The Department of Medicine celebrates Pride Month!

June 7, 2024

In this month’s Chair’s Spotlight, we feature Jennifer Reidy, MD, MS, chief of the Division of Palliative Care and associate professor of family medicine & community health. We recently spoke with Dr. Reidy about how she found her way to a career of service and the passion she brings to her roles as a physician, leader, educator, and advocate for new, transformative models of palliative care and medical education. 

“The potential solutions to many of health care’s—and society’s—most intractable problems are found in listening and working in partnership with our patients and community members to creatively solve problems together in the real world where they live."

In this month’s Fellow Spotlight, we highlight Allyson Hughes, MD, a Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine fellow. Here, Dr. Hughes describes her clinical and research interests, why she chose UMass for her fellowship, and her passion for figure skating. 

"The Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine fellowship at UMass is top-notch for clinical education and procedural training. I wanted a hands-on fellowship where I would complete my training and be certain that I possessed the knowledge and skills necessary to step into an attending role with confidence."

In this month’s Resident Spotlight, we highlight Philip McNamara, MD, a third-year, categorical Internal Medicine Resident. Here, Dr. McNamara describes his clinical and research interests, what makes UMass Chan a great place for residency, and his favorite outdoor activities. 

"It may be cliché to say that 'the people' make an institution great, but that doesn’t make it wrong. I truly appreciate the relationships I formed with my co-residents, fellows, faculty, and mentors here at UMass Chan, without whom my experience of residency would have been very different."

Cancer Care for People who Identify as LGBTQ+  

June is Pride Month, a time when we honor the diversity and resilience of the LGBTQ+ community, reflect on the progress that has been made, and work to address challenges that remain. Health care for LGBTQ+ individuals is an area where a wide array of challenges persist. As evidenced in the recent report, “Cancer Facts & Figures 2024, Special Section: Cancer in People Who Identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Gender-nonconforming”, there is much work to be done.  

Studies show that individuals who identify as LGBTQ+ have reported that they avoid seeking health care due to the discrimination that they have faced. This is no different for LGBTQ+ individuals across the continuum of cancer-related care (e.g., screening, diagnosis, treatment, etc.). 

The report describes current information about modifiable cancer risk factors and cancer screening in the LGBTQ+ population, the challenges that these patients face, and the need for accurate and consistent tracking of LGBTQ+ population-based data in the medical record.  

As we seek to ensure safe, effective, and equitable care for LGBTQ+ patients, these are critical topics that need investigation in cancer and all areas of general and specialized patient care. 

Read "Cancer Facts & Figures 2024, Special Section: Cancer in People Who Identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Gender-nonconforming." 

Matthew Greenwood Leads Upgrade to Streamline Admissions Process 

The Department of Medicine’s Transitional Care Team (TCT) is responsible for tracking the movement of patients between teams, departments, campuses, and other institutions. Most commonly this involves patients pending admission from the Emergency Department. Until now, this has been a manual process using Excel spreadsheets (a system that predates the UMass upgrade to Epic in 2017). TCT routinely tracks over 50 patients daily while providing direct patient care. Over the last 5 years, the health system’s utilization of Epic has matured, and patient volume and acuity have increased. The Excel-based system has been increasingly unable to meet the demands of the system it serves.

Over the last year and a half, Matthew Greenwood, MD, has led efforts to develop an upgrade where admissions to Medicine services will now be tracked in Epic rather than Excel. “This upgrade will eliminate Excel entirely from the workflow, so we are no longer tracking patients on a spreadsheet,” said Dr. Greenwood. “Epic will now automatically keep track of patients so that we will be able to see where they are, how they're doing, and where they are assigned. It will help us coordinate care and cognitively unburden members of TCT so that they can focus on the care of patients.” The new system will also be integrated with the transfer center, allowing for better awareness of patients coming in from other locations.

Geneva Mehta Spearheads Initiative to Streamline Chemotherapy Desensitization  

With a rapidly growing number of chemotherapy allergy patients being referred to UMass, Geneva Mehta, MD, an assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care, conducted a review of chemotherapy desensitization procedures done at UMass over the last several years and compared her findings to published reports. She found that for a large majority of patients, desensitization procedures are low-risk and do not require ICU admission. Thus, she developed criteria to determine patient risk. Although some of the highest-risk patients will still need to go to the ICU to be desensitized, most can now have this done in the ACC infusion area where they usually have their chemotherapy or, in some intermediate-risk cases, on an inpatient medicine floor.

Hawa Abu Receives Recognition for Excellence in Patient Care 

Hawa Abu, MD, PhD, MPH, a Geriatric Medicine fellow who will join the division as faculty this summer, recently received recognition for her excellent patient care. In a letter, the patient commented on Dr. Abu’s extraordinary care, clinical skills, empathy, and holistic approach.  

“I am very honored to be a part of the UMass Chan Geriatric Medicine Division and the privilege of caring for my patients and their caregivers,” said Dr. Abu. “It is very rewarding to have such wonderful feedback from my patients as I strive to provide holistic care of the mind, body, and spirit; and hopefully improve their overall well-being.” 

Congratulations on this recognition, Dr. Abu!  

Related: Hawa Ozien Abu featured as April Fellow Spotlight

Resident and Fellow Poster Day 2024 - Winners 

Victor Acosta-Rivera, MD, PGY3, presents his award-winning poster

Trainees presented their research, quality improvement work, and clinical vignettes at the Department of Medicine’s annual Resident and Fellow Poster Day on Thursday, May 23. Listed below are this year’s winners. Thank you to all who participated and showcased their exceptional work! 

Research: 



1st Place: Maria Khouri, MD, PGY1, and Shyam Patel, MD, PhD

Allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) in patients with myeloid malignancies harboring cohesin complex gene mutations 

2nd Place: Dhruval Amin, MD, PGY3, Katherine Cooper, MD, PGY2, Garrick Gu, MD, PGY2, Ami Patel, DO, PGY1, Prashanth Rau, MD, Navine Nasser-Ghodsi, MD, Neil Marya, MD

Endoscopic Gallbladder Therapy is not more risky with cirrhosis than without: A multicenter study 

3rd Place: Jason Core, MD, PGY1, Milka Koupenova, PhD 

PAMP associated thromboinflammatory transcript changes in platelets and leukocytes during COVID-19 infection 

Quality Improvement: 

1st Place: Anthony Bilotta, MD, PhD, PGY1, Paula Anzenberg, MD, PGY2, David Viscido, MD, PGY3, Maria Khouri, MD, PGY1, Meghna Trivedi, MD, Prince Philip, MD

Optimizing note writing in internal Medicine  

2nd Place: Ami Patel, DO, PGY1, Katherine Cooper, MD, PGY2, Adil Fazir, Meghna Trivedi, MD, Deepika Devuni, MD

Improving 30 days readmission rates in patients with cirrhosis after spontaneous bacterial peritonitis

3rd Place (TIE): Victor Acosta-Rivera, MD, PGY3, Ganeev Singh, MD, PGY1, Maria Garcia, MD, PhD, Jeevarathna Subramanian, MD

Lost in translation: Improving outpatient appointment encounters in patients with limited English proficiency (LEP) 

Bridget Yang, MD, PGY2, Benyamin Yaniv, MD, PGY2, Chase Foster-Spence, MD, PGY2, Jaewon Lee, MD, PGY1, Geoffrey Matthes, MD, PGY1, Nneka Onwubueke, MD 

Who are all these people in my room? Identifying providers 

Clinical Vignette: 

1st Place (TIE): Tyler Ryan, MD, PGY3, Minesh Nandi, MD, Hematology/Oncology fellow, Prateek Shukla, MD

Neuroendocrine tumor disguised as uncontrolled diabetes 

Katherine Sadaniantz, MD, PGY3, George Ciociolo, MD, PGY4, Jeannine Jeha, MD, Cardiovascular Medicine fellow, Bryan Dolan, MD, Cardiovascular Medicine fellow, Brigid McKenna Carlson, MD, Dennis Tighe, MD

Stevens-Johnson Syndrome secondary to clopidogrel use 

2nd Place: Hima Doppalapudi, MD, Renal Medicine fellow, Sai Doppalapudi, Matthew Niemi, MD 

Hyponatremia in Pre-eclampsia 

3rd Place: Harris Feldman, MD, Med-Ped PGY4, Michael Newstein, MD, PhD, Ajay Batra, MD 

A case of acute liver failure due to disseminated varicella-zoster virus infection diagnosed at a community medical center

Department of Medicine Faculty Graduate from Junior Faculty Development Program 

The 2024 Graduates of UMass Chan's Junior Faculty Development Program

A graduation ceremony was held on Thursday, May 16 to celebrate 20 junior faculty, five of whom were from the Department of Medicine, who recently completed the year-long Junior Faculty Development Program (JFDP). The JFDP is an intensive program that covers topics on research, education, and academic and career development. Each participant conducts a project with guidance from a senior faculty mentor.

We congratulate Department of Medicine faculty graduates Varun Ayyaswami, MD, Lindsey Bazzone, MD, PhD, Poorva Bindal, MD, Andrew Gillis-Smith, MD, and Jungwon Yoon, MD, MPH.

Department of Medicine Faculty Complete Physician Leadership Development Program

Faculty participate in “Shark Tank” event to pitch improvement projects 

Participants and leadership of the Physician Leadership Development Program

In May, UMMH held its annual Shark Tank event where participants, the “minnows”, of the nine-month Physician Leadership Development Program presented improvement project pitches to Dr. Eric Dickson and other UMMH leadership, the “sharks”. 

Bhavin Patel, DO, Prince Philip, MD, and Erika Zimmons, DO, presented their project, “Stronger Bones and Budgets: Leveraging Digital Health to Improve Osteoporosis Care.” Meghna Trivedi, MD, was part of a team that presented their project, “Transforming Transfers: Reducing Futility and Improving Care.” Ratnesh Chopra, MD, was part of a team that presented their project, “Not in Vein: Preop Testing for Vascular Surgery Patients.” 

Congratulations to Drs. Patel, Philip, Zimmons, Trivedi, and Chopra on completing the Physician Leadership Development Program and for entering the Shark Tank with fantastic pitches. 

Read the story on our website.

Irina Radu Discusses New Postdoctoral Association Initiative with UMass Chan Communications 

Irina Radu, MD, MHA, a postdoctoral research fellow in the lab of Dr. Khanh-Van Tran, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, recently spoke to UMass Chan Communications about a new initiative through the UMass Chan Postdoctoral Association (UMPA). Dr. Radu, co-president of the UMPA, along with other group members, has created a forum where postdocs can share insights and address issues related to working and living in a new country. The forum will address common challenges that international postdocs currently face, including finding housing, transportation, obtaining a driver's license, and more while offering support and a sense of belonging.

Shawna Steadman Discusses Navigation of Serious Illness Conversations

Shawna Steadman, MS, RN, ACNP, a provider in the Division of Palliative Care, and instructor in nursing, was recently the keynote speaker for the 29th Annual Frontiers in Nursing Symposium hosted by the Heart and Vascular Center at UMass Memorial Medical Center. In her talk titled, “A Guide Through the Storm: Strategic Methods for Navigating Serious Illness Conversations,” Shawna discussed when to consider serious illness conversations, how to approach them effectively, and discussed the Serious Illness Conversation Guide which serves as a framework for providers to gain an understanding about what is most important to patients with serious illness. Additionally, her presentation provided practical guidance on navigating these conversations, ensuring that providers are equipped with the necessary skills to engage patients and their families in discussions that promote understanding, support, and informed decision-making. Shawna also presented this talk at the 2024 New England Regional Nurse Practitioner Conference in May.

Additionally, Shawna recently gave a talk at Ariadne Labs about a project she worked on at UMass Memorial Medical Center to improve documentation of serious illness conversations in the neurocritical care unit.

Read the story on our website.

Affirming Health Care for our Trans and Gender Diverse Community Summit 

On Friday, May 3, the inaugural Affirming Health Care for Our Trans and Gender-Diverse Communities Summit was held on campus. The event brought together caregivers, faculty, learners, and advocates interested in LGBTQIA+ health care. It concluded with a poster session featuring the work of the faculty, trainees, and other contributors, including several from the Department of Medicine.  

Faculty and Trainees Present their Work at 2024 Society of General Internal Medicine Annual Meeting 

Members of the Division of General Internal Medicine and Internal Medicine Residency showcased their work at the 2024 Society of General Internal Medicine Annual Meeting in Boston, MA, May 15-18. Residents, faculty, and interns shared their research through engaging posters and presentations. 

Annual Drosophila Meeting Creates Buzz at UMass Chan

Nearly 200 participants attended from throughout the Northeast

Molly Murphy, a graduate student in the Silverman lab, presents her poster, "Plasma membrane rupture protein Ninjurin A controls susceptibility of Drosophila melanogaster to Invertebrate Iridescent Virus 6 (IIV6) infection in a Turandot-independent manner" at this year’s meeting

The 8th Annual Boston Area Drosophila Meeting was held on Tuesday, May 21, bringing together Drosophila scientists from institutes throughout the Northeast to share their latest research and expertise. This year’s day-long event at UMass Chan featured a keynote presentation from Yukiko Yamashita, PhD, of the Whitehead Institute at MIT, and included 17 plenary talks and a poster session with nearly 70 scientific posters.   

Resident and Fellows Shine at Annual Poster Day  

On Thursday, May 23, residents and fellows presented their research, quality improvement, and clinical work at the Department of Medicine’s annual Poster Day. We applaud our trainees for their hard work!  

Pictured above: Jennifer Taylor-Cousar, MD

The Department of Medicine Grand Rounds series continued in May with presentations from Drs. Jennifer Taylor-Cousar, titled "Cystic Fibrosis Therapeutics: Great Strides and Future Directions," Costantino Pitzalis, titled "Molecular Portraits of Rheumatoid Arthritis: Defining Clinical and Treatment Response Endo-Phenotypes, Towards Precision Medicine," Timothy McAlindon, titled "Osteoarthritis: Treatment and Prospects for Disease Modification 2024," and from Stuart Levitz, titled "The Fungus Among the Last of Us: How a Perfect Storm is Driving an Epidemic of Fungal Infections."

Additionally, the Department of Medicine held its annual Resident and Fellow Poster Day, where residents and fellows displayed their work in research, quality improvement, and clinical vignettes.

If you missed any of the presentations or would like to view them again, please click the button below.

Congratulations to the following faculty on their recent appointments:

Alexander Martin, MD

Hematology/Oncology

Assistant Professor

William Traverse, MD

Rheumatology

Associate Professor

Please join us in welcoming our newest hires:

Sanjay Shah, MD

Cardiovascular Medicine

Associate Professor

Amee Phan, DO

Geriatric Medicine

Physician

Learn more about the latest news from the Department of Medicine by visiting our website at the button below!

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