PSCU Upper Right          PSCU Upper Left  

Volume 7 | Issue 14 | Through January 21, 2014

 
 
 
    
Country Inn and Suites  
       
     
Adherence to flu shot policy: strong, but not complete A handful of UCHealth employees, including three at UCH, were terminated or resigned after refusing to get a mandatory flu shot with a valid reason for an exemption. System leaders say the 99-plus-percent of employees who adhered to the policy will help hospitals protect patients and visitors during a difficult flu season that has already caused 101 hospitalizations and two deaths at UCH alone. >>More
                                

New Year's resolutions (or not) In this month's "Campus Diary": staffers share their resolutions for 2014 -- the ones they're likely to break first, that is. Plus: getting to know your physician (including beer preferences); a dog (not hot dog) loving dietitian; our latest campus fashionista, and more. >>More 

                     
Therapy for the three-pound set The Neontal Intensive Care Unit might at first seem an odd setting for physical therapists. In fact, many preemies need a wide range of developmental services. UCH is one of the leaders in the field. Left: Danielle Bondurant, PT, gently encourages movement in an identical triplet in the NICU. >>More

                        
One tree, three patients, 160 gifts Christmas for three cancer patients and their families will be much brighter this year, thanks to staffers in the Oncology Unit whose donations of gifts filled four carts. Right: Oncology Charge Nurse Shauna Parrish, RN, next to a "Giving Tree" that was covered with wish-list ornaments. >>More
        
Caught in the downpour In "This Hospital Life": the rain falls on the just and the unjust, but some require more shelter. Breast cancer patient Mirabel DeLucio (right, with Breast Center Social Worker Sayrd Annon) was desperately short of resources for her family, but with the help of the hospital and its providers, she's fighting back. Plus: "What You Read." >>More

                            
A guide in Cardiology Retired but not the retiring type, Sharon Berthrong (far right, with Clinical Nurse Specialist Amanda Nenaber), was looking for a challenge. She's now a volunteer at UCH, serving as a "navigator" for heart failure patients. She provides information, delivers needed resources and offers a sympathetic ear to patients managing a difficult disease.
>>More

                
Elves get busy for the NICU
For the 11th-straight year, "head elf" Phyllis Hoskins (far lower left, with Santa and Mrs. Claus) organized collecting and donating mounds of gifts for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.  >>More
                             
New funding for research, but fewer dollars  The University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus late last year received a new five-year NIH grant to fund research and investigation at the Colorado Clinical Translational Sciences Institute (CCTSI). That was the good news. The bad news: the new grant gives the CCTSI millions less than the first it received in 2008 to help move clinical discoveres from the bench to the bedside.  >>More

                 
Around UCH  
Remembering Eugenia Carroll (left); a trio of UCH'ers rides off into retirement; another try at saving the males; weighting game for the new year at the Health and Wellness Center; more... >>More
                              
A DAISY blooms in Neuro  The patient had an unstable fracture and trouble breathing. He couldn't sit up. Neuro ICU nurse David Ricke (second from far right) helped to cut through his loneliness and isolation with compassionate care. For his efforts, Ricke earned a DAISY Award for exceptional nursing.  >>More

Follow the Insider on Twitter Regular news, updates and commentary on Insider stories as well as hospital, campus and health care happenings. Click. >> More to become a follower.
Follow us on Facebook The latest happenings at UCH are on our Facebook page. Look for regular updates on news, events and human interest stories featuring the hospital and the people who make it great. >> More
Dean Krugman's news The latest on what's going on at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. >> More
      
    
                 
Ad Campaign Takes on Cancer, Market 
A recently launched ad campaign from UCH and the Cancer Center urges lung cancer patients to fight the disease. But the TV and ad spots also aim to challenge competitors siphoning market share from the hospital's own backyard. >>Go
    
Sounding out an Expansion Project
The Marion Downs Hearing Center has launched a campaign to raise funds for a state-of-the-art facility for the hearing impaired. A gala later this month will feature Donny Osmond, whose family has been profoundly affected by hearing loss. >>Go
                         
  
A Stop to Slow Strangulation
Physicians told Kristen Green (above, with baby Abby) that her shortness of breath was asthma or acid reflux. In fact, it was a rare disease that steadily narrowed her airway. A delicate procedure at UCH saved her. Inside: Green's story -- and a personal note of thanks to her providers. >>Go
                          
  
Lab Experiment at UCHealth
UCHealth's three clinical laboratories are joining forces to streamline processes, reduce inefficiencies, share resources, and take advantage of the system's purchasing power. "A ton of technical things need to be worked through," says UCH Clinical Lab Director Joan Coleman. Above: lab staffers at Poudre Valley Hospital. >>Go
                         
  
Course Helps MDs Learn to Earn a Buck
The biggest question residents face after they finish their training is "Now what?" UCH Eye Center Director Loretta Todaro (above) gives them practical training in a much-neglected area: the business of medicine. >>Go
                          
  
A Light in the Darkness
A congenital heart problem left a patient at UCH facing a Christmas that would probably be his last -- and he had little in financial resources to brighten the season for his large family. Enter Clinical Nurse Specialist Stacey Seggelke (above) and the Advanced Practice Council to offer a helping hand. >>Go