April 5, 2024

In this month’s Chair’s Spotlight, we highlight Rahul Sood, MD, director of interventional pulmonology, co-director of pulmonary procedures, and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care. Dr. Sood is an interventional pulmonologist who works with patients who have lung cancer and other conditions including emphysema and airway stenosis. He also performs several procedures including bronchoscopy in the ambulatory setting. In March, we spoke with Dr. Sood to learn about the path that led him to become a physician and his work as a pulmonologist at UMass Chan Medical School/UMass Memorial Health.   

“It's a very collaborative atmosphere at UMass…there's a lot of interdisciplinary collaboration with other divisions, especially with our colleagues in thoracic surgery and radiology, as well as medical oncology and radiation oncology,” Dr. Sood said. “I think that the atmosphere is very collegial here and that's a big draw for me.”  

In this month’s Fellowship Spotlight, we highlight Hawa Ozien Abu, MD, PhD, MPH, a Geriatric Medicine fellow. Here, Dr. Abu describes her clinical and research interests, why she chose UMass Chan for her fellowship, and her favorite place to travel with her family.



"The UMass Chan Geriatric Medicine fellowship remains my ultimate choice as the program provides holistic training tailored to enhance my career trajectory as a geriatric physician-scientist and enables me to function at the intersection of the things that I love, compassionate service for older adults through medicine and clinical research."

In this month’s Resident Spotlight, we highlight Elizabeth Douglas, DO, MPH, a third-year Internal Medicine Resident on the Primary Care Track. Here, Dr. Douglas describes her clinical and research interests, what makes UMass Chan a great place for residency, and her favorite things to do in the Worcester area. 

"I wake up in the morning and look forward to going into work alongside the best admin, residents, fellows, and mentors. I would pick UMass again in a heartbeat just for them, not to mention the variety of cases we get here and patient diversity."

Shiv Sutaria Excels as Physician-Innovator in Hospital at Home and Point-of-Care Technologies

Shiv Sutaria, MD, associate medical director of the UMass Memorial Health (UMMH) Hospital at Home (HAH) Program and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine, was a key contributor to a recent study, led by the Center for Advancing Point of Care Technologies (CAPCaT). The study, published in PLoS One, focused on health care professionals’ perspectives on point-of-care technologies. The team concurrently studied patients’ perspectives toward point-of-care testing. “Our primary findings were that [providers and patients] are open to POCTs—there's trust—but questions remain regarding the cost to patients as well as reimbursement for the providers,” said Dr. Sutaria.

Beyond his role in the POCT studies, Dr. Sutaria’s passion remains deeply rooted in his hospital-at-home work. He has been involved in digital innovations and the development of tools that the emergency department uses to help identify patients who are appropriate for hospital-at-home. 

Equip Program Provides Mid-Career Women Faculty Skills for Career Development 

Left to Right: Zheni Stavre, Karen Salomon-Escoto, Peggy Wu, Jennifer Reidy, Emily Green, Deepika Devuni, Anila Medina, and Isabel Castro

Not Pictured: Lara Kovell

The Equip Program at UMass Chan Medical School provides mid-career women faculty the opportunity to improve their communication skills through peer coaching and skills-based practice. Led by Jennifer Reidy, MD, course director, and chief and professor of medicine in the Division of Palliative Care, and Emily Green, MD, assistant vice provost of Faculty Affairs, this year’s program included seven faculty from the Department of Medicine. Participants included Isabel Castro, DO, of Palliative Care, Deepika Devuni, MD, of Gastroenterology, Lara Kovell, MD, of Cardiovascular Medicine, Anila Medina, MD, of Geriatric Medicine, and Karen Salomon-Escoto, MD, Zheni Stavre, MD, and Peggy Wu, MD, all of Rheumatology.

The six-session program which ran from January through March was well-received with participants reporting that it was “transformational”, “invaluable”, and a “great experience”.  

Apurv Soni, Neil Marya, and Honghuang Lin Present at 2024 UMass Chan Media Fellowship 

Left to Right: Drs. Marya, Soni, and Lin

A media fellowship participant holds the Heart Seat from the COMMODE-seat study

Apurv Soni, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Health Systems Science, Clinical Informatics Section, Neil Marya, MD, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology, and Honghuang Lin, PhD, professor of medicine in the Division of Health Systems Science, all co-directors in the Program in Digital Medicine, recently presented at the 2024 UMass Chan Media Fellowship in March. There, Drs. Soni, Marya, and Lin presented their work on artificial intelligence in health care.

Gender Affirming Care Focus of Resident Retreat and Upcoming Summit 

Pictured above: Primary Care Track residents at the Worcester Historical Museum

In March, Primary Care Track residents held their annual off-campus day-long retreat at the Worcester Historical Museum where they learned about a variety of topics on gender-affirming care. The focus of this year’s retreat was chosen so that residents would have a greater understanding and increased comfort with how to care for this patient population. “We were fortunate to have local and outside speakers who shared their expertise, and eloquent patients who so passionately shared their journeys,” said Elizabeth Murphy, MD, program director of the Primary Care Track and associate professor of medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine.

On May 3, the UMass Chan/UMMH community will also have the opportunity to learn more about caring for the trans and gender-diverse community at the Affirming Health Care for our Trans and Gender Diverse Community Summit. “This summit is a great opportunity to bring together faculty, students, and caregivers across the UMMH and UMass Chan community who are committed to improving care for our trans and gender non-conforming patients,” said Deborah Blazey-Martin, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine, chief of the Division of General Internal Medicine, and vice chair for ambulatory affairs in the Department of Medicine.

Please note that the summit is not open to the general public and pre-registration is required for all attendees. Register

News from the Internal Medicine Residency

The Internal Medicine Residency is excited to share the results of this year’s match that took place on Friday, March 15, 2024. The Categorical, Primary Care, Med-Peds, and Preliminary Tracks all had exceptional matches. Not only did we match 15 UMass Chan Medical School students, but we also matched some outstanding students from some of the top medical schools in the country. We are very much looking forward to our new class of interns that will be arriving in mid-June! 

Click the button below to view the matches for the 2024-2025 class at UMass Chan.

Hyein Sarah Lee Wins Second Place in Gerald F. Berlin Prize for Creative Writing 

Hyein Sarah Lee, an MD/PhD student in the lab of Dr. Apurv Soni at UMass Chan, was awarded second place in the 20th Annual Gerald F. Berlin Prize for Creative Writing for her poem titled, “To Be a Body.” Sarah explains that their poem reflects what it means to be foreign in a body, society, and nation. “The poem came to me when dealing with my mother’s sudden cancer diagnosis as I entered medical school in 2021 when the COVID pandemic was still relatively new, and I began to make connections between the betrayal we experience in different bodies,” said Sarah. “This poem weaves together the anxieties of the COVID-19 pandemic, the violence of anti-Asian racism, and the devastating impact of illness.”

Sarah’s poem will be published in The Interstitium (a blog started in 2019 by a UMass Chan medical student) and was recited at the Gerald F. Berlin award ceremony on Tuesday, March 26, 2024. 

Peter Rice Awarded Title of Professor Emeritus

Peter Rice, MD, has been awarded the title of professor emeritus of medicine. Dr. Rice is a physician-scientist in the Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology whose work has focused on translational and clinical studies involving vaccines and therapeutics for Neisseria gonorrhoeae and the study of gonococcal immune mechanisms involved in pathogenesis and protection in animal models. In addition to his research, clinical efforts, and service, he served as chair of the Department Personnel Action Committee (DPAC) for the Department of Medicine from 2008 to June 2022.

Dr. Rice joined UMMH and UMass Chan as a faculty member in 2005. Prior to arriving at UMass, he was the chief of the Section of Infectious Diseases at Boston University Medical Center (BUMC) from 1996 -2005, interim director of Infectious Diseases at Boston City and BUMC from 1995-96, and chief of Infectious Diseases at Boston City Hospital from 1990-95.

Congratulations on this prestigious award, Dr. Rice!

Affirming Health Care for our Trans and Gender Diverse Community Summit: Program Registration and Call for Posters

When: May 3, 2024, 2 – 5:00 p.m.

Where: Faculty Conference Room, UMass Chan Medical School

About the summit:

Please mark your calendars and register for the upcoming Affirming Health Care for our Trans and Gender Diverse Community Summit. The summit will bring together caregivers, faculty, learners, and others who are interested in health care for trans and gender-diverse communities to celebrate the ongoing work in LGBTQIA+ care, to hear directly from local members of the trans and gender-diverse community about their healthcare needs and desires, and to connect with and learn from others to energize us for the work ahead. The event will feature keynote speaker, Dallas Ducar, MSN, APRN, CEO of Transhealth, as well as a patient and community voices panel facilitated by Dr. Kai da Costa, and a poster session for caregivers, students, and faculty. Please note that this event is not open to the general public and pre-registration is required for all attendees. For more information and to register, click on the button below.

Call for posters:

Research and program implementation poster proposals will be accepted through April 8, 2024. Faculty, fellows, residents, and students doing research in the LGBTQIA+ space are encouraged to submit proposals.

Click on the button below to learn more and submit your proposal. 

Annual Lupus Symposium: Register and Save the Date

We invite members of the UMass community to join us for the annual Lupus Medical and Educational Symposium, on Thursday, May 9, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m., at the Beechwood Hotel in Worcester, MA.

View the event flyer and register by clicking the button below.

Internal Medicine Resident and Fellow Poster Day: Save the Date!

Members of the UMass community are invited to join us for the Department of Medicine Resident and Fellow Poster Day on Thursday, May 23, 2024, from noon to 2:00 p.m., in the faculty conference room.

View the event flyer by clicking the button below.

GI Research Day: Save the Date!



June 7, 2024

8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Faculty Conference Room and Medical School Lobby

UMass Chan Medical School

Abstract deadline: April 19, 2024

Pictured above: Dr. Michael Diamond at the Second Annual Robert W. Finberg Memorial Lecture

The Department of Medicine Grand Rounds series continued in March with presentations from Dr. Arturo Casadevall titled, "On the Origin of Microbial Virulence," Dr. Dae Hyun Kim titled, "Frailty-Guided Clinical Management: Emerging Evidence and its Potential for Personalized Care for Older Adults," and from Dr. V. Michael Holers titled, "Emerging Opportunities in Rheumatoid Arthritis: The Study of At-Risk Individuals Informs the Pathway to Prevention."

Additionally, the department held the second annual Robert W. Finberg Memorial Lecture, featuring guest speaker Dr. Michael Diamond titled, "Structure-Function and Evolutionary Relationships of Alphavirus Entry Receptors." This week, the department held the annual Howe Lecture, featuring Dr. Jennifer Reidy titled, "I'm Finally Learning How to Live with my Lung Disease: A Patient's Story of Palliative Care and Digital Medicine."

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 and promotions:

Appointments

Bishow Aryal, MD

Hospital Medicine

Assistant Professor

Andrew El-Hayek, MD

Hospital Medicine

Assistant Professor

Jan Fouad, MD

Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine

Assistant Professor

Muhammad Haq, MD

Hospital Medicine

Assistant Professor

Ryan Holstead, MD

Hematology/Oncology

Assistant Professor

Sarah Hyder, MD

Gastroenterology

Associate Professor

Vaikom Mahadevan, MD

Cardiology

Professor, Tenure Track

Geneva Mehta, MD

Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine

Assistant Professor

Wendy Mitchell, MD

Hospital at Home

Assistant Professor

Lauren Needell, DO

Community Internal Medicine

Assistant Professor

Tung (Tom) Phan, MD

General Internal Medicine

Assistant Professor

Theodore Rader, MD

Infectious Diseases and Immunology

Assistant Professor

Prashanth Rau, MD

Gastroenterology

Assistant Professor

Promotions

Read Pukkila-Worley, MD

Infectious Diseases and Immunology Professor, Tenure Track

Please join us in welcoming our newest hires:

David Dosa, MD

Geriatric Medicine

Chief

Shruti Hegde, MD, FACC

Cardiovascular Medicine

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

To submit your ideas for a future DoM CONNECT story, please email us.