The Department of Medicine at the University of Colorado Denver
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Attached find some recent significant achievements by some of our faculty members:
The Department has no faculty member who is more quoted or more honored than Charles Dinarello, M.D. (Infectious Diseases). Dr. Dinarello’s most recent honor is sharing (with Ralph Steinman of Rockefeller University and Bruce Beutler of the Scripps Research Institute) the largest cash award in medicine or science in the United States (The Albany Medical Center Prize for $500,000). Dr. Dinarello was recognized for his discoveries “which led to a dramatically better understanding of the human immune system in health and disease” and specifically his work on cytokine biology. This is the 9th year the Albany Medical Center prize has been given and Dr. Dinarello received his award in Albany on 24 April 2009. Dr. Dinarello’s work has also resulted in his being named the world’s fourth most cited scientist in the years 1983-2002 by the Institute for Scientific Information. As noted in a previous communication from the Department, Dr. Dinarello also shared the $500,000 Crafoord Prize for 2009 from the Swedish Academy of Science.
Wendy Kohrt, Ph.D. (Geriatrics) has been selected to co-chair the steering committee for NASA’s “Decadal Study in Physical and Biological Space Research”. This steering committee will oversee multiple committees that will plan the scientific path for NASA for the next 10 years. The study is sponsored by the National Academies.
Tom Maddox, M.D. (Cardiology, Denver VA) is the recipient of the American College of Cardiology’s 2009 National Young Investigator Award. Dr. Maddox received this award at the 2009 meeting of the American College of Cardiology. Tom is a member of the “Outcomes Group” in the Cardiology Division at the Denver VA, Denver Health and Hospitals and UCH.
We are very fortunate to have several national experts within the Department. One such national figure is Eric Coleman, M.D., MPH (Health Care Policy and Research) who is the nation’s leading expert in “transitions of care.” In the 2 April edition of The New England Journal of Medicine, you will find an excellent article entitled “Rehospitalizations among Patients in the Medicare Fee-for Service Program” (2009;360:1418-1428) on which Eric Coleman is the senior author. This article was featured in the Sunday edition of the New York Times and picked up and widely disseminated by the Associated Press.
Chip Ridgway, M.D. (Endocrinology), Frederic Hamilton Endowed Chair, Vice Chair of the Department and Senior Associate Dean, Research will receive the Robert H. Williams Distinguished Leadership Award from the Endocrine Society in June, 2009. This Award is presented in recognition of outstanding leadership in fundamental or clinical endocrinology as exemplified by the recipient's contributions, and those of his trainees and associates, to teaching, research, and administration. Chip led the Department’s Endocrinology Division for 22 years.
Two Departmental Housestaff (Alexandra Smart and Eric Young) are among the five winners of this year’s Gold Foundation Humanism and Excellence in Teaching awards, as selected by the UC medical student body, for 2009. The Department is proud not only of Drs. Smart and Young, but also of fifteen additional Departmental housestaff who were nominated for this award (Drs. Lindsey Davis, Matthew Eadens, Richard Fuquay, Kevin Hartman, Benjamin Heinzen, Daniel Heppe, James Kolbeck, Jennifer Koval, Lisa LeMond, Ryan McWilliams, Sasan Mirfakhraee, Niraj Patel, Elizabeth Riley, Shabnam Showell, and Chad Stickrath). These houseofficers collectively represent about half of all nominees for these awards.
Patricia Gabow, M.D. is a long-time member of the Department who has been Chief Executive Officer at Denver Health for many years. Under Dr. Gabow’s leadership, Denver Health has become one of the nation’s model integrated health care delivery systems and safety-net hospitals. Dr. Patricia Gabow’s multiple, long-standing contributions will be recognized by the University of Colorado Board of Regents with the award of a Regents Honorary Degree at the Anschutz Medical Campus Commencement on May 22, 2009.
The “Outcomes Group” in the Cardiology Division at the Denver VA, Denver Health and Hospitals and UCH is collectively exceptionally strong and well-recognized. One productive member of this group, Fred Masoudi, M.D. (Cardiology, Denver Health) is a co-author of a large study in the most recent issue of JAMA (Relationship between spontaneous and iatrogenic hypoglycemia and mortality in patients hospitalized with acute myocardial infarction, 2009;301:1556-1564).
Second Quarter 2009 News
Outstanding 2009 Housestaff Match-We are exceptionally pleased with the more than 50 individuals who will be joining us as first year internal medicine houseofficers on 23 June 2009. These incoming physicians have received their medical education at 33 US institutions and 10 are graduates of the University of Colorado School of Medicine. The mean part 2 of the NBME scores for these incoming houseofficers was greater than the 99th percentile! The consistent hard work of our Program Director, Suzanne Brandenburg, her staff of Sherry Berka, Kristy Hull and Leslie Bailey, our Associate Program Directors including Karen Chacko, Mel Anderson, Jeffrey Glasheen, Virginia Borges and Didi Mancini and our current Chief Residents including Chad Stickrath, Aran Nichol, Dan Bowles, Richard Fuquay, Christina Adams and James Hunt were all instrumental in this outstanding match. Click here to view a list of our incoming housestaff.
A salute to our incoming Chief Medical Residents-We have been blessed with a tradition of excellence in our Chief Medical Residents. This year’s Chief Residents are noted in the preceding paragraph. We are pleased to announce that the following individuals have been selected to continue this rich tradition of excellence:
Chief Residents for AY 2009-2010:
Brooks, Gabriel
Heist, Katie
Huang, Janice
Jamieson, Daniel
Smart, Alexandra
Chief Residents for AY 2010-2011:
Caverly, Tanner
Davis, S. Lindsey
Krisko, Tibor
Washburn, Taylor
Weber, Nicholas
Kudos-while we are fortunate to have an “all new” medical campus in which to work, it is not the bricks and mortar that distinguishes us in our pursuit of excellence, but the quality, hard work and innovation of our faculty. Listed below are some of the accomplishements of our outstanding faculty over the past three months:
The winner of the Full Time Faculty Teaching Award for the Department of Medicine for 2009 is Dan Richlie, M.D. This award, of which one is given annually, is based upon a vote by the Department’s Housestaff and is perhaps one of the highest accolades for a clinician/educator. Dan, an Associate Professor in the Division of General Internal Medicine and a faculty member since 1988, is based at the Denver VA Medical Center. Notably, Dr. Richlie also received this award for his outstanding teaching from our housestaff in 1993.
Charles Dinarello, M.D. (Infectious Diseases) was announced, along with two Japanese scientists (Tadamitsu Kishimoto and Toshio Hirano), as the winner of the 2009 Crafoord Prize for discoveries that improved treatment for rheumatoid arthritis and similar conditions. This prestigious $500,000 prize is administered by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and will be presented by the King of Sweden in May, 2009. The Crafoord prize was established in 1980 and one prize is given each year. Crafoord prizes are given in the disciplines of Astronomy and Mathematics, Geosciences and Biosciences with particular emphasis on polyarthritis. According to the Academy, these disciplines are chosen to complement those for which Nobel prizes are awarded. Dr. Dinarello is a member of the Institute of Medicine and the National Academy of Sciences.
Peter Buttrick, M.D. (Head, Division of Cardiology) was recently elected to membership in the Association of American Physicians (AAP). The AAP is a prestigious organization that was founded in 1885. Membership to the AAP is highly competitive with 60 members elected each year. Election is based upon excellence in the pursuit of medical knowledge through experimentation and discovery of basic and clinical science and application to clinical medicine.
Election to the American Society of Clinical Investigation is a seminal, and very difficult to achieve, honor for academicians under 45 years of age. This year, Andrew Fontenot, M.D. (Head, Allergy/Clinical Immunology) was elected to membership.
Bill Arend, M.D. (Rheumatology) was recently announced as a co-recipient, along with Dr. Jean Michel-Dayer, for the Japan Rheumatism Foundation International RA Award for 2009. This award was established in 2001 and the recipient(s) receives 5 million Japanese Yen. Dr. Arend’s receipt of this award is in recognition of his discovery of IL-1ra and its application to treatment of periodic fevers and arthritis.
Mike Bristow, M.D., Ph.D. (Cardiology) was announced as the 2008 Honoree of the Year by the Colorado Chapter of the Achievement Rewards for College Scientists Foundation. This marks Dr. Bristow’s third major award of the past year (Heart Failure Society of America Lifetime Achievement Award and Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturer’s of America Clinical Trial Exceptional Service Award).
Greg Austin, M.D. (Gastroenterology/Hepatology) was recently awarded a prestigious American Gastroenterological Association Foundation Research Scholar Award. This two-year award is for $150,000 and can be extended for a third year with additional funding pending a satisfactory two year review. Four of these awards were given this year and the list of previous recipients is impressive.
Walter Briney, M.D. (Rheumatology), was recently recognized by the MS3 and 4 classes for outstanding contributions to Hospitalized Adult Care, Professor’s Rounds and Humanism in Medicine. Walter, a Distinguished Clinical Professor of Medicine, has been a member of the Department’s Clinical Faculty for a number of years. Walter provides and has provided outstanding clinical service and education at University and Denver Health Hospitals as well as several other venues and previously headed the Department’s Clinical Faculty Advisory Committee.
Marc Moss, M.D. (Pulmonary/Critical Care) recently was notified that his new RO1 grant entitled “The Diagnosis and Treatment of Critical Illness Polyneuropathy” received a priority score at the 3rd percentile. While you are never certain of the final budget for RO1 funding, the five year budget submitted for this grant is about 3.5 $ million. Dr. Moss has done an excellent job in leading our Critical Care Program, is closely involved with the K12 Program of the institution’s CTSI grant, and has an outstanding track record of scholarly activity and funding.
Michael Ho, M.D., Thomas Maddox, M.D. and John Rumsfeld, M.D. (Cardiology, Denver VA) are co-authors of an authoritative article entitled “Risk of Adverse Outcomes Associated with Concomitant Use of Clopidogrel and Proton Pump Inhibitors Following Acute Coronary Syndrome” that appeared in the March 4 edition of JAMA (2009;301:937-944) and was featured on NPR and national network radio and national TV outlets.
Fred Masoudi, M.D. (Cardiology, Denver Health) and John Rumsfeld, M.D. (Cardiology, Denver VA) were among the co-authors of an article that appeared in the most recent issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine (Factors Associated with Racial Difference in Myocardial Infarction Outcomes-2009;150:314-324).
Steve Johnson, M.D. (Infectious Diseases) recently reported on some very impressive results from the Health Science Center’s HIV clinical program. For calendar year 2008, there were 1388 unduplicated HIV+ patients seen in Denver, 146 seen in Pueblo, and 191 seen on the Western Slope (Durango and Grand Junction). Among these 1725 patients, a total of 16 deaths were reported including 15 in Denver, 1 in Pueblo and 0 on the Western Slope. This translates, for the first time in the history of the program, to an annual mortality rate of less than 1%. Of the 16 deaths, only 5 were known to be due to AIDS Class C conditions including 2 with disseminated mycobacterium avium, 2 with PCP, and 1 with lymphoma. This is a remarkable achievement and all members of this clinical care team deserve congratulations.
Alberto Costa, M.D., Ph.D. (Clinical Pharmacology) is one of two recipients of the second annual Josephine Mills Research Awards that was presented by The Down Syndrome Research Foundation on March 26, 2009. Dr. Alberto Costa will receive the “Exceptional contribution to research in Down syndrome” for work which has clarified our understanding of learning and memory deficits in Down syndrome.
The Department is fortunate to participate in several successful multi-disciplinary “Programs” which contribute significantly to the environment of the Health Science Center’s academic enterprise. One is the Mucosal Inflammation Program headed by Sean Colgan, Ph.D. (Gastroenterology/Hepatology). Holger Eltzschig, M.D., Ph.D., an Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and Medicine, is a member of this Program. Holger recently received notification of an RO1 award (Extracellular Adenosine in Acute Lung Injury) and had a cover article (Hypoxia-inducible factor-dependent dependent induction of netrin-1 dampens inflammation caused by hypoxia) in the February 2009 edition of Nature Immunology.
Sarah Faubel, M.D. (Renal) recently received notification that her first RO1 entitled “Acute Kidney Injury-Mediated Lung Disease” received a priority score less than 4%. Sarah, who has been funded in the past by the NRSA and K grant mechanisms, has been mentored by Charles Edelstein.
Susan Majka, Ph.D. (Cardiology/Cardiovascular Pulmonary Laboratory) recently received notification that her RO1 entitled “Fate of Lung Stem Cells in Pulmonary Disease” received a priority score less than 10%. This will mark the first RO1 for Susan who has been exceptionally productive in her pulmonary stem cell research efforts.
Please join me in congratulating Jesus Rivera-Nieves, M.D. (Gastroenterology/Hepatology)- recruited by Hugo Rosen from the University of Virginia several months ago), who was recently notified that he will receive his first RO1 for his project entitled ”Targeting L-Selectin in Chronic Murine Ileitis.”
Joel Garcia, M.D. (Cardiology, Denver Health) was recently named one of the 25 international winners of the 2009 Cardiovascular Research Technologies Emergent Young Leadership Award. This award recognizes excellence in physicians practicing interventional cardiology and endovascular medicine.
The Cardiovascular Pulmonary Laboratory (CVP) has a PPG that has been funded for more than 36 years and has existed through at least four Directors (Drs. Bob Grover, John Weil, Ivan McMurtry and now Kurt Stenmark). Dr. Stenmark was recently notified that this PPG will be funded for another five years. Congratulations to Dr. Stenmark and the other PIs on this grant (Rafe Nemenoff, Ph.D. and Mary Weiser-Evans, Ph.D. Co-PIs - Renal, Mark Geraci, M.D.-Pulmonary, and Dwight Klemm, Ph.D.-Pulmonary).
John Carroll, M.D. and James Chen, Ph.D. (Cardiology) were given Inventor of the Year Awards by the UC Tech Transfer Office for their efforts in advanced diagnostic imaging.
Mike Holers, M.D. (Rheumatology) was inducted as a lifetime member of the Pinnacles of Inventorship by the UC Tech Transfer Office and the company he co-founded (Taligen) was awarded the Tech Transfer Office’s Bioscience Company of the Year Award.
Lynne Bemis, Ph.D. (Medical Oncology) was one of 21 CU faculty chosen for the 2009 cohort of the President’s Teaching and Learning Collaborative.
Another Departmental Program that is SIRC-supported and involves multiple individuals in several Departments/Divisions is the Mucosal and Vaccine Research Center headed by Ed Janoff, M.D. Dr. Janoff’s recent RO1 submission entitled “Mucosal Determinants of HIV Infection of Infants by Breast Milk” received a 6% priority score.
Ginger Borges, M.D., MSc and Pepper Schedin, Ph.D. (Medical Oncology) recently received a $600,000 3-year grant from the Komen Foundation for their project entitled ”Targeting the Inflammatory Milieu of the Involuting Gland to Suppress Pregnancy Associated Breast Cancer Metastasis.”
Gail Eckhardt, M.D. (Head, Medical Oncology) was appointed Chair of the FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee through June 2010. This Committee makes recommendations to the FDA about the advisability of approving new medications to treat cancer.
Fred Hirsch, M.D., Ph.D. (Medical Oncology) has recently been announced as the co-PI for a collaborative study between the NCI, FDA and the Cancer Cooperative Groups (CPATH and several oncology cooperative groups) for a phase III prospective study to validate biomarkers for patients with non-small cell lung cancer. The University of Colorado is the central specimen repository and biomarker lab for some of this study.
Two Departmental faculty members were among those honored at the UCH Medical Board’s Annual Meeting. Ginger Borges, M.D., MSc (Medical Oncology) received the UCH President’s Award for “Physician of the Year” for her outstanding overall contributions. Jean Kutner, M.D., MSPH (General Internal Medicine) received the Board’s “Pioneer Award” for her efforts in establishing a comprehensive palliative care program at UCH.
Andy Kramer, M.D. (Health Care Policy and Research) was recently appointed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services and CMS to serve a two-year term on the Advisory Panel on Medicare Education. This Federal Advisory Panel provides strategic planning and operational guidance related to the Medicare program.
Judy Regensteiner, Ph.D. (General Internal Medicine and Cardiology) and JoAnn Lindenfeld, M.D. (Cardiology) are the Co-Directors of the Center for Women’s Health Research and were recently notified of the receipt of a $200,000 gift from the Pioneer Fund.
Robert Schrier, M.D. (Renal Diseases and Hypertension) was awarded the 2009 Medal of Excellence by the American Association of Kidney Patients in recognition for his contributions to the renal community.
To see news from previous quarters, please click here
Departmental National Leadership Positions
The Department is blessed with a talented faculty. Four of our Professor faculty members have, either currently or in the recent past, held significant national leadership positions. These include:
Robert Eckel, MD - Past-President, American Heart Association
Tomas Berl, MD - Past-President, American Society of Nephrology
E. Chester Ridgway, MD - Past-President, Endocrine Society
Paul Bunn, MD - Past-President, American Society of Clinical Oncology
Volunteer Clinical Faculty List
- A new listing for the volunteer clinical faculty has been launched. Volunteer clinical faculty can be looked up here or via the link to the left.
Mission
Building on a rich tradition of excellence, we are moving forward with new initiatives designed to build on the strengths of our faculty. We take our three-part mission of patient care, medical education and research seriously.
- Education
- The Department’s educational initiatives are overseen by Eva Aagaard, M.D., Vice Chair of Education. Eva is a creative and experienced medical educator who not only provides direction for all of our educational programs, but also directly oversees our student programs. The Department has a rich tradition of excellence in housestaff and fellowship education. Suzanne Brandenburg, M.D., directs our Housestaff Program which has categorical, primary care, hospitalist and research training tracks. Suzanne is very ably assisted by five Associate Housestaff Program Directors including Mel Anderson, M.D. (lifelong learning and mentoring), Virginia Borges, M.D. (housestaff research), Jeff Glasheen, M.D. (hospitalist training), Diana Mancini, M.D (Resident mentorship), and Karen Chacko, M.D. (primary care training). The department has 13 T32 fellowship training grants and supervises a K30 Masters and PhD program in Clinical Sciences.
- Clinical Care
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Clinical care is provided at six hospitals affiliated with our training program: University Hospital (tertiary referral), Veterans Affairs Medical Center (comprehensive in- and outpatient veterans care), Denver Health Medical Center (underserved primary and referral care and level 1 trauma care), two excellent private hospitals (Rose Medical Center and Presbyterian-St. Luke’s) and National Jewish Hospital (pulmonary, immunological and mycobacterial care). Active hospitalist and intensivist services provide 24/7 care and education at the core hospitals. Experiences at these centers ensures exposure to diverse clinical challenges, patient populations, and practice settings.
The University Hospital, along with the entire University of Colorado Denver and The Children’s Hospital, has recently moved to an entirely new 4 billion dollar Anschutz Medical Center at the former site of the Fitzsimons Army Center in Aurora Colorado. A new 390 bed hospital, a seven story ambulatory facility, Cancer Center, Rocky Mountain Lions Eye Institute, Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes Mellitus, Native American Health Center as well as a host of educational and research facilities are now fully operational on this campus.
The Department’s clinical revenues are expanding at a 10% annual rate and have reached record highs for each of the past five years.
- Research
- The Department has a very successful track record in biomedical research.
We were most recently ranked 16th nationally in research funding from the NIH. Faculty
members within the Department of Medicine currently are the principal investigators
on more than $85 million of research funding. Department of Medicine faculty
are also the lead investigators on an additional $14.5 million of inter-disciplinary
center funding. Collectively, grants obtained by the Department of Medicine
faculty account for 30% of all School of Medicine research funding. The Department moved into all new research space at the Anschutz campus in the spring of 2008.
Each Division has a diverse and vibrant externally funded research program and fellowship training program. Our Department has active research programs for not only our faculty but also for our fellows, housestaff and medical students. The Department also has an innovative program in Clinical Sciences leading to either a Master or a PhD degree. In addition, we have 33 endowed Chairs ($65 million), the endowed Temple Hoyne Buell Heart Center, and a federally-designated Cancer Center enabling us to pursue new understanding and treatment of diseases that are afflicting millions of Americans. - Our Faculty
- Our faculty is our strength. We currently have 500 full-time faculty (about 95 of these are PhDs) and 600 volunteer faculty. There are many faculty who hold leadership positions in their national and international specialty societies and on editorial boards, as well as those faculty who are members of prestigious medical research societies, such as the Association of American Physicians (31), American Society for Clinical Investigation (34), Western Association of Physicians (42), and the Western Society for Clinical Investigation (70). There are also an impressive number of Department faculty who hold leadership positions at the School of Medicine, the University of Colorado Denver, and the affiliated institutions.
Our Current Divisional Leadership:
Allergy and Clinical Immunology - Andrew Fontenot, MD
Cardiology - Peter Buttrick, MD
Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology - Curt Freed, MD
Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Diabetes - Bryan R. Haugen, MD
Gastroenterology and Hepatology - Hugo Rosen, MD
Geriatrics - Robert Schwartz, MD
Health Care Policy and Research - Andrew Kramer, MD
Hematology - Robert Allen, MD and Sally Stabler, MD (Co-division heads)
Infectious Diseases - Thomas Campbell, MD - interim
General Internal Medicine - Jean Kutner, MD
Medical Oncology - Gail Eckhardt, MD
Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care Medicine - Mark Geraci, MD
Renal Diseases and Hypertension - Richard Johnson, MD
Rheumatology - V. Michael Holers, MD
We are very proud of these accomplishments and hope you will spend some time reviewing the information provided. We are looking forward to the continued evolution of our department as we strive to become the best we can be. Thank you for visiting our site.
Robert J. Anderson, M.D.
Meiklejohn Professor of Medicine
Chair, Department of Medicine
Last update 05/14/09
