durability of peanut sublingual immunotherapy in peanut-allergic children. Kim EH, Keet CA, Virkud YV, Chin S, Ye P, Penumarti A, Smeekens J, Guo R, Yue X, Li Q, Kosorok MR, Kulis MD, Burks AW.J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2023 Feb 23:S0091-6749(23)00218-X. doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2023.01.036. Online ahead of print.PMID: 36828080.

Was included in A ‘peanut patch’ desensitized toddlers with peanut allergies in a promising trial (AOL).

Dr. Melissa Bauserman  – Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine – published: Neurodevelopment, vision and auditory outcomes at age 2 years in offspring of participants in the 'Women First' maternal preconception nutrition randomised controlled trial. Fernandes M, Krebs NF, Westcott J, Tshefu A, Lokangaka A, Bauserman M, Garcés AL, Figueroa L, Saleem S, Aziz SA, Goldenberg RL, Goudar SS, Dhaded SM, Derman RJ, Kemp JF, Koso-Thomas M, Sridhar A, M McClure E, Hambidge KM; Women First Preconception Nutrition Trial Study Group. Arch Dis Child. 2023 May 4:archdischild-2023-325352. PMID: 37142335.

Dr. Neal DeJong - General Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine – and colleagues published: Primary Care Professionals' Attitudes Towards Vaccination Recommendation for Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Xu F, deJong N, Kappelman MD, Greenlund KJ, Carlson SA. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2023 May 2;29(5):726-734. doi: 10.1093/ibd/izac129. PMID: 35779060.

Dr. Lauren Frazer– Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine - was awarded the UNC School of Medicine Physician Scientist Training Program Faculty Award. Congratulations Dr. Frazer!

Dr. Jennifer Goralski - Pulmonology – was included in the articles:

FDA Extends Trikafta Approval to Even Younger Cystic Fibrosis Patients (MedPage Today)

FDA expands its approval of Trikafta to children ages 2 to 5 (Cystic Fibrosis News Today)

Trikafta Approved for Children With Cystic Fibrosis as Young as 2 Years (Pulmonologyadvisor)

FDA Approves Trikafta Label Expansion for Young Children With Cystic Fibrosis (Rare Disease News)

Dr. Corinne Keet– Allergy/Immunology – was included in Why do some people develop allergies in adulthood? (TODAY)

Dr. Edwin Kim – Allergy/Immunology – with Dr. Wesley Burks, published: Phase 3 Trial of Epicutaneous Immunotherapy in Toddlers with Peanut Allergy. Greenhawt M, Sindher SB, Wang J, O'Sullivan M, du Toit G, Kim EH, Albright D, Anvari S, Arends N, Arkwright PD, Bégin P, Blumchen K, Bourrier T, Brown-Whitehorn T, Cassell H, Chan ES, Ciaccio CE, Deschildre A, Divaret-Chauveau A, Dorris SL, Dorsey MJ, Eiwegger T, Erlewyn-Lajeunesse M, Fleischer DM, Ford LS, Garcia-Lloret M, Giovannini-Chami L, Hourihane JO, Jay N, Jones SM, Kerns LA, Kloepfer KM, Leonard S, Lezmi G, Lieberman JA, Lomas J, Makhija M, Parrish C, Peake J, Perrett KP, Petroni D, Pfützner W, Pongracic JA, Quinn P, Robison RG, Sanders G, Schneider L, Sharma HP, Trujillo J, Turner PJ, Tuttle K, Upton JE, Varshney P, Vickery BP, Vogelberg C, Wainstein B, Wood RA, Bee KJ, Campbell DE, Green TD, Rouissi R, Peillon A, Bahnson HT, Bois T, Sampson HA, Burks AW. N Engl J Med. 2023 May 11;388(19):1755-1766. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2212895. PMID: 37163622.

Dr. Matt Laughon – Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine – published: Assessment of Corticosteroid Therapy and Death or Disability According to Pretreatment Risk of Death or Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia in Extremely Preterm Infants.  Jensen EA, Wiener LE, Rysavy MA, Dysart KC, Gantz MG, Eichenwald EC, Greenberg RG, Harmon HM, Laughon MM, Watterberg KL, Walsh MC, Yoder BA, Lorch SA, DeMauro SB; Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Neonatal Research Network. JAMA Netw Open. 2023 May 1;6(5):e2312277. PMID: 37155165.

Dr. Mike O’Shea – Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine – published: Assessment of Psychosocial and Neonatal Risk Factors for Trajectories of Behavioral Dysregulation Among Young Children From 18 to 72 Months of Age. Hofheimer JA, McGrath M, Musci R, Wu G, Polk S, Blackwell CK, Stroustrup A, Annett RD, Aschner J, Carter BS, Check J, Conradt E, Croen LA, Dunlop AL, Elliott AJ, Law A, Leve LD, Neiderhiser JM, O'Shea TM, Salisbury AL, Sathyanarayana S, Singh R, Smith LM, Aguiar A, Angal J, Carliner H, McEvoy C, Ondersma SJ, Lester B; Program Collaborators for Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes.

JAMA Netw Open. 2023 Apr 3;6(4):e2310059. PMID: 37099294.

Drs. Mike O’Shea and Genny Taylor – Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine – published: Health Care Utilization During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among Individuals Born Preterm. McGowan EC, McGrath M, Law A, O'Shea TM, Aschner JL, Blackwell CK, Fry RC, Ganiban JM, Higgins R, Margolis A, Sathyanarayana S, Taylor G, Alshawabkeh AN, Cordero JF, Spillane NT, Hudak ML, Camargo CA Jr, Dabelea D, Dunlop AL, Elliott AJ, Ferrara AM, Talavera-Barber M, Singh AM, Karagas MR, Karr C, O'Connor TG, Paneth N, Wright RJ, Wright RO, Cowell W, Stanford JB, Bendixsen C, Lester BM; program collaborators for Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO). JAMA Netw Open. 2023 Apr 3;6(4):e2310696. PMID: 37115545.

Drs. Colin Orr and Kori Flower - General Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine – published:

Early sweet tooth: Juice introduction during early infancy is related to toddler juice intake. Kay MC, Pankiewicz AR, Schildcrout JS, Wallace S, Wood CT, Shonna Yin H, Rothman RL, Sanders LM, Orr C, Delamater AM, Flower KB, Perrin EM. Acad Pediatr. 2023 May 5:S1876-2859(23)00147-X. doi: 10.1016/j.acap.2023.04.009. Online ahead of print.

Dr. Rohan Patel, Dr. Becky Baum, Dr. Feng-Chang Lin, Yumei Yang - General Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine – and team published: Descriptive Analysis of Documentation Time for the National Developmental-Behavioral Pediatric Physician Workforce Using a Commercial Electronic Health Record System. Patel R, Yang Y, Lin FC, Shumaker A, Nash P, Newmeyer A, Baum R, Hoffman J. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2023 Apr 26. doi: 10.1097/DBP.0000000000001185. Online ahead of print. PMID: 37099647. With a video abstract: http://journals.lww.com/jrnldbp/Pages/videogallery.aspx.

Dr. Brittany Raffa – fellow in General Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine - with her primary mentor Dr. Samantha Schilling:

Was awarded funding by The National Foundation to End Child Abuse and Neglect (EndCAN) for their project, “The effect of a primary care based positive parenting intervention on DNA methylation at stress responsive genes in children”.

Was awarded a UNC Children's Research Institute Fellow Research Grant for her project, "Health care utilization and developmental delays among NC infants exposed to marijuana in utero." 

Dr. Samantha Schilling - General Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine – and colleagues published, Developing and applying synergistic multilevel implementation strategies to promote reach of an evidence-based parenting intervention in primary care. Schilling S, Bigal L, Powell BJ. Implement Res Pract. 2022 Apr 13;3:26334895221091219. doi: 10.1177/26334895221091219. eCollection 2022 Jan-Dec. PMID: 37091079.

Dr. Johanna Smeekens – Allergy/Immunology - received a Carolina for the Kids Faculty Investigator Award through the Children’s Research Institute. Her proposal was titled “Fecal Microbiota Transplantation to Determine the Role of the Gut Microbiome in Peanut Allergy.”

Dr. Yamini Virkud – Allergy/Immunology – recently published:

Experiences of caregivers of children with food allergy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Roberts CM, Dattilo TM, Stutes S, Atkinson D, Carter C, MacDougall J, Virkud YV, Mullins LL, Tackett AP.Pediatr Allergy Immunol. 2023 Apr;34(4):e13946. doi: 10.1111/pai.13946.PMID: 37102388 No abstract available.

 Food Allergy Management Practices Utilizing Individual Patient Thresholds: A Work Group Report of the AAAAI Adverse Reactions to Foods Committee. Oriel RC, Shah A, Anagnostou A, Greenhawt M, Khan F, Leeds S, Ravindran M, Stoffels G, Vickery BP, Virkud YV, Sicherer SH.J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract. 2023 Apr;11(4):1083-1086.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.jaip.2023.01.045. Epub 2023 Feb 10.PMID: 36773718.

Early infancy dysbiosis in food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome: A prospective cohort study. Su KW, Cetinbas M, Martin VM, Virkud YV, Seay H, Ndahayo R, Rosow R, Elkort M, Gupta B, Kramer E, Pronchick T, Reuter S, Sadreyev RI, Huang JL, Shreffler WG, Yuan Q.Allergy. 2023 Jan 12. doi: 10.1111/all.15644. Online ahead of print.PMID: 36635218.

Infusion Team Honored as Healthcare Heroes

On Saturday, May 20th at the annual Crohn’s and Colitis Triangle Area “Take Steps!” Walk, the Peds Infusion Team was honored as this year’s Healthcare Heroes!

Dr. Egberg nominated our team along with the other outpatient UNC pediatric infusion teams caring for the UNC Children's IBD infusion patients. This is a wonderful honor and is so well-deserved! The team spends a lot of time working with our kids/young adults and their families, and do so much to ensure they get the care that they need while they are with us. We're so proud of our team!

Amy Frazier

Contracts and Grants Manager

Nominated by: Dr. Wayne Price and the UNC Collaborative for Maternal and Infant Health

We want to specifically recognize Amy Frazier’s extra effort in submitting our recent $4 million, 5-year grant to the CDC. Her effort was especially significant since the submission was in a format unfamiliar to all of us AND she completed it within a very short time frame!

Amy’s work was exemplary! She was extremely responsive and helpful to the CMIH team!