Monthly Momentos: September 2024

Sep 25, 2024

This ongoing blog series celebrates people, milestones, and achievements from across our health system. Content is adapted from monthly updates shared with the University of Utah Board of Trustees.

From mapping genetic changes across the entire human genome to being recognized by Forbes as the best health care employer in Utah, we have much to celebrate this month.

Kudos

Thanks to the unwavering dedication of our teams, Vizient, Inc. recognized U of U Health as a top tier performer for quality of care for the 15^th consecutive year. Additionally, for the 10^th consecutive year, U of U Health is ranked in the top 10 nationally for ambulatory care.
Janie Ford celebrates 40 years as an AirMed flight nurse for U of U Health. Janie served in multiple leadership positions, including Nurse Educator and Chief Flight Nurse. She is also a contributing Column Editor in the Air Medical Journal, the leading clinical journal for the aeromedical industry.
Kait Otero, a DNP student in the College of Nursing, was selected as a 2024-2026 Jonas Scholar. Otero joins a select group of 63 of the nation’s most promising doctoral nursing students chosen for their passion for teaching, academic excellence, and research prowess.
Jessica Osterhout, PhD, assistant associate professor of neurobiology, received the 2024 Klingenstein-Simons Fellowship Award in Neuroscience, a very selective young investigator award, for her project, “Why does sickness hurt?”
Jason Shepherd, PhD, associate professor of neurobiology, received the prestigious 2024 McKnight Neurobiology of Brain Disorders (NBD) Award for his research project entitled, "Virus-like Intercellular Transmission of Tau in Alzheimer’s Disease."
Donzelle Taylor, a PhD student in the Neuroscience Program (training with Moriel Zelikowsky, PhD) was selected for the 2024 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Gilliam Fellows Program.
Jack Bowler, PhD, postdoctoral fellow with the Heys Lab, received the Life Sciences Research Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship. This highly competitive three-year fellowship is awarded to only 25 recipients annually. It provides a platform for Bowler to further his pioneering work in neural physiology.
Anna Parks, MD, assistant professor of hematology, received the National Institute on Aging K76/Beeson Award. This career development award for future leaders in aging research provides robust funding and extensive mentoring. Parks is the third Beeson recipient from the University of Utah.
At the capstone graduation for the 2023-2024 NLM/AAHSL Leaders Program, Catherine Soehner, MLS, AHIP, director of the Eccles Health Sciences Library, was recognized for her service as mentor to Debra Werner, MLIS, director of library research in medication at the University of Chicago. This is the second time Soehner has served as a mentor for the fellowship program.

Janie Ford has been an AirMed flight nurse for 40 years.

Welcoming New Leaders

Aaron Quinlan, PhD, was appointed chair of the Department of Human Genetics. Quinlan is a professor of human genetics and biomedical informatics and serves as co-director of the DELPHI Data Science Initiative. Quinlan succeeds Lynn Jorde, PhD, who chaired the department for 15 years and has been a faculty member since 1979.

Achievements in Education

The School of Dentistry welcomed its incoming class of 2028 at the White Coat Ceremony in August. For the third consecutive year, the incoming class is comprised of at least 50% women. The class comes from 31 colleges in 17 states, speaks 13 languages, and includes first-generation students and students from urban and rural communities.

Achievements in Clinical Care

University of Utah Health was recognized as the top health system employer in Utah on Forbes’ 2024 ranking of America’s best employers by state. Rankings are based on surveys of more than 160,000 employees working at companies that employ 500 people or more in the U.S.

Achievements in Community Collaboration

For the third consecutive year, U of U Health hosted its annual Healthy Start West Valley health fair in partnership with West Valley City, University Neighborhood Partners, Granite School District, and Ascent Academy. In addition to 60 informational booths, attendees had access to free health screenings, resulting in:
- 98 vision screenings
- 28 diabetes screenings
- 107 dental screenings
- 35 child dental cleanings
- 8 mammograms
- 150 pairs of children’s shoes and 30 skateboards given away for back to school

At Healthy Start West Valley, members of the Hunter High School football team partnered with U of U Health to draw attention to the Department of Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery booth where U of U of U Health providers shared information about ENT conditions and prevention.

Achievements in Research

A new study led by Corrine Welt, MD, an endocrinologist in the Department of Internal Medicine, found that early menopause may increase the risk for developing breast cancer. The findings, published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, revealed that women who go through menopause before age 46 are twice as likely to develop breast cancer. The increased risk highlights the need for proactive health screenings.
With $1.5M of new funding from the W. M. Keck Foundation, a team of U of U Health scientists, led by Deborah Neklason, PhD, (Huntsman Cancer Institute), Aaron Quinlan, PhD, (Human Genetics), and Nicola Camp, PhD, (internal medicine), starts an ambitious new project to map genetic changes across the entire human genome. By comparing genetic and epigenetic information throughout participating families, the research team hopes to shed light on how and when disease-causing DNA modifications are inherited.
A new advanced brain imaging study, led by Ben Shofty, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurosurgery, has revealed how different parts of the brain work together to produce creative thought. The results could lead to interventions that spark creative thought or aid people with mental illnesses that disrupt these regions of the brain.
The NIH-funded BeatPain Utah Project, led by Julie Fritz, PhD, PT, FAPTA, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training in the College of Health, uses telehealth to connect back pain patients in rural and underserved areas with physical therapists specializing in pain management. Treatment is provided in English and Spanish. More than 300 participants across the state are currently enrolled in the study.

Michael Good, MD

Michael Good is CEO of University of Utah Health and A. Lorris Betz Senior Vice President for Health Sciences. Good ensures the professional and educational success of the 25,000 talented faculty, staff, and students who comprise U of U Health, one of the nation’s premier academic health systems. He received an MD from the University of Michigan and completed residency and a research fellowship in anesthesiology at the University of Florida.

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