News Medical Group Nurses Earn Patient Praise patient of Robert Wood Johnson Medical Group phoned with special praise for Krystal Hollins, MSA. “Krystal went above and beyond yesterday,” the patient said, “touching my heart.” “Krystal is always, professional, kind, and compassionate,” says Kris Peterson, RNC, CCCE, nurse manager, Department of Medicine. Aura Velasco, LPN, a nurse in the division of rheumatology, quickly helped a patient sort out a billing issue with Medicare and saw to it that she was fully reimbursed. “She went above and beyond the call of duty, and I will always remember her for her kind and gentle ways,” the patient said. “Aura is trained in several divisions and never hesitates to cover other clinical areas when necessary,” says Ms. Peterson. Second-Year Students Receive $50,000 to Implement Health Startup A A team of second-year students has launch- Health and executive director, RWJ Partners, to determine whether financial rewards and gamification will truly motivate patients with chronic health issues. “Currently, if a diabetic patient reduces his or her HbA1C, the physician and the payer both save money, and the integrated delivery systems are rewarding both of these parties. But where ed Copernicus Health, a startup that uses financial rewards and gamification to engage patients in their own health care. Team members, left to right are: Jeet Patel, Rutgers University, Class of ’18, Jonathan Haskel ’17, Sam Schild ’17, Brian Friel ’17, Joshua David ’17, and Tom Nahass ’17. Courtesy of the Nicholson Foundation Medical School Becomes Alan Alda Center Affiliate lan Alda may be best known for his role as field surgeon “Hawkeye” Pierce on the TV series, M*A*S*H. But he is also a writer and an educator with a deep interest in science and a passion for “getting the message across,” says Carol A. Terregino, MD ’86, associate professor of medicine and senior associate dean for education. Following his keynote address at the 2014 annual meeting of the Association of American Medical Colleges, Mr. Alda met with several deans, including Dr. Gracias and Dr. Terregino, to describe his innovative program at the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University, where actors use improvisation to teach scientists how to better explain their work and respond to their listeners. Dr. Terregino successfully proposed that the medical school and the Alda Center establish an affiliation, which will start with grand rounds for 20 to 25 core educators in the Department of Surgery—residents and faculty who work in fellowship programs. Leading the rounds will be Evonne Kaplan-Liss, MD, clinical associate professor in public health, preventive medicine, and pediatrics at Stony Brook University School of Medicine and an active member of the steering committee of the Alda Center. A Last year, in an “Idea-a-thon” sponsored by the Nicholson Foundation, the students won a $5,000 grant to help launch the project. This spring, in Nicholson’s healthcare delivery challenge, the group won a $50,000, Phase II grant to support implementation of the pilot program. The plan will roll out with a focus on Type II diabetes mellitus, because the disease is so well studied and patient education can produce significant results. The group is working with Alfred F. Tallia, MD ’78, MPH, professor and chair, Department of Family and Community is the patient in all this?” asks Tom Nahass. “The patients are the ones doing the day-to-day hard work, and it may not be enough to motivate them with the promise of better health.” Copernicus recently added a new branch: they are working with faculty members, including Carol A. Terregino, MD ’86, senior associate dean for education, and the directors of patient-centered medicine course, to allow medical students to develop an interdisciplinary team that will educate patients on chronic disease. Dr. Tallia Elected to Executive Board of National Board of Medical Examiners lfred F. Tallia, MD ’78, MPH, professor and chair, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, was elected to a two-year term as a member of the executive board of the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME). The NBME is an independent, not-for-profit organization that provides high-quality assessments of the health professions. In addition, the NBME appointed Dr. Tallia to represent the organization as a regular member on the Composite Committee of the United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE). A John Emerson 3