August 2021
Dear Colleagues, 
 
First, I would like to welcome Kelly Allis, Laura Cannon, Clara Hildebrandt, Corinne Keet and Kieran Leong to UNC Children’s! We are thrilled you have joined us.
 
This month we have seen, and felt, the increase in volume across the Children’s Hospital. The emergency room, urgent care and inpatient census have been very high due to RSV, trauma, and COVID cases. We are continuously developing plans to address these issues. We are now having capacity discussions three times a time to facilitate care of the children. I don’t anticipate that these capacity issues will improve soon; however, staffing issues should improve by October. Please reach out to the Children’s Administrator on call if you have any concerns.
 
While inpatient care has been busy, we are also setting records for outpatient patient volumes across UNC Children’s. This fall, three more clinics will be moving to CPII. Neurology, GI and Allergy/Immunology are all moving out of the UNC Hospital clinic to this location!
 
Internal grants are being offered through the Children’s Research Institute. This is a great opportunity for fellows and faculty to apply for additional research funding. For questions, please reach out to Suzanne Kennedy.
 
Our unsung hero this month is AJ Laperche. AJ does an amazing job as our fellowship coordinator. We are actively interviewing for our fellowships right now and are grateful for AJ’s leadership.
 
Finally, you have often heard me say that our best and most important resource is our people. We have remarkable, mission-focused faculty, providers and staff. 
Please support one another during this challenging time. 
 
We truly appreciate the exceptional, thoughtful, and compassionate care each of you provide to children and families. It does not go unnoticed!
UNC Children's Missions Update
Please Welcome our New Children's Providers!
Advanced Practice Provider
Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine

Ms. Allis joined the Department of Pediatrics as a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner on August 23, 2021. Ms. Allis received her BSN from Barton College in 2003 and in 2006 completed her masters in nursing from East Carolina University. She has worked extensively in the Neonatal ICU at Pitt County Memorial Hospital/Vidant Medical Center in Greenville, NC. In 2021, she completed a post-master’s certificate in the Neonatal Nurse Practitioner program at ECU. Welcome Kelly!
Assistant Professor
Pediatric Rheumatology

Dr. Cannon joined the Department of Pediatrics as faculty on August 23, 2021. Dr. Cannon received her BS in Biology from Duke University in 2009. In 2014 she completed her medical degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she stayed to complete her pediatric residency in 2017. In June of 2021, she completed a Pediatric Rheumatology Fellowship at the Duke University. Welcome back Laura!
Assistant Professor
Genetics & Metabolism

Dr. Hildebrandt joined the Department of Pediatrics as faculty on August 1, 2021. Dr. Hildebrandt received aBS in Neuroscience from the University of Michigan in 2012 and received her medical degree from Wayne State University School of Medicine in 2016. She was a Pediatric Genetics resident at Boston Children’s Hospital from 2016 through 2020. In June of 2021, she completed a Medical Biochemical Fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital. Welcome Clara!
Professor & Vice Chair for Clinical/Translational Research
Pediatric Allergy-Immunology

Dr. Keet joined the Department of Pediatrics as faculty on August 30, 2021. Dr. Keet received her BA in Chemistry from the University of California at Berkeley in 1998 . She remained at UC – Berkeley through 2001 to complete a masters degree in Health Sciences. In 2004 she completed her medical degree at the University of California – San Francisco. Subsequently, Dr. Keet completed her pediatric residency in 2007 and fellowship in allergy/immunology in 2010, both at Johns Hopkins. After joining the faculty at Johns Hopkins in 2010, she earned a PhD in epidemiology at the Bloomberg School of Public Health in 2014. Dr. Keet is a successful researcher and has served in a variety of leadership roles – we are excited she is joining us at at UNC. Welcome Corinne!
Assistant Professor
Critical Care Medicine

Dr. Leong joined the Department of Pediatrics as faculty on August 1, 2021. Dr. Leong received his BS in Medical Microbiology and Immunology from the University of Wisconsin in 2008 and in 2012 he completed his degree in Osteopathic Medicine from Touro College in New York City. In June of 2021, he completed a Critical Care Medicine Fellowship at the University of Maryland in Baltimore. Welcome Kieran!
Inpatient Sepsis Update
The sepsis team would like to acknowledge the care in two cases of central line associated bloodstream infections with septic shock.
 
One case was of an 11 year old with indwelling central access for TPN dependence who developed septic shock from Enterococcus and the second case was of a 5 year old with indwelling central access also for TPN dependence who developed septic shock from MRSA. The floor team called a rapid response for ongoing fluid resuscitation.
Both cases were on 6 Children’s and required transfer to the PICU. Kudos to the team:
  • Victoria White, RN
  • Jessica Sibley, MD
  • Tilden Hagan, MSIII
  • Matthew Egberg, MD
  • Vivek Shenoy, MD
  • Noemi Arias, RN
 
Much appreciation to the vigilance surrounding this high-risk population!
Please continue to perform sepsis huddles, call a rapid response for extra hands for faster management, and document using the .pedsepsis smartphrase!
NEW Pediatric Stroke Team
There is a major focus on reducing delays to diagnosis of pediatric stroke and the development of coordinated, multi-disciplinary acute stroke care systems as timely recognition of stroke, rapid neuroimaging, early diagnosis, and treatment has been shown to improve stoke outcomes.
 
UNC has the expertise in the fields of pediatric neurocritical care, pediatric neurosurgical care, neurointerventional radiology and others that, when combined with an acute stroke protocol, will enable UNC Childrens to be a comprehensive pediatric stroke center. Many thanks to Afsaneh Pirzadeh, MD in Pediatric Critical Care, and Casey Olm-Shipman, MD, in Child Neurology for pushing through this long standing need. The new stoke protocols can be found in the Children's Clinical Care Portal.
Interim Management Coverage for UNC Hospitals Children’s Specialty Services at Raleigh
As Will Kanipe sadly transitions to Neurology on Sept. 13, I am delighted to announce our interim management coverage for UNC Hospitals Children’s Specialty Services at Raleigh.
  • Kristin Laheta will cover the HB clinics at UNC Children’s Raleigh
  • Martina Watkins will cover the FP clinics at UNC Children’s Raleigh
Please join me in welcoming Kristin and Martina to our Leadership team! Congratulations Kristin and Martina!!
Welcome to our New Fellows
Welcome to the subspecialty residents joining the various programs serving children at UNC!
You can find the new fellows on the Meet the Team pages for each specialty in Pediatrics. Also, check out other departments with pediatric programs, like Anesthesiology and Neurology - Sleep Medicine, for other new learners at UNC Children's.
Congratulations on Completing the Academy of Educators: TARHEEL Program
The Teaching As a Resident: Highlighting the Evidence and Enthusiasm of Learning (TARHEEL) program, newly revamped and piloted in 2020, offers residents the opportunity to participate in a standardized program to improve cross-department collaboration, enhance engagement between faculty and residents, and increase academic scholarly projects and publications, beneficial to enhancing faculty educational scholarship. This curriculum augments the teaching skills of residents in mentoring and educating medical students, physician assistant students, and other learners across the UNC Hospitals and the Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) system. Congratulations to Pediatric Residents, Christel Wekon-Kemeni and Jordan Reasor, on completing the curriculum!
Congrats to Lee & Reynolds on NC Pediatric Society Poster Win!
 
UNC Residents Amalia Lee and Shennell Reynolds won 1st Place of the Resident poster submissions at the NC Pediatric Society Virtual Annual Meeting. Their presentation was amazing and they answered all attendee questions expertly. Little baby Maya even made a guest appearance.

Thank you to Susan Lynch and Sue Meier for the mentorship and support of Amalia and Shennell in this work! This was truly an innovative scholarly project addressing social determinants of health in a subspecialty clinic serving some of our most vulnerable patients and families. Attendees were incredibly impressed and we expect others will reach out to see how this can be disseminated at other academic centers with SICCs. Congratulations!!!
Ilona Jaspers PhD & Kori Flower MD Honored as 2021 Pediatric Mentors of the Year!
In case you missed the All-Children’s meeting in June, we are so pleased to recognize Drs. Jaspers and Flower for their outstanding contributions to the professional and personal growth of our colleagues in Pediatrics. No one says it better than the nominators themselves:
These comments were typical of what people said about Ilona:
  • “I can attest that she strikes an incredible balance between encouraging independence of trainees and providing critical guidance.”
  • “Dr. Jaspers has been an extremely positive influence on my scientific journey. Under her tutelage, I've learned new research and analytics techniques, and have grown immensely as a scientist…”
  • “The success of Dr. Jaspers’ trainees can also be measured via national and international recognition of their research and presentation skills.”
  • “This effort to encourage, support, and include all members of the scientific community in research also speaks to Dr. Jaspers commitment to fostering a welcoming and supportive environment. She is fiercely protective of the collaborative and congenial community….”
 
These comments illustrate what her mentees say Kori has provided: 
  • “I am constantly inspired by the passion and commitment Dr. Flower brings to each of her roles, and the genuine love she has for the work she does – not just clinically or as a researcher, but also as an educator and mentor.”
  • “I have benefited immensely from her mentorship in the early stages of my academic career. Kori is generous with her time and always available to truly listen to and solicit important questions or struggles experienced by an early researcher while offering thoughtful, empathetic, and actionable advice.”
  • “Kori is an advocate for junior faculty, for women, and for researchers from backgrounds traditionally less represented in academic medicine. In GPAM, she is on everyone’s mentorship committee because word gets around that Kori is successful at building up junior faculty so they may thrive.”
Thanks to all who nominate potential Pediatrics Department Mentors of the Year. We look forward to seeing many nominations next year. Alson, many thanks to the Mentoring Committee: Katie Clement, Ilona Jaspers (who, this year, of course, was not a participant in this year’s discussions!), Mike Kappelman, Magee Leigh, William Mills, Terry Noah, Wayne Price, and Carl Seashore.
Neal deJong, MD, MPH was promoted to Associate Professor of Pediatrics effective August 1, 2021. Dr. deJong has been a faculty member in General Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine since 2015. In addition to his clinical responsibilities, caring for children with multiple complex medical needs, Dr. deJong's research focuses on the care children and families receive as they balance between their primary care and specialty care physicians.
Robert Hartman, MD was promoted to Associate Professor of Pediatrics effective August 1, 2021. Dr. Hartman has been a faculty member in Pediatric Cardiology since 2018.
Neva Howard, MD was promoted to Associate Professor of Pediatrics effective August 1, 2021. Dr. Howard has been a faculty member in Pediatric Emergency Medicine since 2014. In addition to her clinical responsibilities, Dr. Howard is the Director of Learning Innovations within the UNC School of Medicine Office of Academic Excellence. In this role she develops methods to improve student learning skills, integration of concepts, and problem-solving skills related to performance and attitudes towards learning.
Michael Kappleman MD, MPH has been reappointed as the Houpt Distinguished Investigator Awardee. This award is given in recognition of Professor Jeffrey Houpt, Dean Emeritus for the UNC School of Medicine, CEO Emeritus for the UNC Health Care System, and Director of the Program in Leadership Development. The aim of the Award is to support recruitment and retention of outstanding senior-level, tenured/tenure-track researchers. Dr. Kappelman's reappointment supports an additional 5-year term and includes an annual $15,000 to support research or professional development.
Check Out our New Awards and Publications!
Bianca Allison, MD, MPH - General Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine - has been awarded a 2021 Changemakers in Family Planning grant by the Society of Family Planning Research Fund. The aim of the award is to provide dedicated support for awardees to develop their research skills and leadership in the field of family planning research. The award projects 20% of the awardees time and covers expenses for scholarship development.
James Hagood, MD - Pediatric Pulmonology - Dr .Hagood's multidisciplinary team has been awarded a Pediatric Networks Human Cell Atlas grant from the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative for more than $3 million! These highly competitive awards (17 awards in 14 countries worldwide) will support collaborative groups of researchers and pediatricians to better understand, prevent, and treat childhood diseases, by contributing healthy pediatric single-cell reference data to the global Human Cell Atlas, as a foundational resource for providing insight into the cellular origins of disease onset in children. The UNC-led project, “Mapping the Pediatric Inhalation Interface: Nose, Mouth, and Airways,” has 10 principal investigators (5 from UNC); and will collect samples from 6 countries for cutting-edge single-cell and spatial transcriptome analyses, in order to better understand how cells lining the nose, mouth and airways, and their associated fluids, interact to maintain respiratory health throughout childhood (think COVID-19!). The global reach will ensure that most of the world’s genetic ancestries will be represented, and Dr. Michelle Hernandez (Pediatric Allergy-Immunology) will lead Community Engagement efforts to ensure that the communities providing samples are invested in the project and benefit from the results. The data will be available to other investigators globally, and the UNC-led network team will be poised for transition to pediatric disease-oriented research in the near future.
Brian J. Specht, MD - Pediatric Anesthesiology - Specht BJ, Buse CR, Phelps JR, et al. Virtual Reality after Surgery—A Method to Decrease Pain After Surgery in Pediatric Patients. The American Surgeon. July 2021. doi:10.1177/0003134821103220.
John Stephens, MD - Hospital Pediatrics - Stephens JR, Hall M, Cotter JM, Molloy MJ, Tchou MJ, Markham JL, Shah SS, Steiner MJ, Aronson PL. Trends and Variation in Length of Stay Among Hospitalized Febrile Infants ≤60 Days Old. Hosp Pediatr. 2021 Aug 12:hpeds.2021-005936. doi: 10.1542/hpeds.2021-005936. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34385333.
Peyton Thompson, MD, PhD - Pediatric Infectious Diseases -
Kilometers For The Kids
The mission of the Carolina For The Kids Foundation is to provide major emotional, medical, and financial support for the patients and families served by UNC Children's Hospital. These past two years have been like no other. However, children are still getting sick and being hospitalized. It is clear that these families need our support now more than ever before. Your participation in Kilometers For The Kids will directly support the work Carolina For The Kids does to help patients and families!

On the weekend of October 1-3, Carolina For The Kids is hosting the annual fundraiser, Kilometers For The Kids race series! This year, Kilometers For The Kids has gone hybrid, meaning that there you can either do one of our in-person races or participate in one of our virtual races from ANYWHERE in the United States!

Sign up for a themed, one-mile Fun Run, complete our classic 5K, or take it a step further and challenge yourself with our 10K bike and run events. For more information and to register, visit runsignup.com/2021kilometersforthekids. We are looking forward to an interactive weekend to support pediatric patients and their families! All participants will receive an exclusive t-shirt and race packet! If you have any questions, email: operations@carolinaftk.org.
Gladwell Orthodontics' Charity Café Benefits UNC...

UNC Children's is ecstatic to be the selected charity benefitting from Gladwell Orthodontics' Charity Café for the entire third quarter! From July-September, you can visit any of their three locations in the Triangle-Wake Forest, Raleigh and...

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unchealthfoundation.org
Andrew (AJ) Laperche
GME Fellowship Coordinator - Education Office

Nominated by Wayne Price

Andrew “AJ” Laperche is integral part of our Pediatrics Education team! He is a tremendous asset to both Fellowship Program Directors and Program Coordinators. He does much of the ‘behind the scenes’ work for new program credentialling, fellow onboarding, fellow core curriculum logistics, fellow work hours and PTO tracking and communicating with the fellows. And most importantly, he helps programs with the many details needed for maintaining ACGME credentialling. He is a creative problem-solver and a tremendous team member. Some quotes:
 
“He was especially helpful in getting our fellows credentialed for off-site clinics to increase their learning opportunities and has been an asset to the Department in terms of meeting necessary ACGME deadlines and acting as a liaison between the programs and the GME community.”
 
“We are so grateful to AJ for his dedication and excellent organizational skills that have contributed to the success of all the Pediatric fellowship programs. AJ’s sincere and calm nature makes it a pleasure to work with him.” 
 
“AJ remains calm and collected no matter what arises in the GME world.”
 
“AJ has been an extremely reliable, supportive, resourceful, and wonderful person to work with. Whenever I ask him a question, he has been super quick at providing a helpful answer or seeking out information.”