The University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine

Albert Schweitzer Awards to Assist Chicago’s Neediest Communities

Mosmi Surati,
Jason Waldinger

First year students Mosmi Surati and Jason Waldinger received the Chicago Area Schweitzer Fellowship to assist Chicago’s underserved communities. This fellowship, which was started in 1996, supports health professional students as they direct innovative projects that improve health and access to healthcare for medically underserved populations.

Mosmi will use the funds to train community leaders and individuals within Chicago’s south side community to serve as diabetes health educators. Mosmi hopes that her diabetes curriculum will better inform community members on ways to both manage and prevent diabetes.

Jason will work in the Hyde Park Neighborhood Club Community Center to develop a series of health programs for elementary and middle-school aged children that emphasize physical fitness, nutrition and academic preparation.

Hoylan Fernandez

Hoylan Fernandez, a fourth year medical student, received the 2007 Alpha Omega Carolyn L. Kuckein Student Research Fellowship for her proposed research on Virulence activation in pseudomonas aeroginosa in response to cytoskeletal actin.” Hoylan will be working her mentor, Dr. John Alverdy from the Department of Surgery to complete this research. This is the second year in a row that a Pritzker student received this prestigious national fellowship.

Jonathan Grinstein

Jonathan Grinstein, first year medical student, served as co-author of the paper entitled, Role of human neutrophil peptides in the initial interaction between lung epithelial cells and CD4+ lymphocytes, which appeared in the April 1 issue of Journal of Leukocyte Biology. His research emanated from work he did prior to matriculating at the Pritzker School of Medicine.

James Walter

James “Mac” Walter, a first year medical student was the first author on the abstract, Bacteriology of Septic Shock in Four Urban Emergency Departments, which was accepted for poster presentation at the Society of Academic Emergency Medicine’s national conference in May. His research emanated from work he did prior to matriculating at the Pritzker School of Medicine.

Midwest Anesthesia Resident Conference

(L to R) Tim Miu,
Ryan Foley, Sam Fuller,
Jason Woo, Michelle Keese

The University of Chicago took home two first place awards from the Midwest Anesthesia Resident Conference in St. Louis. Twenty-eight University of Chicago residents and five second year medical students presented research at the conference. Second year medical student Sam Fuller took first place in the General Scientific Session for his research, Utilizing Recorded Commands for a Bilingual Patient During Emergence From Anesthesia. Anesthesia resident Audrey Oware, MD ‘04 received first place in the General Session for her presentation Profound Hyperkalemia in a Pregnant Patient Regarding Massive Blood Transfusion. Other medical student presentations included:

• Ryan Foley: The Effects of “Virtual” Parental Presence on the Post-Anesthetic Experience of Children.
• Michelle Keese: Correlation Between Central Venous Pressure (CVP) and Peripheral Venous Pressure (PVP) and Their Relationship to Cardiac Output in Critically Ill Patients
• Tim Miu: Hemodynamic Response and Incidence of Sore Throat to Fiberoptic Orotracheal Intuabation.
• Jason Woo: Dexmedetomidine Versus Fentanyl for Awake Fibroptic Intubations: A Randomized Trial

Sam, Ryan, Tim and Jason were all mentored by Dr. David Glick, Assistant Professor of Anesthesia and Critical Care, and contributed to one another’s research and presentations. Michelle worked with Dr. Michael O’Connor, Associate Professor of Anesthesia and Critical Care and Dr. Zdrakva Zafirova, Assistant Professor of Anethesia who traveled to St. Louis for the event. Sam Fuller and Ryan Foley also presented their respective research at the International Anesthesia Research Society’s 81st Clinical and Scientific Meeting in Orlando, Florida in March, while Jason Woo presented in the FAER Special Forum at the American Society of Anesthesiology Meeting in October.

ACP Annual Meeting

(L to R) Wayne Tsuang, Adam DeVore,
Caroline Cottrell

Third year medical student Caroline Cottrell and graduating seniors Adam Devore and Wayne Tsuang recently presented research at the American College of Physicians Annual Meeting in San Diego. Over 300 abstracts were submitted and only 75 were chosen for presentation. Their presentations emanated from their experience in the Pritzker School of Medicine’s Summer Research program.