Category: Medicine

“Bonne nuit, monsieur,” said Dianne Uwayo, MPH, warmly, as she bade farewell to a patient leaving a clinic in West Philadelphia. “Bonne nuit,” he replied. Uwayo, who grew up in the American…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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,…

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…

“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…

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…

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…

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,…

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…

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….

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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,…

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,…

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…

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,…

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…

  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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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,…

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…

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…

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…

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…

Recurring headaches are one of the most common nervous system disorders, with an estimated 45 million, or one in six, Americans complaining of headaches each year. People who experience headaches or migraines…

Two heads are better than one. The ethos behind the scientific research project Folding@home is that same idea, multiplied: 50,000 computers are better than one. Folding@home is a distributed computing project which…

Lancaster Emergency Medical Services responds to more than 47,000 requests for service each year, treating patients who have experienced everything from car accidents to cardiac arrest. EMS providers spend their days —…

Americans have a long, complicated and mostly social history with alcohol—from copious consumption during the country’s founding to pandemic-era socializing on Zoom happy hours. However, drinking to excess or developing an alcohol…

By: Abby Schwartz To passersby, it simply looked like a group of workers enjoying treats from an ice cream truck on a beautiful spring day. To employees of the Hospital of the…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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+…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

By: Christina Smith & Olivia Kimmel The Delancey Internal Medicine Nurse Triage Team Top row (left to right): Jasmine Gaskins, LPN; Honorio Freeland, RN; Julie Schiowitz, RN Bottom Row (left to right):…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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….

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

Meeting Someone Like Me 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…

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…

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,…

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…

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…

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?…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…