New sl et t er - TOMORROW A GIFT FOR A BETTER CONGRATULATIONS AWA RDS/ NEW FACULTY UPDATES INTERIM CHA IR - UNM Health Sciences Center
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New sl et t er
Term : W int er | Issue 2 | Feb ruary 17, 20 21
INTERIM CHA IR
UPDATES
NEW FACULTY
AWA RDS/
CONGRATULATIONS
A GIFT FOR A BETTER
TOMORROW
M ESSAGE FROM T HE I NT ERI M CHAI R
Hello and w elcom e t o t he Dep art m ent of Surg ery W int er 20 21
New slet t er.
It has b een over a year since t he 1st rep ort ed case of COVID-19 in t he
Unit ed St at es and 11 m ont hs since t he 1st case in NM. Since t hat t im e
w e have end ured several w aves of t his t errib le p and em ic in t he US,
NM and here at UNM. There have b een over 26 m illion confirm ed
cases of COVID-19 in t he US and ap p roaching 50 0 ,0 0 0 d eat hs. In
New Mexico w hile w e init ially fared b et t er w it h st rict p ub lic healt h
ord ers have now had 178,0 0 0 confirm ed cases and over 34 0 0 d eat hs.
At UNM w e have had t o m anag e m ult ip le crit ically ill and d ying p at ient s m any of w hom could not
b e visit ed by fam ily m em b ers at t im es p ushing our p rofessional and em ot ional cap acit y t o t he
lim it . Rest rict ions and im p act s t o our p rofessional and d aily life, socializing and t ravel has b een
hard on all of us and w ellb eing and p eer sup p ort rem ain keys t o help each ot her t hroug h t his
d ifficult p eriod . The surg ery d ep art m ent A PP?s, resid ent s and facult y have volunt eered in m ult ip le
areas of need d uring t his p and em ic all t he w hile cont inuing t o m aint ain hig h volum es of urg ent
and em erg ent surg ical care.
W hile t his p and em ic is far from over, t here are t hing s t o celeb rat e as w e have ent ered 20 21. UNM
has em erg ed as a lead er in our st at e in p rovid ing care, coord inat ing care t hroug hout our st at e,
involvem ent w it h COVID research, and now lead ing t he vaccinat ion effort s. We have rap id ly
ad ap t ed and evolved as a healt h syst em ab le t o m anag e an alread y at cap acit y healt h care
syst em t o d eliver care t o so m any m ore p at ient s in need . The vaccinat ion effort s at UNM have
b een w ell coord inat ed and p raised as w e have led t he st at e in d ist rib ut ing vaccinat ions. Over
28,0 0 0 vaccines have b een ad m inist ered at UNM init ially t o UNM healt hcare w orkers and st aff at
UNM Hosp it al and now t o t he com m unit y at t he Pit . Many t hanks t o all t hose w ho have
volunt eered in t he vaccinat ion effort s. A lm ost 12% of New Mexicans have receive at least one
d ose of t he COVID-19 vaccine w it h one of t he hig hest vaccine rat es in t he count ry.
A lso on t he b rig ht sid e UNM Healt h Syst em has rem ained fiscally sound w it h no salary cut s and
no furloug hs of st aff and facult y. The New Hosp it al Tow er p roject has rem ained on sched ule w it h
p hase 2 b eg inning w it h const ruct ion of a new 14 0 0 car g arag e. Phase 3 w ill b eg in next year w it h
const ruct ion of t he new hosp it al t ow er w it h 18 new op erat ing room s, 96 new ICU b ed s, new
im ag ing syst em s and new ad ult em erg ency room . First p at ient s t o b e ad m it t ed t o t he new t ow er
rem ains on t arg et for Oct ob er, 20 24 . Current ly aft er several m ont hs t he p ed iat ric BBRP op erat ing
room s have reop ened Feb ruary 1st for p ed iat ric surg ery cases. The m ain op erat ing room has
b eg un ag ain p erform ing all elect ive cases in ad d it ion t o t he urg ent / em erg ent op erat ive cases.
OSIS has cont inued t o b e b usy w it h out p at ient surg eries and now t he SRMC op erat ing room are
ag ain fully op en t o p rovid e m uch need ed b acklog g ed p roced ures.
Ad d it ional recent g reat new s is t hat UNM received full inst it ut ional accred it at ion by ACGME as
out lined in t his new slet t er by Dr. Russell. We had a very successful int erview p rocess for all our
surg ical t raining p rog ram s t his year all cond uct ed over zoom for t he 1st t im e. I m ust ad m it aft er 16 zoom int erview s in a d ay of out st and ing ap p licant s for our g eneral surg ical t raining p rog ram and 12 st raig ht hours of zoom I w as excit ed b ut exhaust ed . Mat ch d ay is rig ht around t he corner and I look forw ard t o w elcom ing a new g roup of int erns int o all of our surg ical t raining p rog ram s in July. Our annual surg ery d ep art m ent research sym p osium w ill occur ag ain in a virt ual fashion as d iscussed by Dr. Das. Concerns of t he cont inued p and em ic and t he p ub lic healt h ord ers m ake an in p erson sym p osium im p ossib le. The keynot e sp eaker w ill b e Dr. Pet er Gloviczki and t he event w ill b e on Frid ay June 18t h, 20 21. Here in t he d ep art m ent of surg ery w e are cont inuing t o g row w it h at least 8 new facult y hires p end ing . We also p lan t o creat e a Vice Chair of Diversit y, Eq uit y and Inclusion in t he d ep art m ent t hat in conjunct ion w it h t he learning environm ent office w it h focus on zero t olerance for m ist reat m ent of st ud ent and resid ent learners. Our g oal is a sup p ort ive environm ent for all facult y, resid ent s, A PP?s and st aff w it h a d iverse b ackg round t o rep resent t he d iverse land scap e of t he p eop le of New Mexico. Ot her up d at es includ e t he form at ion of an Office of Surg ical Research t o p rovid e our resid ent s and facult y need ed sup p ort in ad m inist rat ion, research coord inat ion and b iost at ist ics. Finally, UNM and t he d ep art m ent of surg ery should b e know n nat ionally and int ernat ionally for rural out reach and g lob al out reach. Rural healt h is so im p ort ant t o our st at e. We have a st rong found at ion at UNM w it h p roject ECHO and ot her out reach p rog ram s. Our w ork w it h Nat ive A m erican and Hisp anic cult ures is at t he core of our m issions. We are furt her exp loring g row ing of our resid ent s t raining p rog ram s w it h st rong er collab orat ion w it h t he Vet eran A ffairs and Lovelace Healt h Care Syst em s. I hop e t hat you all enjoy t his new slet t er and w e w ill cont inue t o focus in fut ure ed it ions on our d ep art m ent , our t raining p rog ram s b ut also our p ast g rad uat es and facult y of UNM and t heir act ivit ies. W hile t here ap p ears t o b e som e end t o t he p and em ic in sig ht w e need t o rem ain vig ilant and p rep ared as new variant s of t he COVID-19 virus are rap id ly em erg ing in t he Unit ed St at es and concerns st ill exist for anot her surg e of cases in March or A p ril. Cont inuing safe COVID p ract ices and vaccinat ing as m any New Mexicans as w e have vaccine availab le are p riorit ies. We have learned t hat w e can d eal w it h t his crisis and w ill b e ab le t o cont inue and resp ond ag ain as need ed in t he fut ure. I am t ruly p roud of t he resp onse of UNM t o t his p and em ic and t he resp onse of our surg ical d ep art m ent t o t he need s of New Mexicans. Thank you for all you cont inue t o d o in t his t im e. Sincerely, John Marek, MD Professor and Int erim Chair, Dep art m ent of Surg ery
DEPART M ENT UPDAT ES
Vice Chair of Diversit y, Eq uit y & Inclusion
Frances A lb a, MD
The Universit y of New Mexico School of Med icine ( UNM SOM) is
com m it t ed t o enhancing d iversit y and inclusion cap acit y. We are a
m ission d riven inst it ut ion w here w e m easure excellence by our
ab ilit y t o ad vance t he healt h of all New Mexicans by ed ucat ing
and increasing t he d iversit y of healt h p rofessionals, lead ers and
scient ist s.
A s p art of our vision and st rat eg ic p lan t o ad d ress healt h
d isp arit ies, t he school aim s t o t rain st ud ent s w ho rep resent t he st at e?s p op ulat ion. A s such, our
school-d efined d iversit y cat eg ories includ e w om en and und errep resent ed g roup s in m ed icine
( URM) of New Mexico ( Hisp anic, A m erican Ind ian/ A laska Nat ive, A frican A m erican, Viet nam ese)
relat ive t o t he d iverse cult ures and need s of New Mexico?s p op ulat ion.In ad d it ion, having a rural
b ackg round (e.g ., ed ucat ion or d om icile out sid e of Bernalillo Count y, Rio Rancho and Corrales) and
econom ic d isad vant ag e are ad d it ional school d efined d iversit y cat eg ories.Furt herm ore, t he LCME
and ACGME g uid elines call for p olicies and p ract ices t hat focus on m ission-d riven and syst em at ic
recruit m ent and ret ent ion of d iverse st ud ent s, facult y,and st aff.
The Dep art m ent of Surg ery is com m it t ed t o t he UNM School of Med icine's m ission and has
end eavored t hroug h t he creat ion of t he Vice Chair of Diversit y, Eq uit y and Inclusion ( DEI) p osit ion,
t o p riorit ize DEI w it hin our w orkforce.W it hin t he Healt h Sciences Cent er and ind eed , across t he
count ry, effort s have b een m ad e in recent years t o increase recruit m ent of w om en and m inorit ies
int o resid ency p rog ram s.Having a d iverse w orkforce is d esirab le from b ot h a p at ient care and
p hysician ed ucat ion st and p oint .Id eally, it should m irror t he p at ient s t hat w e serve and st ud ent s w e
t each, in t erm s of g end er, racial and et hnic d iversit y. The b enefit s of a d iverse w orkforce are clear
and sup p ort ed in t he lit erat ure.In t he set t ing of acad em ic m ed icine, d iverse facult y allow s for
g end er- and race-concord ant m ent orship op p ort unit ies for fem ale and m inorit y m ed ical st ud ent s,
resid ent s and junior facult y, lead ing t o g reat er d iversit y am ong ap p licant s for p ost g rad uat e
p rog ram s. Trainees in m ore d iverse t raining environm ent s are m ore likely t o b e com fort ab le
m anag ing p at ient s of d ifferent cult ures.This m ay p lay a role in red ucing healt hcare d isp arit ies
am ong our und erserved p op ulat ion.
A current ob ject ive of t he Dep art m ent of Surg ery is t o charact erize our m ake-up and d em og rap hic
in t erm s of g end er, race, et hnicit y, acad em ic rank, t im e in p ract ice, and lead ership roles.We w ill
com p are t his t o our st at e and t he US p op ulat ion.The d ep art m ent w ill p riorit ize recruit m ent effort s
and hiring of d iverse facult y and resid ent s.We w ill b eg in by evaluat ing our hiring p ract ices and
ensuring use of a holist ic review p rocess for resid ency and facult y ap p licant s.The d ivisions w it hin
t he Dep art m ent of Surg ery w ill d esig n our w eb sit es t o reflect t he d iversit y of our d ep art m ent ,
learners and t he p at ient p op ulat ion t hat w e serve.Act ive recruit m ent of w om en and
und errep resent ed m inorit ies for facult y p osit ions w ill b e encourag ed t hroug h net w orking at
reg ional and nat ional conferences. Review ers of ap p licat ions and int erview ees w ill includ e m em b ers
t hat reflect g end er and et hnic d iversit y. Job p ost ing s w ill b e review ed and w ill use inclusive
lang uag e and exp licit ly exp ress our com m it m ent t o increasing d iversit y.
One p rom ising p ract ice t o id ent ify and recruit d iverse m ed ical st ud ent s int o our resid ency
p rog ram s is t o at t end and / or cond uct a p resent at ion at d iversit y-relat ed nat ional org anizat ions.Use
of recruit m ent op p ort unit ies t houg h reg ional and nat ional d iversit y relat ed org anizat ions such as
Lat ino Med ical St ud ent A ssociat ion and A ssociat ion of A m erican Ind ian Physicians is st rong ly
encourag ed . Reso urces are also availab le t hroug h UNM SOM for p rog ram d irect ors, t ip s for
int erview s, and facult y recruit m ent t o o lkit .
In ord er t o sup p ort and ensure our overarching g oal and long -t erm success w it h enhancing DEI
w it hin our d ep art m ent , d iscussions t o ad d ress q uest ions and concerns on
d iversit y/ eq uit y/ ant iracism w ill b e held in t ow n hall and g rand round s form at s.Divisions w ill
incorp orat e ant iracism and cult ural sensit ivit y sp ecific t o New Mexico, int o t heir resid ency t raining
curriculum .Team b uild ing act ivit ies w ill b e encourag ed w it hin and b et w een d ivisions t o im p rove
net w orking , p ot ent ial for m ent orship, and job sat isfact ion.We w ill encourag e, recog nize and rew ard
acad em ic scholarship in DEI and surg ery.Last ly, each one of us is called t o t hink of t he healt h
d isp arit ies t hat our p at ient s m ay b e facing and how w e can b est serve t hem . We m ust reflect and
w ork as ind ivid uals t o confront our ow n im p licit b iases, t o unlearn and ed ucat e ourselves ag ainst
b ias, m icroag g ression, and d iscrim inat ion in our w orkp lace and societ y.We m ust b e an exam p le t o
ot hers for eq ual t reat m ent of our p at ient s and learners, and ad vocat e and act as allies for t hose
w ho face ineq ualit y and d iscrim inat ion.
- Dep art m ent o f Em erg ency Med icine, Diversit y Pag e
- Office fo r Diversit y, Eq uit y, and Inclusio n, HSC
One p rom ising p ract ice t o id ent ify and recruit d iverse m ed ical st ud ent s int o our resid ency
p rog ram s is t o at t end and / or cond uct a p resent at ion at d iversit y-relat ed nat ional org anizat ions.
The at t ached d ocum ent list s som e of t he larg est nat ional d iversit y relat ed m ed ical st ud ent
org anizat ions. The d ocum ent also includ es t heir conference d at es, inform at ion t o sub m it an
ab st ract for p resent at ion and ot her op p ort unit ies t o recruit d iverse t alent .
For exam p le t he Lat ino Med ical St ud ent A ssociat ion ( LMSA ) is host ing t he:
SW REGIONA L CONFERENCE Feb 26-28
W eb sit e | Exhib it o r Sp o nso r Fo rm | A b st ract Sub m issio ns d ue Dec 15
LMSA NATIONA L CONFERENCE March 12-14
Reg ist rat o n | A b st ract Sub m issio ns d ue Jan 9, 20 21
Chief of St aff
Nat han Boyd , MD
Dear Colleag ues,
I am so excit ed t o t ouch b ase w it h you for w hat w ill b e a q uart erly
com m unicat ion com ing from t he Chief of St aff (COS) . A s m any of you
know, I am new t o t his role and looking forw ard t o w orking t og et her
w it h each of you and rep resent ing your int erest s as our healt h syst em
evolves.
The COS p osit ion is m and at ed by t he Joint Com m ission and is
p rim arily resp onsib le for overseeing cred ent ialing and p rivileg ing . The
id ea is t hat a m ed ical st aff isself-g overning in ord er t o p reclud e a
hosp it al?s ad m inist rat ion from using cred ent ialing and p rivileg ing as a
p oint of leverag e over st aff. The COS is also t asked w it h est ab lishing
m echanism s for cont rolling t he q ualit y of care rend ered by m ed ical st aff and p rovid ing a st ruct ure
w here p hysicians have inp ut in reg ard s t o inst it ut ional d ecision m aking . A g ood exam p le of t his
w as t he recent craft ing and p assing of t he m ed ical bylaw s. A s you all know, t he m ost recent round
of bylaw s led t o a p rod uct ive and eng ag ing d iscussion. These t yp es of d iscussions and feed b ack
are crit ical for help ing ensure your voice is heard .
Our next b ig p roject on t he horizon is up d at ing our p eer review p rocess. Current ly w e have a
hig hly d ecent ralized p eer review p rocess t hat is larg ely sep arat e for each d ep art m ent . There has
b een a m ove nat ionally t ow ard s m ore cent ralized p eer review p rocesses t hat use m et rics and d at a
t o p roact ively id ent ify op p ort unit ies for im p roving q ualit y of care. This sort of t ransp arency can b e
int im id at ing for ind ivid ual st aff m em b ers and req uires a g ood d eal of t rust t hat lead ership w ill use
t his inform at ion const ruct ively and not p unit ively. How ever, w hen d one w ell, p eer review can b e an
incred ib le asset in im p roving q ualit y of care. We have assem b led a sup erb t eam of facult y t o help
w it h t his p rocess, and I w ill keep you ap p raised of our p rog ress.
I also w ant ed t o let you know t hat w e w ill b e b ring ing on a Vice-Chief of St aff. The Vice-Chief of
St aff w ill t ransit ion t o b ecom e COS at t he end of t heir t erm . This w ill ensure t hat t he COS has b ot h
t he know led g e and t he p ersonal connect ions t o ensure cont inuit y from one t erm t o t he next and t o
rem ain a consist ent and p ow erful voice for t he m ed ical st aff.
I w ill b e your COS for t he next t w o years and I w ant t o st ay connect ed . Please feel free t o reach out
t o m e anyt im e at UNMH-Chiefo fSt aff@salud .unm .ed u.
Thank you for all of t he w ork t hat you d o every d ay t o creat e p osit ive healt h out com es for all New
Mexicans.
Sincerely,
Nat han Boyd , MD
A ssociat e Professor of Surg ery
Chief of St aff, UNM Hosp it als and Clinics
PAG Presid ent
Karen Haw ley, MD
I am t hrilled and honored t o b e t he PAG Chair for 20 21! Dr. Selina Silva
from t he Dep art m ent of Ort hop ed ic Surg ery d id a fant ast ic job and
b roug ht in t he Dep art m ent Chair p resent at ions in 20 20 . It w as a g reat
op p ort unit y t o learn w hat each Dep art m ent has b een w orking on and t o
g ain p ersp ect ives on som e of t he challeng es t hroug hout t he inst it ut ion.
This year w e w ill b e focusing on im p roving b id irect ional com m unicat ion
b et w een t he UNM HSC Lead ership, t he PAG and m ore front line
p rovid ers as w ell int erd ep art m ent al p resent at ions and d iscussions. I
w ould also like t o alig n t he PAG and t he SSOC t o creat e a unified voice w hen ap p rop riat e.
We have had 2 PAG m eet ing s t hus far in 20 21 and t he g roup has b een q uit e eng ag ed . The PAG w as
st art ed by t he UNMMG just over 10 years ag o, so for our first m eet ing I invit ed all t he p ast Chairs t o
d iscuss how t he PAG w as st art ed and som e of t he key accom p lishm ent s of t he g roup. Hig hlig ht s
includ e t he PAG W hit e Pap ers and t he assist ance of b ring ing t he St ud er Group t o b et t er eng ag e
p hysicians w it h t he lead ership. The d iscussion m ad e it clear t hat w e are in a new era w hen it com es
t o lead ership w it hin t he UNM Healt h Sciences Cent er. Many kud os w ere g iven t o Dr. Irene Ag ost ini
as t he p hysician w ho b roke t he b arriers b et w een front line p rovid ers and ad m inist rat ion. One of t he
clear d ifferences in our current lead ership t eam is sim p ly how eng ag ed t hey are in our PAG
m eet ing s. Lead ers like Dr. McGrew, Dr. McLean and Kat e Becker are reg ularly p resent at t he
m eet ing s. Our second m eet ing w as an op p ort unit y t o g et an up d at e from Kat e Becker. She has
creat ed t hree new p hysician lead ership p osit ions since b ecom ing t he CEO of UNMH includ ing t he
Chief A m b ulat ory Med ical Officer, Chief Med ical Inform at ion Officer and t he Chief Qualit y Officer.
She has also creat ed d yad s t o im p rove com m unicat ion b et w een t he various lead ers; for exam p le
t he Chief Med ical Officer and Chief Nursing Officer. Her focus for 20 21 includ es b uild ing and
p lanning for t he new t ow er, cont inuing t o navig at e COVID and p rovid ing excellence in q ualit y care.
Dr. Lisa Hofler from t he Dep art m ent of OB/ GYN is t he new PAG Chair-Elect and it has b een a
p leasure t o w ork w it h her t hus far. A long w it h Dr. McLean, her and I have b een w orking t o exp and
t he PAG Chart er t o m ake m em b ership m ore inclusive. We are hop ing t o im p rove t he rep resent at ion
of UNMH Geog rap hic Med ical Direct ors, SRMC Facult y and Ad vanced Pract ice Provid ers. A s t he
year p rog resses, I hop e t o furt her eng ag e t he m em b ers of t he PAG t o w ork on id ent ifying our
p riorit ies w it h resp ect t o ease of p ract ice, efficiency and our p hysician voice. By w orking w it h t he
new p hysician lead ers, w e can t hen w ork t og et her t o com e up w it h solut ions t hat are m easurab le
and p alp ab le.
The PAG m eet ing s t ake p lace at 7am on t he 2nd and 4 t h Thursd ays of t he m ont h. These m eet ing s
are op en t o all UNM clinical facult y. If you are int erest ed in at t end ing t he m eet ing s, p lease let m e
know so you can have access t o t he ZOOM links. If t here is som et hing you w ish t o p resent t o
myself or t he PAG, p lease reach out so w e can furt her d iscuss.
Karen Haw ley, MD
Ped iat ric Ot olaryng olog y - Head and Neck Surg ery
A ssist ant Professor - Universit y of New Mexico
Execut ive Surg ical Direct or of Surg ical Services
Julie Riley, MD
St art ing in Oct ob er 20 20 , I have st ep p ed int o a new ly creat ed role of
Execut ive Surg ical Direct or of surg ical services. This has p ut m e in a t riad
w it h t he Med ical Direct or, Dr. Doran and t he Execut ive Direct or, Kevin
Sinclair. This role w as creat ed t o have a surg eon voice in t he execut ive
m anag em ent of t he op erat ing room s at UNMH.
Our g oal is t o im p rove com m unicat ion t o surg eons as w ell as im p rove
com m unicat ion from t he surg eons t o t he d ay-t o-d ay op erat ions of t he
op erat ing room . W it h t his new resp onsib ilit y, I w ould like t o cont inue t o w ork on OR t hroug hp ut
p art icularly w it h efficiency and ease of p ract ice. Current ly m ost of our focus has b een surviving t he
COVID p ost p onem ent s and shift s in OR locat ions. One t op p riorit y is op ening t he ORs and w orking
t hroug h t he b acklog of t he OR. Ot her p oint s of focus are im p roved ut ilizat ion of all of t he surg ical
sit es, d ecreasing rollovers, level of urg ency and im p roved access on t he w eekend s, d ecreasing
t urnover t im es, im p roving first case on t im e st art s and m ovem ent of t he p at ient t hroug h p reop and
PACU.
There is obviously a lot of w ork t o b e d one w it hin surg ical services, b ut w e cont inue t o see slow
im p rovem ent s. I look forw ard t o w orking w it h t he surg eons t o im p rove not just our exp erience in
t he op erat ing room b ut also t o im p rove t he p at ient exp erience w hile m aint aining t he hig h q ualit y
of care w e alw ays d eliver. I am alw ays hap py t o d iscuss your exp eriences b ot h p osit ive and
neg at ive and hop e I serve t he surg eons w ell in my new job t it le.
SRMC Up d at e: Level 3 Traum a Desig nat ion
Pat ricia So ucho n-Sanchez, MD
SRMC has b een w orking on d evelop ing as a Level III Traum a Cent er.The
g oal of t he p rog ram is t o t reat and ad m it Traum a p at ient s at Sand oval
Reg ional Med ical Cent er ( SRMC) , t his w ill allow p at ient s t o receive
excellent t raum a care w hile st aying in t heir com m unit y.
The d esig nat ion of t he p rog ram w ill also help increase t he level of acuit y
for SRMC and d ecom p ress UNMH from Level III t raum a p at ient s, w ho are
current ly b eing t ransferred t here from Sand oval Count y. We w ent live
w it h Traum a Act ivat ions Oct ob er 27, 20 20 . Since g oing live, w e have b een act ivat ing t raum as,
receiving a p rom p t resp onse from our d esig nat ed Traum a Team s, and w e are keep ing t raum a
p at ient s in t heir com m unit y w ho w ould have ot herw ise b een t ransferred UNMH. To ensure p at ient s
are receiving op t im al out com es w e have also form ed a p erform ance im p rovem ent and q ualit y
assurance com m it t ee. In t hat com m it t ee w e are review ing our t raum a chart s for any op p ort unit ies
t o im p rove t raum a care in our syst em . We are ensuring t he im p lem ent at ion of our p olicies and
p roced ures t hat w ere d evelop ed for our p rog ram and evaluat ing for t heir effect iveness. We are
also t racking and t rend ing all t raum a act ivat ions and out com es.
In ad d it ion t o our t raum a com m it t ee m eet ing s and p erform ance im p rovem ent / q ualit y assurance
com m it t ee m eet ing s, SRMC Traum a Prog ram has also b een an act ive p art icip ant in t he Reg ional
Traum a Com m it t ee w hich m eet s q uart erly w it h st akehold ers. SRMC has also b een an act ive
p art icip ant in com m unit y out reach and injury p revent ion event s for Sand oval Count y. We look
forw ard t o cont inue t o w ork and furt her d evelop t his p rog ram for our com m unit y.
EDUCAT I ON UPDAT ES
Vice Chair of Ed ucat ion
Jo hn C. Russell, MD
ACGME Up d at e
UNM recent ly received inst it ut ional ?Cont inued Accred it at ion?
from t he ACGME t o sp onsor resid ency and fellow ship
p rog ram s.A ft er t w o cycles of inst it ut ional accred it at ion st at us of
?Cont inued Accred it at ion w it h Warning ? t his w as m ost w elcom e
new s for everyone involved in resid ent and fellow ed ucat ion, and
for t he lead ership of t he UNM School of Med icine.Cong rat ulat ions
t o Dr. Joanna Fair, Senior A ssociat e Dean for Grad uat e Med ical
Ed ucat ion, and t o her ent ire t eam , for lead ing UNM t o t his out st and ing inst it ut ional accred it at ion
out com e.
In Surg ery w e have fully-accred it ed ACGME resid ency p rog ram s in Ot olaryng olog y/ Head & Neck
Surg ery, Plast ic Surg ery, Surg ery and Urolog y, and fellow ship p rog ram s in Com p lex Surg ical
Oncolog y and Surg ical Crit ical Care.There is an op t ional second year for our Surg ical Crit ical Care
fellow ship, our Acut e Care Surg ery fellow ship p rog ram t hat is accred it ed by t he A m erican
A ssociat ion for t he Surg ery of Traum a ( A A ST) .The excellent accred it at ion st at us of each of our
p rog ram s is in no sm all p art d ue t o t he d aily effort s of our Prog ram and A ssociat e Prog ram
Direct ors, and t o t he Core Facult y in t hese p rog ram s.My t hanks t o you all for your cont rib ut ions t o
our resid ency and fellow ship p rog ram s!
Since 20 12 t here has b een a m ajor chang e in t he ACGME?s p rocess for resid ency p rog ram s, t he
so-called ?New Accred it at ion Syst em ? ( NA D) .Prior t o 20 12, resid ency accred it at ion w as a sp orad ic
p rocess, occurring anyw here from 1 t o 5 year int ervals.A larg e d ocum ent , t he Prog ram Inform at ion
Form ( PIF) , w as p rep ared and sub m it t ed by t he Prog ram Direct or t o t he ACGME, follow ed by a sit e
visit from t he ACGME in w hich t he PIF w as verified by t he sit e visit or t hroug h int erview s w it h
resid ent s and facult y.The p rog ram inform at ion form s and , m ost im p ort ant ly, t he sit e visit or ?s
rep ort s w ere t hen review ed by t hat sp ecialt y?s Resid ency Review Com m it t ee, and a 3-p rong ed
d ecision w as t hen rend ered :
1. A cat eg ory of accred it at ion (cont inued accred it at ion, cont inued accred it at ion w it h w arning ,
p rop osed p rob at ion or p rop osed w it hd raw al of accred it at ion)
2. A list of cit at ions or concerns
3. A leng t h of accred it at ion ( t he int erval t o t he next PIF sub m ission) , w it h ?g ood p rog ram s?
receiving a long er p eriod of accred it at ion ( 5 years m ax)
The NA D m ore closely m im ics t he m ed ical school accred it at ion p rocess of t he LCME ( not
surp rising , as t he lead er of t he ACGME, Dr. Thom as Nasca, is a form er m ed ical school d ean) .It is
now a p rocess of cont inuous, rat her t han sp orad ic, accred it at ion.The leng t h of p rog ram
accred it at ion has b een ext end ed t o 7 years.A ft er init ial accred it at ion, p rog ram s now sub m it annual
rep ort s of p rog ram st at ist ics and t he st at us of p rior RRC cit at ions t o t heir RRC.That d at a, as w ell as
t he result s of t he A nnual Resid ent and Facult y Surveys, are t hen consid ered by t he RRC and a
d ecision is rend ered and com m unicat ed b ack t o t he resid ency p rog ram as t he p rog ram ?s
accred it at ion st at us ( hop efully, cont inued accred it at ion) , t he st at us of p ast cit at ions/ concerns, and
any new cit at ions/ concerns.The RRC can m and at e a short -cycle sub m ission of a full PIF and
t hereaft er a sit e visit aft er a p rob lem at ic annual rep ort or annual resid ent / facult y survey.In my
exp erience t hese ?short -cycle? sit e visit s focus larg ely on t he annual resid ent / facult y survey result s.
We are now in t he p eriod w hen t he A nnual Resid ent and Facult y Surveys for our Surg ery p rog ram s
are op en. A nnual Resid ent Surveys act ually p red at e t he im p lem ent at ion of t he NA D.How ever, w it h
t he NA D t he im p ort ance of t hese surveys on t he accred it at ion st at us of our p rog ram s cannot b e
over-em p hasized .We need hig h p art icip at ion rat es ( m inim um of 70 % p art icip at ion rat e for our
p rog ram s t o receive sum m ary result s of t heir surveys) .Most im p ort ant ly, w e need t he facult y and
resid ent s w ho resp ond t o t hese surveys t o und erst and t he q uest ions t hat are b eing asked , and t o
b e fully know led g eab le ab out t he current effort s of t heir p rog ram s t o ad d ress t he q uest ions b eing
asked .
If you are asked a q uest ion, and if you are unsure ab out w hat your p rog ram is d oing in resp onse t o
t he q uest ion, p lease A SK your p rog ram lead ership b efore resp ond ing .If you have concerns, share
t hose concerns w it h p rog ram lead ership, and g ive t hem a chance t o resp ond b efore com p let ing
your survey.A s w it h t he cust om er sat isfact ion surveys you receive from your aut o d ealership, w e
st rive for a ?5? on all survey q uest ions!
Once ag ain, t hanks for all you d o in sup p ort of our resid ency and fellow ship p rog ram s in Surg ery.
John C. Russell, MD
Professor and Vice Chair for Ed ucat ion
Resid ecy Up d at e
Renee Pep in, MD
At t he end of 20 20 , all d ep art m ent s w ere ap p roved t o use
d ep art m ent al fund s t o p urchase care p ackag es for resid ent s and
fellow s for t he holid ay season. We w ere very excit ed t o b e ab le t o
p urchase t hese care p ackag es for our hard -w orking housest aff
and as a g roup, w e d id research and d ecid ed on Craveb ox care
p ackag es, w hich are full of all sort s of g ood ies t o fuel our b usy
housest aff.
These w ere p urchased from A m azon. W hen t hey arrived , w e st art ed op ening t hem and realized
t hat t here w ere t w ice as m any as w hat w as ord ered . We looked b ack at t he ord er and saw t hat t he
ord er w as som ehow d up licat ed . A m azon w as cont act ed and t he sit uat ion exp lained ? w e w ere
shocked and very g rat eful w hen t old t hat b ecause it w as food , t hey could not t ake it b ack so t hey
w ould refund t he m oney and t he b oxes could b e used as w e w ished .
We w ere very hap py t o b e ab le t o t urn t his around and d onat e t hese it em s on b ehalf of t he
Dep art m ent of Surg ery t o t he A lb uq uerq ue com m unit y.
Donat ions w ere m ad e t o t he follow ing org anizat ions: Rio Grand e Valley Chap t er of t he Blue St ar
Mot hers, w hich send s care p ackag es t o t he t roop s overseas; Safe House, w hich houses survivors of
int im at e p art ner violence: and A lb uq uerq ue Pub lic School, Social and Em ot ional Learning Prog ram
t o sup p ort Sp ecial Ed in t he Red .RESEARCH UPDAT ES
Vice Chair of Research
A rup Das, MD, PhD, FA RVO
7t h A nnual Surg ery Research Sy m p osium is Go ing Virt ual!
The Dep art m ent of Surg ery in collab orat ion w it h t he
Dep art m ent of Op ht halm olog y p lans t o org anize t he virt ual
m eet ing of t he A nnual Surg ery Research Sym p osium ( A SRS) on
Frid ay June 18, 20 21. This is t he sevent h year of t he sym p osium ,
a p op ular ed ucat ional/ research forum for t he Dep art m ent .
Due t o t he p ervasive sp read of t he virus, and lim it at ions on t he
venue cap acit y and social d ist ancing m easures, t he Dep art m ent
has d ecid ed t o m ove t he A SRS 20 21 A nnual Meet ing t o a fully
virt ual event . The healt h, safet y and w ell-b eing of all of us cont inues t o b e our hig hest p riorit y. Last
year, d esp it e Covid -19, w e had a very successful virt ual Scient ific Meet ing , hig hlig ht ing key research
w ork by our ow n st ud ent s, resid ent s and facult y.
The m eet ing st art s at 8am w it h t he Grand Ro und t alk by t he keynot e sp eaker, Dr. Pet er Gloviczki, MD,
FACS, a w orld renow ned vascular surg eon. The t it le of his t alk is?The A rt of Venous Surg ery in t he
End ovascular era?. He is current ly t he Joe M. and Rut h Rob ert s Professor of Surg ery ( Em erit us) of t he
Division of Vascular and End ovascular Surg ery, Mayo Clinic, Rochest er, and also ed it or-in-chief of t he
Journal of Vascular Surg ery.
The Grand Round t alk w ill b e follow ed by t he Po d ium Present at io ns ( 11 p ap ers) at 9am -12p m , lunch
b reak ( 12-12:30 p m ) and t hen t he Po st er Sessio ns ( 12:30 -2p m ) . A ll t he p ost ers w ill b e p resent ed in
p arallel sessions in four vid eo kiosks. The p resent at ions ( by resid ent s and st ud ent s) w ill b e jud g ed by
t he p anel of jud g es from t he facult y. The aw ard select ion cat eg ory w ill b e as follow s:
- Pap ers: First Prize ( $30 0 ) ; Ho no rab le Ment io n ( $50 )
- Po st ers: First Prize ( $20 0 ) , Seco nd Prize: $150 , Third Prize: ( $10 0 ) ; Ho no rab le Ment io n ( $50 ) .
I w ould encourag e all t he facult y, resid ent s and st ud ent s t o sub m it t heir ab st ract s t o Celia Baca at
cb aca4 0 @salud .unm .ed u by March 15, 20 21. You w ill receive an ab st ract sched uling not ificat ion on
A p ril 12 t o ad vise you of your ab st ract ?s p resent at ion form at ( p ap er or p ost er) and it s sched uled
session, and p resent at ion t im e.
The 20 21 A nnual Meet ing is an accred it ed cont inuing m ed ical ed ucat ion (CME) act ivit y. At t end ees w ill
earn A MA PRA Cat eg ory 3.5 Cred it ? for p art icip at ing in t he Meet ing .
I w ould also req uest our facult y m em b ers t o sub m it t heir list of p ub licat ions for t he last t w o years and
any g rant info t o us so t hat w e can includ e it in t he Prog ram Book.
You can rest assured t hat t he virt ual 7t h A nnual Surg ery Research Sym p osium w ill cont inue t o b e t he
scient ific forum for all of us in t he Dep art m ent unit ed w it h exchang e of know led g e and ad vances in
research. We look forw ard t o seeing you, virt ually, in June.
A rup Das, MD, PhD, FA RVO
Vice Chair of Research, Dep art m ent of Surg ery
Reg ent s?and Dist ing uished Professor of Op ht halm olog yResid ent Research Sp ot lig ht
Ro b in B. Oso fsky, MD
General Surg ery Resid ent , PGY-3
Surg ical Research Fellow
During my t w o years of d ed icat ed research, I have b een fort unat e
enoug h t o p art icip at e in a variet y of p roject s in vascular surg ery,
crit ical care, t raum a, 3D p rint ing , surg ical hyd rod ynam ics, and w ound
healing . My vascular surg ery research has focused on carot id b od y
t um ors (CBT) and p ercut aneous art eriovenous fist ulas ( AVF) . Und er
t he g uid ance of Dr. A li Rana, I invest ig at ed t he effect s of p reop erat ive
em b olizat ion on surg ical out com es for CBT resect ions. Our result s
w ere p resent ed at t he Rocky Mount ain Vascular Societ y and t he
Societ y for Clinical Vascular Surg ery annual m eet ing s. In 20 19, UNMH
b eg an it s p ercut aneous AVF p rog ram . W it h Dr. Leanne Chavez?s m ent orship, I st ud ied t he
ap p licab ilit y of t his novel d ialysis access t echniq ue by com p aring our p ercut aneously-creat ed and
surg ically-creat ed AVFs out com es. These d at a w ere p resent ed at t he West ern Vascular Societ y
m eet ing and our m anuscrip t w as recent ly accep t ed t o t he A nnals of Vascular Surg ery.
I have t aking ad vant ag e of UNMH?s rob ust ext racorp oreal m em b rane oxyg enat ion p rog ram . Und er
Dr. Sund eep Guliani?s d irect ion, I exp lored t he clinical im p act of p erform ing early p rot ocolized
w hole b od y CT scan for p at ient s req uiring ext racorp oreal card iop ulm onary resuscit at ion.Our
m anuscrip t is current ly und erg oing revisions w it h t he Journal ofA m erican Societ y for A rt ificial
Int ernal Org ans.
Ad d it ionally, I b eg an a collab orat ive effort w it h t he New Mexico Dep art m ent of Transp ort at ion
( NM-DOT) and our t raum a d ep art m ent ut ilizing d at ab ase int eg rat ion t o id ent ify
p reviously-overlooked p ed est rian vs. aut om ob ile risk fact ors w hich can b e used for t arg et ed safet y
init iat ives. Our find ing s and recom m end at ions have b een incorp orat ed int o t he NM-DOT Vision
Zero act ion p lan. Ad d it ionally, t hese d at a w ere p resent ed at t he Reg ion 6 Com m it t ee on Traum a
Resid ent Research Com p et it ion, w here it received first p rize.
Ut ilizing t he Surg ery Dep art m ent ?s new Ult im aker S5 3D p rint er, I b eg an t w o SRIA-fund ed p roject s
t hat ap p ly 3D p rint ing in t raum a and ot olaryng olog y surg ery und er t he g uid ance of Dr. Richard
Miskim ins and Dr. Terra Brennan, resp ect ively. We first ut ilized t his t echnolog y in t he m anag em ent
of p at ient s w it h severe t raum at ic chest w all d eform it ies req uiring rib p lat ing . Sp ecifically, w e
g enerat e a 3D-p rint ed m od el of t he p at ient ?s rib s t hat is used for p reop erat ive p lanning and
p reop erat ive p lat e cont ouring . Ad d it ionally, w e have ap p lied 3D p rint ing for t he creat ion of cust om
nasal p rost het ics for p at ient s w ho are ot herw ise not cand id at es for t issue reconst ruct ions.
I have used CT-d erived 3D m od els t o st ud y surg ical hyd rod ynam ics und er d irect ion of Dr. Ross
Clark. In effort t o b et t er p rog nost icat e t he d urab ilit y of com p lex aort ic reconst ruct ions w e b eg an a
collab orat ion w it h t he UNM School of Eng ineering . Sp ecifically, CT-d erived virt ual 3D m od els of
various p at ient vascular reconst ruct ions und erg o com p ut at ion fluid d ynam ic analysis t o id ent ify
g raft config urat ions w hich m ay b e at -risk for failure. This w ork is current ly sup p ort ed by t w o
int ra-m ural g rant s. We are p rep aring an NIH sub m ission for next year.
A lso, in Dr. Clark?s lab, w e invest ig at e t he role of hyd rog en sulfid e in w ound healing and
ang iog enesis. Our focus is t o d evelop an im p lant ab le b iocom p at ib le sulfid e-elut ing m at rix t o
aug m ent w ound healing . Current ly, w e are cond uct ing sulfid e elut ion assays of t hese m at rices using
hig h p erform ance liq uid chrom at og rap hy w it h hop es t o soon t ransit ion our effort s t o m urine
m od els.NEW FACULT Y
Division of Ot olaryng olog y
Miriam Red leaf, MD
Dr. Miriam Red leaf com es t o us from Universit y of Illinois, Chicag o w here
she w as t he Louis J. Mayer Professor of Ot olaryng olog y and Direct or of
Ot olog y and Neurot olog y since 20 11. She received her M.D. at t he
Universit y of Chicag o Prit zker School of Med icine and com p let ed b ot h her
Ot olaryng olog y resid ency and her Neurot olog y fellow ship at t he Universit y
of Iow a. She is b oard cert ified in b ot h Ot olaryng olog y and Neurot olog y.
Dr. Red leaf has aut hored 88 p eer-review ed p ub licat ions and 12 b ook
chap t ers. She is t he ed it or for t he A nnals of Ot olog y, Rhinolog y and Laryng olog y b ut t he
achievem ent she is m ost p roud of is t he Ot olog ic Surg ery Training and Cert ificat ion p rog ram t hat
she est ab lished in Et hiop ia.
Dr. Red leaf has b een t raining m ed ical st ud ent s and resid ent s since 1994 , and she w as insp ired t o
com e t o t he Universit y of New Mexico t o cont inue her p assion for t eaching and serving b ot h
urb an and rural com m unit ies. She w as esp ecially m oved by t he p ossib ilit y of w orking w it h her
associat e Dr. Brad ley Picket t and she has p rom ised t o never ab and on him on a p ow d ery ski slop e
w it h one ski.
AWARDS & CONGRAT ULAT I ONS
iCA RE AWA RDS
Cong rat ulat ions t o Jaso n W ilso n, w ho received Cong rat ulat ions t o Jaso n W ilso n, w ho received
an iCare Aw ard from Carlos Baca! an iCare Aw ard from Susan B Schlesing er!
Dr. W ilson is a wonderful provider, we feel Thank you for your awesome care of my
fortunate our son is in his care. daughter! You were a big part of the reason we
fought to have her procedure done in Peds.
BIRTH A NNOUNCEMENTS
Cong rat ulat ions
t o Dr. Reb ecca
Cong rat ulat ions t o W illiam s?Karensky
Dr. Tara Brennan and and her husb and Ben
her husb and on t he
Hanken on t he b irt h of
b irt h of t heir b aby g irl.
t heir b aby g irl.
Fio na Therese Cro nin
w as b o rn o n 1/ 8/ 21. So p hia w as b o rn o n
12/ 31/ 20 at 10 :0 1am . 6lb 9oz, 17 inches long .GI VI NG BACK
A Gift for a Bet t er Tom orrow
Tesar & Lind st ro m Sup p o rt Tem p o ral
Bo ne Surg ical Sim ulat io n Lab o rat o ry
The Universit y of New Mexico Tem p oral Bone Surg ical
Sim ulat ion Lab orat ory is an essent ial p art of t he
Ot olaryng olog y/ Head & Neck Surg ery t raining p rog ram . Ear
surg ery is int ricat e and successful op erat ions req uire t hat
surg eons have com p rehensive t hree-d im ensional
Dr. Chuck Tesar, Ms. Brita Lindstrom and Bonzai
und erst and ing of m id d le ear, m ast oid and inner ear anat omy.
In t he lab orat ory, Ot olaryng olog y resid ent s are ab le t o d issect cad averic t em p oral b ones t o p erfect
t heir surg ical skills b efore op erat ing on p at ient s. Microscop es, surg ical d rills w it h cooling irrig at ion,
sp ecialize surg ical inst rum ent s and surg ical w orkst at ions are req uired for all resid ent s and st ud ent s
d uring facult y p recep t ed d issect ion sessions.
W hile t he lab orat ory has exist ed for alm ost 30 years, t he eq uip m ent has g rad ually fallen int o p oor
rep air. For t he last 7 years t he Division of Ot olaryng olog y/ Head & Neck Surg ery has b een w orking t o
rem od el and up d at e t he lab orat ory t o have at least 5 fully funct ional w orkst at ions.
We are sincerely g rat eful t o Dr. Chuck Tesar and his w ife Brit a for t heir g enerous $25,0 0 0
cont rib ut ion for t hese w orkst at ions. W it hout t heir g enerosit y t his rem od eling p roject w ould not b e
p ossib le.
Brad ley Picket t , MD, Division of Ot olaryng olog y
Pl ease
The m ission of our Surg ery Dep art m ent is t o p rom ot e com p assionat e
M ak e a Gi f t surg ical care, innovat ive research and t he t raining of our fut ure lead ers in
surg ical sciences.
t o Suppor t
Our research p rog ram s t ouch m any of t he com p lex and crit ical healt h
Su r ger y issues faced by New Mexicans.
Resear ch . By m aking a g ift t o fund surg ical research, yo u help t o clo se t he g ap
b et w een early d iscoveries d o ne in t he research lab s and d elivering
cut t ing ed g e p at ient care. By cho o sing t o m ake a g ift , yo u help t he
UNM Dep art m ent o f Surg ery ad d ress healt hcare challeng es and
d evelo p so lut io ns t hat w ill lead t o im p roved healt h o f ind ivid uals and
fam ilies in o ur co m m unit y.
Please cont act : Meg an Dug an, UNM Fo und at io n
Meg an.Dug an@unm f und .o rg 50 5.328.6 529 w w w.unm f und .o rg
UNM Found at ion, Tw o Wood w ard Circle, 70 0 Lom as Blvd , Suit e 10 8
A lb uq uerq ue, 8710 2NEW HOSPITA L TOW ER IN FRONT W ITH NEW
PA RKING GA RAGE BEHIND
( parallel to Lomas and West of BBRP)
Visit hsc.unm .ed u/ m ed icine/ d ep art m ent s/ surg ery for new s and up d at es
Do Yo u Have a Sub m issio n fo r Quart erly Dep art m ent new slet t er?
Em ail jserna@salud .unm .ed u w it h your p rop osed cont ent and any relevant flyers
or im ag es.You can also read
