Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania

INSIDE

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Volume 23 Number 23 November 16, 2012

Chemo Parties Raise Spirits ....2

Seeking MLK Award Nominations .............................2

Sandy Doesn’t Stop Transplants ................................3

OB/GYN Practice Outreach ......4

By 5 am Monday morning, HUP’s command center was open and ready to � eld phone calls and inquiries, and to provide guidance as conditions deteriorated. � e � rst major impact: SEPTA’s decision to cancel operations. Employees who came to work for the late shi� on Sunday couldn’t get home and many day shi� employees had no way to get in. Calls � ooded the command center, requesting a ride in or asking about available parking. Security

took the lead, bringing in over 80 sta� members. “John Kirby [of Administration] used his own car to pick up many sta� and transport them to the hospital,” said Security director Joe Forte. “In addition, we made an emergency drug delivery to Penn Medicine Radnor.”

Parking — always an issue — became critical on Monday. Penn Tower garage � lled up quickly and while some sta� were able to park at Perelman (leaving room for patients), the demand quickly threatened to overwhelm the supply of spaces. Luckily, the University had closed for all but essential sta� . Forte worked with Jim Atkinson, Penn Medicine chief of Security and Parking, to put the over� ow in University lots and garages.

As transportation options dwindled — SEPTA and PATCO had both been shut down — requests for sleep accommodations

Long before Sandy’s hurricane-force winds and pounding rains descended on our area, HUP’s emergency preparedness team was making the necessary preparations to keep the hospital running and our patients safe.

Neither RAIN Nor WIND STOPPED HOSPITAL OPERATIONS

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increased. Tonita Bell-Chapman and � e Admissions Center (TAC) swung into action. “� e job seemed insurmountable but the Center’s sta� has cra� ed a process that makes it seem e� ortless,” said Bernard Dyer, director of UPHS Safety and Management. Sta� got in line and received a sleep location assignment, a food voucher, and linens and scrubs. “It was as orderly as the deli line at a supermarket,” he continued. “� e only thing missing was the ticket number dispenser!” In the end TAC � lled over 500 requests.

Support departments had extra sta� on hand — many volunteering for double shi� s — to make sure that the hospital continued to function, no matter what the impact from Sandy. “We were fully sta� ed around the clock — electricians, plumbers, general mechanics... all trades — to make sure we were covered,” said Chuck Aitken,

A converted conference room on Rhoads 6 became comfy sleepover quarters for the staff.

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Beach Boys music, hot dogs, sheet cake and feather boas aren’t the tools oncologists usually use to attack cancer. But along with powerful drugs and targeted radiation treatments, they’ve all played a big role in helping Debbie Hemmes, an Abramson Cancer Center patient, � ght lung cancer. A� er she was diagnosed early last summer, Debbie and her family — her husband, Tom, and two adult daughters, Kelly and Karen — learned she would need to undergo seven and a half weeks of radiation treatment, plus two six-day sessions of chemotherapy during that same period of time.

Kelly McCollister, Debbie’s daughter, quickly added her own prescription to the list: a special party during each chemo session to help her mom count down the days until she � nished her treatment. “I’d heard of people doing parties for the last day of chemo, but I thought, ‘We should do a party every day!’” Kelly said. She and her sister, Karen, worked out a slate of themed parties that would see Debbie through her entire treatment.

� e family — dubbed “Team Debbie” in matching black and white t-shirts — kicked o� the festivities with a “Comfy Chemo Circus,” complete with red clown noses and swirly rainbow lollipops, on the day of her � rst infusion. � ey later threw a Hawaiian luau with grass skirts and smoothies served in coconuts, and held a Mardi

S e e k i n g MLK AWARD NOMINATIONSNominations are being accepted for the 2013 Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Involvement Recognition Awards. These awards are presented to individuals who demonstrate signifi cant contributions in community service and/or work for social justice efforts. Penn faculty, staff, students, and members of the broader Philadelphia community are eligible to be nominated. Go to www.upenn.edu/mlk/award/htm for nomination forms. The nomination deadline is Friday, December 7. If you have any questions, please contact the African-American Resource Center at 215-898-0104 or aarc@pobox.upenn.edu.

2013

Gras-themed day with glittery, feathery masks. � ere was a tie-dye-festooned Disco Party, a tea party with fancy hats and a visit from a group of stu� ed teddy bears, and Monte Carlo night with card games and a red feather boa.

� e festivities all included themed music and snacks that they shared with other patients and families receiving infusions nearby. Debbie’s radiation oncologist, Charles Simone, MD, who treats her along with her medical oncologist Charu Aggarwal, MD, said she is fortunate to have such a committed and creative support system in place. “� e chemotherapy parties that her family is having for her are helping her get through a di� cult time both physically and emotionally, and they are contributing to her incredibly positive attitude and outlook on her condition,” he said, noting that studies have shown that positive attitudes and decreased emotional stress about a cancer diagnosis can contribute to better quality of life. Some studies indicate those qualities are even associated with better outcomes.

On Debbie’s last day of chemotherapy, the family celebrated with a black tie event — she and her daughters arrived decked out in black cocktail dresses, and her husband and son-in-law came in tuxedos. � at day, in her little black dress and black and white turban standing in for the hair she lost while receiving chemo, Debbie walked the red carpet to ring the bell signaling the completion of her treatment. (See photos from chemo parties at http://news.pennmedicine.org/inside/hupdate/.)

Credit CheckPenn Homeownership Services is hosting a Credit Counseling Workshop on Monday, November 19, from 3:30 to 4:30 pm in Room 223 (Golkin), Houston Hall. � e workshop will feature a variety of information on improving your credit and will answer questions about credit issues. � e workshop is open to UPHS sta� . We ask that you RSVP if you plan to attend.

Go to http://cms.business-services.upenn.edu/homeownership and click on Credit Counseling Workshop.

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Chemo Parties RAISE SPIRITS

“ The chemotherapy parties that her family is having for her

are helping her get through a diffi cult time both physically

and emotionally, and they are contributing to her incredibly

positive attitude and outlook on her condition.”

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Neither RAIN Nor WIND STOPPED HOSPITAL OPERATIONS

assistant executive hospital director. On leak patrols, “we found and � xed leaks in places that had never leaked before, because of the high winds.” Aitken also made sure the emergency generator contractor and the elevator vendor stayed overnight “just in case.” L.F. Driscoll workers came and stayed, to do whatever might be needed.

Food Services handled over 700 food vouchers for sta� during Monday night alone. Larry McCook, director of Patient Transport, said that many of his sta� braved the elements to come in. For example, “Richard Watson walked over two miles through the storm to get to work when he couldn’t � nd a ride

and then spent the night so he could begin working bright and early on Tuesday.”

Sta� in patient care units went out of their way to ensure uninterrupted care and patient safety. Many worked back-to-back shi� s so those who lived farther away could stay home. � ose living in the city opened their homes to colleagues so they could safely return to HUP the next day. � e Heart and Vascular ICU used technology to ensure su� cient sta� ng, posting scheduling messages and responses on its locked Facebook account, starting Saturday evening.

As a result of the extensive preparations, HUP made it through with no signi� cant

disruptions of services. Indeed, not even this weather emergency could stop both a heart and a liver transplant from being performed. (See story above.)

“HUP physicians, nurses, and sta� took on this emergency with the quiet con� dence and skill that can only come from dedication to others,” said executive director Garry Scheib. “My heartfelt thanks for going above and beyond to help our patients and one another.”

“� e response was incredible,” agreed Dyer. “People step up…� ey want to help. It demonstrates why HUP is such a special place.”

Nicole Hornsby, Heart Transplant coordinator, received the call about an available heart a little a� er 2 pm on Monday. Due to extreme weather conditions, Jack Vaughn, a local patient on HUP’s heart transplant list, was now at the top. Could they take it? She quickly noti� ed Vaughn who wanted to move ahead, but was afraid to make the drive from Easton. Hornsby immediately started making calls — both internally and externally — seeking a way to get the patient down. Gi� of Life provided the name of an ambulance company in the Easton area. “� ey said no but gave me the name of another,” she said. “� at company said they’d call me back.”

Meanwhile, texts, emails, and calls � ew back and forth between her, Michael Acker, MD, chief of Cardiovascular Surgery, and Pavan Atluri, MD, who would perform the transplant, trying to � gure out how to safely get the patient here. PennSTAR was grounded but Bob Higgins, PennSTAR’s program director, o� ered to get the patient with its ground ambulance. But the trip there and then back would be dangerous and long.

patient called back. “He said ‘� ere are � ve ways out of my neighborhood and four are blocked with heavy trees I can’t move…. I’m going to try the � � h.’ I think I held my breath until he called me back 15 minutes later with good news: ‘I made it to 611.’”

� ey talked several times during his trip down. “Judging by our conversations, you wouldn’t have known we were in the middle of a hurricane,” she said. “He said my calm demeanor kept him relaxed but I wasn’t feeling all that calm!”

Nearly four hours a� er he le� his home, the recipient arrived at HUP. Peter Abt, MD, performed the liver transplant a� er the heart transplant early Tuesday morning and, by Sunday, the recipient had been discharged to home and was doing well.

Finally, 40 minutes a� er her initial call, the Suburban Rescue Squad of Palmer Township returned her call. � ey would pick up the patient at his house at 6:15 and make the trip to HUP. Vaughn safely arrived at HUP a little a� er 8 pm. By 10 am Tuesday, he had received his heart and was in the ICU recovering.

As if one transplant in these circumstances weren’t amazing enough, another call came from the donor hospital shortly a� er the � rst. A liver was now available as well. � e original recipient could not get to his hospital and one of HUP’s patient was next on the list. Could he get there?

Nicole Platt, a transplant coordinator who worked in tandem with Hornsby to get Vaughn to HUP, took the lead in this. � e patient not only wanted the transplant, but was also willing to drive in on his own. He said he would leave his home — which is north of Doylestown — as soon as possible. Twenty minutes a� er the initial call, the

Sandy Doesn’t Stop TRANSPLANTSOn Monday, October 29, Hurricane Sandy was doing its best to batter the Philadelphia region but that didn’t prevent HUP staff from performing not one, but two organ transplants.

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Nicole Hornsby with post heart transplant patient Jack Vaughn.

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HUPdateEDITORIAL STAFF Sally SapegaEditor and Photographer

Lisa PaxsonDesigner

ADMINISTRATIONSusan E. PhillipsSenior Vice President, Public Affairs

CONTACT HUPDATE AT: 3535 Market Street, MezzaninePhiladelphia, PA 19104

phone: 215.662.4488fax: 215.349.8312email: sally.sapega@uphs.upenn.edu

HUPdate is published biweekly for HUP employees. Access HUPdate online at http://news.pennmedicine.org/inside/hupdate.

Kiristin Barber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rhoads 1

Jennifer Barden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ED

Stephanie Brody . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Ravdin 9

Nathaniel Butler . . . . .Telemetry Transport

Mary Coffee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Silverstein 8

Denise Curran. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Founders 5

Heather DeRafelo . . . . . . . . . Silverstein 8

William Fletcher . . . . .Telemetry Transport

Michelle Gasperi . . . . . . . . . . Silverstein 8

Patricia Haygood . . . . . . . . . . Silverstein 8

Corey Howard. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rhoads 6

Kenny Lavin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Founders 4 OR

Samia Long . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Radiology

Lisa Lupico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rhoads 4

Theresita Moore . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Ravdin 6

Samantha Null . . . . . . CRM & Social Work

Helene Ogden . . . . . . . . . . . Silverstein 12

Christine Peregrim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ED

Jessica Plantulli . . . . . . . . . . . .Founders 5

Kristin Rosato . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rhoads 4

Patricia Saladik . . . . . . . . . . . . .Founders 8

Alison Stewart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rhoads 6

Rebecca Sweeney. . . . . . . . . Silverstein 8

Myriko Wade . . . . . . . . . . . . . Silverstein 9

Sakinah Wade . . . . . . . . . . . . Silverstein 8

Eva Zois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rhoads 6

Helping People ALL THE TIMECongratulations to May’s winners of the Helping People All the Time raffl e.

� e Best Time to QUIT SMOKING: Yesterday’s Great American Smokeout reminds us that NOW is a great time to quit smoking…. And UPHS can help, with a free tobacco cessation program through Health Advocate. � e program — available to both employees and covered dependents — provides 13 weeks of coaching and nicotine replacement therapy (gum, patch, or lozenge) that will be mailed directly to your home at no cost to you! Just call 1-866-695-8622 to get started today!

NOW!

OB/GYN Practice OutreachThanks to the generosity of the staff at Penn OB/GYN Associates,

located at 3701 Market, 12 boxes of clothing, household items,

and toiletries were donated to Impacting Your World Ministries, a

Philadelphia church which helps its parishioners and neighbors

in need. Leading the effort were (l. to r.) Jackie Inniss, Jada

Spellman-Boyd, Nicole Speaks, and Taniesha Abdul-Ali.

� e November 16 paycheck is the last paystub that will be distributed on paydays to those who use direct deposit for their paychecks. Employees can easily access their paystub information online. Go to Employee Records and Paychecks, located on the right column on the Intranet home page. Just log on with your network ID and password and select Paychecks.

PAYSTUB REMINDER