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A Year in Review CAMPUS Colcock Hall opens door to visitors Following a yearlong renovation of historic Colcock Hall, Ray Greenberg, M.D., Ph.D., MUSC president, hosted an open house for about 200 MUSC faculty, staff, students and guests Nov. 30. Dec. 8 Pilot child care offered beginning Jan. 8 MUSC’s pilot initiative to offer near-campus child care for MUSC employees and students is here. Nov. 24 New dental center begins construction About 450 people attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the College of Dental Medicine’s new clinical education center, the campus’ latest building enterprise. Aug. 18 ALS clinic opens doors among top brass, physicians Marking a leap forward in caring for patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig’s disease, the MUSC Interdisciplinary ALS Clinic opened its doors July 7. July 14 S.C. College of Pharmacy clears first accreditation hurdle The South Carolina College of Pharmacy has cleared the first hurdle in gaining full accreditation. The college, which represents the combined colleges of pharmacy at MUSC and the University of South Carolina, was awarded pre-candidate status by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education. July 7 SC AHEC training program is nation’s best The South Carolina Area Health Education Consortium (AHEC) received recognition from among the nation’s 46 other AHEC programs for its excellence and collaborative educational partnerships with statewide institutions, health care professionals, and underserved communities all designed to improve health care for South Carolina’s residents. July 7 WISE conference a big success for students, surgeons The program established at MUSC to recruit early medical students into surgery is going national, according to the founders of Women Interested in Surgical Experience (WISE). May 5 HSSC pens nation’s first coordinated statewide cancer research initiative Partners of Health Sciences South Carolina—MUSC, the University of South Carolina, Clemson University, Greenville Hospital System, Palmetto Health and Spartanburg Regional Healthcare Center—signed an unprecedented agreement April 27 establishing the first statewide cancer research initiative in the United States. May 5 Happy 40th anniversary College of Health Professions Bonded together by the phrase, “Enter to Learn, Leave to Serve,” High School of Charleston alumni and College of Health Professions now share the technologically advanced and beautifully renovated former high school building on Rutledge Avenue. April 14 MUSC opens new dental simulation lab The College of Dental Medicine  opened a new simulation lab and named it in honor of Birmingham residents Aisic and Riva Hirsch. March 24 Happy 30th birthday, Storm Eye Institute Thirty years ago, the Storm Eye Institute opened its doors as the state hub for patient care, teaching, and research in ophthalmology. Feb. 10 S.C. program becomes national model  South Carolina’s Medically Fragile Children’s Program was recognized by the National Association of Children’s Hospitals  as a national model. Jan. 6 CLINICAL New children’s airway clinic aims to treat, educate MUSC’s new Airway and Aspiration Center for Children will specialize in conditions such as subglottic stenosis and dysphagia, a swallowing disorder that afflicts an estimated 15 million people. Oct. 27 New OR named for Surgery chairman Last spring, Fred Crawford, M.D., was honored with a motion by MUSC Board of Trustee member Melvyn Berlinsky and backing by fellow trustees to name the first phase of the replacement hospital’s OR suite after Crawford. Aug. 18 MUSC first in state to monitor ‘silent killer’ MUSC has become the first medical facility in South Carolina to use a new microchip sensor device in patients suffering from an often deadly arterial condition, aortic abdominal aneurysms. June 23   Children’s Emergency Department offers acute, primary care Since the MUSC Children’s Emergency Department  grand opening two years ago, patient volumes are up 20 percent as parents of the Lowcountry realize that the best emergency care for their child can be found in the skilled and capable hands of the Children’s ED staff. June 23 Bariatric surgery receives designation The MUSC Medical Center was named as a Center of Excellence by the American Society for Bariatric Surgery (ASBS). The ASBS Center of Excellence designation recognizes surgical programs with a demonstrated track record of favorable outcomes in bariatric surgery. March 17 DCRI celebrates its first year of existence On Feb. 16, scientists, administrators, and those interested in the Darby Children’s Research Institute’s (DCRI) progress were treated to a multi-floor exhibition highlighting a year’s worth of work. Feb. 24 Storm Eye Institute opens clinic in Goose Creek On Feb. 20, the Storm Eye Institute  opened a new office in Goose Creek. With specialists in optometry, retina, glaucoma, and cornea and cataract surgery, the new space will bring a much needed service to the area north of Charleston. Feb. 24 FACULTY Endowed chair for state’s first cardiologist  MUSC is establishing the Peter Gazes Endowed Chair in Clinical Cardiology in honor of admired clinician and researcher Peter Gazes, M.D. Oct. 13 Dean honored with research day endowment The children of  Perry V. Halushka, M.D., Ph.D., honored him and his lifelong devotion to research and teaching by establishing the Dr. Perry V. Halushka Student Research Day Endowment. It was established through the MUSC Foundation. Oct. 6 CON faculty members inducted into American Academy of Nursing Elaine J. Amella, Ph.D., and Marilyn P. Laken, Ph.D., R.N., both at MUSC’s College of Nursing, was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing as 2006 new fellows. Sept. 29 Nurse receives first, only endowed chair Carolyn Jenkins, Ph.D., College of Nursing professor and principal investigator for Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health 2010 (REACH 2010), became the first and only nurse in South Carolina to receive an endowed chair. June 9 Hannun receives governor’s award in science Yusuf A. Hannun, M.D., Ralph F. Hirschmann Chair professor and distinguished university professor of Biomedical Research in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, received the 2006 Governor’s Award for Excellence in Science. June 2 First MUSC endowment for psychiatry announced A proposed endowed chair will be named after nationally acclaimed psychiatrist, Layton McCurdy, M.D., marking the first time MUSC would have established an endowment for psychiatry. April 21 Transplant surgeon recognized for contribution to MUSC, patients In celebration of a new intermediate care unit and early discharge room on the MUSC Medical Center’s sixth floor, P. R. Rajagopalan, M.D., received recognition for his decades of service to MUSC’s transplant program. April 21 Interprofessional day encourages interaction On Jan. 20, approximately 630 MUSC students participated in a mandatory, half-day training experience. It was part of the campus’ introduction to exploring the values of an interdisciplinary team approach to health care. Jan. 27 Researcher to hold John C. West Endowed Chair Kenneth D. Tew, Ph.D., D.Sc.,  Department of Cell and Molecular Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, was appointed the John C. West Endowed Chair in Cancer Research. Jan. 13 TECHNOLOGY System links PCICU to Children’s Hospital Surgeons are operating on an infant’s heart to mend a congenital birth defect. While the procedure on the heart defect is not brand new, MUSC Children’s Hospital’s electronic monitoring system—involving a live video feed from the operating room and constant display of the baby’s vital signs—is new and is the only one like it in the state. Oct. 20 MUSC to offer South’s first dual source scanner MUSC has become the only hospital in the South, and one of only five hospitals in the country, to launch the latest technology for scanning the heart to detect the subtlest of trouble spots. Oct. 6 Patients get connected with GetWellNetwork Young patients at MUSC are tapping into the GetWellNetwork, an interactive soft-ware program that runs through the hospital’s cable TV network and allows them to surf the Web, use e-mail, watch videos for both fun and education, and give feedback to their caregivers. June 16 Wound healing research spawns biotech co. A new wound-healing technology is being tested for its ability to promote faster healing, reduce scarring, and restore more normal looking skin. Feb. 24 MUSC makes major advance in understanding antibiotic resistance Major progress was made in the understanding of the propagation of drug resistance plasmids that cause emergence of antibiotic resistant bacteria that are a major public health problem. Jan. 6 RESEARCH MUSC gets $10.8M to fight heart disease Researchers will continue their fight against heart disease with the help of a $10.8-million grant from the National Institutes of Health’s Center for Biomedical Research Excellence Program. Sept. 29 MUSC among first in nation to win grant As the race to move knowledge from the bench to the bedside quickens, MUSC continues to keep the pace and lead the way. The university is one of 10 nationwide to receive an NIH grant to fund pre-doctoral training in clinical and translational research. Aug. 25 Researcher makes major finding in Alzheimer’s trial An MUSC researcher has made major headway in the battle against Alzheimer’s disease through a drug trial that significantly reduces the psychological effects brought on by the disease. July 21 Pill proven effective to treat alcoholism A seven-year study by MUSC researchers offers proof that alcoholism is treatable in more than one way, beginning with a trip to the doctor’s office and a prescribed medication with appropriate medical management. May 5 Innovative treatments for liver cancer available MUSC doctors are the first in the state to provide two innovative treatments for liver cancer that cannot be treated surgically. March 17 HCC among first centers to participate in landmark radiation therapy study  MUSC’s Hollings Cancer Center is one of the first cancer centers in the country to participate in a landmark 3,000- patient National Cancer Institute breast cancer study. Jan. 20 Obituaries Linda Hazel, a supervisor of 17 years in MUSC’s Division of Laboratory Animal Resources, died Feb. 18 of a heart attack. March 10 Alvena (Vena) Mullen died March 3. In 1962, she began her career at MUSC as a secretary in the Office of the Registrar and Director of Admissions, rising through the ranks as admissions counselor, assistant director of admissions, and admissions and recruitment supervisor. March 17 Elsie Claire Goff, died Saturday, March 18, at MUSC. Goff was a nurse at MUSC for 17 years before her illness necessitated early retirement in 2005. March 31 Kelvin Gathers, an employee with the Adult Echo Lab, Heart & Vascular Center, passed away May 17. He had been with MUSC since 1984. May 26 Hala Peeler, a medical technologist who worked in the Lab Services Department, died May 27 after an extended illness. June 9 Larry Blewer, a long-time volunteer with MUSC Children’s Hospital, died June 5 at his home. He worked for five years at MUSC Children’s Hospital and at Roper Hospital. June 16 Robert “Carl” Venning, an employee with MUSC’s Environmental Services since 1996, died June 3. June 30 Theodore “Theo” Drayton, an MUSC employee since 1991 and most recently in the Environmental Services Department, died Monday, June 26. June 30 Barbara Brown, a customer service representative in the Office of Parking Management, died Sept. 16. She lived in Mount Pleasant. Sept. 29 Edward Conradi, M.D., a professor of pharmacology and chairman of MUSC’s Investigational Review Board for Human Research, died Oct. 7. He was the husband of Sandra Conradi, M.D., professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. Oct. 20 Sushma Rao, A recent graduate of the physician assistant program at the College of Health Professions (CHP), passed away unexpectedly Sept. 1 from sudden cardiac arrest, six days after her graduation from MUSC. Dec. 1     Friday, Dec. 15, 2006 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.