Rafi Ahmed (microbiology/ immunology) received the 2015 American Association of Immunologists Excellence in Mentoring Award. Ahmed has mentored more than 70 trainees in his career.

Nancy Collop (pulmonology, neurology) director of the Emory Sleep Center, was awarded the Nathaniel Kleitman Distinguished Service Award by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Collop is editor of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

Mahlon DeLong (neurology) was awarded the 2015 Taubman Prize for Excellence in Translational Medical Science by the University of Michigan. DeLong will receive the $100,000 prize in recognition of his contributions to the treatment of Parkinson's disease.

Christopher Doering (pediatrics) was one of 17 recipients from nine countries to receive honors through the 2015 Bayer Hemophilia Awards Program at the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis Congress in Toronto. Doering received the Special Project Award for his research on bioengineering factor VIII through ancestral reconstruction.

Peter H'Doubler (surgery) received the annual E. Napier "Buck" Burson Physician Award of Distinction, Emory Saint Joseph Hospital's highest honor for physician service.

Heather Hamby (executive associate dean, medicine) is a member of the Leadership Atlanta Class of 2016.

Fadlo Khuri (hematology/oncology) was elected a full member of the Academy of Sciences for Lebanon for creativity in addressing biological problems and generating innovative approaches in cancer therapy.

Adeboye Osunkoya (pathology) recently won one of the highest national awards in surgical pathology, the Arthur Purdy Stout prize.

Paul Spearman (pediatrics, microbiology) is president-elect of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society.

David Stephens (infectious diseases), chair of the Department of Medicine and VP for reseach in health sciences, has been named a new member of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

Sharing Their Stories

Sheryl Heron

Monica Farley

The School of Medicine honors two outstanding women for their contributions to medicine each year, and the 2015 honorees are Sheryl Heron and Monica Farley. The program, Outstanding Women in Medicine (formerly Women First!) is held in conjunction with the university's celebration of Women's History Month. The honorees are asked to share their journey—the ups and the downs—to being an outstanding contributor in their field. You can hear their stories here.

CALENDAR

Aug. 14: SOM staff appreciation event, 2 to 4 p.m., WHSCAB plaza. Theme is "Wellness: Mind, Body and Spirit." Food, prizes, and activities. For SOM staff only, must have ID.

Aug 15: Military Heroes Night at Turner Field (Braves vs. Arizona Diamondbacks). Starting at 5 p.m., Emory Veterans Program representatives will have a tent in Monument Grove to provide information to post-911 vets and their families.

Oct. 3: 5th annual Winship Win the Fight 5K. Atlanta Braves president John Schuerholz is grand marshal. More info.

Nov. 5-6: The Microbiome and Human Health. Emory Conference Center. More info.

Doctors who tweet

From the adorable mug of Rickey Gillespie's Neapolitan Mastiff, Phoebe, to Wally Curran's view of the Atlanta Hawks NBA playoffs, to Leslee Shaw's calming beach header, the Twitter feeds of Emory physicians and researchers lend insight into their hobbies, pets, and activities.

Phoebe, Neapolitan Mastiff and Twitter sidekick of Emory psychiatrist Rickey Gillespie, strikes a pose

But they're also good ways to keep up on breaking medical and health news, the latest in research and clinical trials and treatments, conference keynotes, and what Emory docs are reading, discussing, and sharing. Recent topics, both tweeted and retweeted, included 10 things you might not know about emergency departments, photos from the Emory Healthcare Primary Care retreat, the upcoming Winship 5K, a commentary about the downside of HIPAA, what to do as a physician in in-flight emergencies, a new targeted therapy for lung cancer, and a video link of a teen talking about what it's like to be in a medically induced coma.

Wendy Darling, who coordinates social media for the School of Medicine, has compiled a list of Emory physicians and researchers on Twitter (you can find it here) that is now up to 66 members. Many departments have their own feed, as does the School of Medicine (twitter.com/EmoryMedicine).

Fixing flaws

Part of our culture at Emory Medicine is being transparent about medical errors when they occur and unrelenting in efforts to prevent them.

To this end, a team led by Sadhna Nandwana (radiology) reported in the July edition of the American Journal of Roentgenology that a patient had been harmed by an incorrectly administered drug and the team had taken decisive steps to safeguard against such a mistake happening again.

What happened: The correct drug, epinephrine, was given to a patient to counter a contrast reaction, but was given at the wrong dose and rate.

What members of the department did in response: analyzed the root cause of the error, assessed their weaknesses, and published their findings to benefit others.

The article details how the team scrutinized current protocols, performed a medication audit, and gave a "pop quiz" to nurses, residents, fellows, and attendings to gauge their baseline knowledge of epinephrine use. Nearly all (99%) knew the correct drug to administer, but just under a third (29%) knew the proper way to administer it.

"This is a frequent point of … confusion because even if personnel remember the correct dose and concentration of IV epinephrine, they may be unaware that it should be delivered slowly," the authors wrote. "To our knowledge, no literature or guidelines exist defining the exact rate of infusion of IV epinephrine, other than the description 'slowly,' possibly leading to further confusion and error."

Kudos to the radiology team for their rapid admission, response, and innovative attempts to correct the problem to protect future patients and for sharing this information broadly with peers through publication.

New center on disparities in CVD

The American Heart Association (AHA) has named Morehouse School of Medicine part of the new Strategically Focused Research Network on Disparities in Cardiovascular Disease. Both Morehouse and Emory faculty will be part of the center. The other three newly funded centers are at the University of Colorado (Denver), the Medical University of South Carolina, and Northwestern University.

Herman Taylor (MSM) will be center director, and project PIs will be Charles Searles (Emory), Arshed Quyyumi (Emory), Priscilla Pemu (MSM), George Rust (MSM), Tene Lewis (Emory), and center training director Gregory Strayhorn (MSM).

Researchers will be exploring differences and needed improvements in treating culturally diverse patients. Nearly half of African American adults have some form of CVD.

The AHA will support the network with $15 million over four years. "Some Americans do not have access to high-quality health care, and they often suffer disproportionally from cardiovascular disease and stroke," said Steven Houser, chair of the AHA's research committee and director of the Cardiovascular Research Center at Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia. "In this network investigators will explore the bases of the disparities and work to identify solutions that improve the health of all Americans."

Morehouse School of Medicine will look at resilience in black populations in the United States to find ways to reduce risk, disease, and death. Because not all blacks have poor cardiovascular health, researchers say studying their resilience could be instrumental in understanding what works for those who are free of heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure.

Top docs

Atlanta magazine's 2015 July issue features the annual listing of Top Doctors in the metro Atlanta area. We are proud that of all the health systems represented, Emory physicians make up the majority (58%), with 209 doctors on the list. These physicians include those who practice at one of our six hospitals and 200 provider locations as well as those who hold faculty positions at the School of Medicine. Thanks to all of our physicians—and the care teams that support them—for making patient- and family-centered care their priority every day.

Art appreciation

Paintings and photos sold at the School of Medicine's annual art gala raised funds for community health care clinics.

The Emory Medical School Art Gala, held on a perfect spring Saturday evening in early May was deemed a huge success, bringing out a crowd to raise more than $4,000 for the SOM Class of 2018 and the free or reduced rate student-run clinics for underserved populations of Atlanta at Open Door, Gateway, Good Samaritan, Central Night, and Harriet Tubman Women's clinics.

The crowd enjoyed wine, craft ales, and hors d'oeuvres while bidding on and buying professional works of art, sports memorabilia, jewelry, photography, a beach house vacation, and more. Tango dancers, singers, pianists, the a cappella group Aural Pleasure, and jazz musicians provided entertainment.

"We had art from more than 45 artists, including undergraduates, medical students, physicians, and other local artists," says Andrew Ritter, Class of 2018. "The event drew a record crowd, between 225 and 250 people. We more than doubled the amount raised from previous years."

Insider view

High-achieving high school students with the National Student Leadership Conference (NSLC) visited the Emory School of Medicine this summer and produced a video about how cool it was to see the simulation labs, review the medical curriculum, and be inspired to follow a medical track. #NSLCHEAL visits Emory University School of Medicine