2020 Year in Review

The coronavirus pandemic and the renewed fight for racial justice were two of the most prominent events of 2020 around the world and also at GUMC. Both have had a significant impact on our community and will continue to affect our lives going forward. Throughout the challenges of 2020, our collective commitment to education, research and service remained constant, and we look forward to carrying that commitment with us into 2021. We share this encore selection of stories from 2020 and look forward to bringing you new stories beginning next week. Best wishes for a safe, healthy and fulfilling 2021!

Responding to the Coronavirus Pandemic

Students from the School of Medicine, School of Nursing & Health Studies and Biomedical Graduate Education responded to the coronavirus pandemic by organizing PPE donations, serving patients through the National Guard, collaborating with law students to promote health justice, volunteering in the D.C. Public Health Lab and donating convalescent plasma.  GUMC scientists pivoted swiftly to research on the novel coronavirus. Rebecca Katz, PhD, MPH, director of the Center for Global Health Science and Security, was tapped to serve on President-elect Joe Biden’s coronavirus task force. Charles B. Holmes, MD, MPH, director of the Georgetown Center for Innovation in Global Health and a professor of medicine at the School of Medicine, has been selected to join President-elect Biden’s transition team as an advisor on the International Development agency review team.

Supporting Racial Justice

Motivated by the police killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and others, more than 500 medical students signed an open letter to medical center leadership, leading to the creation of the Racial Justice Committee for Change.  Christopher King, PhD, FACHE, chair of the Department of Health Systems Administration in the School of Nursing & Health Studies, published a report in 2020 exposing the consequences of entrenched health disparities in Washington, D.C.  Medical students and faculty showed their support for racial justice by participating in the 2020 March on Washington and testified in support of a D.C. Council resolution to declare racism a public health crisis, a resolution that passed in December.

Celebrating Success and Looking Ahead

In January, we celebrated the opening of the H.O.Y.A. Clinic at The Triumph, a temporary housing complex in the Congress Heights neighborhood of Washington, D.C.  We also commemorated the first 50 years of Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.  After shifting to virtual learning in the wake of the pandemic, the School of Medicine Class of 2020 took part in a virtual Match Day.  Global health student Shreyaa Venkat (NHS’24) was honored with the George H. W. Bush Points of Light Award for co-founding a community organization.  With a renewed focus on health, Georgetown University President John J. DeGioia announced plans to establish a School of Nursing and a School of Health on the medical center campus in July 2022.

News and Announcements

Georgetown Women in Medicine: Award Nominations Due Monday, Jan. 4 Georgetown Women in Medicine (GWIM) award nominations are due Monday January 4, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. Awards will be presented at the GWIM Annual Awards Reception on Thursday January 28, 2021. Award descriptions can be found here.

Graves Named Associate Dean for Faculty Development Kristi D. Graves, PhD, has been named associate dean for faculty development in the GUMC Office of Faculty and Academic Affairs as of January 1, 2021. In her new role, Graves will oversee faculty development activities, promote faculty mentoring, create programs to support faculty seeking promotion, collaborate with other education-focused centers at the university and support faculty research success. Learn more here.

Cultivating Opportunity & Realizing Excellence (CORE) Leadership Program The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion announces Cultivating Opportunity & Realizing Excellence (CORE) Leadership Program, its inaugural virtual summer program for undergraduate students interested in pursuing medical studies. CORE is a seven-week, virtual, cohort-modeled program that focuses on providing opportunities for connection and exposure to medicine and health sciences through GUMC. CORE Fellows will engage in professional development, mentorship and wellness sessions, while working on a team project to foster trust in the COVID-19 vaccine. Learn more about the CORE Program.

Join MedStar Health in Learning More About COVID-19 in Our Community MedStar Health researchers invite you to be a part of a multi-site, CDC-funded COVID-19 Community Research Partnership study, looking to see how the virus has affected the communities it serves. Participation in the study involves answering questions online and, for some volunteers, an in-home blood test for antibodies to COVID-19 to determine if you’ve been sick with the virus in the past. Go to MedStarHealth.org/JoinTheFight and click the button to sign up for the study. Email questions to JoinTheFight@medstar.net.

Krishnan Awarded Grant from National Endowment for the Humanities Lakshmi Krishnan, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine and director of the Georgetown Medical Humanities Initiative, was awarded a $60,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to support research for an upcoming book. Titled “The Doctor and The Detective: A Cultural History of Diagnosis,” Krishnan’s book will explore the intersection of medical diagnoses and detective literature in England, France and the U.S. from the nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century.

Spring 2021 Affirmations Due By January 6 All students are required to complete the Spring 2021 Affirmation by January 6. Students who will be new to campus in the spring semester and students newly residing in the Georgetown, Foxhall and Burleith neighborhoods will be required to commit to the Georgetown University Community Compact. Learn more here.

The Pellegrino Report: Bioethics in Practice In the latest issue of The Pellegrino Report: Bioethics in Practice, Myles N. Sheehan, SJ, MD, newly appointed Director of the Pellegrino Center for Clinical Bioethics, reflects on the hope in his essay "Finding Hope in Trying Times."

GUMC In The News

The Washington Post Sick, Elderly prisoners are at risk for COVID-19. A new D.C. law makes it easier for them to seek early release. (SOM students) Reuters Are digital health passports a good idea? (Alexandra Phelan) NBC What scientists still want to know about the new coronavirus variant in the U.K. (Angela Rasmussen) CNN Fear could stop the coronavirus vaccine from reaching some of the people who need it most (Ranit Mishori) The Wall Street Journal Will You Take the Vaccine? (Christopher Grivas, SOM student) The Washington Post California, Colorado confirm infections with U.K. coronavirus variant (Jesse Goodman) The Associated Press EXPLAINER: Should vaccine volunteers now get the real thing? (Jesse Goodman) NPR New Vaccine Approved (Jesse Goodman) Science As scientists struggled to understand and quell COVID-19, a second pandemic of misinformation and political mayhem raged. (Angela Rasmussen) Skimm This Your COVID Vaccine Q’s (Julie Fischer) The Associated Press 2nd vaccine draws closer to FDA approval (Jesse Goodman) The Hill Hospitals boost security, seek to stop vaccine 'line-jumping' (Daniel Sulmasy) The Associated Press Health officials track safety as COVID-19 vaccines roll out (Jesse Goodman) Reuters Alaskan has allergic reaction after getting Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine (Jesse Goodman) South China Morning Post WHO’s coronavirus detectives look to Wuhan market as undisclosed map surfaces (Daniel Lucey) The Washington Post Hogan activates National Guard to help with vaccine distribution as death toll rises (Jesse Goodman) The Washington Post Parasites may not be cute and cuddly, but they need saving too, scientists say (Colin Carlson)

Calendar of Events

CENTILE Multi-institutional Grand Rounds: Behind the Scenes Series Wednesday, January 6 3:00 - 4:00 p.m. Online “Scene 2: What Happens to my Paper? Pulling Back the Curtain on the Peer Review Process” is the next session in a series providing a look behind the scenes at education scholarship to provide the knowledge and motivation to become involved in the field. Co-sponsored by UCSF School of Medicine; Georgetown University School of Medicine; Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell; the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences; and George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Register.

Dean’s Seminar Series Thursday, January 7 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. Via Zoom Featuring Sir Stephen O’Rahilly, MD, director, MRC Metabolic Diseases Unit, University of Cambridge, co-director, Wellcome-MRC Institute of Metabolic Science, University of Cambridge, head of Department of Clinical Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, scientific director, Cambridge NIHR Biomedical Research Centre. Join via Zoom.

IAMSE Winter 2021 Webinar Series Thursday, January 7 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. In this series addressing “USMLE STEP-1 is Going to Pass/Fail: Now What do We Do?” Mark Jordan, MD, and Justin La, MD, of University of California, Irvine, present “The Challenges of Resident Candidate Assessment and Selection.” Sponsored by the International Association of Medical Science Educators, offered by CENTILE. Register.

CENTILE Teaching Certificate Program Session 4 Friday, January 8 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. Via Zoom Mary Furlong, MD, senior associate dean for curriculum for Georgetown School of Medicine, and Ming-Jung Ho, MD, professor of family medicine, associate director of CENTILE, and director of education research for MedStar Health, present “Curriculum Development.” Register.

Clinical and Translational Research Grand Rounds Friday, January 8 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. Via Zoom Camille E. Powe, MD, assistant professor of medicine at Harvard University and co-director of the Diabetes in Pregnancy program at Massachusetts General Hospital, presents “Toward a Precision Approach to Gestational Diabetes.” Co-sponsored by Georgetown-Howard Universities Center for Clinical and Translational Science (GHUCCTS) and MedStar Health Research Institute. Join via Zoom.

Spring Preparation Digital Learning Days Wednesday, January 13 - Friday, January 15  11:00 a.m. - 3:45 p.m. Via Zoom Each day begins with an hour-long plenary session covering lessons learned from the Fall semester and planning for the Spring. Afternoons feature 45-minute concurrent workshops on balancing the use of digital tools with the pedagogical needs of students. Each workshop is offered twice. Co-sponsored by CNDLS, UIS, ARC, and the GU Library.

Dean’s Seminar Series Thursday, January 14 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. Via Zoom Featuring Mary Klotman, MD, dean, Duke University School of Medicine and vice chancellor for health affairs, Duke University. Join via Zoom.

IAMSE Winter 2021 Webinar Series Thursday, January 14 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. In this series addressing “USMLE STEP-1 is Going to Pass/Fail: Now What do We Do?” Doug Gould, PhD, of Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine presents “Pass/Fail Step 1: Implications for a Foundational Science Department.” Sponsored by the International Association of Medical Science Educators, offered by CENTILE. Register.

CENTILE CHEER Session Friday, January 15 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. Via Zoom  The third session in the CENTILE-Sponsored Consultation for Health Education and Evaluation Research (CHEER) program. Two presenters receive feedback from Teaching Academy members to improve their educational projects at any stage (design, data collection, data analysis, dissemination). Sign up to present by emailing CENTILE@georgetown.edu. Join via Zoom.

Support for Virtual Instruction

See the Instructional Continuity @GU website for information about office hours, web resources, training webinars and other forms of assistance.

Zoom Practice Sessions with Classroom Educational Technology Services (CETS) Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.; Saturday, 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.  CETS is offering individual Zoom assistance. Meet with a member of the CETS staff via Zoom (meeting ID: 995-332-8350).

CNDLS Instructional Continuity Virtual Office Hours Monday - Thursday, 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.; Friday, 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. CNDLS holds instructional continuity office hours virtually in this Zoom room. Please stop by if you need help or dial 646-558-8656 (meeting ID: 386 980 1070). After hours, email cndls@georgetown.edu.

Canvas Support Office Hours Thursday, January 7, 14, 21, or 28 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. Via Zoom Online office hours with UIS EdTech provide faculty and staff with assistance and answers to Canvas questions and assistance with all Canvas needs. Register 1/7, 1/14, 1/21 or 1/28.

Instructional Continuity Office Hours Friday, January 8, 15, 22 or 29 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. Online office hours with UIS EdTech provide faculty and staff with assistance and answers to questions about instructional continuity tools: Panopto, Zoom, Voicethread and Canvas. Register 1/8, 1/15, 1/22 or 1/29.

Webinar Recordings

View a complete list of recorded instructional continuity webinars.

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