Impact

It’s been a busy, noteworthy fall for the UTMB community that has been ripe with celebrations and milestones. In the October/November 2019 edition of Impact, the team works to share the stories of these successes and how the people working hard at UTMB every day continue to further the mission of the institution.

Fritz Kuebler, UTMB’s assistant director for Institutional Preparedness and Facilities Risk Management, talks about his daily routine as part of this issue’s Day in the Life feature.

This section celebrates the many accomplishments, honors and successes awarded to members of the UTMB community who go above and beyond to spread the mission of the institution.

FOR THE THIRD CONSECUTIVE YEAR, UTMB has been recognized as a five-star academic medical center and named a winner of the prestigious 2019 Vizient Bernard A. Birnbaum, MD, Quality Leadership Award.

UTMB researchers and their colleagues in South Korea have unlocked mysteries surrounding how a pregnant mother’s cells and her fetus’ cells communicate throughout pregnancy.

A collection of news and updates compiled from press releases written by Donna Ramirez, Kurt Koopmann and Christopher Smith Gonzalez. Find out more at www.utmb.edu/newsroom.

UTMB DEDICATED its $91.6 million, state-of-the-art Health Education Center on its Galveston Campus on Oct. 18. The formal ceremony was attended by hundreds of students, faculty members, employees and state and local dignitaries.

Dr. Janet Southerland, UTMB’s vice president of Education, Interprofessional Education and the Health Education Center, shares how the HEC will help shape education at UTMB today and well into the future.

UTMB’s Radiology Department recently celebrated the lifelong contributions of its own Dr. Melvyn Schreiber, clinical professor and former chair of the Radiology Department, by dedicating a conference room in his honor.

UTMB’s Radiology Department recently celebrated the lifelong contributions of its own Dr. Melvyn Schreiber, clinical professor and former chair of the Radiology Department, by dedicating a conference room in his honor.

For the first time ever, the UTMB Police Department hosted a large-scale National Night Out event on UTMB’s Galveston Campus. The festivities, which took place during the evening of Oct. 1 on the Moody Medical Library Plaza, included games, giveaways, food and even the debut performance of Mister Meanor, the UTMB Police Band.

After a family trip to a scuba camp, Dr. Christopher McQuitty left with a passion for underwater photography that he still carries with him to this day.

As we enter the holiday season, make note of how to enjoy one of the most popular foods of the season--pumpkin.

What type of educational approach— which involves training students in different disciplines—is the focus of the teaching taking place at the HEC? (Hint: Answer is inside this issue.)

Beginning with this August/September 2019 issue, Impact will now be published every other month. As always, we’ll continue producing some of the more popular features in this publication, including the Day in the Life, the Hidden Talent and regular tips.

Officer Curtis Dorsey and he and Public Safety Officer Michael Peltier are responsible for patrolling the Galveston Campus on their bicycles, conducting security assessments in UTMB clinics and facilities, teaching a variety of classes—including the Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events (CRASE) training, and handling the UTMB Police Department’s segment at the twice-monthly New Employee Orientation.

The Galveston County Daily News recently released a special magazine to spotlight the best and brightest professionals in Galveston County who are 40 years old or younger and are making a difference in their professions and in the community. Three members of the UTMB community made the list, including Summer Chapman, clinical research nurse coordinator, Joseph Ray, director of the Division of Medical Genetics and Metabolism, and John Prochaska, assistant professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health.

In a recent conversation, UTMB's new Health System CEO, Dr. Tim Harlin, was frank about the fact that collaboration and innovation will be key in continuing to propel UTMB to the forefront of the ever-changing health care industry.

A NEW UTMB STUDY has further documented how muscles are affected by reduced-gravity conditions during space flight missions and has uncovered how exercise and hormone treatments can be tailored to minimize muscle loss for individual space travelers.

NINETEEN UTMB FACULTY, STAFF AND STUDENTS recently received UTMB President’s Cabinet Awards for eight different projects that promote outreach, education and improved patient care in the community and beyond.

As a child, Anahi Delgadillo loved cartoons, but she longed to tell her own stories. So, she started drawing her own characters to do just that.

As students head back to school, now is the perfect time for parents to discuss cyberbullying with their children. Here are five tips to help parents and guardians address the issue

252 graduates walked the stage at the Aug. 16 UTMB School of Health Professions commencement ceremony. How many degree programs were represented during the School of Health Professions 2019 commencement ceremony?

This issue of Impact features “A Night in the Life” of Anthony Azagidi, a sleep technician who works an evening shift in the John Sealy Hospital Sleep Lab on the Galveston Campus. Mr. Azagidi has dedicated his career to improving health for patients who are struggling to get the sleep they need.

Azagidi, who is more commonly referred to as a sleep technician, is typically scheduled to work from 6:30 p.m. until 8 a.m. three times a week. Alongside two team members, Azagidi conducts sleep studies for a wide variety of patients within the four-bed lab on the 10th floor of the hospital.

Dr. Gulshan Sharma, chief medical and clinical innovation officer, was recently named one of “100 Hospital and Health System CMOs To Know,” according to Becker’s Healthcare. The list features physician leaders dedicated to strengthening their organizations through leadership development, patient safety initiatives, health information technology and quality improvement. Many have served as department heads and continue to practice medicine, while others focus on process improvement and patient advocacy.

Whether working on the front lines in patient care or in another role at UTMB, everyone contributes to Best Care. Here are a few examples of employees in different roles who are demonstrating Best Care. These employees were recent recipients of the Best Care in Action Awards.

UTMB, recognized as a Joint Commission COPD Center of Excellence, is only the second center in the state to offer a unique lung volume reduction procedure using an endobronchial valve only recently approved by the Food & Drug Administration.

Xavier Rice, a second-year medical student at UTMB, first met Ben Amagwula, a 2019 UTMB School of Medicine graduate, at Prairie View A&M University while the two worked toward completing their undergraduate degrees. Rice remembers encountering Amagwula through PVAMU’s Undergraduate Medical Academy—a program that aims to funnel minority students into medical school by providing them necessary resources and support. Amagwula, who was an upperclassman at the time, was already a member of the academy and took then-freshman Rice under his wing almost immediately after meeting him