SPR I NG / S U M M E R 2 0 0 8

A Publication for Alumni and Friends of Stritch School of Medicine

Student
Life at Stritch
Becoming Better People and Better Physicians

I N T H I S I S SUE :
Recognizing Dedication 7
2008 Match Day 8
From Mentee to Mentor 11
St. Albert's Day Celebration 12
Will There Be Enough Doctors 15 Years From Now? 
 SPR I NG / S U M M E R 2 0 0 8

Welcome A Publication for Alumni and Friends of Stritch School of Medicine

Dear Alumni and Friends: STRITCH MEDICINE FEATURES

Jan Ciccarelli
Editor & Director
It is hard to believe that we are at the end of another class year. It has been an Marketing Communications, Marketing 2
exciting spring for Stritch students and Loyola overall. Loyola University Health System
Student Life at Stritch
John M. Lee, MD, PhD Becoming Better People and Better Physicians
In March, several alumni hosted Sophomore Dinners in their homes. Several other
Dean
receptions and reunions also took place across the country, including one hosted by Loyola University Chicago
the former dean, Stephen Slogoff, MD. Read more about this and other news from Stritch School of Medicine
your colleagues and former classmates starting on page 22. The feature about one of
Paul K. Whelton, MB, MD, MSc
our alumni and her definition of success is inspiring and exemplifies our philosophy
President and Chief Executive Officer
of continuing to serve others. Loyola University Health System
7
Recognizing Dedication
Of course, one of the most anticipated events of the spring is Match Day. This year Trisha Cassidy Students Nominate Pulmonary Specialist

2
Senior Vice President for AAMC Humanism in Medicine Award
54 percent of the 137 students seeking residencies were women; 69 percent of the
System Development & Strategy
class will remain in the Midwest, 15 percent are going to the East Coast, 7 percent are going Loyola University Health System
to Southern states and 9 percent are going to the West Coast. We are pleased to have
16 percent of the class remaining at Loyola University Medical Center. Our graduates will Deborah Simpkins
become residents, many of them chief residents, and leaders of some of the finest institutions
Vice President 8
Marketing
across the country. They will join all our alumni in becoming ambassadors for Stritch. Loyola University Health System
2008 Match Day
List and Photos
Graduation is June 1, and it is a time filled with emotions — pride, anticipation, joy, excitement Rev. Michael J. Garanzini, SJ, PhD
President
and a little sadness that some of those who have become so dear to us will move away. But we
Loyola University Chicago
feel confident that our students will embark on this new phase of their careers well equipped 11
with medical knowledge and human understanding to advance medicine and serve the world. Design:
Finelight From Mentee to Mentor
Stritch Student Receives Humanitarian Award
This issue highlights some awards and accomplishments but it also provides a closer look at
Contributing Photographers:
some of our students — what their lives are like as medical students and how their pursuit of Andrew Campbell
a diverse range of interests and dedication to their personal commitments enhances who they Bob Coscarelli
are and the physicians they will be. Alvin Hayashi
Oscar Izquierdo 12
In April, the new Loyola University Hospital Tower officially opened. The new state-of-the-art STRITCH MEDICINE is published St. Albert's Day Celebration
facility on the Loyola University Medical Center campus in Maywood is one aspect of the new semi-annually for Alumni and Friends
model of patient care being implemented. The insert sent with this issue of Stritch Medicine of LUC Stritch School of Medicine
and Loyola University Health System.
highlights some of its features.
Questions or comments may
Also please note the upcoming reunion years. I hope you will plan to attend if it is your reunion- be mailed to:
DEPARTMENTS
year celebration. STRITCH MEDICINE
Department of Marketing
Mulcahy Center 14 Research – Grant List
Loyola University Medical Center
16 Philanthropy
2160 S. First Ave.
Maywood, IL 60153 19 Appointments
John M. Lee, MD, PhD 20 News in Brief
or e-mail
Dean marcom@lumc.edu 21 Stritch Alumna Defines Success
Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine 22 Alumni News
©2008 Loyola University Health System

 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/

 Student
Life
“We expect the best Major Crane is his impression of the “We encourage them to

Jesuit order, for which he has “nothing
from students in terms interact with practicing
but respect. They’re a lot like Special
of academic pursuit, skill Forces — a highly trained group that physicians in mentoring
development, behavior tries to make good come out of every relationships…”
and attitudes…” day. I find kinship with them; it’s very

at Stritch similar to what I stand for.” Just prior to graduation, fourth-year

The values that drew first-year Stritch student Robert (Rob) Keder took a
By Nancy Creighton student Timothy (Tim) Crane to With three years yet to go, Major leap of faith by contacting Tony Bailey,
medicine — and to Stritch — are Crane is unsure of where he will be BSc, MBBS, chair, Psychiatry Depart-
identical to those that were nurtured when his training is complete. “I’m ment, University of Oxford, United
during his 10-year career as a member still thinking about going back to the Kingdom, requesting that he spend a
of the Army’s Special Forces. Passion- Special Operations community as a month observing, learning and being
ate about his work and his team, he doctor,” he said. “But the Army, like mentored by one of the world’s lead-
was particularly inspired by the unit’s medicine, is an ever-evolving situation; ing researchers in autism, an area in
medic, so much so that, when asked four years from now, it could be which he may one day specialize. “I
what he’d like to do when he left the very different.” spent hours writing a three-paragraph
Army, he responded, “I want to be a letter, and then waited three weeks
doctor.” For now, he is preparing for whatever for a response,” said Mr. Keder. “In
comes his way. “Stritch does a great true British form, he replied simply
While back at Fort Bragg (North job of showing examples of profes- and concisely by saying that, indeed,
Carolina), Major Crane spent what- sionalism and leadership. That’s very would be fine.”
ever free time he had taking pre-med important; it makes you understand
courses and completing the necessary that you are an integral part of the It resulted in yet another rich
Timothy (Tim) Crane, first-year Stritch student
requirements. “Two years into the community.” learning experience for Mr. Keder,
process, I had already visited every
medical school in North Carolina,” he
said. “Then someone told me about
Becoming Better People and Better Physicians Exemplifying Fr. Sheehan’s comments
Stritch, so I had to go there. It was so
are four distinctly different medical
unbelievably different from any other
“We expect the best from students in terms of students, one from each class level
medical school I had visited. It was like
at Stritch. These four students are
academic pursuit, skill development, behavior representative of the diverse mix of
coming home,” he recalled.

genders, backgrounds, cultures and

and attitudes. We encourage them to interact The same qualities that Stritch expects
personalities that together comprise the
of its students — academic pursuit,
with practicing physicians in mentoring relation- Stritch student body. This is a look at
skill development, behavior and atti-
what brought them here, what interests

Photography by Andrew Campbell

tudes — dovetailed with Major Crane’s
ships, offer countless opportunities for them to them and, overall, what their lives are
prior experience as a Green Beret. “I
like today, their expectations for the
serve the community and give them time to future and how Stritch is helping them
came from a highly specialized environ-
ment where people were very serious
pursue personal interests. This helps them become better physicians by giving them
and professional about what they do,”
the highest-quality medical education
he said. “It’s the same here. Stritch
become better people and better physicians.” but also by providing an environment
places equal emphasis on profes-
that embraces who they are and
sionalism as on being human. It’s very
– Myles Sheehan, SJ, MD, encourages their continual pursuit of
refreshing.” Also striking a chord with Robert (Rob) Keder, fourth-year Stritch student, with Mirléne and Jaques Cronin
Senior Associate Dean of Education their individual passions.
Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine (Stritch)

 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/ Student Life at Stritch 


Rob Keder plots the location of his residency during Match Day.
adding to the practical learning that
he has gained in a variety of areas, all
of which will help him pursue a career
in developmental and behavioral
pediatrics.
At Stritch, he has had the good for-
tune to observe and be mentored by
role models who include Eva Bading,
MD, associate professor and chair,
Department of Family Medicine;
Malliswari Challapalli, MD, professor,
Department of Pediatrics and Divi-
sion Director of Pediatric Infectious
Disease; Paul Hering, MD, professor,
Department of Medicine, Division
of General Internal Medicine; and
Ruby Roy, MD, associate professor,
Department of Pediatrics, Division
of General Pediatrics. He also had
the opportunity to serve a clerkship
under 1989 Stritch graduate Marilyn
Augustyn, MD, associate professor of
pediatrics, Boston University School
of Medicine. “That’s what nailed my
decision to specialize in development
pediatrics,” he said. In fact, on March
20, Mr. Keder was pleased to learn
that he matched with his first choice.
He will serve his residency in pediat-
 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/
rics at Connecticut Children’s Medical
Center in Hartford, Conn.
Mr. Keder became exposed to the
multidisciplinary approach being taken
with maternal and infant mental health
at the “Fussy Baby Network” spon-
sored by Erikson Institute, a graduate
school specializing in early childhood
development and an educational part-
ner of Loyola University Chicago. He
became intensely involved in pediatrics
at Stritch, serving as president of the
Pediatrics Club, befriending pediatric
oncology patients and their families
as a leading member of the “Special
Friends” program sponsored by both
the Loyola University Health System
(LUHS) and the American Cancer
Society, and creating new games for
children to play over the hospital
radio station.
While he’s learned much from these
experiences, Mr. Keder believes that,
“in medicine, you get a front row seat
to life. The best way to learn is to see
each patient as a human being and
listen to his or her story so you can
understand how a patient’s biological,
psychological and social aspects are all
interconnected.”
And while medicine remains a big part
of his life, he believes that “you have
to maintain a life outside of medicine
to take care of yourself and to develop
as a person. For me, that means learn-
ing a new hobby every year, from the
Argentine tango and swing dancing, to
teaching myself how to play the cello.
I even tried fencing. If I did not chal-
lenge myself to try new things, I would
not have discovered my latest passion
for improvisational comedy.”
Mr. Keder credits Stritch for the
opportunities he’s gained. “I admit,
medical school has its challenges,”
he said. “Coming here was like going
from high school varsity sports to the
Olympics, but I don’t mind the work.
Like the attendings I’ve worked with
at Loyola, my peers are phenomenal,
brilliant students with different yet
profound interests in so many areas.
Where else can you meet such
wonderful people?”
Equally important is the education
that he received at Stritch, which has
helped prepare him for the next step
in his medical training and shape his
view on life. “I can truly say that I have
been ruined for life,” he added, refer-
ring to the phrase about how a Jesuit
education changes one’s perspectives
on service and reflection.
“We offer countless
opportunities for them to
serve the community…”
Serving the community comes second
nature to third-year student Ebinehita
(Ebi) Arhebamen. “I’ve always been
interested in doing something in
community service,” she said. Like
Mr. Keder, Ms. Arhebamen has
befriended pediatric cancer patients
through LUHS’ Special Friends
program, as well as shared food and
conversation with Chicago-area
homeless men and women through
Community Night, and provided
medical care in Jamaica as part of
the International Service Immersion
(ISI) Program. It was her ISI trip to
Jamaica that left a strong impression
on Ms. Arhebamen. “It was a high-
yield experience,” she said. “I was a
first-year student at the time and knew
little about medicine. But the more we
taught, the more we learned.”
In Jamaica, Ms. Arhebamen noticed the
high incidence of sexually transmitted
infections (STIs). “It really scared me
just how many women were walking
around with untreated STIs and had
no idea how they could protect
themselves,” she said. According to
the U.S. Department of Health & Ebinehita (Ebi) Arhebamen,
Human Services Office on Women’s third-year Stritch Student
Health, the United States has the high-
est rate of STIs in the industrialized said, noting that the more students and is engaged in a research project
world, with an estimated 15.3 million know, the greater the chance of at the Edward Hines Jr. Department
new cases reported each year. “That decreasing the prevalence of STIs of Veterans Affairs Hospital.
realization pushed me to champion in the Maywood community. “Neuroscience just makes sense,”
the use of condoms and the need for she added.
education, both in Jamaica and in the While project research combined with
medical coursework take up much of
Maywood community,” she added. “We give them time to
her week, Ms. Arhebamen still makes
time for friends and outside interests. pursue personal interests.
Ms. Arhebamen already is acting on
her quest ­— she and another student Most of these, however, are centered This helps them become
have proposed researching teens to around Stritch, which she says, “feels better people and better
find out how much they know about like home. The students here are physicians…”
STIs for their third-year Ethics Case amazing. Those in classes above yours
are always willing to help by lending
Analysis Paper. Being conducted in
partnership with the Maywood books and giving advice.”
The son of two nurses, second-year
student Wojciech (Wojtek)
Health Initiative, the project involves Kraszkiewicz knew he was destined
surveying students at Proviso East Torn between two very different
for a career in medicine years ago.
High School. “Our ultimate goal is areas of potential specialization
Like most young children, he was
to increase students’ awareness and — neurology and obstetrics — she
intrigued by his parents’ work, often
even help change the curriculum,” she is currently leaning towards neurology
Student Life at Stritch 

visiting them in the hospital. It proved
to be an invaluable experience, provid-
ing Mr. Kraszkiewicz with a first-hand
look at what would eventually become
his life’s work.
While in college, he enrolled in
Stritch’s Summer Enrichment Program,
an opportunity for pre-med students
to experience the medical profession.
For six weeks, Mr. Kraszkiewicz shad-
owed Loyola University Health System
physicians and residents at community
“Other medical schools paled by comparison,” he
recalled. “There was a great sense of community
here, a welcoming environment, a place where you
were more than a number...."
– Wojciech (Wojtek) Kraszkiewicz
Wojciech (Wojtek) Kraszkiewicz, second-year Stritch student
 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/
health clinics, attended classes and
seminars on medical techniques, par-
ticipated in local community service
and learned how to prepare for medi-
cal school. In the process, he gained a
first-hand look at Stritch. “Other med-
ical schools paled by comparison,” he
recalled. “There was a great sense of
community here, a welcoming environ-
ment, a place where you were more
than a number. That’s when I made the
decision to come here. Plus there’s a
lot to do in Chicago,” he added.
Mr. Kraszkiewicz was able to ease into
medical school rather than be stressed
out by it during his first year. “Starting
out with one course at a time and then
gradually adding more classes really
helped me focus on each course,” he
said. He spent two weeks of his last
summer on a Stritch ISI trip to Haiti,
which he describes as a “wonder-
ful experience. You learn what real,
unadulterated medicine without any
bureaucracy is all about. It was a great
learning experience, a chance to help
however you can and an eye-opening
look at the poverty in the world,” he
said. It also resulted in relationships
built not only among the students who
participated but with the people they
served. Mr. Kraszkiewicz and others
in his ISI group recently reunited with
their Haitian driver, who visited
Chicago in March.
Reinforcing his learning have been the
faculty and staff at Stritch, especially
Sr. Brenda Eagan, IBVM, director
of Ministry, Stritch. “They not only
love their jobs; they care about what
students need,” said Mr. Kraszkiewicz.
Although, as a second-year student,
Mr. Kraszkiewicz's coursework has
increased significantly, he still manages
to find time to pursue other interests,
from listening to live music at jazz
and blues clubs in downtown Chicago,
to spending time with friends — inter-
ests that, as Fr. Sheehan believes,
make students “better people and
better physicians.” •
Recognizing
Dedication
Students Nominate Pulmonary Specialist
for AAMC Humanism in Medicine Award
By Kathleen Misovic
Instilling confidence in students, listen-
ing to their concerns, encouraging
them to participate in all aspects of
student life … these are just some of
the ways Loyola University Chicago
Stritch School of Medicine (Stritch)
students say Kevin Simpson, MD, men-
tors them. Stritch students nominated
Dr. Simpson, associate professor,
Division of Pulmonary & Critical Care,
Department of Medicine, for the
2007 Association of American Medical
Colleges (AAMC) annual Humanism
in Medicine Award. Students choose
nominees based on a number of crite-
ria including positive mentoring skills,
involvement in community service,
compassion and sensitivity, collabora-
tion with students and patients, and
modeling ethics of the profession. One
finalist is chosen each November by
the AAMC.
Although Dr. Simpson wasn’t chosen
as the finalist, he was honored with
the nomination. “I am extremely
flattered the students think of me so
highly to nominate me for such a pres-
tigious award,” said Dr. Simpson. “I
am fortunate to interact with students
in a variety of settings including the
classroom, on clinical rotation,
“I am fortunate to interact
with students in a variety
of settings including the class-
room, on clinical rotation, at
a community clinic and at
clinics abroad.”
– Kevin Simpson, MD
at a community clinic and at
clinics abroad.”
Dr. Simpson teaches first- and
second-year students a course called
“The Mechanism of Human Disease.”
Kevin Simpson. MD
He meets with third- and fourth-year
students during clinical rotations and
any help to the people who came to
in small groups to discuss common
the clinic, but Dr. Simpson allowed me
encounters in pulmonary and critical
to enhance my clinical skills without
care medicine.
feeling like I could put the patient at
risk,” said Chris Manley, a third-year
“Dr. Simpson always welcomes stu-
student recalling his ISI experience.
dents to come with him to his clinic or
“You can only feel that comfortable
hospital rounds, even if it is last min-
in stressful surroundings when you
ute,” said George Nicholson, a fourth-
year student. “He wants students with
have someone like Dr. Simpson at
your back.”
him because he loves to teach.”
Even when Dr. Simpson isn’t scheduled
“Dr. Simpson can take really compli-
to teach a class or organize an activity,
cated topics and break them down
students said he can be counted on to
to make them easy to understand,”
make time for them. “He always takes
said third-year student John Green,
time to fit you into his busy schedule.
a member of the Pulmonary Interest
He will give you an hour when you
Group, which Dr. Simpson advises.
know he should be eating his lunch or
“He had us tackle some really in-
taking some personal time,” said third-
teresting topics that are above and
year student Andrea Adams. “He
beyond what we normally cover in
never rushes you. He clearly listens
class. He always makes sure everyone
to your concerns and lets you know
in the group is given the opportunity
he cares.”
to speak and makes sure no one is
ever left behind.”
Dr. Simpson said the best part of
working with Stritch students is their
Once a month, Dr. Simpson works
with the students at a community
enthusiasm and idealism. “They are
sponges soaking up everything you say,
health clinic serving the West Side of
and they are still very idealistic. Unfor-
Chicago. Every summer for the past
tunately, the practice of medicine has
six years he has accompanied first-
the ability to change people over time.
year students on Stritch International
They start focusing on problems with
Service Immersion (ISI) trips to
hospital systems, finances and practice
Central America.
litigation. It’s really inspiring to work
with students who haven’t made that
“When I was down in Honduras with
transition yet, and I am optimistic
Dr. Simpson, I wasn’t sure I would be
many of them won’t.” •
Recognizing Dedication 
 Jacqueline Coulomb Tara Babu
MacNeal Mem Hosp Univ. of Mass. Med School, Mass. C
Univ. of Chicago Affil Hosp, Ill. C Bradford Bemiss
Rachel Davis Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C
Exempla St. Joseph Hosp, Colo. C Kristal Carthan
Amelia Fitz Med Coll Wis. Affil Hosps, Wis. C
West Suburban Med Ctr, Ill. C Jennifer Colvin
Jeffrey Griesemer Brown Univ. Int Med Res, R.I. C Sumana Devata shown with her parents matched to the internal medicine
Univ. of Ill.-Methodist Med Ctr, Ill. C residency program at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. She said,
Sumana Devata
Emily Hoovey Med Coll Wis. Affil Hosps, Wis. C “I feel like I’m leaving with a great background. They really emphasize the clinical
West Suburban Med Ctr, Ill. C aspect of medicine so we feel well prepared for what’s going to get thrown at us
Anneliese Flynn next year, even more so than maybe some of the other schools.”
David Kelley Univ. of Mich.Hosps, Mich. C
La Grange Memorial Hosp Jillian Foley
Rush Med Coll Affil Hosp, Ill. C Northwestern Memoral Erin Malone Brian Walcott
Reji Ninan Hospital, Ill. C Rush Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C Harvard Univ./ Mass. Gen
Advocate Lutheran Gen Hosp, Ill. C Gregory Goska Hosp, Mass. A

2008
Elizabeth Schlichting Advocate Lutheran Gen Hosp, Ill. C MEDICINE-PRELIMINARY
MacNeal Mem Hosp Bridget Gulling Mona Ahmed NEUROLOGY

Match Day
Univ. of Chicago Affil Hosp Ill. C Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. P Kristen Kelly
Laura Schrader Edward Kilb Stefanie Hirano St. Josephs Hospital
Carolinas Med Ctr Univ. of N.C. at Medical Univ. of S.C., S.C. C Med Coll Wis. Affil Hosps, Wis. P Univ. Ariz. COM Affil
Chapel Hill SOM Affil, N.C. C Hosp Ariz. A
Muhamad Krad Kristen Kelly
Katherine Szczepanski Northwestern Memoral Banner Good Samaritan Med Matthew Siegel
MacNeal Mem Hosp Hospital, Ill. C Ctr Univ. Ariz. COM Affil Northwestern Memorial
Jack Lee, MD, PhD, dean, Stritch, addressed the crowd as the fourth-year students awaited their results. He said, “You (our students) will be great ambassadors Univ. of Chicago Affil Hosp, Ill. C Mark Landmeier Hosp, Ariz. P Hospital, Ill. A
for us — many will become chief residents because your clinical training is so excellent.”
Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C Dallen Mill Laurel Smit
GENERAL SURGERY Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. P Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. A
Nadia Razaq
Harold Bach Univ. of Mich. Hosps, Mich. C Siddhartha Patel
ANESTHESIOLOGY CHILD NEUROLOGY Christian McGinnis Brian Sharp Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C Univ. of Md. Med Ctr, Md. P OBSTETRICS-
William Beaumont Hosp Wayne Univ. of Mich. Hosps, Mich. C Raquel Reinbolt
Rachel Brooke Seema Bansal Andrea East Ohio State Univ. Med Ctr, Ohio C Dominic Ricci GYNECOLOGY
Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C Children’s National Med Ctr, D.C. A State Univ. Affil, Mich. C Nathan Trueger Univ.of Mich. Hosps, Mich. C
Michael Ryan Calif. Pacific Med Ctr, Calif. P Megan DeJong
Rachel Brown Hawnwan Moy Mt. Sinai Hospital, N.Y. C Peter Felice Matthew Siegel Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C
Barnes-Jewish Hosp Wash. Univ. Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C
Northwestern Mem. Hosp., Ill. A DERMATOLOGY Palmetto Health Richland Assuntina Sacco Loyola Univ. Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. P Kara Goldman
Manoj Kalayil Dominic Ricci
Affil Hosp, Mo. C FAMILY MEDICINE Univ. S.C. SOM Program, S.C. C Med Ctr, Ill. C Barnes-Jewish Hosp Wash. Univ.
Erin Nasrallah Nicole Beall Teresa Gonzaga
Univ. of Wis. Hosp. and Univ.of Southern California, Calif. A
Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, III. C Melissa Siegel NEUROLOGICAL Affil Hosp, Mo. C
Clinics, Wis. C Univ. of Tenn. COM, Tenn. C Univ. of Minn.Med School, Minn. C
Brendan Thomas Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C SURGERY Meredith McMullen
Joel Kileny Univ. of Ill. COM, Ill. A
Matthew Pirotte Megan Bidgoli Christopher Hughes UMDNJ-R W Johnson-
Northwestern Memorial Michael Sjoding Sarah Bandt
Univ. of Mich. Hosp. Mich. C West Suburban Med Ctr, Ill. C Univ.of Conn. Health Ctr, Conn. C Camden, N.J. C
Hospital, Ill. C Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. C Washington Univ., Mo. A
Jennifer Knautz EMERGENCY MEDICINE April Mendoza Urszula Sobol Margaret Mueller
LSU SOM, La. C Michael Kelly
Northwestern Mem. Hosp., Ill. C Richard Amini Univ. of Wis. Hospital and Cleveland Clinic Fdn Case Western Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. C
William McDermott Univ. of Ariz. Affil Hosps, Ariz. C Claire Peeples Clinics, Wis. C Reserve Univ. SOM Affil, Ohio A
Duke Univ. Med Ctr, N.C. C William Beaumont Hosp Wayne
Jenna Bartz Jenny Tuan
State Univ./ Univ. Mich. Affil, Mich. C
Dallen Mill Univ. of Mich. Hosps, Mich. C Univ. of Md. Med Ctr, Md. C
Yale-New Haven Hosp, Conn. A Steven Cherry Ryan Plichta Robert Walter
Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C
Gregory Opdahl Loma Linda Univ., Calif. C NCC-Walter Reed Army Med
Univ.of Texas Med Sch, Texas A Matthew Deluhery Karen Sherman Ctr, Wash. C
Northwestern Memorial
Michael Shane Med Coll Wis. Affil Hosps, Wis. C Margaret Weisenberger
Hospital, Ill. C
Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. C Michael Downs Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C
John Speicher Univ. of Ill.-St Francis Med Ctr, Ill. C
Thomas Wade Christopher Wickman
Med Coll Wis. Affil
Photography by Oscar Izquierdo

Univ. of Calif Davis Med Ctr, Calif. A
Lynell Williams
Henry Ford HSC, Mich. C
Erica Grimm Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C
Hosps, Wis. C
Stanford Univ. Progs, Calif. C
Adam Hill MEDICINE-PEDIATRICS
INTERNAL MEDICINE
Henry Ford HSC, Mich. C Kelly Curran
Katherine Aragon Med Coll Wis. Affil Hosps, Wis. C Rebecca (Becky ) Smeraglinolo shown with her husband Mark, her 2 1/2 year-
Univ. of Calif. old son Jack and her mother Jan Nelson, will do her residency in pediatrics at
San Francisco, Calif. C Jude Dumfeh Rush University Medical Center. Staying in the area was important to her since
Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C
her husband is an accountant at a Chicago-based firm.
Megan DeJong shown with parents Patty and Richard DeJong (’79).
Ms. Dejong said, “I think the thing that stands out about Loyola is com-
munity – hands down. The teachers are great, and everyone will go to C-Categorical - training for specialty P-Preliminary - 1or 2 years of prerequisite training for entry into advanced training
bat for you at any time.” A-Advanced - training after preliminary M - training in primary care ambulatory setting

 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/ Match Day 

 From Mentee
Robert Keder
Univ. of Conn. Hlth Ctr, Conn. C
Molly Marker
Childrens Hosp, Calif. C
Marc Manganiello
Lahey Clinic Children’s Hosp
Boston Affil, Mass. P
Amrish Patel
To Mentor
Stritch Student Receives Humanitarian Award
By Kathleen Misovic
George Nicholson Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. P
Einstein/Montefiore Med Ctr Michael Ross
Albert Einstein COM Program, Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. P The first person in her family to study their own communities. They can be
N.Y. C John Speicher medicine, Loyola University Chicago less judgmental and more helpful than
Betsy Ostrander Univ. of Calif Davis Med Ctr, Calif. P
Rush Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C
Stritch School of Medicine (Stritch) physicians who are not familiar with
Robert Turner third-year student, Marlana Li, under- the community because they under-
Colleen Rusciolelli Univ. Pittsburgh Med Ctr, Pa. P
Bridget Gulling is pleased to be staying at Loyola University Medical Center Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. C Brian Walcott
stands the importance of mentors for stand their minority patients’ situa-
for her internal medicine residency. She said she will take away from Stritch Katherine Siciliano Mass. Gen Hosp, Mass. P aspiring physicians. “I wouldn’t have tions,” Ms. Li explained. “For instance
“to always be compassionate.” Hawnwan (Phil) Moy matched to Barnes-Jewish Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. C made it as far as I have without men- they would not berate their patients Marlana Li
Hospital at Washington University, St. Louis, in emergency medicine. He said, Rebecca Smeraglinolo TRANSITIONAL YEAR tors along the way,” said Ms. Li, who for making unhealthy food choices and
“I interviewed at several medical schools, and when I interviewed at Stritch, Rush Univ.Med Ctr, Ill. C
I liked that the students are really happy here, and that’s something you don’t Rachel Brown relied on her undergraduate and medi- not walking because they understand
Emily Swan Resurrection Med Ctr, Ill. P
find everywhere. The teachers are very caring.” Nicole Beall said, “I am truly Rush Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C cal school instructors and advisors for their patients live in violent neighbor- Ms. Li was inspired to start PULSE
appreciative of the education and support the Loyola family has given me the Leslie Crawford when she visited an elementary school
Sara Szkola Naval Medical Center, Calif. P
support and advice. hoods where it is not safe to walk,
past four years.”
Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. C and often there are no grocery stores. to help students with a science project
Matthew Del Giudice
Elizabeth Thompson In 2006, Ms. Li returned the favor They can help their patients find as a volunteer with the Student
Kristen Pierce Curtis VandenBerg Grand Rapids Med Ed Mich. State
Univ.of Mich. Hosps, Mich. C Univ. of N.C. Hosps, N.C. C Univ. Program, Mich. P National Medical Association, a
St. Lukes-Roosevelt Columbia Univ. by organizing a mentoring program healthy solutions that work within the
Colleen Rivard Coll of Physicians and Surgeons, Gregory Opdahl student-run organization focused on
for minority high school students confines of their neighborhoods.”
Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C Affil N.Y. C RADIATION ONCOLOGY Resurrection Med Ctr, Ill. P
the needs and concerns of minority
considering a career in medicine. The
Lindsay Talarico Mackenzie McGee Patrick Owsiak
medical students. “A lot of the kids we
Univ. of Pittsburgh Med Ctr, Pa. C OTOLARYNGOLOGY William Beaumont Hosp SAUSHEC-Brooke Army Med Ctr, Proviso United with Loyola Students “I didn’t want to wait visited were from minority back-
Wayne State Univ. Affil, Mich. C Texas P for Educational Enrichment (PULSE)
Robin Washington
Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. C
Jeffrey Ksiazek
Univ. Hosp-Cincinnati, Ohio C Tracy Sherertz Rachel Riemer program matches students from until I got my medical grounds, and they were very inter-
Alison Wu Amy Lawrason Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. A William Beaumont Hosp, Mich. P
Proviso East High School in Maywood degree to make a ested to meet medical students,” she
Univ. of Conn. Hlth Ctr, Conn. C John Roberts
Northwestern Memorial
Hospital, Ill. C Terrence Metz RADIOLOGY-DIAGNOSTIC Resurrection Med Ctr, Ill. P
and Proviso Mathematics and Science difference,” she said. recalled. “I realized then what a huge
Academy in Forest Park with Stritch impact a mentor can have on the life
Univ. of Calif San Francisco, Calif. C Matthew Del Tracy Sherertz
Giudice Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. A St. Vincents Hospital, N.Y. mentors. The high school students of a student by encouraging and giving
OPHTHALMOLOGY Brandon Musgrave For her successful efforts in introduc-
Boris Dilman Henry Ford HSC-MI, Mich. C Michelle Stieber Medical College Program, N.Y. P get together with their mentors ing medicine to minorities, Ms. Li was them feedback that they normally
Rush Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. A Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. A Laurel Smit to learn basic medical care such as might not receive.”
Swedish Covenant Hosp, Ill. P one of five students nationwide to be
Rachel Riemer PATHOLOGY bandaging and suturing and to ask
SURGERY-PRELIMINARY Michelle Stieber awarded a 2007 Herbert W. Nickens
William Beaumont Hosp, Mich. A Julie Jackson Mentoring aside, Ms. Li has made
Laurie Bachrach Resurrection Med Ctr, Ill. P questions about medical school. These Medical Student Scholarship. This
John Roberts Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C
Brendan Thomas relationships often extend beyond award is given to third-year medical time in her busy schedule to pursue
Stroger/Cook County, Ill. A Univ. of Ill. COM, Ill. P
PEDIATRICS Sarah Bandt St. Francis Hosp Univ. of Ill. COM formal mentoring visits, with students students who lead the way in address- additional racial equity and social
Affil, Ill. P justice issues. She serves on Stritch’s
ORTHOPAEDIC Patricia Anderson Barnes-Jewish Hosp keeping in contact with their mentors ing the racial and ethnic disparities in
SURGERY Univ. of Louisville SOM, Ky. C Wash. Univ. Affil Hosp, Mo. P through e-mails and phone calls. medical education and health care. Central Curricular Authority, which
Evan Bailey Matthew Bowen UROLOGY
David Abbasi works to enhance medical education
Childrens Hosp Harvard Med School Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. P Laurie Bachrach
Univ. Hosp-Cincinnati, Ohio C by integrating cultural humility into
Affil Hosp, Mass. M Boris Dilman Univ. of Ill. COM, Ill. A “PULSE is a way for high school The Association of American
Paul Cagle the curriculum. She has been active
Univ. of Minn. Med School, Minn. C Seema Bansal Rush Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. P Moira Dwyer students to have fun while learning Medical Schools (AAMC) established
Univ. of Ill. COM, Ill. C Moira Dwyer Mayo School of Grad Med Educ, about career opportunities they may the $5,000 scholarship as part of on projects for World AIDS Day and
Stephen Cummings Minn. A
Long Island Jewish Med Ctr NSLIJHS- Amanda Beach Mayo School of Grad Med Educ, not realize are available to them,” an effort to increase the number Hunger Week. She worked at free
Ind. Univ. SOM, Ind. C Minn. P Marc Manganiello
Albert Einstein COM Affil, N.Y. C Lahey Clinic Children’s Hosp Boston Ms. Li said. of underrepresented minorities in patient clinics in Guatemala during her
Bridget Boyd Michael Kelly
Jay Deimel Affil, Mass. A the medical profession. Ms. Li is the International Service Immersion trip.
Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. C Cleveland Clinic Fdn
Univ. of Chicago Med Ctr, Ill. C Case Western Reserve Univ. SOM Michael Ross Ms. Li started the mentoring program
Christopher Cirone daughter of a Caucasian mother and
Nathan Mesko Affil, Ohio P Loyola Univ. Med Ctr, Ill. A
not only to encourage future minor-
Cleveland Clinic Fdn Case Western Childrens Hosp, Calif. C Asian father. She earned an honors Ms. Li received her award in
Robert Turner
Reserve Univ. SOM Affil, Ohio C Eileen Cowan Univ. Pittsburgh Med Ctr, Pa. A
ity physicians, but also to benefit their bachelor’s degree in biology at the November at the AAMC medical
Univ.of Michigan Hosps, Mich. C future patients. “When minority conference in Washington, D.C. •
University of Utah and is considering
students complete their medical a career in family practice or internal
educations, they often return to serve medicine.

10 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/ From Mentee to Mentor 11

 Saint Albert’s Day

Medical students, post doctoral students, fellows,

St. Albert’s Day Celebration 2007
By Joel Super
This year, for the second time, the
St. Albert’s Day event held at Loyola
University Chicago Stritch School of
Medicine (Stritch) highlighted medical
student research and graduate student
research. Medical students, post
doctoral students, fellows, clinical
residents, nursing students, research
professors and faculty participated in
this year’s celebration. “We want to
make St. Albert’s Day a system-wide
event, including bench, clinical/trans-
lational and public health research,”
said Frederick Wezeman, MD, PhD,
associate dean of the graduate college
and chair of the St. Albert’s Day
committee.
Fr. Larry Reuter, SJ, associate vice
president, University Ministry and
Sr. Brenda Eagan, BVM, director,
University Ministry, opened the day’s
events with a prayer service in the
Stritch atrium. Readings included
Christian, Hindu and Jewish texts
centered on the connection between
a creator and the place of knowledge
and wisdom in human affairs. The op-
portunity to begin viewing some of the
182 posters and talk with the present-
ers about their research followed
directly and continued throughout
the afternoon. The poster presenta-
tion and viewing is intended to inform
the wider Loyola community about
the current research being pursued in
various departments and laboratories
and to foster conversation about it. It
is a time set aside for collegial give
and take.
Late in the morning, Linda Brubaker,
MD, MS, professor, Departments of
Obstetrics & Gynecology and Urology,
and division director of urogynecol-
ogy, moderated the five-minute oral
poster presentation, an event that was
added this year. Presenters included
residents, fellows and those scien-
tists who focus on the more transla-
tional types of research. Eleven teams
presented, and their talks included
titles such as “Are We Overscan-
ning Seizure Patients in the ER?” and
“Primary Adenocarcinoma of Duode-
num: Clinical Pathological and Immu-
nohistochemical Study.” The planning
committee will retain this component
of St. Albert’s Day next year because
it is good training for presenters, as
many national professional societies
are including short presentations of
this sort at national meetings, as well
as it’s an effective way to keep abreast
of current research for listeners, who
get a succinct introduction to many
cutting-edge topics in one sitting. Be-
cause a university medical center is an
academic environment, events like
this help fulfill the educational goals
of the organization. Additionally,
Dr. Wezeman said, “We value that
these events become a celebration
of the students’ achievements.”
Katherine Knight, PhD, professor,
Department of Microbiology &
Immunology, moderated the 15-min-
ute student oral research competition
that filled the afternoon. Dr. Knight is
articulate and precise in conversation
and clearly passionate about her
research and the need for basic
research as a driver of medical prog-
ress. As in previous years, she noted,
each department chooses the stu-
dents who will present their research.
How that choice is made is left up
to the department. “The way the
selection process works in the
individual departments reflects the
independence of each graduate pro-
gram,” Dr. Knight observed. Eleven
presenters from seven departments
spoke on topics ranging from “Carve-
dilol Versus Long-acting Metoprolol
Succinate: Does It Matter?” (Vassilis J.
Siomos, Stritch) to “AMPA Receptor
Surface Expression: Effects of Mor-
phine or Methamphetamine” (Amanda
Mickiewicz, Pharmacology). Accord-
ing to Dr. Knight, “This combined
research day was a clear attempt to
bring the graduate programs together
and demonstrates how research has
become a central part of Stritch’s
vision, and a lot of this research is
going to enhance the institution’s
clinical activities.” She added that,
“The entire celebration has grown
enormously over the last 20 years,
which is commensurate with the
growing prominence of research at
the medical center.”
The winner of the 15-minute oral
research competition was Kari
Severson, Department of Microbiolo-
gy & Immunology, for the presentation
on “The Appendix as a Site of Immune
Development in Response to Select
Bacterial Species.” The winner of the
oral competition is chosen based on
presentation skills, not the basic sci-
ence being explained. Since the ability
to make information available to a
general scientific audience is essential
to professional success, the faculty
support training students in this skill.
Ms. Severson is a native of Rockford,
Ill., and a graduate of Beloit College,
where she majored in biochemistry.
During the course of her undergradu-
ate education, she pursued summer
clinical residents, nursing students, research professors
and faculty participated in this year’s celebration.
“We want to make St. Albert’s Day a system-wide
event, including bench, clinical/translational and public
health research.”
internships, spending her sophomore
year at Loyola. Her positive experi-
ence and very strong pull toward
research led her to apply to the PhD
program. She hasn’t been sorry. “The
faculty know you as a person and push
you on your weaknesses,” she noted.
“Certain members of my [disserta-
tion] committee push me to ask the
flip side of the question or challenge
me to think about things in different
ways. It is a collaborative, student-
focused department.” Her observa-
tion is underlined by the fact that the
judging panel for these presentations
is made up entirely of students.
Ms. Severson is studying how intestinal
bacteria in rabbits stimulate immune
system development. Specifically, she
studies B-cells, a type of immune cell,
by introducing bacteria into a rabbit
appendix that has been surgically tied-
off from the intestine at birth in order
to create a bacteria-free environment.
Ms. Severson observed the human
appendix is structurally similar to the
rabbit appendix, which is a reservoir
for beneficial intestinal bacteria. “We
think our research, which is part of
the field called host microbe interac-
tion, may be applicable to a function of
the human appendix and help answer
questions about how the body can tell
- Frederick Wezeman, MD, PhD
the difference between helpful bac-
teria and pathogenic ones,” she said.
Since the human body contains
10 times more bacteria than human
cells, the research has lots of
potential applications.
The day’s celebration concluded with
a dinner dance and award presenta-
tion. In addition to Ms. Severson in
first place for the 15-minute presenta-
tion, Cynthia Von Zee, Department
of Cell Biology, Neurobiology &
Anatomy, took second place and
Amanda Mickiewicz, Department
of Pharmacology, took third place.
The winner of the Graduate Faculty
Member of the Year Award was
announced; this year’s winner was
Lydia Don Carlos, PhD, professor,
Department of Cell Biology,
Neurobiology & Anatomy.
Amid the changes and expansion
of this year’s event, one aspect
remained constant: the fundamental
purpose of medical research. As
Dr. Wezeman observed, “Ultimately,
basic research in a medical center
is patient-centered because it is
eventually translated into clinical
applications.” •

12 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/ Saint Albert's Day 13

 Research

STEPHEN KAHN, PhD PETER SANTUCCI, MD DAVID WILBER, MD

During the past year, Abbott Laboratories

PETER KALMAN, MD
Biotronik
Boehringer Ingelheim
Cardiac Pacemakers
Biosense Webster
Guidant Sub Univ. of Rochester
Atritech

Loyola University Chicago Stritch Quintiles Transnational

KIMBERLY KENTON, MD
MICHAEL SCHNECK, MD
Boehringer Ingelheim
Cardiofocus Inc.

School of Medicine received Pfizer Urethral Neural

MICHAEL KO, MD
Sanofi-Aventis
Parexel International Corp.

$1.9 million in industry-supported

EMD Serono, Inc. PAUL SCHRECKENBERGER, PhD
EMD Serono, Inc. Siemens Medical Solutions

clinical and preclinical research.

FRED LEYA, MD SCOTT SMITH, MD, PhD
Cordis Telik Inc.
Medtronic
Guidant LOWELL STEEN, MD
Cordis Sapphire Boston Scientific Corp.
AGA Medical Corporation
PATRICK STIFF, MD
FRED LUCHETTE, MD Amgen
JOSEPH AKAR, MD, PhD Dailchi Sankyo DAVID HECHT, MD Ortho Biotech Anormed
Medtronic, Inc. Artesian Therapeutics, Inc. Merck + Co. Biogen Idec
Bayer Wyeth DEEPAK MALHOTRA, MD Gamida Cell
CHARLES ALEX, MD Opocrin SPA Johnson & Johnson Amgen Aastrom Biosciences TRC
Fujisawa Healthcare Inc. Ast Razeneca
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. MARYPAT FITZGERALD, MD LAURA MICHAELIS, MD MICHAEL STOVER, MD
Astellas Pharma US, Inc. ALAIN HEROUX, MD Merck + Co. Synthes-Scientific
VINOD BANSAL, MD Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp.
Hoffmann-LaRoche ROBERT FLANIGAN, MD Cardiokine Phar SUCHA NAND, MD JAMES SWAN, MD
Amgen Antigenics, Inc. Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. Pharmion Paragon-Abbott
Scios Inc. Charles River Laboratories Inc.
LINDA BRUBAKER, MD SEAN FORSYTHE, MD J. PAUL O’KEEFE, MD
Allergan PRA DAVID HOLT, MD Abbott Laboratories MICHAEL TUCHEK, DO
Roche Lab GlaxoSmithKline Medtronic
PAULINE CAMACHO, MD RICHARD GAMELLI, MD Tibotec
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Baxter Healthcare DEBRA HOPPENSTEADT, PhD NIRAJ VARMA, MD
Procter & Gamble Zymogenetics Mitsubishi-Tokyo Pharmaceuticals JORGE PARADA, MD, MPH St. Jude Medical
Eli Lilly and Company Opocrin SPA GlaxoSmithKline Biotronik Trust Stdy
THIRUMAZHISAI GUNASEKARAN, MD Sanofi-Aventis Cardio Insight Tech Inc.
MARK CICHON, DO Abbott Laboratories MICHAEL PINZUR, MD Biotronik
Biomerieux, Inc. WALTER JESKE, PhD Biomimetric
EDWARD GURZA, MD Polymedix Inc. Syntheses USA JEANINE WALENGA, PhD
JOSEPH CLARK, MD Cassiopea Pentapharm
Pfizer Sanofi Aventis STUART JOHNSON, MD TULIO RODRIGUEZ, MD Sanofi-Aventis
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Optimer Pharmaceuticals ESP-Pharma-Inc. Mitsubishi Pharma
Pfizer ANGELOS HALARIS, MD, PhD Genzyme Corporation Viropharma
Sanofi-Aventis Kendle International, Inc. Gentium SPA
Bristol Myer Squibb RUTH KADANOFF, MD, PhD
DAVID HATCH, MD Genetech
JAWED FAREED, PhD Watson Pharmaceuticals
Gentium
King Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

14 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/ Research 15

 Philanthropy
Endowments
Enhance Residents’
Education
By Joel Super
Plastic surgeon James Banich, MD, con-
siders himself highly privileged that, as a
resident in the Department of Surgery at
Loyola University Chicago Stritch School
of Medicine (Stritch) last year, he was
given the opportunity to visit a renowned
expert in nasal reconstruction. He was
one of two recipients of the John L.
Keeley, MD, Surgical Award, an endow-
ment created to allow residents and
fellows in the Department of Surgery to
travel to national and international medical
institutions to further their training.
Residents practicing in the various areas
within Loyola University Health System
(Loyola) have the opportunity to visit
other health-care institutions, attend
national and international seminars and
receive other necessary educational train-
ing thanks to the funds they receive from
endowments established to support the
resident program. These endowments not
only provide the educational experiences
critical for training a new doctor, they help
free up funds for other projects within the
departments where these residents work.
Although the health system pays residents’
salaries and benefits, Stritch departments
pay for their travel, books and other edu-
cational costs, explained John M. Lee, MD,
PhD, dean of Stritch. Not all departments
have the money in their operating budget
to pay for educational travel for residents
and depend on endowments to provide
for this need.
“It is vital for the residents to get a
diversity of experiences both on and off
this campus,” Dr. Lee said. “They need
to get out the door to see first hand any
new medical techniques other health-care
institutions are employing and compare
16 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/
their research here at
Loyola to that of other
residents. The resident
endowments play a
large part in helping to Keeley Award recipient Ian Villanueva, MD, and Guy Hubens, MD, a surgeon
create physicians with expertise in using a surgical robot, at University Hospital of Antwerp in
Belgium. Dr. Villanueva traveled to Europe to meet with several world-renowned
trained in treating the specialists in minimally invasive surgical procedures.
whole patient.”
An endowment is a gift that is invested in
perpetuity. Interest earned by the fund is
used for a purpose chosen by the donor.
The most effective type of endowments
are ones without restrictions because
departments can use these to fund areas
where the need is greatest. Stritch cur-
rently holds approximately $140 million in
endowments. Several of the endowments
set aside specifically for Loyola residents
are detailed below:
John L. Keeley, MD,
Surgical Award
A native of central Illinois and a 1929
Stritch alumnus, the late John L. Keeley,
MD, received additional surgical training
at various institutions, including University
of Wisconsin Hospital and Brigham and
Women’s Hospital in Boston. It’s fitting
that an endowment named for Dr. Keeley,
the chair of the Department of Surgery
at Stritch from 1958–1969, enables
residents in that department to travel
to other medical institutions to enhance
their surgical training.
The endowment was started more than
20 years ago with a donation of some
stock from the now defunct Wieboldt’s
department stores. Mr. Keeley, who is
president of Keeley Asset Management,
adds to the fund regularly.
The endowment provides awards to two
residents and/or fellows annually based on
proposals they submit detailing their plans
to use an award. Recipients visit medi-
cal institutions and physicians around the
globe specializing in the type of surgery
they want to pursue. “There is probably
not a continent other than Antarctica that
Keeley Award recipients haven’t visited,”
said Tim O’Hern, administrative director,
Department of Surgery.
When the recipients return from their
trips, they give Grand Rounds presenta-
tions detailing their experiences and write
articles for the department newsletter.
Past recipients have visited physicians
specializing in all types of surgical
procedures. They have traveled as far
as Italy and Australia and as near as
Cleveland. “The one aspect they all have
in common is they have found their travel
to be one of the most educational and
enriching experiences in their training,”
said Mr. O’Hern.
Dr. Banich traveled to Tucson, Ariz., to visit
the private practice of Fred Menick, MD.
“For more than 30 years Dr. Menick has
been a leader in nasal reconstruction, and
he has co-written books on making noses
from scratch,” Dr. Banich said. “He can
make a nose from the skin of a patient’s
forehead, and his work is very artistic.”
Dr. Banich currently practices general
plastic surgery at Luther Midelfort, a
hospital in the Mayo Health System
serving Eau Claire, Wis., and surrounding
communities. He is blending surgical
techniques he learned from his time
at Loyola with methods adapted from
experts such as Dr. Menick to create a
style that is all his own.
“Plastic surgery is a lot more flexible than
other surgical disciplines because there
are no right answers and many ways to
approach a procedure. That’s what some
physicians hate about plastics but I love,”
said Dr. Banich. “It’s critical to get out and
see how other plastic surgeons approach
the same problem. That’s why I’m so
grateful to have been given the opportu-
nity to learn from Dr. Menick.”
Without the funding from the endow-
ment, Dr. Banich would not have been
able to spend time with Dr. Menick in
Tucson. “Last year the department was
short a resident in our program, and my
time was stretched thin,” he recalled. “For
me to have done anything besides patient
care would not have been considered if I
had not received the award.”
Peter Girgis Resident
Endowment
Samuel Girgis, MD, a resident in the
Department of Otolaryngology from
1981–1986, credits his experience in the
department with helping him to establish
a successful practice in Chicago’s western
suburbs. He created an endowment to
help current otolaryngology residents,
naming it after his brother, Peter, who
died at age 21 of lupus.
“Loyola’s otolaryngology specialists have
a strong reputation and have improved
health care in the western suburbs,”
said Dr. Girgis. “I’m appreciative of what
working in the department has done for
“Loyola’s otolaryngology specialists have a strong reputation
and have improved health care in the western suburbs...I’m
appreciative of what working in the department has done for
my career, and this is a small way of saying ‘thank you’ while
keeping the memory of my brother alive.”
– Samuel Girgis, MD
The Department of Otolaryngology honored the winners of the Seventeenth Annual Peter Girgis Resident Research Compe-
tition. (Left to right) Sam Marzo, MD, associate professor, Department of Otolaryngology, Stritch; Samuel Girgis, MD, for-
mer department resident; Daniel Vukas, MD, resident; Devyani Lal, MD, resident, third-place winner, Peter Girgis Resident
Research Competition; Steven Telian, MD, visiting professor, division chief of Otology-Neurotology, University of Michigan;
Laura Hetzler, MD, resident, first-place winner; Sam Kerns, MD, resident, honorable mention recipient; Ryan Porter, MD,
resident, second-place winner; Phong Le, PhD, associate professor, Department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology & Anatomy.
my career, and this is a small way of saying Kremper Foundation
‘thank you’ while keeping the memory of
my brother alive.” Resident Endowment
Joseph G. Kremper, MD, was one of the
Every January the department’s second- first residents to work in the Department
through fifth-year residents present their of Obstetrics & Gynecology when Stritch
research projects on Research Day. Three
are chosen to participate in a city-wide
opened on the Maywood campus in 1969.
He later established a private practice in
competition. The resident whose pre- Oakbrook Terrace and delivered babies at
sentation is deemed best of the three re- Loyola. He was a favorite mentor among
ceives the Girgis award and is encouraged Loyola’s residents, including current
to use it toward the purchase of books. department chair John Gianopoulos, MD.
“Joe’s sense of humor and vast knowl-
“There is a lot of good-natured competi- edge base made him the ideal teacher,”
tion among the residents vying for the Dr. Gianopoulos recalled. “He had a gruff
award,” said Carol Bier-Lanning, MD, exterior, but we soon found out he was a
assistant professor, Department of Oto- marshmallow inside.”
laryngology. “They take the competition
very seriously, and although it is a modest In the prime of his career, Dr. Kremper
award, there is great pride in winning.” was diagnosed with a heart condition,
which forced him to retire. After his
“I’m happy that the endowment gives resi- untimely death an endowment was
dents something to look forward to each established in his name in the early 1990s
year,” said Dr. Girgis. “Presenting their using the proceeds from several fundrais-
papers at Research Day is a good way for ers, including golf outings and horse races.
them to practice to make presentations at
meetings later in their careers.”
The endowment supports resident travel
Philanthropy 17
 Philanthropy
costs to medical conferences and semi-
nars. “The department combines the en-
dowment with a department fund to allow
each of our residents to travel to at least
one meeting, usually in his or her fourth
year,” said Dr. Gianopoulos. “Without the
Kremper Endowment, the department
would not be able to offer this opportu-
nity to all our residents. They would be
missing out on the vital new information
and networking opportunities available at
these meetings.”
Janice Melian, Dr. Kremper’s widow, has
been active with fundraising events for
the fund and understands the financial
needs residents face. “Many residents
are married and have children and other
financial responsibilities,” she said.
Mrs. Melian believes the endowment is
the best way to honor her late husband’s
memory. “His calling was in medicine,
and it was so difficult for him to give it
up because of his health,” she recalled.
“He would have been pleased to have a
part in assisting residents. He enjoyed
working with the young physicians and
made the department a challenging yet fun
experience for them.”
James Del & Ruth Shea
Neurosurgery Research
and Education Endowment
John Shea, MD, professor, Department
of Neurological Surgery, considers his
parents his greatest mentors. So when
former residents attending a party
celebrating his retirement from surgery
proposed establishing an endowment in
his honor, he only agreed if the award
would be named after his parents.
“I had wonderful parents who were
committed to the education of their
12 children,” Dr. Shea said. “They would
be pleased to have their names on an
endowment dedicated to educating
new physicians.”
Residents have used the Shea endowment
funds to offset travel costs for profes-
sional meetings and to purchase books
18 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/
and surgical loops. “There is not a lot of
money in the department’s budget to pay
for these educational expenses, and the
residents can’t afford them since they are
paid a modest stipend,” said Dr. Shea.
“The endowment helps make all these
vital learning experiences possible.”
Donation to Shea
Endowment
In 1986, 20-year-old Robert Hammer-
smith was working in a mining tunnel at
his family’s limestone quarry in Elmhurst
when a stone weighing 1 ½ tons fell on
his head. Mr. Hammersmith was flown to
Loyola University Medical Center with
severe head injuries. He was fortunate to
be alive; his work partner was killed.
John Shea, MD, performed brain surgery
on Mr. Hammersmith and placed him in a
medically induced coma for three months
to give his brain time to recuperate. He
cautioned the patient’s parents to spend
the night at the hospital so they wouldn’t
miss their last opportunity to see their
son alive.
“I remember Bob Hammersmith very well.
He came into the Emergency Department
in very serious condition, and he made a
better recovery than we expected,” re-
called Dr. Shea, more than 20 years later.
“When he woke up from his coma, the
first thing he did was ask for pizza
and beer.”
“I’m here on earth because of Dr. Shea,”
said Mr. Hammersmith, with emotion,
turning the interview over to his wife
Janice. “If it wasn’t for Dr. Shea, Bob and
I would have never met,” said Mrs. Ham-
mersmith, explaining they met five years
after her husband’s accident and were
married in 1993.
The couple has kept in contact with
Dr. Shea, even after moving to Spring
Grove, Ill., near the border of Wisconsin.
When Mr. Hammersmith’s late parents,
George and Audrey Hammersmith of
Glen Ellyn, left him money to use for
philanthropic purposes, the couple
“I’m here on earth because
of Dr. Shea,” said Mr. Hammer-
smith, with emotion, turning the
interview over to his wife, Janice.
“If it wasn’t for Dr. Shea, Bob
and I would have never met,”
-Bob and Janice Hammersmith
asked Dr. Shea if he had any suggestions
as to a worthy fund. He suggested the
James Del & Ruth Shea Neurosurgery
Research and Education Endowment. The
Hammersmiths have pledged $200,000 to
the fund.
“We believe the best way to honor the
memory of Bob’s parents is to make a
gift to the hospital that gave their son
a second chance at life. We think they
would heartily approve of our choice,”
said Mrs. Hammersmith. “We hope
our gift will help other physicians have
the same success that Dr. Shea had in
treating Bob.” •
For more information on making a donation to
support resident education programs contact the
Office of Development at development@lumc.edu
or (708) 216-3201.
Appointments
Stritch Faculty Appointments
John Affronti, MD, professor, Department of
Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, also serves as the
medical director of Loyola’s advanced endoscopy service.
He is certified by the American Board of Internal Medi-
cine, and his special interests include therapeutic endo-
scopy, endoscopic ultrasound, bile duct disorders, pan-
creas disorders, gastrointestinal cancers and advanced
endoscopy. Dr. Affronti earned his medical degree in 1985
from George Washington University School of Medicine
and Health Sciences, Washington, D.C. Before joining Loyola Uni-
versity Health System (LUHS), he served as an assistant professor
of medicine and director of endoscopy at Emory University School
of Medicine, Atlanta. Prior to that, he held faculty and clinical
positions at the University of Florida Health Science Center, Jack-
sonville, and at Duke University Medical Center, Durham, N.C.
Dr. Affronti sees patients at the Loyola Outpatient Center and the
Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center on the Maywood campus.
Ronald Guttu, DDS, professor, Department
of Surgery, Division of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery
and Dental Medicine, also serves as division director of
Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery. Board certified in oral and
maxillofacial surgery, his special interests include trauma,
reconstructive surgery, dental implants and pediatric oral
surgery. Dr. Guttu earned his dental degree in 1976 from
the University of Washington School of Dentistry, Seattle,
where he also completed his oral medicine residency and
received his Master of Science degree in dentistry. He was trained
in oral and maxillofacial surgery at the University of Illinois-
Chicago and at the Medical College of Virginia, Richmond.
Dr. Guttu joins Loyola from Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center,
La Crosse, Wis., where he served as the director of the oral and
maxillofacial surgery residency program. He spent almost one year
in Norway revising the oral surgery curriculum at the University
of Bergen and establishing the first dental anesthesia program
in that country. He also has been the co-director of a volunteer
dental project in Jamaica for more than 18 years. Dr. Guttu sees
patients at the Oral Health Center on the Maywood campus.
Charles Hemenway, MD, PhD,
professor, Department of Pediatrics, and director of the
Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, is certified by
the American Board of Pediatrics and has special interests
that include pediatric oncology and pediatric blood
disorders. Dr. Hemenway received his medical degree
in 1987 from the University of Massachusetts Medical
School, Worcester, and completed a combined residency
in internal medicine and pediatrics at the University of
Florida, Gainesville. He then began fellowship training in pediatric
hematology/oncology at Duke University Medical Center,
Durham, N.C., where he received a doctorate in genetics in
1996. Prior to joining Loyola, he worked in the Department
of Pediatrics at the Tulane University, New Orleans, where he
established a research laboratory while participating in clinical
care and medical education. Dr. Hemenway cares for patients at
the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center on the Maywood campus.
John Milner, MD, instructor,
Department of Urology, has special interests
that include: transplant surgery in adults and
children, cancer surgery, kidney stones, how
the immune system interacts with cancer and
the application of new technology to surgery.
He earned his medical degree in 1999 at the
University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, where he also
completed a residency in the Department of
Surgery, Section of Urology. He completed fellowships in
the Department of Surgery, Section of Transplantation, at the
University of Chicago Hospitals, and in the Department of
Urology at Loyola. Dr. Milner sees patients at the Loyola Center
for Health at Elmhurst, the Loyola Oakbrook Terrace Medical
Center, and the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center on the
Maywood campus.
Michael Woods, MD, instructor,
Department of Urology, has special interests
that include robotic surgery, laparoscopy,
urologic oncology and endourology. He
earned his medical degree in 2001 at Loyola
University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine
and completed his residency in urology at the
Tulane University Medical Center Hospital,
New Orleans, in 2006. Before joining Loyola, he
completed a fellowship in laparoscopy, robotics
and endourology at the Tulane University Health Sciences
Center. Prior to that, he was a chief resident in the Department
of Urology at Loyola. Dr. Woods sees patients at the Loyola
Center for Health at Elmhurst, and at the Loyola Outpatient
Center and Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center on the Maywood
campus. •
Appointments 19
 News in Brief Alumni News

Virtually Easing Pain

Loyola University Hospital, a recognized
leader in burn care, introduced a virtual-
reality video game to help patients play their
way to pain relief. To a patient recovering
from severe burns, no place would be more
soothing than a polar landscape of gently
falling snowflakes, snowmen, penguins, igloos
and icy rivers. That’s the thinking behind the
interactive game currently used to manage
pain felt by burn patients during wound
care and physical therapy. Loyola is the first
hospital in Illinois and only one of a handful
across the nation that is employing this 21st
century technology.
“Severe burns are one of the most painful injuries a person can
endure,” said Richard Gamelli, MD, Robert J. Freeark Professor of
Trauma Surgery and chair, Department of Surgery, Loyola University
Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. “Anything that we can do to
lessen the pain and suffering of patients during treatment is a plus.
This system is the next step in helping us to do that.”
The virtual-reality system eases pain of treatment by immersing burn
patients in a wintry, computer-generated environment. Its interactive,
multi-sensory, features put patients in a deep freeze of distraction,
leaving less attention for the processing of incoming pain signals. It’s
similar to what has been done with music, movies and even two-
dimensional video games, but more effective because it involves
problem-solving activities that emphasize coolness.
Research related to these types of systems supports the theory.
Studies in Australia, Israel and Washington have shown that “burn
Researcher Predicts Which Patients
Benefit from Chemotherapy
Breast cancer is the most common major cancer
in American women with more than 178,000
new cases expected this year. Chemotherapy
typically has been included as part of the
standard of care if the cancer has spread to the
lymph nodes, a situation facing approximately
45,000 women annually.
However, new data presented recently by
Kathy S. Albain, MD, professor, Department of
Medicine, Division of Hematology/Oncology,
detailed the use of a test (Oncotype DX) that can help determine
whether a woman being treated for breast cancer would receive any
benefit from chemotherapy, even if the cancer had already spread
to the lymph nodes. Her presentation was featured as the most
patients undergoing wound care report that their pain drops
dramatically when they engage in virtual-reality programs. A recent
MRI study at the University of Washington, in Seattle, found that
“virtual reality actually reduces the amount of pain-related activity in
the brain.”
During treatment, a patient wears a stereoscopic, position-tracking
helmet that displays a world of three-dimensional graphics. The
patient is also equipped with headphones and a mouse that allows the
patient to throw snowballs. Along with sound effects, the system has
the ability to let the patient pipe in their favorite music while they play
the game.
The virtual-reality system has further application beyond burn care.
It’s been used to help people overcome phobias and post traumatic
stress syndrome. It’s also been used in urological procedures,
dentistry and to control pain during physical therapy for cystic
fibrosis patients. •
Screenings Reduce the Occurrence
of Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria
To reduce the spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus (MRSA), Loyola University Health System (LUHS) is now
screening every patient with a planned admission to the hospital.
The screening process involves analysis of a nasal swab sample at
the time of admission, and results are returned within two hours.
Since the initiation of the policy, incidence of MRSA has been
reduced by 62 percent as compared to the six months prior to
starting the screening. •
important research at the International San Antonio Breast Cancer
Symposium in mid-December.
The Oncotype DX test measures the activity of 21 genes and gives
a score to predict a woman’s risk of recurrence. Women with low
scores on the gene test were found to have had no benefit from
chemotherapy while those with high scores had major benefit
from the treatment. These findings held out to the final follow-up
at 10 years.
Dr. Albain said in conclusion that “not all women with positive lymph
nodes benefit from chemotherapy, whereas others derive greater
benefit than previously predicted. These findings should be discussed
with women diagnosed with early breast cancer who fit the criteria
for this study.” •
Stritch Alumna Defines Success
by Service to Mexico’s Poor
By Pam Montagno
Most physicians today face challenges in
their medical practice. But for nearly
20 years, one alumna of the Loyola
University Chicago Stritch School of
Medicine (Stritch) has chosen to work
to overcome what many would consider
Herculean hurdles in caring for some of
the world’s poorest people.
For Sr. Frances Jean Gallinatti, MD (’74),
of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ
(PHJC) order, this has meant bringing
health care to the residents of four rural
parishes in the Diocese of Coatzacoalcos,
Mexico, located in the state of Veracruz.
Because no roads existed when she
started her practice in 1989, Dr. Gallinatti
and her team had to travel by riverboat to
reach patients, many of whom had never
before been seen by a physician. “We
would leave on Monday and stay out all
week,” she explained.
Roman Catholic community with a strong Making the rounds to these rural clin-
health-care ministry based near South ics, she and her team consisting of locally
The physician and her team have brought
Bend, Ind. trained residents, her fellow sisters and
primary care to thousands of rural resi-
Alberto Garcia Guzman, an “extremely
dents in the southern part of the state
Dr. Gallinatti entered the PHJC order committed Catholic dad of four who for
along the Gulf of Mexico, which covers
at age 18. The community sent her to 17 years has been my driver, boatman,
about 6,500 square miles. “When we
started, it wasn’t unusual for ill people to attend Loyola University Chicago as an village contact coordinator, mechanic and
undergraduate, then to Stritch, where it overall ‘polivalente’ (English translation:
be carried four hours by hammock from
believed she would receive an exemplary indispensable) person,” Dr. Gallinatti
their village to a small service clinic, only
to be sent to another larger clinic four medical education aligned with its Catholic stressed.
to six hours further, and then perhaps to values. Reflecting on her time in medical
Coatzacoalcos, where there is a hospital,” school, Dr. Gallinatti said, “I appreciate By 1997, the Veracruz health department
Dr. Gallinatti said. and am indebted to the Jesuits for the formed basic “cluster clinics” that made a
excellent education I received at Stritch,” major impact on reducing infant mortal-
Born in 1948 in Gary, Ind., the daugh- which was a formative time in her life and ity and improving basic health care. As a
ter of an Italian-immigrant father and a maturing faith. result, Dr. Gallinatti switched her focus
first-generation Italian-American mother, to providing “medicine boxes,” which
Sister Frances Jean knew in grade school “I did not go to medical school for ‘suc- supply basic over-the-counter medications
she wanted to be a physician. Her much cess’,” explained Dr. Gallinatti, who to more than 40 villages. The donated
older brother, also a physician who passed generally prefers to be called Sr. Frances contents, which include aspirin, acet-
away 25 years ago, had encouraged her to Jean, and is known by her patients as “la aminophen, antacids, vitamins, cotton balls
follow in his footsteps. She was taught by madre,” or “the mother” in Spanish, as sis- and alcohol, as well as basic treatments for
Sisters of the PHJC, an international ters are commonly addressed in Mexico. fungus, worms and amoeba, are managed
“I went so I could serve as a handmaid.” and distributed by trained helpers.

20 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/ Stritch Alumna Defines Success 21

 Alumni News
She also initiated a dental program,
comprised of three dentists who tend to
residents’ basic dental needs on a rotating
schedule. She hopes the program will
become permanent this year. In addition,
a former lay Maryknoll missionary, Joseph
Michon, MD, has started a rural eye
health-care program.
“Each year, there have been visits by family
practice physicians, pediatricians and den-
tal friends from the United States, who,
with their Mexican counterparts, serve in
various villages,” explained Dr. Gallinatti.
“Those friends and benefactors are
critical to the support of these outreach
programs.”
Dr. Gallinatti also serves as an internist at
the City Hospital in Coatzacoalcos, where
she lives with her fellow nuns, some of
whom run schools and soup kitchens and
provide pastoral care. “I cannot decipher
which part of my brand of care comes
from being a sister and which part is from
the excellence of my U.S. training, but
I do know many colleagues appreciate
my presence,” Dr. Gallinatti said, noting
22 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/
that interns and residents often find her
demanding. “This would make the Stritch
faculty proud.”
Now almost 60 years old, the energetic
nun has accomplished so much but recog-
nizes there is still much more to do in her
Mexico ministry. One preventive health
program has not been getting any traction.
“It has been far easier to de-worm 100
kids a day and attend to their moms than
to convince folks about the value of main-
tenance care to prevent the illness from
recurring,” she observed.
“The basic illness in this environment
is poverty,” said Dr. Gallinatti, because
access to adequate care and education
remain a challenge. The children have
parasitic infections, malformations and
handicaps that cannot be rectified because
of poverty. For example, in rural areas,
children with Down syndrome stay at
home their whole lives; treatment for
leukemia is prohibitive because of cost and
transportation issues; and special educa-
tion services are inaccessible.
“Adults in rural Mexico have an absolute
curse of diabetes, despite their thin,
hardworking bodies,” she stressed. When
roads were finally built in the area in
1994, trucks stocked with junk food ar-
rived, which accelerated the onslaught of
diabetes and hypertension. Dr. Gallinatti
lamented the costs of treating a chronic
illness for families who never have an
extra $20 a month for pills. Given her
patients’ strapped financial resources, she
asked, “How do I chat with them about
the initial and ongoing costs of peritoneal
dialysis?” The medical missionary said the
enduring message of the Gospels is what
keeps her going, despite such daunting
obstacles.
What’s her next challenge? “Hopefully, the
wisdom of religious life will find us useful
servicing the poor wherever, and only God
knows where 2009 and beyond may find
us,” said Dr. Gallinatti. “I’ll be judged on
baptismal promises, not diploma criteria…
We all have the same commitment. It is
just how God planned we should live it
out that differs.” •
Class Notes
1960s
Robert D. Quevillon, MD, (’67), retired, is
a volunteer
on-site physi-
cian at the Will-
Grundy Medical
Clinic in Joliet,
Ill. “It is one of
the best things
that happened
to me,” says Dr.
Quevillon. “I
am not working
here out of any political idealism. I firmly
believe that the good Lord wants us to
practice our altruism, and this clinic is a
wonderful place to do it. Being here makes
me feel good, and I like all of the staff, vol-
unteers and patients.” The clinic provides
free medical and dental care to individuals
who cannot afford health insurance.
After graduating in 1967, Dr. Quevillon
completed internships at Northwestern
Memorial Hospital and Chicago Wesley
Memorial Hospital; his residency was com-
pleted in internal medicine at University
of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson.
He practiced medicine in Benton Harbor,
Mich., for 15 years, serving as chief of
medicine at Mercy Memorial Hospital. He
relocated to Arkansas, starting a practice
in Walnut Ridge and serving as chief of
staff at Lawrence Memorial Hospital in
Mountain Ridge. He retired after 20 years.
Two other Stritch alums also are involved
in the clinic — Ted Kanellakes, MD (’67),
one of the clinic’s founding physicians, and
Gerard Cerniak, MD (’69). “It was part
of our training at a Jesuit school to learn
the value of being a good Samaritan and
to give something back. Those values have
remained with us through the years,” Dr.
Kanellakes said.
1980s
Kevin Hunt, MD (’80), traveled to the
Lira Diocese in Northern Uganda to visit
several health centers and evaluate the
present health-care environment for both
outpatients and inpatients. Dr. Hunt, along
with Fr. Sam Okori, a Ugandan priest who
is attending medical school in the United
States, saw patients to get a first-hand
feel for the present system of health care.
Attention Alumni: Let your classmates and others know
what you are doing by submitting information online at
www.meddean.luc.edu/alumni to share in the Class Notes
section of Stritch Medicine.
While at a hospital in Aber, Dr. Hunt
was deeply touched by hospital adminis-
trators who struggle to make it possible
to give proper care and treatment with
scarce resources and inadequate facilities.
Dr. Hunt and Fr. Okori hope to partner
with various organizations and govern-
ment departments to improve hospital
equipment, increase available medications
and upgrade patient transportation
facilities. They also hope to develop
strategies for increased access to health
care as well as improve communication
between hospitals and various satellite
health centers in the region.
Robert Alt, MD (‘82), is featured in a new
book, White Coat Wisdom, by Stephen
J. Busalacchi. Dr. Alt speaks warmly of his
medical school years.
Susan Nedza, MD (’84), was named vice
president of clinical quality and patient
safety at the American Medical Associa-
tion, promoted from chief medical officer
at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services.
William Bayer, MD (’86), of Central
DuPage Hospital was named one of the
355 “Top Doctors” in Chicagoland in the
January 2008 issue of Chicago Magazine.
Dr. Bayer was one of seven physicians rec-
ognized in the specialty of endocrinology,
diabetes and metabolism. He has been
a practicing clinical endocrinologist for
20 years and is a member of the American
College of Physicians and the Endocrine
Society. Dr. Bayer resides in Warren-
ville, Ill.
Susan Gerber, MD (’87), was promoted
to chief medical officer for the Chicago
Department of Public Health.
Monte Masten, MD (’88), MBA, MPH,
resides in Roswell, Ga., with his wife
Marsha. They have two children, Ben
(22) and Mary (20). Dr. Masten was the
co-chair for the 2007 Atlanta American
Diabetes Association Step Out & Walk
to Fight Diabetes. He is the vice president
and market medical officer at Humana,
Inc., of Georgia, North Carolina, and
South Carolina. Dr. Masten received his
MBA from the University of Tennessee,
Knoxville, and his MPH from the Univer-
sity of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
2000s
Valerie McKinnis, MD (’00), resides in
Durango, Colo., with her husband Darren
and children Kate (4) and Abby (2). Dr.
McKinnis works for Indian Health Service
in Ignacio, Colo., as a family medicine
physician. Before taking this position, she
completed four years of service for the
National Health Service Corps at North-
ern Navajo Medical Center in Shiprock,
NM (an Indian Health Services hospital
serving the Navajo Nation).
Amy R. Blair, MD (’03), has been ap-
pointed assistant course director for the
Patient-centered Medicine (PCM) course
at the Stritch School of Medicine. PCM is
a three-year course designed for Stritch
medical students to develop the skills
needed to become balanced, competent,
patient-centered physicians with life-long
career satisfaction.
Douglas Lindberg, MD (‘03), has joined
the medical faculty of East Tennessee
State University (ETSU) Family Physicians
of Kingsport, located on the campus of
Wellmont-Holston Valley Medical Center.
ETSU Family Physicians is an affiliation
of the Department of Family Medicine
at ETSU’s James H. Quillen College of
Medicine.
Katherine Bachman Gonzaga, MD (‘06),
is a second-year pediatric resident at
the Medical College of Wisconsin in
Milwaukee. •
Alumni News 23
 Alumni News
In Memoriam
Sept. 1, 2007 to Feb. 29, 2008
1930s
Henry Falk, MD (’39), Dec. 25, 2007.
Dr. Falk was a flight surgeon in World
War II and received many honors and
commendations. He was a hero who
served in the European Theater. He
practiced occupational medicine and
hand surgery in Chicago for more than
50 years. Dr. Falk was on staff at Rush
University Medical Center and com-
munity hospitals Walter Memorial,
Norwegian-American and Franklin Park. He was a member
of the American Medical Association, Illinois and Chicago
Medical Societies and the Aerospace Medical Association.
Harold A. Streit, MD, (’39), Dec. 26, 2007. Dr. Streit was born
Jan. 12, 1914, in Los Angeles, Calif. He grew up in Iowa before
attending medical school at Stritch. In 1944 he was commis-
sioned as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy Medical Corps serving as
a flight surgeon through the end of the war. Dr. Streit served in
the Korean War with the 1st Marine Division and was part of
the infamous Battle of Chosin Reservoir. Life in the navy offered
a wealth of opportunities for travel and adventure with tours
of duty in Calif., Mass., Italy and Japan. Dr. Streit was awarded
numerous medals and honors for his service to our country. He
left the Navy after 30 years wearing his naval “wings” and as a
well-known orthopaedic surgeon. Retiring in 1971 to Governors
Island and Naples, Fla., he continued to pursue fishing, gardening
and most of all, tennis.
1940s
John J. Skowron, MD, (’43), January 2008.
Born Oct. 18, 1917, Dr. Skowron grew up on
the northwest side of Chicago. He attended
Weber High School, Wright Junior College
and Loyola University Chicago. In 1942, he
graduated from Loyola University Chicago
Stritch School of Medicine and then began his
surgical internship at Cook County Hospital.
He served his country as a battalion surgeon in the infantry dur-
ing World War II, where he earned a Combat Medic Badge and
three Battle Stars, one of which represented the Battle of the
Bulge. After the war, he completed his ophthalmology residency
at Cook County Hospital and a fellowship at Northwestern
24 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/
University. He remained on both faculties for a decade after his
graduation. Dr. Skowron was on the original medical staff of doc-
tors at Resurrection Hospital in 1953 and established his practice
on the far northwest side of Chicago. After studying in Europe,
he was one of the earliest eye surgeons in the Chicago area to
perform lens implantation surgery. Dr. Skowron enjoyed taking
care of his patients for more than 40 years in private practice. He
was a devout Roman Catholic. He was fond of traveling around
the world, gardening at his home, and playing golf and tennis.
Most of all, he enjoyed spending time with his family.
Eugene L. Slotkowski, MD (’43),
of Chicago, Oct. 20, 2007
Thomas J. Barrett, MD (’47),
of Aurora, Ohio, Feb. 26, 2008
Daniel L. Donovan, MD (’47),
of Atlantic Beach, Fla., Sept. 27, 2007
Clifford J. Klein, MD (’49),
of Valley City, N.D., Dec. 1, 2007
1950s
Kenneth T. Pawlias, MD, (’52), Feb. 7, 2008.
He was born Aug. 17, 1926, in Chicago
and is survived by his wife, Shirley Mason.
Dr. Pawlias served in the U.S. Navy as a
hospital corpsman during World War II. He
graduated from Northwestern University
(’48), received his medical degree from
Loyola University Chicago Stritch School
of Medicine (’52) and did his internship at
St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, Ill. He established his surgi-
cal practice in Macomb in the fall of 1957 and practiced general
surgery until 1996. When he had difficulty getting blood for his
patients, he established the McDonough County Blood Bank
Inc., a not-for-profit organization that supplied blood for the
citizens of McDonough County. He served as chairman of the
board until the hospital assumed the responsibility of local blood
banking. As a citizen of Macomb, Ill., he served on the govern-
ing boards of the YMCA, Kiwanis Club, Chamber of Commerce,
Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and Red Cross. He was on the board of
directors that established the First National Bank of Macomb,
which later became a part of the Union National Bank. He was a
director of the Union National Bank. He was an avid aviator who
realized the importance of aviation in the future and the need
for an all-weather airport in McDonough County. While on the
Chamber of Commerce Board, he twice ran the referendum that
established the existing Macomb Municipal Airport. In 1973, he two generations. He was an old-fashioned doctor who regularly
drew up the Governing Medical Staff Bylaws for the McDonough made house calls. He was a leader in the medical community,
District Hospital staff. He served as president of the medical staff serving as Sutter Warrack Hospital’s Chief of Staff in 1988 and
five times and also served as chief of surgery. as Sutter’s Family Medicine Department chair in 2002.
James P. Gould, MD (’53), Arthur Joseph Stehly, MD (’65),
of West Des Moines, Iowa, Oct. 29, 2007 of Escondido, Calif., Nov. 14, 2007
Vincent A. Indovina, MD (’54),
of Orland Park, Ill., Oct. 21, 2007 William S. Kennedy, MD, (’68), Jan. 12,
Margaret M. McCarron, MD (’54), 2008. Born in Sharon, Penn., on Aug.
of Los Angeles, Nov. 24, 2007 3, 1942, he lived his life with compas-
John E. Sheen, MD (’54), sion, commitment, love and gusto. He
of Mapleton, Ill., Oct 28, 2007 enjoyed traveling with his family and was
John E. Foran, MD (’55), always willing to travel to new places and
of River Forest, Ill., Dec. 4, 2007 garner new experiences. A very intel-
John J. Golden, MD (’55), ligent, inquisitive man who believed in
of Chicago, Jan. 7, 2008 living each day to the fullest, he was an
John D. Madden, MD (’57), engaging liberal who had an opinion on most issues and loved
of Fullerton, Calif., Oct. 8, 2007 talking about those opinions with others. An avid and eclectic
music lover, he was especially fond of the music of the Grateful
1960s Dead and proudly labeled himself a Deadhead. After graduating
Sr. Fidelis Thaliath, MD, SD, Stritch, he completed his internship and medical residency at
(’60), Jan. 17, 2008, in Delhi, Fresno County Hospital, now University Medical Center, where
India. She was a member of the he practiced internal medicine for 34 years. He also worked as a
Sisters of Destitute and a physi- consulting physician for the California Department of Rehabilita-
cian for more than 50 years. Dr. tion for 11 years. Dr. Kennedy proudly served in the U.S. Air
Fidelis was instrumental in the Force as a captain and flight surgeon with the 49th Tactical Wing,
establishment of the Jivodaya 9th Blacksheep squadron serving from 1969-1973 at Holloman
Hospital in Delhi, purchasing the Air Force Base in New Mexico. He felt that flying as a Navigator
property the hospital stands on in the backseat of the F4 fighter jets was an honor and thrill. He
in 1972 with a $1,000 gift that was a volunteer physician for the athletic department at Califor-
was originally given to her to buy a car. The hospital has 65 beds, nia State University for 23 years. He loved working with the ath-
three operating rooms, intensive care nursery and outpatient letes, traveling with the teams and cheering on the Bulldogs. He
department. More than 1,000 babies are delivered at the hospital participated for several years in Projecto Nino, which provides
each year. The Sisters of Destitute work in the poorest parts of medical care in a small clinic on the outskirts of Mexico City, and
Delhi helping needy children. as a member of the LIGA International, flew many times to the
Ocoroni Medical Clinic to provide medical care to those in need.
William T. Sullivan Jr. MD (’62), of Santa Rosa, Calif., Oct. 20, Dr. Kennedy is survived by Carole Lynn Hall Kennedy, his wife of
2007. Dr. Sullivan completed his medical internship at Chicago 41 years.
Cook County Hospital before being drafted into the United
States Navy in 1964. He was stationed in the South Pacific includ- 1970s
ing six months in the Vietnam area and eighteen months at U.S. Edward A. Gulling, MD (’73),
Naval Hospital in Yokosuka Japan. Once a civilian, he became a of Saint Charles, Ill., Sept. 10, 2007 •
resident training physician at Sacramento County Hospital before
moving to Santa Rosa to establish a private practice as a family
physician. For the next 41 years, Dr. Sullivan treated his patients
like they were family. He delivered hundreds of babies spanning
Alumni News 25
 Alumni News

Dear Alumni, CME

Another busy year has come to a close at Stritch.
Success for Women in Medicine:
In September, John M. Lee, MD, PhD, dean, Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine (Stritch) joined A Personal and Professional Development
Seminar for Women Physicians
alumni at Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield, Ill., for a breakfast event designed to reconnect alumni and
provide a venue for the dean to meet members. Exciting advances in research and education are always
happening at Stritch, and we want you to stay connected to share in our success. We plan to have more
gatherings throughout the Chicago area and will invite you to participate in whatever way you can.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Held at: Hyatt Regency Columbus
In February, the Class of 2011 completed a successful International Service Immersion program auction,
350 North High Street
which raised funds for their trips to poor and developing countries in the service of humanity. This under- Columbus, Ohio
scores the goal of medical education at Stritch — physicians who embrace and care for the whole patient. Course Director: Christine E. Lawless, MD, MBA
CME credit: A maximum of 6 AMA Category 1 Credits
The Alumni Association members hosted current second-year students in their homes for a relaxing Topics to be discussed include: Designing and Developing a Successful Personal and Professional Pathway; Gender-related
evening of good food and conversation. I would like to thank all of those alumni who participated in the Issues (such as sexism; harassment; discrimination and stereotypes); Salary Equity; Dual-career; Dual-physician; Flexibility
Sophomore Dinners, which are a way for the students to ask questions and learn about the daily life and and Family; Stress-free Time Management.
career paths of various specialties.
A number of workshops follow, including Political Skills; Navigating Organizational Structure; Negotiation; Managing
We are embarking on a very exciting time for the Stritch School of Medicine Alumni Association. Dean Lee
Conflict; Organizational Finance; and Practice Management; Time Management. A panel discussion on transferring your
is implementing his strategic plan, and we are preparing for 100 Years of Medicine at Loyola, which will be
MD/DO skills to non-traditional jobs follows.
celebrated during the academic year 2009–2010.

An alumni survey is being prepared to continue to assist us in serving the alumni and planning for the Stritch
centennial celebration. It is not too early to start planning for the 2008 Reunion Weekend, Oct. 24-26, 2008. For additional CME offerings or more information, visit www.LoyolaMedicine.org/cme
This year we are honoring the classes of 1958, 1963, 1968, 1973, 1978, 1983, 1988, 1993, 1998, 2003, and or contact the CME office at (708) 216-3236 or (800) 424-4850.
all those alumni celebrating more than 50 years in the medical profession. With your participation, this
weekend promises to be a successful and exciting event.
Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to sponsor continuing
I would like to welcome the new Alumni Board of Directors. medical education for physicians. Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine takes responsibility for the content, quality and scientific integrity
of this CME activity. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Donald M. De Donato, MD, (’77) Michael W. Koller, MD, (’86)
Thomas B. DeStefani, MD, (’81) John M. Lee, MD, PhD, Dean
*Daniel Dilling, MD, (’98) William C. Malik, MD, (’78)
*Maureen Fearon, MD, (’87)
Lise Anne Guay Bhatia, MD, (’86)
David W. Hecht, MD, (’82)
Gregory J. Matz, MD, (’62)
*Julita McPherson, MD, (’98)
*Aaron Michelfelder, MD, (’97)
Events Held by Alumni
Brian J. Hertz, MD, (’02) *Joseph G. Mueller, MD, (’87)
Todd S. Hewell III, MD, (’78), President Senora L. Nelson, MD, (’96)
Stephen Slogoff, MD, member LUHS Board of Directors and dean emeritus, Stritch School of Medicine, and wife
*Virginia Hill, MD, (’04) *John M. Santaniello, MD, (’95)
Barbara hosted a reception in their home in Phoenix, Ariz. for area Stritch alumni to learn more about the future of the
Michael J. Klamut, MD, (’73) * denotes new members
Loyola University Health Sciences campus. The featured guest was Paul K. Whelton, MB, MD, MSc, president & CEO,
Loyola University Health System. The event took place on March 15, 2008.

I look forward to working with all the board members to take the Alumni Association to the next level. The Stritch Class of ‘65 held a reunion in San Diego, Calif., the weekend of March 27-30. The reunion was organized
by Paul T. McEnery, MD, (‘65), James P. Tasto, MD (‘65), and Joseph H. Traxler, MD (‘65). Dr. Tasto hosted his
Sincerely, classmates in his home on Saturday evening and Keith F. Muccino, MD, SJ (‘77) presided at Mass on Sunday. More
than 20 alumni and their spouses attended the festivities. The next reunion for the Class of ‘65 will be held in Naples, Fla.,
in May 2010.

Todd S. Hewell III, MD (’78), FACS Mike Le Hoang, MD, (74), and wife Susan Le Hoang, DDS, hosted a reception at their home in Beverly Hills, Calif.,
President, Alumni Association for area alumni to learn more about the future of the Stritch School of Medicine. Featured guests were Rev. Michael
J. Garanzini, SJ, president, Loyola University Chicago; Paul K. Whelton, MB, MD, MSc, president & CEO, Loyola
University Health System; John M. Lee, MD, PhD, dean, Stritch School of Medicine; and Myles N. Sheehan, SJ, MD,
senior associate dean of education and director, Ralph P. Leischner Jr., MD, Institute for Medical Education. The event took
place on Feb. 16, 2008.

26 Stritch School of Medicine | www.meddean.luc.edu/ 27

 S AV E T H E D AT E
STRITCH SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
REUNION 2008
Oct. 24-26, 2008
Honoring the Classes of
1958, 1963, 1968,1973, 1978, 1983, 1988, 1993,
1998, 2003 and all classes prior to 1958.

Accommodations
Oak Brook Hills Marriott Resort
3500 Midwest Road
Oak Brook, IL 60523
(630) 850-5555
(800) 228-9290
www.oakbrookhillsmarriottresort.com

Reserve by Oct. 9 to receive the special group room rate.

If reserving by phone, use group code “Loyola Stritch Reunion.”
If reserving by web, use group code “Loyloya.”

Loyola University Chicago

Nonprofit Organization
Stritch School of Medicine
U.S. Postage
2160 S. First Avenue
PAID
Maywood, Illinois 60153
Forest Park, IL
Permit No. 87