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Rush University Celebrates 41st Commencement

commencementRush University will recognize more than 600 graduating students at its 41th commencement ceremony Thursday, May 23, at 4 p.m. at the UIC Pavilion, 525 South Racine, Chicago.

For the first time in Rush University’s history, the event will be streamed live so that family, friends and loved ones who are unable to attend the event can still be a part of this special moment.

Dr. Larry Goodman, president of Rush University and CEO of Rush University Medical Center, and Dr. Thomas Deutsch, provost of Rush University and dean of Rush Medical College, will preside over the ceremony and award degrees to students graduating from the University’s four colleges.

This year’s commencement speaker and the 2013 recipient of the Trustee Medal is Richard M. Jaffee, chairman of the Rush University Medical Center Board of Trustees. Additionally, he will receive the Rush University Honorary Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters. Jaffee, who also chairs the board’s executive committee, has helped shape Rush’s transformation into a top academic medical center.

Established in 1972, Rush University is comprised of Rush Medical College, the College of Nursing, the College of Health Sciences and The Graduate College. The graduating students will be receiving the doctorate degrees in medicine from Rush Medical College, and master’s in nursing and doctorates in nursing practice from the College of Nursing.

Read the entire news release.

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Community Programs Aimed at Improved Health

Rush community benefits valued at more than $246 million last fiscal year.

Rush community benefits valued at more than $246 million last fiscal year.

Hundreds of students, faculty and employees at Rush were involved in a wide range of programs to improve the health and well-being of the communities surrounding Rush University Medical Center over the past year, according to the Medical Center’s community benefits report for 2013.

“Rush’s investment in the community stretches from charity care to community programs that have become bedrocks of Chicago’s West Side and beyond,” said Dr. Larry Goodman, CEO of Rush. “Rush’s commitment to the community is long-standing and has grown.”

Rush University Medical Center and its affiliated Rush Oak Park Hospital provided more than $246 million in community benefits in fiscal year 2012 — an increase of roughly $26 million from the previous year.

The majority of Rush’s investment in the community, more than $175 million, covered costs for unreimbursed but much needed care that Rush provides to its patients. That includes charity care and financial assistance, which totaled more than $25 million, and subsidized care for Medicare and Medicaid patients, which totaled more than $108 million. Rush is among the top 10 hospital providers of Medicaid days in the state.

Read the entire news release.

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Neurologists at Rush Working to Discover New Biomarkers for Parkinson’s Disease

Jennifer_GoldmanRush University Medical Center has been named one of only five clinical sites in the U.S. to lead a landmark, two-year, multi-site study exclusively focused on discovering new biomarkers for Parkinson’s disease.     

“The discovery of a biomarker is critical to the development of new and improved treatments for Parkinson’s disease, particularly treatments that could slow or stop the progression of the disease, which is something currently not available,” said Dr. Jennifer G. Goldman, neurologist in the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center at Rush.  Goldman is also an associate professor in the Department of Neurological Sciences at Rush.

This study, called BioFIND, aims to identify new biomarker candidates, which are substances or characteristics found in people’s bodies that are associated with the presence of disease or changes over time in a way that can be linked back to the progression of disease.

The BioFIND study will complement the Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative (PPMI), another observational clinical study to comprehensively evaluate a cohort of recently diagnosed PD patients and healthy subjects using advanced imaging, biologic sampling and clinical and behavioral assessments to identify biomarkers of Parkinson’s disease progression.

“The data we collect from the BioFIND study along with the data from PPMI will produce the most comprehensive and long-ranging dataset available for biomarker discovery work throughout the Parkinson’s disease community,” said Goldman.

Read the entire news release.

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Increased Rates of Hospitalization Linked to Elder Abuse

First Study to Examine Relationship between Elder Abuse and Health Services Utilization

DongXinqi200x250Older adults who are subject to elder abuse, neglect and exploitation face a greater risk of being hospitalized than other seniors, according to the results of a study published in the April 8 issue of JAMA Internal Medicine.

“Elder abuse is independently associated with increased mortality risk, especially for cardiovascular-related mortality.  However, the relationship between elder abuse and health services utilization still remains unclear,” said Dr. XinQi Dong, a researcher and geriatrician at Rush University Medical Center and the study’s lead author. “Despite recent advances in our knowledge of elder abuse, we do not know the rate of health care services utilization among those who are victimized.”

“Hospitalization is a significant contributor to the rapidly increasing cost in our health care system,” said Dong.  “Older adult victims may be put often in situations that could threaten their health and safety, which further increase their likelihood to be more frequently admitted into the hospital.  However, we are not aware of any population-based study that has examined the prospective association between elder abuse and the rate of hospitalization in a community-dwelling population.”

“Our study findings expand on the results of prior studies on elder abuse, but it is the only population-based study to systematically examine the association of elder abuse and rate of hospital services utilization,” said Dong.

Read the entire news release.

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Dr. Bruce Orkin Appointed Chief of Colorectal Surgery

Bruce Orkin, MDDr. Bruce Orkin has joined the Department of General Surgery at Rush University Medical Center as professor and vice chair for academic affairs in the Department of General Surgery, effective March 12.

“There is a long tradition of excellence in colorectal surgery at Rush and I’m looking forward to collaborative efforts among many departments. Having a joint adult and pediatric colorectal surgery program makes treatment a lot more seamless. Pediatric patients get the medical advice and treatment they need plus as adults they can transition to adult care at Rush far more easily,” said Orkin.

Orkin comes to Rush from Tufts Medical Center in Boston where he served as vice chair for academic affairs, department of surgery, and chief of the division of colon and rectal surgery at Tufts and the Floating Hospital for Children. He previously was director of the division of colon and rectal surgery at the George Washington University Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

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Dr. Michael Liptay Appointed as Chair of Cardiovascular-Thoracic Surgery

Michael Liptay, MDDr. Michael J. Liptay has been appointed as chairperson of the department of Cardiovascular-Thoracic Surgery at Rush University Medical Center.

“Liptay is a national leader in the development of minimally invasive thoracic surgery and an early adopter of video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS), which has revolutionized surgery of the chest,” said Dr. Thomas Deutsch, dean of Rush Medical College. The department is comprised of adult and pediatric cardiac surgery, thoracic surgery, and vascular surgery.

Liptay came to Rush in 2006 to lead the division of Thoracic Surgery, which has grown significantly over the years. He has been the program director of the thoracic surgery fellowship at Rush since 2010. He was promoted to professor in 2010 and later named to the Mary Denney Weaver Chair in Cancer Research in 2011.

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Physician at Rush Named AAOS President

34jRmS8JZCVKFIkzY8MPTVJj79QTgeoS1c-2mboqldc,_Q35ZTorxY8eVP9xnJlrEm_fvl9Wt-hU4yUHXVxSW1ADr. Joshua Jacobs, a clinician, educator, researcher, and the chairman of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Rush University Medical Center, was named the 81st president of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) during the annual meeting in Chicago held on Thursday, March 21.

Jacobs is a board-certified and practicing adult reconstructive orthopedic surgeon who specializes in total joint replacement. He has been a leading researcher on the biocompatibility, wear and corrosion of implanted joint prostheses including the impact of metal-on-metal implants for joint replacement patients. Jacobs has presented his research extensively throughout the world and has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed manuscripts, co-edited six books and co-authored more than 35 book chapters.

The AAOS president is selected by peer physician members of the academy. AAOS is the preeminent provider of musculoskeletal education to orthopedic surgeons and others in the world and engages in health policy and advocacy activities on behalf of musculoskeletal patients and the profession of orthopedic surgery. AAOS serves more than 36,000 members worldwide.

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