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Dedication, employee events announced As behind-the-scenes preparations for opening Ashley River Tower (ART) proceed, officials, administrators and managers plan a series of dedication and ceremonial events leading up to Jan. 7, when ART’s first patients will be admitted.   Here’s a summary of planned events meant to welcome South Carolina residents to the most advanced health care services. MUSC employees will discover a patient-centered design to facilitate their work, and area physicians will meet with MUSC specialists to whom they can refer their patients with confidence. ART dedication ceremony At 11 a.m. Friday, Oct. 12, a dedication ceremony will officially recognize  Ashley River Tower (ART). To be held in ART's arrival garden facing Courtenay Drive near its intersection with Doughty, the ceremony will include a welcome from MUSC Board of Trustees Chairman Charles B. Thomas, M.D., an overview of MUSC’s New Era of Excellence by MUSC President Ray Greenberg, M.D., Ph.D., and a keynote address from former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson.   The event will celebrate the extraordinary MUSC-community collaboration that made ART a reality, recognize key contributors, and feature a centerpiece video portraying MUSC’s vision of advancing medicine to provide the best of care for patients.   Ceremonies will be followed by a reception for invited guests inside ART's conservatory and guided tours of the diagnostic and treatment building, and patient tower. A string quartet from the Charleston Symphony Orchestra will serenade the gathering during the post-event reception.   “Event planners realize that it may be difficult for many employees to leave work and attend the dedication,” said Sabra Slaughter, Ph.D., ART co-chair events committee. “It was very important to all involved that more opportunities would be available for  employees to see this amazing new space. So, there will be a webcast of the dedication, as well as other celebratory events that employees can attend.”   Visit http://www.MUSChealth.com/ashleyrivertower and click on dedication event details. Faculty, employee event In early January, an employee red carpet event will celebrate the dedication and hard work of employees who have helped rank MUSC among the top academic medical centers in the nation.   All employees are invited to drop by at their convenience for tours. Food and music will be offered during staff tours to demonstrate  MUSC's  gratitude for employees' commitment and professionalism.   Event co-chair Ginny Gamble said that employees will see that  the facility's design will make their work much easier. “They won’t be sending patients to five different locations, they will have access to the latest technology, and patient amenities will rival those of a five-star hotel,” she said. Physician event From 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 6, current and prospective referring health care providers are invited to meet MUSC faculty physicians and administrators at ART.   The event will include a drop-in luncheon with tours and entertainment to provide networking opportunities for referring health care providers and faculty. Community open house In early January, a community day celebration will allow the public to tour ART, meet with health care professionals, participate in a variety of health screenings, and see where the Heart & Vascular Center and Digestive Disease Center clinicians will be practicing.   Heart and vascular and digestive disease screenings will be offered, some of which will require pre-registration and payment of a fee to cover costs.   The event will also feature light refreshments and radio station giveaways.   Organizers hope to reduce patient anxiety over coming to a new, larger facility by offering new patient appointments on-site and by opening the state-of-the-art design in context with a positive experience to be shared with family and friends. Editor's note: To view the live webcast of the dedication ceremony Oct. 12, visit http://www.musc.edu or http://www.muschealth.com. The  information  also will  be  posted on Broadcast Messages at http://www.musc.edu/broadcast. Friday, Sept. 28, 2007 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 catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Publications at 849-1778, ext. 201.