Category: Medicine

Brianna Hill-Payne and Sam Preza are from different parts of the world with different scientific goals and motivations. He was born in El Salvador and plans to work in biotech; she is a mother of two from New Jersey working toward a career in academic research. Both are working to make an impact on the…

Abheena Jacob, BSN, RN, MEDSURG-BC, an award-winning night shift nurse in Pennsylvania Hospital’s Medical-Surgical unit, joined Penn Medicine in 2017. Her nursing experience spans over 18 years and three continents, beginning nearly 8,000 miles away in India. Here, she shares her career story. By Abheena Jacob   I was born in India. When I was…

In November 2023, Cassie Wolfe had not regained consciousness. Her mother, Ann Louise, spent long, agonizing days by her bed, willing her to wake up and holding on to all hope that she would. The last time the world saw Cassie Wolfe as she used to be—a vibrant, stylish, independent young woman—was Oct. 19, 2023….

Travel back in time to 2017—even though it wasn’t that long ago, the world of health care looked different than it does today. This was the year Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health debuted the first Penn Medicine HealthWorks clinic to offer convenient care for employees of Clair Global, a live performance production company in Lititz,…

By Abby Alten Schwartz There’s a radiance that beams from Kenya Pitt, MA, MBA, chief human resources (HR) officer for Penn Presbyterian Medical Center (PPMC). It’s easy to imagine her walking through the hospital, lighting up each person she encounters with her warmth and optimism. “I get personal fulfillment from seeing people thrive and grow,…

By Ella Eisinger Ella Eisinger Ella Eisinger is a fourth-year medical student at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. The essay below was a winner in this year’s American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation’s Building Trust Essay Contest, which explores the projects and initiatives by students in health professions around the theme of…

Are psychedelic drugs about to begin a long, strange trip toward use in a clinical setting? Or do the challenges of studying psychedelics, and the ethical risks of therapy, raise too many questions to introduce them into mainstream medicine?   As debate continues if—and how—psychedelics should be used, a Food and Drug Administration advisory committee recently…

Klauser performing earlier this year. Photo by Eric Lee. As a lifelong performer who began her professional career singing opera music and now produces music for other artists, teaches aspiring musicians, and has performed with many different musical projects over the years, Mattie Chaya Kimberly “Kimi” Klauser is accustomed to living in the stage lights….

Ashlee (right) is holding Eleanor who is two years old this month and her partner Lauren (left) is holding Edie who was born in February 2024. When Ashlee Rineer and her wife Lauren began fertility treatments in 2020 they were driving back and forth to Radnor, PA—about 75 minutes each way before they started their…

Physical and sexual abuse, having parents who misuse substances, and witnessing violent crime are tragic events that don’t remain locked in a single point in time. Rather, they are termed adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and 64 percent of American adults who participated in a recent survey reported experiencing at least one ACE prior to turning…

Photo by © ASCO/Phil McCarten 2024 Lynn Schuchter, MD, recently completed her term as the 2023-2024 President of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)—the leading professional society for cancer care—as part of a career that began at Penn Medicine 30 years ago.   Over those three decades, Schuchter has witnessed remarkable progress in cancer care and survivorship,…

The award-winning documentary “Of Medicine and Miracles” details the emotional journey of one family alongside a team of Penn Medicine and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) doctors who developed a revolutionary cancer cure with CAR T cell therapy technology and is now available to watch for the first time on major streaming platforms, including Apple…

The first few waves of COVID-19 slowed life across the United States, affecting everything from attending school to eating out for dinner and going on vacation. Segments of health care were also affected: Services that were not considered immediately crucial to fighting the virus were slowed or stopped during the pandemic’s first wave.   But once…

U.S. Women’s Open Trophy at Lancaster Country Club in Lancaster, PA. Copyright USGA/ Jason E. Miczek Beginning May 28, more than 100,000 spectators will line the fairways at the Lancaster Country Club for the U.S. Women’s Open golf championship. While most will leave with only happy memories, for others, an unexpected illness and injury will…

Emergency departments are hospitals’ “front door,” so Penn Medicine is doing everything it can to make them a trusted space for everyone.

By Kevin B. Mahoney Chief Executive Officer University of Pennsylvania Health System   The statistics are daunting: U.S. health care workers are five times more likely to experience workplace violence than employees in other industries, according to government reports. A Press Ganey survey also found that two nurses an hour are assaulted in the acute-care setting. Data shows…

By Abby Alten Schwartz You’re an emergency department (ED) nurse on a hectic Saturday night. A patient has been waiting for hours to be seen. He’s in pain, but a dozen people ahead of him have more urgent needs. Suddenly, he’s shouting at the staff, demanding attention, and is heading directly toward you. What do…

“Each member of the family—Jackie, Rachel, and Kim—touched an important part of this patient’s care journey,” said David Porter, MD, director of Cell Therapy and Transplant, pictured at left with the three nurses. The patient was at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) with severe graft versus host disease (GVHD), a common and…

Fred Kaplan, MD “I’ve seen about a thousand patients worldwide with FOP,” said Fred Kaplan, MD, a professor of Orthopaedic Molecular Medicine in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. “Most of them are immobilized by the time they are 20. But this patient was not.” Kaplan is arguably the world’s most…

Research is a driving force of medical progress—but is it truly inclusive of the voices and experiences of those it seeks to help?  The way research is conducted can often leave out important voices, like people from underrepresented racial and ethnic backgrounds, those who speak languages other than English, or those with limited literacy. Rachel…

One day you hear that red wine is good for your heart. The next day, it’s not. The same goes for chocolate. And coffee. The see-saw of contradicting information isn’t anything new, but what happens when clinicians hear conflicting studies about a medication they use for their patients? Researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine…

Maria Del Carpio grew up in Sabandia, a hilly village in rural Peru, where nearly half of the population lives in poverty. Even as a child, she noticed the stark disparity between her own comfortable existence and that of her less fortunate neighbors.  She was troubled by the unfairness of it all. Why, she wondered,…

Are gift cards and cash one way to help ease the drug overdose crisis? The number of overdose deaths in the United States has doubled since 2015, exceeding 106,000 deaths in 2023. Although the overdose crisis is commonly referred to as the “opioid” overdose crisis, by 2021 approximately 50 percent of overdose-death toxicology reports showed…

Jennie Barbieri, MD, FACP A cancer diagnosis 20 years, even 10 years ago, meant something different than it does today. With today’s advanced treatment options, including chemotherapy and radiation, Proton therapy, CAR T cell therapy, and other forms of immunotherapy, patients with a cancer diagnosis are living longer. However, even when cancer is in remission,…

In the world of cardiovascular medicine, the advent of the transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedure stands as a transformative milestone, rewriting the narrative for people suffering from severe aortic stenosis, a serious condition that narrows the aortic valve in the heart and results in restricting blood flow from the heart to the rest of…

Overnight, the Three Wishes Project organized a surprise birthday party for patient Devyn. The patient was dying of cancer. All options for saving or prolonging their life had been exhausted. Now, the patient most wanted to spend one more carefree, joyous day with their grandchild.  Ramy Sedhom, MD, director of Medical Oncology and Palliative Care…

Farah Hussain, MD It started with sea anemones at a college lab. As an undergrad in Swarthmore College’s marine biology program, Farah Hussain, MD, used the organisms to study coral bleaching, where a coral turns white from stressors like high temperature or pollution—a tell-tale sign of climate change. That’s when her interest in environmental advocacy…

Mim Lambros, an equipment planning specialist, is repurposing furniture throughout LG Health facilities. Every April, people worldwide come together to celebrate Earth Day, bringing attention to new ways we can better treat our environment. People working in health care have an important role to play, as the sector is responsible for about 8.5 percent of…

Heather and Rich Badt in the summer of 2023 When Heather Badt and her husband learned within a week and a half of each other that they both had cancer, she felt like she had another question every hour.  Badt knew she and her husband were in good hands at the Abramson Cancer Center at…

During the second semester of their junior year, most high school students are hunkering down as they prepare to apply to college in the fall: focusing on schoolwork to get their GPA as high as possible, touring college campuses, and building their resumes of extracurricular activities. For Grayson Graham, a junior at Germantown Friends School,…

MD/PhD candidate Joseph Aicher, bound for the University of Michigan, hugs his wife Bernadette Bucher, PhD, while Peter (in wagon) and Madeleine look on. The Jordan Medical Education Center fifth floor lobby was brimming with giddy nerves and excitement on Match Day—except for the corner nearest the door to the roof garden, where a meltdown…

For over 20 years, Maria Wright, BSN, RN has served others as a nurse, first as an LPN and working her way up to RN in 2020 and BSN in 2022. Now a Rehab Case Manager with the Neuro Recovery program at Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health, she provides individualized rehabilitation programs to help patients…

Vascular surgery patient Debra Samuels, shown here with nurses Sara Tarangelo, left, and Kelsey Long, was always thrilled to receive her favorite Starbucks drink. One day during Debra Samuels’ lengthy stay on the vascular surgery unit at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, the nurses performing a complicated wound care procedure noticed she was…

Gregory L. Beatty, MD, PhD Training the body’s own immune system to attack cancer cells is known as immunotherapy and it’s a treatment option that’s been highly effective for many cancer types, including lung cancer and melanoma. However, despite decades of research, immunotherapy has yet to break through for some of the most challenging types…

Michelle and Steve Lengle Since his 2020 diagnosis with multiple sclerosis, Steve Lengle has had good and bad days. The bad days are becoming more frequent as his condition continues to decline, causing debilitating pain, weakness, and fatigue, and affecting everything from his memory to his ability to walk.  Even on his worst days, Steve,…

By Queen Muse  The name Edward S. Cooper adorns a bustling internal medicine practice at Penn Medicine in University City. The patients who come for a variety of routine medical care every day might not know the story behind the center’s namesake, but they should. Edward S. Cooper, MD, is an accomplished Black physician and…

Imagine having a personal health companion by your side, guiding you towards a healthier heart every step of the way. Heart experts at Penn Medicine have created a tool that, they say, can fill that very role through text messaging.  Heart disease is the top cause of illness and death in the U.S. Penn Medicine…

Shortly after I was born, my parents noticed I had severe muscle weakness, and I was eventually diagnosed with Central Core Disease, a rare (but thankfully non-progressive) muscle disease that weakens and quickly fatigues just about every muscle in the body, minus the heart. My lungs and legs were particularly impacted—I was never able to…

Rohlfing’s paintings are inspired by fallen leaves and petals on her neighborhood walks. Ginger Mimmo Rohlfing was staring down breast cancer.  To shift her attention away from the frightening diagnosis and the overwhelming thought of upcoming appointments, Rohlfing, a mother of five and local teaching artist, slipped on her sneakers and took long walks around…

  In popular culture, scientific discovery is often portrayed in “Eureka!” moments of sudden realization: a lightbulb moment, coming sometimes by accident. But in real life—and in Penn Medicine’s rich history as a scientific innovator for more than 250 years—scientific breakthroughs can never truly be distilled down to a single, “ah-ha” moment. They’re the result…

February 13, 2024 | by Jonathan B. Waller Iris Reyes, MD Iris Reyes, MD, helps to open doors for new generations of physicians from populations historically underrepresented in medicine (URiM) to reach successful and impactful careers in medicine. Reyes, a professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine (PSOM),…

Oatman and Kohler running together during the 4.3 mile leg of the Ragnar Race Imagine one day you decided to head to your local gym to get some exercise. You start your workout when suddenly you hear a loud thump behind you. Turning around, you see a man has collapsed on the floor, unconscious and…

Peer Recovery Specialist Eric Ezzi and his wife with their daughter. For any patient in the hospital, their stay entails a constant stream of health care professionals visiting the room; physicians and nurses and techs monitor their condition and map out their care plan, administer IVs and medication, food services deliver their meals, a social…

Good health care involves treating the whole person, which includes medical, psychological, and social aspects of care. Patient experience—making sure patients feel listened to and their concerns cared about, in a comfortable environment with thoughtful consideration of their needs—is an integral part of quality care and clinical outcomes. Recently, Penn Medicine earned several awards for…

Warfel, pictured here, during her IRONMAN race in Kona, Hawai’i in October 2023. On a typical day, Ava Warfel, RN, wakes up around 3 a.m. The nurse supervisor at the new Penn Medicine HealthWorks Alvernia University practice in Reading, PA, doesn’t have to be at work until much later in the morning. But she gets…

In January 2023, 70-year-old fitness coach Howard Aaron was preparing for the Arnold Classic, an international weightlifting competition—one of the many he has participated in throughout his nearly 40 years as a fitness coach. In March, training came to a sudden halt. After several months in which he exhibited signs of confusion—often forgetting where he…

At Penn Medicine Chester County Hospital (CCH), the Maternal Child Health care team is always striving to meet the needs of patients while searching for ways to improve patient care. CCH’s latest patient care initiative focuses on improving postpartum outcomes and decreasing health care disparities in the Hispanic community. Identifying the problem From left to…

Mina Massaro-Giordano, MD A seemingly endless cycle of switching between your phone, computer, and TV has created a sort of digital permanence where a screen is always within reach. Though most of us require this type of access for work, school, and entertainment, constant screen time can have repercussions on your eye health, possibly leading…

By Tonya Russell Donita Brady, PhD The Juneteenth holiday celebrated on June 19 is one of delayed recognition. It’s a day for Black Americans to celebrate freedom and civil rights. It commemorates a date, in 1865, when the last large group of enslaved people in the U.S. belatedly learned they were legally free, at the…

For the past several years, Penn Medicine has been taking bold action to reverse maternal health disparities. In the United States, Black women are approximately three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white women. In addition to higher maternal mortality rates, low-income women and women of color face disparities when accessing key…

By Lauren Malecki Katalin Susztak, MD, PhD Katalin Susztak, MD, PhD, a professor of Internal Medicine, Nephrology and Genetics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, never envisaged she would one day pioneer groundbreaking advancements in kidney disease treatment. Yet, an unforeseen twist during her postgraduate training, set her on a path…

For decades, LGBTQ+ patients have faced stringent requirements to donate blood—most gay and bisexual men were not allowed to donate at all. Now, however, many more of them will be able to give this selfless gift. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which regulates blood donation in this country, has reworked the donor-screening criteria, and…

June 29, 2023 | by Jonathan B. Waller Dubbed the “Love, Light, and Liberty” March, the demonstration was open to the entire community, and called for renewed commitment to fight for LGBTQ+ civil rights and equal protection under the law. Pride parades held each June offer the LGBTQ+ community an opportunity to celebrate hard-won battles…

Regina Whittick, on right, with her daughter Charlotte. Regina Whittick’s journey to a bachelor’s degree started long ago. It ended as a celebration with her daughter Charlotte, who also graduated the same day with her own bachelor’s degree. In between, she used Penn Medicine tuition benefits to help get her there, because it’s never too…

Aimee Payne, MD, PhD, a professor of Dermatology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, was recently named president-elect of the Society for Investigative Dermatology (SID), the nation’s leading organization for skin research. Having been a member of the group since shortly after entering her dermatology residency in 2002, Payne noted…

Candles bearing the names of babies lost during pregnancy or in the days after glow during a remembrance ceremony held at Princeton Medical Center. Luciano. Julian Angel. Caden James.  Bernadette Flynn-Kelton, BSN, RN, outpatient bereavement coordinator with the Community Wellness Program at Penn Medicine Princeton Health, read off the names, one by one. As she…

Most days began with Joey Porch at his demanding job as the manager of a popular Chislehurst, NJ bagel shop, where he would routinely work on his feet. However, consistent back pain eventually sent him to the emergency room, beginning an eight-month journey that nearly ended his life.  “I thought maybe it was something wrong…

Picture this: As you float peacefully in a crystal blue sea, dolphins swim gently around you.  One performs a slow barrel roll, while another nudges its pod mate to play.  They’re so close you could touch them. While it may feel like you’re in the Caribbean somewhere, you’re actually more than a thousand miles away—in…

If opioid use disorder is a disease, then why not treat it with medicine? Although it is a simple question, it has often been a fraught one. Attitudes toward opioid use are decidedly not uniform, even in the medical community, which has hampered the ability to curb an epidemic that is constantly setting deadly records….

Rev. Miles in his office at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church. Leroy Miles has somewhere to be.  In fact, he has about a dozen places to be, but in speaking with him, the Associate Pastor of Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church projects equal parts calm and confidence to pair with the urgency of the event where he…

By Mariel Harden Mariel Harden, MHA, is in her second year of Penn Medicine’s Administrative Fellowship and is pursuing her doctorate in organizational leadership. Here, she shares how she found her passion in health care administration. Mariel Harden, MHA Growing up, I had one plan: to be a professional ballet dancer. And I got pretty…

Dotted amongst a night of stars like Lilly Collins, Mila Kunis, Maria Sharapova, and Kristen Bell sat Drew Weissman, MD, PhD, and Katalin Karikó, PhD. The two mRNA pioneer scientists may have begun the night feeling not much in common with their entertainment A-list tablemates but ended the night having partnered on one more project:…

An annual competition at Pennsylvania Hospital helps the Grounds team strengthen their skills and refresh their horticultural knowledge.

When people become seriously ill, their ability to work may be diminished, and this can often lead to a number of tough circumstances, including food insecurity.   “Sometimes patients have to choose between food and medicine,” explained Meredith Doherty, PhD, LCSW, assistant professor at Penn’s School of Social Policy & Practice (SP2) and a member…

The 90 minutes that Whitney Zachritz, MSN, RN, CPNP-BC, spends offering books and snacks to parents of the hospital’s littlest patients are typically the most special of her week.  Zachritz, an Intensive Care Nursery (ICN) clinical practice leader at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), hands out between 30 and 50 children’s books…

In an emergency, advanced training and equipment can make the difference between life and death. Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health (LG Health)’s new physician response vehicle brings high-tech gear and medical expertise directly to the scene, with a mission to save more patients’ lives.  Penn Med 1 is a large sport utility vehicle outfitted with…

Maayan Levy, PhD, and Christoph Thaiss, PhD When we hear about gut bacteria, we may think about probiotics and supplements marketed to help with digestion, about how taking antibiotics might affect our intestinal tract, or perhaps about trendy diets that aim to improve gut health. But two researchers at Penn Medicine think that understanding the…

Carl June, MD, and Daniel Baker For most of modern medicine, cancer drugs have been developed the same way: by designing molecules to treat diseased cells. With the advent of immunotherapy, that changed. For the first time, scientists engineered patients’ own immune systems to recognize and attack diseased cells. One of the best examples of…

Andrew Holmes Jr. A chronic wound on his leg was gradually eroding away at Andrew Holmes Jr.’s quality of life over the course of many years. His wound caused him significant and constant pain that could only be mitigated by Tylenol and a prescription for oxycodone. Due to the location of the wound, Holmes had…

Michael Ibrahim, MD, MBBS, PhD Kathleen Tierney had always lived life at full speed. Over a career that spanned over four decades, Tierney devoted her life to coaching, and later as an athletic administrator, serving as the athletic director of Bryn Mawr College. After 15 years at the Philadelphia-area school, she retired from her position…

The modern conveniences of the 21st century have touched most areas of our lives. As just one example, think about how fueling up for the day has changed. You can use an app to send your order to Dunkin’ Donuts or Starbucks, so that everything is made just the way you like it, and pay…

By Frank Otto and Alex Gardner Carolyn Coladonato, BSN, RN The American “cowboy” image evokes someone who is unapologetically free, unpredictable, and cool under pressure as they roam across the open range. But, to be successful, cowboys needed practicality and pragmatism.  When a Penn Medicine home care nurse talks about how they handle their jobs…

Note: This article was written by a real person. If you ask the artificial intelligence text generator called ChatGPT how it can help in medicine, it will answer you. “ChatGPT can be a valuable tool in various medical applications,” before providing a 10-point, and fairly detailed, explanation of its practical uses in health care. (Penn’s…

Comfort often comes in unexpected places. At Penn Medicine’s 3600 Civic Center Boulevard parking garage, just down the street from the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, entrance greeter Thomas “Tommy” Barbieri provides a friendly, helpful, and calming presence for the many patients and employees who pass through each day. From 6 a.m. to 2…

César de la Fuente, PhD In an era peppered by breathless discussions about artificial intelligence—pro and con—it makes sense to feel uncertain, or at least want to slow down and get a better grasp of where this is all headed. Trusting machines to do things typically reserved for humans is a little fantastical, historically reserved…

From a very early age, Scarlett Adams spent a lot of time in what her parents called “Scarlett World,” where she would not speak and rarely made eye contact. When someone called her name, she wouldn’t respond, and she resisted being hugged or held, even by her parents.   “She wouldn’t really play with toys,” her…

The morning of October 2nd was an ordinary one at the University of Pennsylvania in many ways. Students strolled the campus leisurely in shorts or studied on benches, sipping iced coffee in the warm, early fall sunshine. On the medical campus, employees scrubbed in for surgeries, brought breakfast to hungry inpatients, registered outpatients for appointments,…

Picture this: You are diagnosed with cancer and not only do you have to process your new diagnosis, but you also have to choose when and where you will begin treatment. You discuss with your doctor, search your web browser for ‘cancer treatment near me,’ talk to family and friends, and try to sort through…

Patient Lynn Oxenberg Five years ago, at age 67, Lynn Oxenberg had a seizure, which doctors found to be caused by glioblastoma (GBM), the most common—and most aggressive— type of cancerous brain tumor in adults. Individuals with GBM usually expect to live 15-17 months following their diagnosis. Doctors were able to remove the tumor and…

Ben Stanger, MD, PhD Ben Stanger, MD, PhD is a practicing Gastroenterologist at Penn Medicine. He is also the Hanna Wise Professor in Cancer Research and professor of Medicine and Cell and Developmental biology at the University of Pennsylvania. Stanger recently published his first book From One Cell: A Journey into Life’s Origins and the…

The nursing staff at Lancaster General Hospital (LGH) has some new helping hands in the form of two robot assistants. “Roxy” and “Rosie” assist with routine non-clinical tasks, such as pickup and delivery of supplies, enabling nurses to focus on patient care. “This is one way of limiting tasks that are important to patient care…

October 26, 2023 | by Jonathan B. Waller At the outset of Zonía Moore’s application process for the prestigious Fulbright scholarship program, her father Gordon Moore suddenly died from a heart attack on the eve of a decisive step in her interviews.   It wasn’t the only hardship to hit amid Moore’s pursuit of one…

Seventeen years ago, Madaline Bell experienced one of the scariest times of her life, when her twin daughters were born prematurely at 23 weeks. Weighing 1 pound each with numerous health complications, the babies—Sydney and Payton—required care in Pennsylvania Hospital’s (PAH’s) Intensive Care Nursery (ICN). Most babies born this early only have a small chance…

By Brittany Salerno Brittany Salerno, MPH, is project manager of Substance Use Research in Emergency Medicine at Penn Medicine’s Center for Addiction Medicine and Policy and recently earned a Master of Public Health from the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine. Here, she shares how her passion for advocacy influenced her career path. I…

Jonathan Szeto at his White Coat Ceremony at the Perelman School of Medicine. How often do high school students get the chance to peek at a potential future in the medical field? One immersive program at the Perelman School of Medicine (PSOM) at the University of Pennsylvania does just that. As a first-year medical student…

By: Abby Alten Schwartz Photo by Katie Burke Friday, October 6, 2023, was an unforgettable night for the trauma team at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center (PPMC) and other Penn Medicine staff. That evening, military and civilian trauma staff and dignitaries gathered to commemorate the U.S. Navy’s 248th birthday. They had no idea the event would…

How did a kidney donation from one veteran to another originate? Morgan Slaughter saw a sign—literally.  While scrolling Facebook looking for a new restaurant to try, the Air Force veteran noticed a post by Collegeville Bakery in Collegeville, PA, with a picture of a sign outside.  “On social media I am always looking up restaurants…

When Marcy (Martha) and Bill Korson walked onto the Good Morning America stage on Monday, Oct. 2, 2023, and—together with dozens of family members and friends—hugged their surprised daughter, Kate, it was the latest in a series of “full circle” moments for the family.  Kate was interviewed on the ABC morning news program about her…

Vaccines for COVID-19 were the first time that mRNA technology was used to address a worldwide health challenge. The Penn Medicine scientists behind that technology were awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Next come all the rest of the potential new treatments made possible by their discoveries. Starting in the late 1990s,…

Oftentimes, though, these innovations are first used in relatively rare diseases. What about the most common ones, like the leading cause of death worldwide—heart disease? Multiple research teams at Penn Medicine are continuing to advance the science to develop new treatments for heart disease that could work with just one shot—three different ways that a…

Marc A. Satalof was recognized by the Red Cross with this framed certificate several years ago after he had given 25 gallons of blood given. Around the perimeter, he added the pins he has collected from the Red Cross over years—one for every gallon donated. More than 50 years ago, at the age of 22,…

Andrew Dean, LCSW The grief of losing a loved one to substance abuse, even if they’re still alive. The terror of a cancer diagnosis. The challenges facing teens who identify as LGBTQ+—and their families. All of these are topics of the Mind on Mental Health podcast, which just wrapped up its Fall 2023 season. Produced…

By Abby Alten Schwartz Something as simple as a name can make a big impact. Just ask M. Kit Delgado, MD, MS. “Instead of saying, ‘Hey, you—can you do this?’ it’s nice to say, ‘Hey, Sarah, can you help with this this?’ and foster good personal relationships,” he said. As director of Penn Medicine’s Nudge…

A support group at Pennsylvania Hospital not only provides resources on how to manage symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, but also fosters friendship among the participants. The Support Group for Black Patients with Parkinson’s Disease, launched in February, serves as a space where patients in an underserved community can connect with those with shared experiences. “Many…

By: Christina Smith & Olivia Kimmel Philadelphia Nurse Triage Team Top row (left to right): Jasmine Gaskins, LPN; Honorio Freeland, RN; Julie Schiowitz, RN Bottom Row (left to right): Mercedes Johnson, LPN; Kaleisha Dillette, RN; Tanya Gaston, RN; Shannon White, RN Imagine you have flu-like symptoms that include a fever that has not improved in…

Volunteer Reiki practitioner Vince Gilhool provides a session to cancer patient Richard Cummings. At nearly 80 years old, master Reiki practitioner Vince Gilhool has volunteered over 6,700 hours providing Reiki sessions to patients, caregivers, and others at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) and the Abramson Cancer Center (ACC) since 2010. Gilhool, a…