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A Year in Review

CAMPUS

Children’s Hospital honored by CHILD CHILD magazine’s December 2004 issue listed the MUSC Children’s Hospital as one of the top 25 in the U.S. This is the third consecutive Best Children’s Hospitals survey in which MUSC was included in the elite list. The MUSC Children’s Hospital neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) was named one of the country’s top 10. Jan. 21

CRI dedication held Feb. 10 Dedication ceremonies for the Charles P. Darby Children’s Research Institute were held Feb. 10 in the MUSC Basic Science Building Auditorium and included a ribbon-cutting in the lobby of the Darby Children’s Research Institute. Feb. 4

Ceremony marks beginning of new hospital construction The first phase of the new MUSC hospital complex includes a 641,000 square-foot building to accommodate cardiovascular and digestive disease services. April 15

Ashley-Rutledge Garage opens to visitors Patient visitor parking availability on campus increased by about 640 spaces with the opening of the Ashley-Rutledge Garage June 20. Tight employee parking also breathed a sigh of relief with the freeing of former patient spaces for employee use in the Rutledge Tower garage. June 24

Wellness Center pool opens with a splash Exercising outside in Charleston’s sweltering heat is an effort reserved for the most devoted of athletes. As of early August, student athletes and workout devotees welcomed the re-opening of MUSC Wellness Center’s indoor pool. Aug. 26

Accreditation affirms COM achievement Measuring success and achieving excellence is the goal of medical education programs across the country. In June, MUSC’s College of Medicine won accreditation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, an accrediting body that approves programs awarding medical degrees. Sept. 2

New CHP complex opens its doors The College of Health Professions (CHP) officially opened its doors in August, welcoming students to their new surroundings and ushering in an innovative era of learning and discovery for the state’s next generation of health professionals and health industry leaders. Sept. 30

HCC tower opens, expands patient care services It was less than four years since MUSC officials broke ground on the Hollings Cancer Center (HCC) Expansion Project. With completion of the project, patients, physicians and staff settled into spacious clinical surroundings and functional lab facilities. Oct. 7

Free CARTA bus service offered to MUSC family People in New York City, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Philadelphia do it. Now MUSC employees can do it too, for free. Oct. 14

CLINICAL

DDC ranks among best in nation according to US News & World Report MUSC continued to rank among the top 50 health care facilities in the nation. MUSC’s Digestive Disease Center  again obtained national recognition in this year’s U.S. News & World Report with a ranking of 31. Consistent team work among gastroenterologists and surgeons under the leadership of DDC director Peter Cotton, M.D., makes this center one of the best in the nation. July 15

Children’s Hospital PCICU expands to 12 beds It seems that almost no hospital unit is immune to growing pains, and as the only unit of its kind in the state, the Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (PCICU) felt those pains with each passing day. But finally a cure for those pains comes from the expansion of the eight-bed unit to 12 beds. On Aug. 25, the new unit space became official. Aug. 19

Program serves neediest children, saves money A nationally acclaimed program that provides superior health care to South Carolina’s most needy children and saves the state money opened in Charleston. The Medically Fragile Children’s Program had its genesis in Columbia and expanded to the Upstate. The new Lowcountry facility is located at the old Baker Hospital in North Charleston. Aug. 19

Cardiac Transplant Program ranks first in Southeast The MUSC Cardiac Transplant Program ranked first in the Southeast and second in the nation in one-year survival rates, according to a report released by the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients. Oct. 7

MUSC wins Consumer Choice Award The National Research Corporation named the MUSC Medical Center as a 2005/2006 Consumer Choice Award winner.
The MUSC Medical Center is the only institution in the Charleston market to receive this award, and this is the eighth year in a row that the medical center was recognized. Oct. 14

Dress code will help identify health care role Everyone who cares for or works toward providing MUSC patients with high quality, professional care would agree that it’s important to listen when those patients make a request. This helped MUSC administration arrive at the decision to begin a new dress code with the opening of the new hospital in spring 2007. Oct. 28

FACULTY
Findings by MU faculty published in JAMA Physicians can minimize radiation exposure, avoid an invasive procedure and reduce health care costs by relying on a spiral CT scan in cases of suspected pulmonary embolism, according to a study in the April 27 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). April 29

Sanders appointed dean of dental medicine The MUSC Board of Trustees voted unanimously on May 19 to approve the appointment of John J. “Jack” Sanders, DDS, as dean of the College of Dental Medicine, effective June 1. Sanders served as interim dean since July 1, 2004. May 27

Appointment of Joseph Jenrette announced Joseph Jenrette, M.D., was appointed as chairman of the Department of Radiation Oncology. Jenrette is a highly respected MUSC alumnus whose career with the university spans more than three decades.
June 10

Karig selected as campus dean The South Carolina College of Pharmacy announced the appointment of Arnold W. Karig, Ph.D., as MUSC campus dean. Karig served in several administrative positions during his 35-year tenure, most recently as the interim dean of the MUSC College of Pharmacy. Aug. 19

Pharmacy dean ready for challenge, expansion Guided by the newly formed South Carolina College of Pharmacy’s executive dean, Joseph DiPiro, Pharm.D., the integration of the pharmacy schools at MUSC and USC served as an example for states throughout the country when faced with a need to broaden and enhance pharmacy training with fewer state supported dollars. DiPiro was appointed Dec. 10, 2004. Aug. 19

Renowned scientists to hold MUSC/USC endowed chairs The second and third endowed chairs under the Centers of Economic Excellence Program and funded through the South Carolina Education Lottery were filled by two nationally regarded scientists, John J. Lemasters, M.D., Ph.D., and Charles D. Smith, Ph.D. They are part of a collaborative between MUSC/USC Centers of Excellence and will hold their faculty appointments in the South Carolina College of Pharmacy. Sept. 23

TECHNOLOGY
Library adds AccessMedicine to its resources AccessMedicine, a collection of electronic textbooks published by McGraw-Hill, was added to the MUSC Library’s growing collection of full-text resources. Jan. 21

MUSC switches to digital mammography The installation of four full-field digital mammography units at MUSC (three in Rutledge Tower and one in the Hollings Cancer Center) made the MUSC imaging department the only completely digital imaging center in the Lowcounty. Full-field digital imaging has proven benefits for the patient and is potentially superior in the detection of breast cancer, according to Thomas Pope, M.D., director of Breast Imaging at MUSC. June 3

Cochlear implant recipient gets ‘hooked up’ For the first time in South Carolina, an MUSC patient and staff member received his second cochlear implant to accompany the one he received more than 10 years ago. July 29

Uterus removal technique speeds recovery Thanks to a procedure dubbed the laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy (LSH), a woman who must undergo a removal of her uterus can now recover faster, easier, and without many of the scarring issues compared to more traditional ways of removal. Aug. 5

RESEARCH
Brain Imaging Center awarded endowed chair Health Sciences South Carolina announced Feb. 23 the award of its first endowed chair matching grant, committing $5 million toward the establishment of the South Carolina Brain Imaging Center of Excellence. Feb. 25

MUSC among top 100 universities to receive federal science funding MUSC is the only institution in South Carolina listed as one of the top 100 universities and colleges in the nation for garnering federal dollars for science and engineering, according to a report published by the National Science Foundation entitled “Federal Science and Engineering Support to Universities, Colleges, and Nonprofit Institutions for FY 2002.” April 1

Lottery to fund vision, GI cancer center The South Carolina Lottery Center of Economic Excellence Oversight Committee awarded $ 9.5 million in matching funds for two new research centers at MUSC. The funded proposals are in the areas of vision research and gastrointestinal malignancy research. July 8

Research development marks eight years’ growth As MUSC Foundation for Research Development director Ken Roozen, Ph.D., transfered foundation management to a new director, he stepped aside having enjoyed his tenure at MUSC and with a degree of satisfaction in what the foundation accomplished in its eight-year existence. Sept. 23

FRD director cites growth, admin. support Robert I. Pozner, Ph.D., here from the Office of Technology Development at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, took the helm at the Foundation for Research Development to serve as director of technology transfer and as the foundation’s interim executive director. Sept. 23

Journal publishes results from depression study Two-year results from a peer-reviewed study using vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) for treatment-resistant depression were published in the September 2005 issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry (J. Clin Psychiatry 66:9, September 2005). Sept. 30

fMRI brain images uncover deception Researchers at MUSC, collaborating with Cephos Corp. and Department of Defense Polygraph Institute, generated a 90 percent accuracy rate in the largest ever fMRI-based deception detection study and were the first to do so in individual subjects. Results published confirm Cephos Corp. is on track for commercial availability of services in 2006. Sept. 30

VA program enhances career development It’s been two years since Veterans Affairs (VA) Senior Research Career Scientist Rita Young, Ph.D., took the reins as associate chief of staff for research and development at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center. ... Aside from developing research and mentorship opportunities, Young is also committed to making the medical center’s research more visible. Oct. 28

Raymond honored for VA research, mentorship Earlier this year, John Raymond, M.D., was named the 2005 recipient of the Department of Veterans Affairs Southeast Network (VISN) 7 Henry M. Middleton Research Excellence Award. Oct. 28

$17.3M grant to strengthen biomedical research for universities Seven South Carolina colleges and universities will share a $17.3 million federal grant—among the largest university grants ever awarded in the Palmetto State—for a collaborative program that will bolster biomedical research and expand educational opportunities for undergraduates. Nov. 18

OBITUARIES
Dr. Curtis G. Hames Sr., a pioneer in the epidemologic study of heart disease and stroke and a visiting clinical professor in the MUSC Department of Family Medicine, died Jan. 6 in Savannah, Ga. Jan. 14

Dr. Wilmer Leigh Thompson, distinguished scientist and MUSC graduate, died Feb. 11 at a local hospital. He was 66. March 11

Suzanne (Susie) Marie Franciscus Hall, former Department of Radiology secretary and administrative coordinator, died March 30 following a long battle with head and neck cancer. She worked with the department from 1976 to her retirement in 2003. May 13

Dr. Sterling K. Ainsworth, of Lyons, former pathology faculty member, died in a private plane crash Tuesday, Aug. 9 in Sundry, Alberta. Sept. 2

Brenda Richardson, an employee with MUSC’s Environmental Services since 2000, died in an automobile accident Friday, Aug. 26. Sept. 2

Keith Bloodworth, MUSC Respiratory Care Services, died on Thursday, Aug. 25. A service was held on Aug. 27 at the James A. McAlister Chapel. Sept. 9

Editor's note: All stories can be read in their entirety by accessing the Catalyst Online at http://www.musc.edu/catalyst/archive/2005/arch2005.htm 

Friday, Dec. 16, 2005
Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to petersnd@musc.edu or catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Community Press at 849-1778.