Duggan also recognized for corporate achievement

John Flack, M.D., M.P.H., WSU interim chair of internal medicine, was named a Health Care Hero by Crain's Detroit Business on Monday. Dr. Flack, who received the honor in the "Outstanding Physician Achievement" category, was recognized for his work addressing health disparities, particularly in the area of hypertension.

"Flack and his staff are about 18 months away from analyzing the data they're collecting [on how a person's environment interacts with other risk factors, such as weight and genetic predispositions for hypertension related to salt intake]," according to the story lauding Dr. Flack in Crain's Detroit Business. "The outcome could affect how health care is delivered in Detroit and how the medical professionals think about hypertension in the black community.

The story also mentions that introducing novel approaches to the prevention and treatment of hypertension can reduce health-care costs in the long run.

"Flack's intervention is at the behavior modification level -- simple preventive strategies that work combined with good primary care. You can save a lot doing that," Dean Robert Frank said in the story.

In addition to Dr. Flack, Mike Duggan, Detroit Medical Center CEO Mike Duggan was recognized in the "Corporate Achievement" category of the "Health Care Heroes" issue. The magazine praised him for taking leadership after a $50 million state bailout in 2003 and making the DMC profitable again. It also noted Mr. Duggan's efforts to tout the benefits of the DMC's affiliation with the WSU School of Medicine.

"One thing that's clear is that Mike is a quick study," Dean Frank said in the Crain's story. "He figured out where he could make a difference fairly quickly. He's begun to put the DMC on a much better course for success."

To read more on the special Crain's Detroit Business Health Care Heroes issue, please visit http://www.crainsdetroit.com/cgi-bin/toc.pl.

 

Pathfinders in Medicine, a WSU School of Medicine black-tie event established in 2000 to honor outstanding vision and leadership in medicine, scientific research and the availability of quality health care within the community, will be at 6 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 8, in Ford Field. This year's honorees include:

• Larry Fleischman, M.D., past president of Children's Hospital;
• Henry McKinnell, chairman and CEO of Pfizer;
• Tina Kelley (posthumously), a WSU School of Medicine resident dedicated to serving children who was killed in a car accident Feb. 4;
• Roberto Romero, M.D., head of National Institutes of Health's Perinatology Research Branch at the WSU School of Medicine;
• Ebony Rucker, a WSU School of Medicine fourth-year student; and
• Sophie Womack, M.D., president of the Detroit Medical Center medical staff and chief neonatologist at Sinai-Grace Hospital.

Proceeds from Pathfinders in Medicine go to scholarship funds, including the The Black Medical Association of Wayne State University Endowed Grant Fund and the Charles F. Whitten, M.D., Post-Baccalaureate Fund. For more information or to make a reservation, please contact Sue Helderop at Sue Helderop (313) 993-4179 or sheldero@med.wayne.edu.

Fourteen Wayne State University physicians have been listed in this year's edition of “America 's Top Doctors,” a publication of Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. due in bookstores in September.

“I am proud that our faculty continues to be held in high esteem among their colleagues and peers,” said Dean Robert Frank. “This type of recognition calls to attention the high standards we set for ourselves to deliver the most advanced patient care – patient care that's informed and enhanced by our commitment to research and education.”

Castle Connolly's physician led-research team conducts an extensive research and screening process involving surveys of more than 10,000 M.D.s in medical leadership positions and private practice across the country to identify those specialists and subspecialists considered to be clinically outstanding by their peers.

The guide identifies more than 5,000 top specialists throughout the United States in more than 60 medical specialties and subspecialties for the care and treatment of more than 1,700 diseases and medical conditions. These outstanding physicians represent the top 1 percent in the nation, according to Castle Connolly.

WSU physicians recognized by “ America 's Top Doctors” include:

• Gary Abrams, M.D., ophthalmology
• David Bouwman, M.D., surgery
• Michael Diamond, M.D., obstetrics & gynecology
• Jeffrey Forman, M.D., radiation oncology
• Bernard Gonik, M.D., obstetrics & gynecology
• James Gutai, M.D., pediatric endocrinology
• Robert Lisak, M.D., neurology
• Michael Nigro, M.D., pediatric neurology
• John Ruckdeschel, M.D., oncology
• Ashok Sarnaik, M.D., pediatric critical care
• Charles Schiffer, M.D., oncology
• Jack Sobel, M.D., infectious disease
• Marjorie Treadwell, M.D., obstetrics & gynecology
• Andrew Turrisi, M.D., radiation oncology

Postmenopausal women at increased risk for breast cancer eligible to participate

The Wayne State University School of Medicine is enrolling postmenopausal women at increased risk for breast cancer in a new clinical trial evaluating the role of an aromatase inhibitor in the prevention of the disease. Coordinated by the National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group with the support of Pfizer Inc. and in cooperation with women's health and cancer centers in the United States, Canada and Spain , the ExCel research study will follow more than 4,500 women over a five-year period.

“We hope that women from across our community will consider participating in the trial as the results may have a direct impact on the future of breast cancer prevention,” said Susan Hendrix, D.O., WSU professor of obstetrics & gynecology.

The ExCel research study will examine the potential benefit of exemestane in postmenopausal women, 35 years of age or older, who have an increased risk of developing breast cancer. Risk factors include, but are not limited to, age, family history, age at first menstrual period and age at time of first child's birth.

Exemestane is a member of a class of drugs called aromatase inhibitors currently used to treat breast cancer in women around the world. Results from a study published in a March 2004 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine demonstrated that exemestane was able to prevent the occurrence of new cancers in the opposite breast of women who have already had breast cancer, suggesting that it may prevent the disease in healthy women.

Women looking for more information about the ExCel research study should contact (313) 745-7156 or visit www.excelstudy.com .

 

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation recently awarded a $100,000 grant to Wayne State University School of Medicine in partnership with the Voices of Detroit Initiative to improve access to care for uninsured people in Detroit.

The Wayne State University School of Medicine is a key partner in the Voices of Detroit Initiative, which is seeking ways to provide cost-effective, high-quality health services to all residents of the city of Detroit and Wayne County, particularly those who are uninsured.

Dr. Robert Frank, interim dean of the WSU School of Medicine, and Dr. Herbert C. Smitherman, interim associate chairman of the Department of Community Medicine, are the co-principle investigators of the new grant.

“This grant will allow VODI to continue its important work in seeking the best ways to care for all of our citizens here in Detroit and Wayne County, specifically the uninsured, while also providing the community with information that will be valuable in planning for expanded health-care access to vulnerable populations,” said Lucille Smith, executive director of VODI.

Since its establishment six years ago, VODI has developed a care model for uninsured patients that focuses on the concept of a “medical home,” which provides primary-care services at 12 Federally Qualified Health Center sites throughout the city of Detroit and directs referrals for secondary and tertiary care through health-system partners.

VODI has developed a three-part strategy for its next phase of development:

• Access to primary care continues to be expanded within VODI's member service-delivery networks through improving access to the full continuum of care by integrating and expanding primary, specialty and hospital services for uninsured patients.
• Enrollment and service-tracking processes pioneered by VODI continue to advance the Uninsured Health System, an administrative claims process for the uninsured that is equivalent to that of insured populations.
• A planning and policy research agenda will be continued and expanded to establish best practices for services delivered in low-income communities.

“The goal of our strategic planning is to improve access to care, improve quality of care, optimize cost-effective patient care outcomes and ultimately improve the health status of the community,” Dr. Smitherman said. “The enhancements envisioned will create a more robust model of care for uninsured patients.”

 

Bennie Zak, Ph.D., a WSU professor of pathology who retired in 1990, died July 29. He was 85.

Dr. Zak was an internationally renowned clinical chemist, especially in the area of lipid analysis and spectrophotometry. He had the rare honor of having two of his research papers recognized as citation classics by Current Contents.

As an educator, Dr. Zak helped develop courses in clinical chemistry and instrumentation that were a vital part of the graduate curriculum. He completed both his bachelor's and doctorate degrees at WSU after serving as an officer in the Air Force during World War II. He was a prisoner of war for 15 months after being shot down over Germany.

Dr. Zak, who spent his entire career at WSU, was awarded the School of Medicine's Distinguished Service Award in 1983. He also received the Ames Award of the American Association of Clinical Chemists and the Faculty Research Award of Sigma Xi at Wayne State University.

Dr. Zak is survived by his wife of nearly 59 years, Doris Zak; son and daughter-in-law, Steven and Jackie Zak of Sunland, Calif.; daughters and son-in-law, Deborah Zak and Tom Tataranowicz of Malibu, Calif., Dr. Marsha Zak of Redlands, Calif.; sister and brother-in-law, Sarah and David Score of Pleasant Hills, Calif.

Contributions may be made to Women's American ORT, 6735 Telegraph Road, Suite 150, Bloomfield Hills, Mich., 48301, or to a charity of one's choice.

Dean Frank appoints interim leadership

Dean Robert Frank announced interim appointments in the departments of pharmacology and orthopaedic surgery to compensate for the absence of two chairs who will take temporary leaves to pursue professional interests.

Bonnie Sloane, Ph.D., WSU chair of pharmacology, has been invited by the National Cancer Institute to serve as a liaison for imaging and tumor microenvironment. Beginning Sept. 1, Arun Wakade, Ph.D., professor of pharmacology, will serve as acting chair.

"This is a great honor for both Dr. Sloane and the Wayne State University School of Medicine," Dean Frank said.

Dr. Wakade's research is primarily focused in understanding the peripheral autonomic nervous system and the control of neurosecretion, which plays a vital role in human diseases, such as Parkinson's Alzheimer's, mental depression and hypertension.

On the clinical side, Stephen DeSilva, M.D., chair of orthopaedic surgery and president of the WSU Physician Group, has decided to take a six-month leave of absence from his post as chair to devote more time to the Physician Group as it continues its investigation into the feasibility of becoming a single-group practice. During this time, Steven Petersen, M.D., WSU associate professor of orthopaedic surgery, will assume the role of acting chair.

Dr. Petersen is a board-certified orthopaedic surgeon specializing in injuries and disorders of the shoulder, including sports-related and industrial injuries, rotator-cuff disorders, arthritis and fractures. He received his medical degree from Rush University, in Chicago, before completing an orthopaedic residency and research fellowship at the Mayo Graduate School of Medicine, where he also received a master's degree in orthopaedic sciences.