Robert Wood Johnson
I
MEDICINE 3
Sherine E. Gabriel, MD, MSc, Dean:
A Dual Passion for Epidemiology and Medical Education
4
Dr. Gabriel discusses her appreciation for the strengths of Robert Wood Johnson
Medical School, as well as her vision for the school's future and the future of
the U.S. health care system.
By Kate O'Neill
Turning Point: Recovering from Stroke to Dance Again
8
Too much screen time?"the teenager's parents wondered when she suffered an
excruciating headache. But swift diagnosis revealed a stroke, and skillful neurosurgery
reversed its damage, enabling her to resume her life and her love of dancing.
By Robert Forman
Experiencing Medical Practice in Medellín, Colombia
12
Three medical students spend a summer observing and working in
the medical system in Medellín, Colombia.
By Lauren Evans
The Gift of Hearing: How Our Cochlear Implant Team
Is Making a Difference in Children's Lives
16
Two-year-old Annabella Macias had profound hearing loss and was not responding
to sound. But a surgical procedure and comprehensive team approach are resulting in
dramatic improvements in her hearing and language development.
By Beth-Ann Kerber
HIPHOP Promise Clinic Turns 10
21
For ten years, future doctors at the student-run Promise Clinic have provided
preventive, primary care for the uninsured, predominantly homeless clients
of Elijah's Promise. The clinic has evolved and grown, but its mission in medical
education and community health is stronger than ever.
By Kate O'Neill
A Child's Point of View Inspires a Research Center
29
The Pediatric Clinical Research Center in the Department of Pediatrics
trains future pediatric clinician researchers.
By Lynda Rudolph
Expanding Lifesaving Options in Aortic Valve Replacements
36
Our team of specialists recently became the first in the nation to perform
a transcarotid valve-in-valve TAVR. With this addition to the full spectrum of care
we offer related to the aortic valve, the "no-available-treatment" discussion is
becoming obsolete.
By Beth-Ann Kerber
Controlling the Clock That Regulates Labor:
Maternal Health Researchers Look to End Infant Mortality
and Disabilities Resulting from Preterm Labor
41
Todd Rosen, MD, has uncovered an epigenetic switch in the placenta that may
trigger production of a labor-inducing hormone, which may shed new light on the
molecular clock governing the length of pregnancy.
By Jennifer Forbes
F a l l 2 0 1 5
Can Doesn't Mean Should:
Through Blog and Book,
Paul Smolen,
MD '78
, Counsels Thousands of Parents
50
By Kate O'Neill
Carole Sampson-Landers, MMS '74, MD:
A Leader in Clinical Research Comes
Back to the Banks"as a Rutgers
University Trustee
52
By Kate O'Neill
Robert Burke, MD '75, MPH:
A Special Love for Children
with Special Needs
54
Danielle Perret Karimi, MD '03:
A Star with a Heart
56
By Kate O'Neill
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Contents
A L U M N I
P R O F I L E S
D
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P A
R
T
M
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N
T S
Letter from the Dean
1
News
45
Research News
46
Letter from the
Alumni Association President
49
Class Notes
61
Last Page
64
RobertWoodJohnson
MEDICINE
A Publication for Alumni and Friends of
Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
Dean
Sherine E.Gabriel, MD, MSc
Executive Editor
Patricia M. Hansen, MA
Director, Communications and
Public Affairs
Editor
Roberta Ribner
Writers
Beth-Ann Kerber
·
Jennifer Forbes
Kate O'Neill
·
Lynda Rudolph
Robert Forman
·
Lauren Evans
Copy Editor
Richard Slovak
Art Director and Cover Art
Barbara Walsh
F a l l 2 0 1 5
·
V o l u m e 1 5 , N u m b e r 2
Editorial and Advertising Office
Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
·
Roberta Ribner, Editor, Robert Wood Johnson Medicine
335 George Street
·
Suite 2300
·
New Brunswick, NJ 08903
·
Tel: 732-235-6310
·
Fax: 732-235-9570
Email: ribnerrs@rwjms.rutgers.edu
Alumni Association
Officers:
President
Sonia Garcia
Laumbach, MD '99
Vice President/
President-Elect
Thomas
McPartland, MD '01
Treasurer
Hank Lubin, MD '83
Secretary
Paul Weber, MD '87
Chair,
Membership
Committee
Geza Kiss, MD '95
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