June 2014 - The Department of Surgery | Wayne State University

JUNE 2014
Humanitarianism and
Volunteerism
The following article appeared in the American College of Surgeons Foundation Annual Report 2013.
June 14
Inside this issue:
Dr. Ingida
Asfaw
Honored
1-2
1st Annual JC
Rosenberg
Lecture
3
Greetings from
a Radiologist
who acts like a
surgeon
4-9
Reports from
the Outfield
10-11
WSSS Dues
12
WSSS Alumni
and Friends
13
WSSS 2014
Ballot
14
WSU Monthly
Conferences
15
WSSS
June 15
16-17
Dr. Ingida Asfaw (WSUGS 1974) was again honored for his contributions
to others.
Ingida Asfaw, MD, FACS, from Grosse Pointe, MI, received the 2013
Surgical Volunteerism Award for international outreach for his commitment
Dr. Ingida Asfaw
to improving medical and surgical care in Ethiopia. Dr. Asfaw grew up in (WSU/GS/TS
1974/75)
Ethiopia and, at age 16, traveled to the U.S. for school with the promise of
returning home to provide state-of-the-art health care in his country. He attended Indiana
University Medical School—Indianapolis and completed general surgery and cardiothoracic surgery residencies at Wayne State University and Detroit Medical Center, MI, followed by a fellowship in cardiovascular surgery at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston.
After completing his training, the political climate in Ethiopia prevented his return for
28 years. In the interim, Dr. Asfaw arranged for Ethiopian citizens needing complex medical and surgical care to travel to Michigan and other states for pro bono care, assisting
with their hospital costs. In 1999, Dr. Asfaw founded the Ethiopian North American
Health Professionals Association (ENAHPA), charged with improving access to quality
care in Ethiopia.
Under his leadership, ENAHPA has had a far-reaching and lasting impact on the Ethiopian health care system. In 2003, during their inaugural mission in Ethiopia, Dr. Asfaw
and his team performed the country’s first open-heart, cardiac pacemaker, and laparoscopic cholecystectomy operations. Since then, ENAHPA has conducted more than 40 missions to Ethiopia, performing nearly 3,000 procedures.
The organization has proved instrumental in improving the medical and educational infrastructure, including presentation of the first telemedicine conference in Ethiopia, the
establishment of surgical skills laboratories at Addis Ababa and Gondar Universities, the
development of emergency medicine residency training and first responder/allied health
education programs at Addis Ababa University and St. Paul’s General Hospital, and the
procurement of a medical rescue ambulance. In 2004, ENAHPA collaborated with the
Christian Children’s Fund of Canada to establish community-centered holistic HIV care
and implemented the first free major antiretroviral drug treatment distribution program in
Ethiopia. An outreach program to HIV orphans was created with a local grassroots organization. ENAHPA partnered with the Clinton Foundation to create a pediatric HIV
JUNE 2014
Humanitarianism and Volunteerism, cont..
Maternal Child Health Center in Hawassa—a primary level hospital managing high-risk births and complex
patients.
Numerous Ethiopian physicians, nurses, and allied health care professionals have been trained through
ENAHPA’s education programs. ENAHPA continues to provide oversight to its initiatives in collaboration
with local Ethiopian health care officials while transferring much of the programmatic control to the local
workforce. Dr. Asfaw has been recognized with the Volvo For Life Award, a commendation from the City of
Detroit, and myriad awards from organizations in North American and Ethiopia. Dr. Asfaw is a cardiothoracic surgeon and clinical associate professor of surgery at Wayne State University School of Medicine and
chief of the medical staff at St. Joseph Mercy Oakland-Trinity Health in Pontiac, MI.
Dr. Asfaw can be congratulated at ingidaasfaw@aol.com.
Dr. Asfaw (second from left) with his first patients at the newly opened, state-of-theart Maternal Child Health Care Center in Hawassa, Ethiopia in 2011
Page 2
JUNE 2014
1st Annual JC Rosenberg Lecture
Dr. Jerry Rosenberg, a long-term department of Surgery faculty member and Trailblazer for
the transplant program, supported the development of an “Annual JC Rosenberg Endowed
Lecture” which was initiated on Wednesday, May 7, 2014. Dr. Scott Gruber introduced the 1 st
Annual Lecturer. Scott, until recently, was in charge of the WSU/DMC Transplant Program
and now is chief of staff at the Veterans Administration Hospital.
On Tuesday, May 6, the visiting lecturer, Dr. Joseph Leventhal, Professor of Surgery and
chief of the division of Organ Transplantation at Northwestern University, was hosted by Dr.
Rosenberg, Dr. Gruber, and Dr. Weaver at Da Edoardo Foxtown Grille in downtown Detroit.
Many of the faculty members and people involved in the transplant program had the opportunity to visit with Dr. Leventhal.
Dr. Leventhal’s presentation on Wednesday morning dealt with “Clinical Tolerance Trials.”
This was a very comprehensive presentation, which covered both scientific and clinical materials. There was a very active question-and-answer session.
Dr.
Rosenberg
can
be
jcrosenbergmd@comcast.net.
congratulated
er, Dr. Josep
Dr. Scott Grub
senberg
(Left to right)
d Dr. Jerry Ro
an
l,
ha
nt
ve
Le
h
Dr. Mona Doshi and Mr. Omar Fagoaga enjoy the
festivities of the 1st Annual JC Rosenberg Lecture
Page 3
for
initiating
1962/67)
Dr. Charlie Lucas (WSU/GS
t
and Ms. Kathy Reinhard
this
annual
lectureship
Dr. Darla
Granger
shares a
with Dr.
Joseph Le funny story
venthal
(Left
Weav to right)
D
er (W
SUGS r. Jerry R
o
at Da 1979), an senberg,
D
d
Edoa
rdo F Dr. Josep r. Donald
oxtow
h
n Gril Leventha
l
le
Dr. Alan Silbergleit (WSUGS/TS
1960/65) and his bride, Ina
at
MAY 2014
Greetings from a Radiologist Who Acts Like a Surgeon!
During the current academic year, Dr. Charlie Lucas (WSU/GS 1962/67) served as the president for the WSU SOM Alumni Association. Each of the graduates from five-year intervals
were invited to attend their reunion with their fellow classmates. Dr. William Cox, the westernmost radiologist in North America, sent his excuse for not attending his 35th anniversary.
His letter explaining why he could not attend was accompanied by an experience he had from
1998. An unedited summary of this experience follows. The extended surgical clan will probably find it enlightening and humorous.
Gennadi and Pavel
Siberia 1998: Secret passwords, spilled blood, and the Russian criminal mafia.
It was the spring of 1998 and I was itching to get back to Russia. It had been two years since
my previous visit, and something about the place resonated with me. I just missed Russia. I
had no official reason to go but I knew if I got an invitation, a visa, and a plane ticket, and put
out the word that I was going, the reasons and requests would follow. That was how it worked
in Anchorage back then in the 90s. I put in a call to my friends at the University. Weeks later
the phone started ringing.
Misha pulled onto my Anchorage driveway in a late-model SUV one warm afternoon in June.
Misha was one of those nouveaux Russian residents in Anchorage at the time. Entrepreneurs of
glasnost and perestroika. The latest model cell phone dangled from his belt. Dressed in casual
slacks and an expensive-looking silk shirt open at the collar, he had the confident air of the new
generation of young Russian businessmen.
The friend of a friend, Misha had a contact who was going to pick me up at the airport in
Khabarovsk when I arrived. The plane got in around midnight and taxis were very few and far
between. Would I take some cash over to his friend, Misha asked? No problem, I thought; I’d
taken small amounts of cash into Russia before, as well as various gifts and parcels, including
a small box of Miracle-Gro for a Magadan telecommunication guru’s potatoes. (The guy in
Magadan thanked me by pushing a beige-colored phone across a giant desk in his giant office
and told me I could call anywhere in the world, which was a big deal in the Russian Far East
in the early 90s.)
“How much cash to you want me to take?” I asked Misha. “Four thousand,” he replied. I hesitated, suggesting this was a large amount of money and might be trouble. “No problem,”
Continue page 5
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JUNE 2014
Greetings from a Radiologist Who Acts Like a Surgeon!
(cont)
replied Misha, “just declare it to Russian customs. It’s perfectly legal.” He went on to tell me
he’s carried as much as $100,000 in cash in an attaché case to Moscow several times and there
was no problem. I did not find that reassuring and wondered what kind of business Misha
was involved in.
“Ok, four thousand,” I agreed, “but we need a secure password so I give the money to the right
person.” I thought for a second and suggested: obleypikha, cheryawmykha, smorodina.
Three Russian berries. Misha indulged me, looking bored, then pulled out a small camera.
“How about I just take your picture, scan it, and send it to my friend so he recognizes you?” he
asked. Misha is no fun, I remember thinking. If I was going to had off a big wad of cash to a
stranger in a Russian airport, I wanted some drama. And that meant secret passwords. We
agreed: photo and passwords.
It was nearly midnight when I cleared customs at the airport in Khabarovsk and wandered
into the main lobby. I turned up my collar and cast furtive glances about the lobby, looking for
a Slav with cold, steely eyes staring at me over the upturned pages of a copy of Komsomolskaya
Pravda he was pretending to read. I discerned nothing suspicious. Then a young man came up
to me and said, “You must be Bill.” Misha’s friend, I thought, somewhat disappointed. These
guys are just not going to play along and indulge me. “the password,” I insisted. “Smo…
Smo… - come on, you can do it, I thought, giving him the first syllable—Smorodina! “Cher…
Cher…” We got through two berries. I felt dumb conducting a post-midnight game of charades
in a Siberian airport and could tell he was just humoring me. I handed over the four grand
and he gave me a ride to Nellie’s.
Not being a Russian, I had never seen a babushka. So I adopted Nellie. She was the mother
of a translator I knew from Magadan. I loved that dear old woman. Married to her second
husband, Volodya, who retired involuntarily after almost 40 years of working at a local factor,
they were poor pensioners living in a tiny flat in a northern district of Khabarosk. Volodya,
who liked to ice-fish on the Amur River, had shown me some of the most beautifully handcrafted pieces of wooden ice-fishing equipment I’d ever seen.
They had no phone, so I could not give them advance notice of my arrival. I just showed up
and banged on their door at 1 a.m. And then it was all I could do to dissuade Nellie from frying up a batch of potatoes for me in the wee hours. “God bless the Russian people.”
The next morning, with Nellie’s grandson, Seryozha, in tow, we headed downtown via tram
and bus for my first “assignment.
Continue page 6
Page 5
JUNE 2014
Greetings from a Radiologist Who Acts Like a Surgeon!
(cont)
Andrei worked for one of those new and politically sensitive
“independent radio stations.” But, as I came to find out, he covered
his bases. Little Seryozha was impressed by all of the electronic
equipment at the station. Then we all headed over to the airport
where Andre’s mother was awaiting us.
The Russian wife of a Seattle-area physician had myelofibrosis
and would probably need a bone marrow transplant in the not-tooWilliam Cox and his bride greet Gubad
distant future. Her nephew Andrei and her sister (Andrei’s mother) Dr.
Talabani, (center) son of Iraq President, Jalal
were judged to be the best possible candidates for a bone-marrow do- Talabani, in Nome, Alaska in November 2008
nation. I had a box full of test tubes that needed to be filled with
blood—courtesy of Providence Hospital’s “Angel of Mercy” Esther Petrie. And 48 hours to get
the blood samples to Virginia Mason in Seattle via Alaska Airlines from Khabarovsk. God
Bless Esther Petrie!
As a radiologist, I didn’t draw blood regularly. But drawing blood is like riding a bicycle. It
comes back quickly. Andrei’s veins were a “piece of cake” and I filled the requisite 7 or 8 tubes
in no time. But his mom, unfortunately, turned out to be the phlebotomist’s nightmare.
Heavy-set women were always a bit of a challenge to me, but I knew there was more blood going down a larger extremity and that same blood had to come back up. Almost always I could
sense the hidden big vein, poke it and strike red gold. Not today. I worked my way down her
forearm and into her wrist, poking away. Suddenly, the room felt about 20 degrees warmer.
The pilot was calling in from the Alaska Airlines jet on the runway telling me, in no uncertain
term, to hurry up. And then I remember the advice of my former mentor in Detroit, the great
trauma surgeon, Dr. Charles Lucas. “If you’re having trouble drawing blood or starting an IV,”
he counseled us, “go wash your face.” Apparently, it helps you reset. I followed his advice, using the cold water from a nearby sink.
Chasing collapsing veins down to the base of her fingers, I managed to coax enough blood to
fill about 5-1/2 test tubes. Olga, the station manager, was most patient. Her desk top, where I
had set up shop, was covered with splotches of blood. The Alaska Airlines pilot was revving his
engines. I was relieved to find out, weeks later, that the samples were sufficient for a complete
type cross-match. And some years later I ran into Olga at Carrs on Dimondiin Anchorage and
apologized for the blood mess I made on her desk.
Continue page 7
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JUNE 2014
Greetings from a Radiologist Who Acts Like a Surgeon!
(cont)
Andrei wanted to thank me for my service by taking me out drinking. Vodka lubricates most
social, family, and business encounters in Russia; it is always shared with others and served
with food. A multi-course meal filled with laughter and conversation and punctuated with
multiple vodka or cognac toasts will go on for hours until tea and a sweet dessert is finally
served.
We ate, drank, and talked. Like many Russians, Andrei had a very fluid, or nuanced, approach to the law. He was comfortable on both sides. Dictators like Stalin and Brezhnev did
not inspire fidelity to the Rule of Law, although they might be supported by the people out of
nationalistic pride, or fear. I once met a wonderful and hospitable peasant woman in the Altai
who told me how she cried when Stalin died in 1953. She cried because her newborn son would
never have a chance to meet him. It’s complex. And for many Russians it’s just a matter of
physical survival. I couldn’t pretend to understand, but at least I was here, on-site, and on a
learning curve. I credit the counsel of Pythagorus again: “Check your prejudices at every port of
entry.”
The times they were a-changing, though I doubt Bob Dylan had any clue about Russia. Andrei explained to me that there were now three mafias to be dealt with: 1) the government mafia—out to do the government’s work, 2) the businessman’s mafia, probably spawned during the
chaotic Yelsin years when state assets made their way into private hands, and, finally, 3) the
criminal mafia —its reputation for crime and brutality undiminished.
The three mafias usually operated independently, he explained, although occasionally the
criminal mafia would be invited to join the government or businessmen’s mafia on a project. I
tried to explain this arrangement once in a letter to George Bush’s lapdog, Tony Blair, after exKGB agent Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned to death with polonium-210 in Great Britain in
November 2006. I don’t know if he ever understood, although #10 Downing Street did
acknowledge receipt of my letter.
Andrei suddenly decided to call a lady friend of his to join us, hoping she was in town.
“Criminal Woman” is how he referred to her in English. Andrei spoke good English. He never
mentioned her name, just “Criminal woman,” explaining that she did jobs for the mafia. He
didn’t say which of the mafias she worked for, but I could guess. He got her on the phone.
Continue page 8
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JUNE 2014
Greetings from a Radiologist Who Acts Like a Surgeon!
(cont)
I was intrigued, envisioning a scowling and menacing version of Angelina Jolie dressed in
black. They talked in Russian a while until Andrei hung up, disappointed. “She just got back
from a job in Moscow,” he explained. He didn’t go into details. “She just wants to take a shower and sleep.” Well, that just intrigued me more. But it was not to be. The night was young
and Andrei had other friends he wanted me to meet.
Andrei and his friends had been helping Pavel hide out for the past year. Pavel was a member of, or at least worked for, the Russian criminal mafia. This is where trust came in. I followed Andrei to the “hiding place.”
But first we needed to stop at a liquor store for a bottle of gin. It was raining heavily and
muddy water was gushing over the surface of the poorly drained street, making for very slippery conditions. It was very dark and the vodka I consumed at Andrei’s was probably starting
to hit me. The combination of these three factors likely contributed to what happened next: I
went down and gashed open my knee. Sheer machismo embarrassment propelled me back to
an upright position. I hobbled after Andrei, we purchased the gin and finally arrived at the
“hiding place.”
A word needs to be said about “friendship” in Russia. In America, you meet someone on a bus
or in a bar, chat about an interest you have in common, and you’re “friends.” Not in Russia.
The Russians make clear distinctions between druk (“friend”) and znakawmie
(“acquaintance”). The difference is crucial. An acquaintance is just that: casual, probably honest, possibly fleeting. But true friendship, as I was beginning to understand, transcends family,
political, legal, international, and other barriers. It implies trust and responsibility and probably other qualities only to be distilled from the extensive Russian lexicon of Pushkin. Pushkin,
I am told, had a command of the Russian language greater than all other Russian authors.
Which would eclipse my favorite, Anton Checkhov. Checkhov’s stories were criticized for being
all middle and no beginning or end. But he wrote about the common people—who lived and
survived in the present. That’s where I was, and I was about to add some more druks to my
life-long list.
Pavel didn’t impress me as someone who was in hiding. He welcomed me into the typical,
non-descript, small Soviet-style apartment he shared with a roommate, Gennadi. Gennadi was
a police captain. Interesting arrangement, I thought. It certainly afforded Pavel an extra margin of safety if he was hiding from something. They were probably friends who went to their
posts by day and returned to a shared apartment in the evening.
Continue page 9
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JUNE 2014
Greetings from a Radiologist Who Acts Like a Surgeon!
(cont)
Before I could analyze the situation any further they popped open the gin, poured shots, and
we all toasted. They out came a guitar and the two roommates began to sing, with Andrei occasionally joining in. I sat back and reveled in the enjoyment of a mini-concert of Russian folk
songs by a most unusual two-man band, barely noticing the blood trickling down my leg from a
make-shift bandage on my knee.
Shortly after midnight it became time to leave. My arrangement with the University in Anchorage, for apparent business related reasons, required me to spend a night at the Hotel Amur
downtown. Police captain Gennadi had a car and offered to drive us back to town. Andrei and
I finished off the gin in the back seat and I remember wondering if this was legal. Then I remember thinking that if anyone pulled us over, a police captain was behind the wheel and a
member of the Russian criminal mafia was in the passenger seat. We had our bases covered.
They escorted me safely to my room at the Hotel Amur.
I awoke early the next morning with a vicious thirst and an equally vicious hangover. Then I
discovered I was locked in my room (the key would not open my door from the inside). And the
phone did not work. I slaked my thirst with cold tap water and went back to sleep, hoping
somehow this would all work itself out. I woke up again toward noon. Nothing had changed,
except I wasn’t quite as thirsty.
I started counting the sheets, and measuring them, wondering if I could lower myself down
from the 3rd floor, when I heard a knock on the door. It was Sasha, a friend from Magadan
now living in Khabarovsk, and her mother, worried about me and, apparently, the company I’d
been keeping. “Klooch ne rabotayet,” I said, “the key doesn't work.” They summoned help and I
was released before I had to start tying sheets together and breaking glass.
Seems like I was the only American on the 3rd floor. They all seemed to know me. The
dezhormaya, or woman-in-charge-of-the-floor, offered me a shot of vodka in a very fancy crystal glass when she learned of my prokhmelya, or hangover. My head wanted it, but my stomach reacted as if it was being twisted like a washrag. I felt bad declining her hospitality, but
physically, I had no choice. Her daughter, a drop-dead-gorgeous dancer named Nastia, who
had been working in Korea, gave me her address and phone number. Sometimes, Russia overwhelms. I followed Sasha and her mom back to their relatively spacious apartment where I
spent the next few days until my flight back to Anchorage.
Page 9
JUNE 2014
REPORTS FROM THE OUTFIELD
Dr. Tim McGuire (WSUGS 2003)
reports how shocked and saddened
he was to hear about the death of
Dr. Bala. He points out to everybody that Dr. Bala taught him “lots
of skills” that he uses almost daily.
transformative science in which the spiritual
is integrated within the research, education,
and practice of all of the healing arts both
conventional and alternative.
Dr. Tim McGuire
CREATIVITY
Surgeons, in a sense, are really
creative individuals who apply their
skills in the operating room and in
an office setting, but behind the
mask of conservative stoicism,
there is a creative urge trying to
Dr. Mike Denney
get out. Fortunately, this urge
sometimes succeeds.
Dr. Mike Denney
(WSUGS 1967) has published a new book
called “Nobody’s Boy: An Old Doctor and a
New Science.”
This book is a
heartwarming medical memoir telling of Mike’s lifelong quest for
unification of spirituality with science in the healing arts. Dr. Denney, whose special skills include
surgery and psychology, tells dramatic and inspirational stories of his childhood, medical education, and years of practice, all of which offer new pathways toward a
new science of the 21st century, namely, a
Page 10
Dr. Evan Geller (WSUGS/TS 1987/90) has
come out with the second book of
the Claddagh trilogy. This book,
entitled The Problem with God,
deals with Father Zimmerman who
knows all about life, death, God,
and salvation.
Zimmerman has Dr. Evan Geller
seen it all, having lived and fought
through war and other difficulties. Now in his
role as a professor Jesuit priest teaching
“The Problem with God” course to his
Georgetown undergraduates, he has become
accustomed to stimulating them with difficult
questions. Of course, this makes it difficult
to grade the answers. Zimmerman learns that
life is so much more complicated than he ever
imagined; so is death! When a
woman with no name falls from a
bridge, Zimmerman has the fleeting impression that he’s witnessing
an angel falling to earth. Later, he
finds out that he was wrong about
that also. Evan is a stimulating writer with a
great imagination, so that his works are recommended by the editor.
JUNE 2014
REPORTS FROM THE OUTFIELD
The year-end combined meeting
of the Detroit Surgical Association (DSA) and the Academy of
Surgery of Detroit (ASD) occurred on May 8 and was held at
the Colony Club in downtown De- Dr. Alicia Olson
troit.
At that meeting Dr. Alicia Olson
(WSUGS 2014) was awarded this year’s
Charles Johnston Award for her paper Exog-
enous Phosphatidylcholine Supplementation
Improves Intestinal Barrier Defense Against
Clostridium Difficile Toxin. Dr. Olson’s coau-
cation. This is a very competitive program, which has
residents competing from
all of the medical school
disciplines. Dr. Ali again Dr. Larry Diebel (WSU/GS 1980/86)
and Dr. Abubaker Ali (WSUGS 2015)
expresses his thanks to Dr.
Larry Diebel (WSU/GS 1980/86) who has
been a scientific mentor during his residency
years.
ERRATUM
thors on this paper included Dr. Larry N.
Diebel (WSU/GS 1980/86) and Mr. David M.
Liberati.
Dr. Kartheek Nagappala
(WSUGS 2014) let the
Rebecca Bachusz (WSUGS 2013)
editor know that the picproudly reported that she passed
ture below was labelled
her oral board examination, which
wrong in the May Monthly
was a big relief for her. She is very
Email Report. It identithankful to the faculty who
fied Dr. Alfred Baylor
“pestered her” all the time in order
Dr. Al Baylor (WSUGS 2005) and Dr.
with
Dr. Kellie McFarlin (WSU/GS 2003/08)
to prepare her for this oral exami- Dr. Rebecca
Bachusz
Keiva Bland.
nation. She can be congratulated at
It should have identified Dr. Albeccacissell@gmail.com.
fred Baylor with Dr. Kellie
Dr. Abubaker Ali, who finishes
McFarlin instead.
Also, anothhis general surgery training in
er photo identifies Dr. Terra
Dr. Leila Green
June, 2015, received the second
(WSUGS 2015)
Pearson. The photo is Dr. Leila
overall award at the Southeast
Green. The editor will try to do
Michigan Center for Medical Edubetter next time.
Page 11
Wayne State Surgical Society
JUNE 2014
2014 Dues Notice
MARK YOUR
Name:
CALENDARS
Address:
August 3-5
City/State/Zip:
Midwest Surgical Association
The Grand Hotel
Service Description
Amount
2013 Dues Payment
__ $200__
My contribution for “An Operation A Year for WSU”
*Charter Life Member
_
____
_$1000__
Total Paid____________________________________________________
Mackinaw Island, MI
September 10-13
73rd Annual AAST Meeting
Philadelphia Marriott Downtown
Philadelphia, PA
Payment by Credit Card
Include your credit card information below and mail it or fax it to
313-993-7729.
Credit Card Number:_________________________________________
Type:
MasterCard
Visa Expiration Date: (MM/YY)__________
October 26-30
ACS Clinical Congress 2014
Moscone Center
San Francisco, CA
Name as it appears on card:__________________________________
Signature:__________________________________________________
Billing address of card (if different from above):
Street Address______________________________________________
City______________________ State____________ Zip Code_______
*I want to commit to becoming a charter life member with payment of $1000 per
year for the next ten (10) years.
Send check made payable to Wayne State Surgical Society to:
Deborah Waring
Department of Surgery
Detroit Receiving Hospital, Room 2V
4201 St. Antoine Street
Please Update
Your Information
The WSUSOM, Department of Surgery wants to
stay in touch. Please contact Deborah Waring at
dwaring@dmc.org to update your contact information.
Detroit, Michigan 48201
Page 12
Dear WSSS Alumni & Friends:
The time has arrived for me to provide a summary of the WSSS events from 2013 and also notice of events for the upcoming year. But first
I would like to say thank you. It has been my honor to have served over the past year, which I have to say has been successful. Membership
is good and finances have been steady. While these are good things and the balance is at or near “equilibrium,” we must be vigilant to encourage new membership at both the annual and lifetime levels.
The last annual meeting of the WSSS was held on Tuesday, October 8, 2013 at the Renaissance Hotel in Washington, DC in conjunction
with the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress. The Wayne State Department of Surgery Alumni Reception was very well attended and the WSSS Annual Dinner Meeting immediately followed it.
There was one newly elected board member announced at the dinner. Dr. Scott Davidson was elected to take over the Member-at-Large
position from Dr. Daniel Sullivan who completed his three-year term. I would like to acknowledge and thank Dr. Sullivan for his service
and commitment the to WSSS. Your current Board of Directors includes Dr. Donald Weaver, Chairman of the Department; Dr. Mark Herman, President; Dr. Randy Smith, President-Elect; Dr. Christopher Dente, Secretary-Treasurer; Dr. Joseph Sferra, Member-at-Large; Dr.
Scott Davidson, Member-at-Large; and Dr. Jeffrey Johnson, Member-at-Large. Three of these members will be completing their terms of
office this year. Ballots are enclosed for the election of a new President-Elect, Secretary-Treasurer, and Member-at-Large.
The WSSS was honored to host William Schecter, M.D., F.A.C.S. as it Annual Lecturer. He is a trauma surgeon who has spent most of his
career at UCSF where he is considered a master surgeon. He has also devoted much of his time working to improve access to surgical care
for the poor and impoverished. The lecture was at Harper Hospital on Wednesday, November 13, 2013. Dr. Schecter gave a truly remarkable, introspective, and captivating talk entitled "Meditation on Mortality: Lessons from a Life in Surgery." It is available in print (J Trauma 2011 Feb;70(2):340-4) and is highly recommended reading for residents and seasoned surgeons alike. He followed his WSSS appearance with lectures at the Detroit Trauma Symposium on November 14-15, 2013 at the MGM Grand Casino as well as a dinner talk at the
Academy of Surgery of Detroit on Thursday, November 14. Detroit kept him very busy.
The WSSS and the Trauma Symposium continue to enjoy a close relationship. This past year 28 of our members attended the meeting
along with 16 of the current Wayne State surgery residents. A reminder that the registration fee is waived for our members. This continues
to be an outstanding venue for CME, networking, our simply catching up with colleagues. The dates for the 2014 Symposium are Thursday, November 6 and Friday, November 7.
Our next annual dinner meeting is expected to take place on Tuesday, October 28, 2014 in conjunction with ACS Clinical Congress in San
Francisco. Please watch for an update to confirm the meting location and time.
The WSSS Annual Lecture is expected to take place in November again at Harper Hospital. Details will be provided once a speaker is confirmed.
Lastly, the WSSS annual dues remain at $200 per year, which includes the reception/dinner at the American College of Surgeons meeting
and the registration fee for the Annual Trauma Symposium. Your dues also provide support for the annual lecturer, resident research, and
resident/student travel to the ACS. A dues increase has recently been considered in order to help fund the increasing cost of resident travel.
Thanks in large part to a generous donation directed for the residents from Dr. Jason Bodzin, this dues increase is not currently necessary.
Continued support of the WSSS by its members and the ability to grow its membership are critical to our long-term success. Dr. Lucas also
has a fund known as “An Operation a Year” which is an optional contribution (in addition to dues) that will help our chief residents attend
the ACS Meeting. Alternatively, you may sign up as a Charter/Life Member with a payment of $10,000 or a commitment of $1,000 per
year for ten years.
A reminder that all new surgical residency and fellowship graduates are offered WSSS membership upon graduation, and the dues are
waived for two years following completion of training. I would like to encourage those of you who are now beyond this two-year window
to retain your membership.
Finally, on behalf of the WSSS, I again want to thank Dr. Lucas for his hard work and dedication. If you happen to be missing his newsletters, please email him at clucas@med.wayne.edu to get on his mailing list or simply update your current whereabouts.
Warm regards,
Mark A. Herman, M.D., F.A.C.S
President, WSSS
JUNE 2014
Page 13
WAYNE STATE SURGICAL SOCIETY
OFFICERS BALLOT
2014
President-Elect:
□ Brian Shapiro, MD
Secretary-Treasurer:
□ Renato Albaran, MD
Board of Directors:
□ Mike Malian, MD
□ Alfred Baylor, MD
□ Mallory Williams, MD
(vote for no more than one member in each of the 3 positions)
Please Return Ballot and Dues to:
Deborah Waring
Department of Surgery
Detroit Receiving Hospital, Room 2V
4201 St. Antoine Street
Detroit, Michigan 48201
JUNE 2014
Page 14
JUNE 2014
Page 15
WSU MONTLY CNFERENCES
2014
Death & Complications
Conference
Every Wednesday from 7-8
Didactic Lectures - 8 am
Kresge Auditorium
Harper Hospital
Wednesday, June 4
Death & Complications Conference
“Device-Associated Infections at DMC”
Keith S. Kaye, MD, MPH
“Severance of the Finger: Restoring Function and Beyond”
James Tseng, MD
WSU Department of Surgery
Wednesday, June 11
Death & Complications Conference
“Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernias”
Alexander Stoffan, MD
WSU Department of Surgery
Wednesday, June 18
Death and Complications Conference
“Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis”
Lisa M. Flynn, MD
WSU Department of Surgery
Wednesday, June 24
Death and Complications Conference
SCORE CURRICULUM: Cystic & Neuroendocrine Tumors of Pancreas
Gamal Mostafa, MD
WSU Department of Surgery
JUNE 2014
Page 16
Missing Emails
Over the years the WSU Department of Surgery has lost touch with many of its alumni. If you know the email, address, or phone number of the following WSU Department of Surgery Residency Program graduates please email
us at clucas@med.wayne.edu with their information so that we can get them on the distribution list for the WSU
Department of Surgery Alumni Monthly Email Report.
Ram Agrawal (1974)
R. Kambhampati (2003)
Edgar Roman (1971)
Mohammad Ali (1973)
Aftab Khan (1973)
Renato G. Ruggiero (1994)
David B. Allen (1992)
Mark Leiser (1996)
Parvid Sadjadi (1971)
Tayful R. Ayalp (1979)
Samuel D. Lyons (1988)
Samson P. Samuel (1996)
Robert C. Birks (1970)
Dean R. Marson (1997)
Knavery D. Scaff (2003)
Juan C. Calzetta (1982)
Syed A. Mehmood (2007)
Steven C. Schueller (1974)
Sebastian J. Campagna (1969)
Mehul M. Mehta (1992)
Anand G. Shah (2005)
Kuan-Cheng Chen (1976)
Toby Meltzer (1987)
Anil Shetty (2008)
Elizabeth Colaiuta (2001)
Roberto Mendez (1997)
Chanderdeep Singh (2002)
Fernando I. Colon (1991)
Mark D. Morasch (1998)
Raj A. Sukhnandan (1966)
David Davis (1984)
Daniel J. Olson (1993)
D. Sukumaran (1972)
Teoman Demir (1996)
Ellen Beth Ozolins (2000)
David G. Tse (1997)
Judy A. Emanuele (1997)
David Packer (1998)
Peter VandenBerg (1986)
Lawrence J. Goldstein (1993)
Daniel S. Paley (2003)
Christopher N. Vashi (2007)
David M. Gordon (1993)
Y. Park (1972)
Carlos M. Villafane (1990)
Raghuram Gorti (2002)
Bhavik G. Patel (2004)
Larry A. Wolk (1984)
Karin Haji (1973)
Michael M. Peikoff (1970)
Peter Y. Wong (2002)
Michelle Hardaway (1989)
Jerome P. Pucelik (1966)
Shane Yamane (2005)
Morteza Hariri (1970)
Everton Quadros (1968)
Chungie Yang (2005)
Abdul A. Hassan (1971)
Ami Raafat (1998)
Hossein A. Yazdy (1970)
S. Amjad Hussain (1970)
Kevin Radecki (2001)
Lester S. Young (2008)
Rose L. Jumah (2006)
Sudarshan R. Reddy (1984)
Lawrence S. Zachary (1985)
Paul Zidel (1986)
WAYNE STATE SURGICAL SOCIETY
The Wayne State Surgical Society (WSSS) was established during the tenure of Dr. Walt as the
chairman of the Department of Surgery. WSSS was designed to create closer contact between
the current faculty and residents with the former resident members in order to create a living
family of all of the WSU Department of Surgery. The WSSS also supports department activities.
Charter/Life Membership in the WSSS is attained by a donation of $1,000 per year for ten years
or $10,000 prior to ten years. Annual membership is attained by a donation of $200 per year.
WSSS supports a visiting lecturer each fall and co-sponsors the annual reception of the department at the annual meeting of the American College of Surgeons.
Dr. Lisa Flynn
(WSU/GS/VS1993/98/99) passed the baton of presidency to Dr. Mark A. Herman (WSU/GS
1994/2001) at the WSSS Gathering during the American College of Surgeons meeting in October 2012. Members of the WSSS are listed on the next page. Dr. Herman hopes that all former
residents will become lifetime members of the WSSS and participate in the annual sponsored
lectureship and the annual reunion at the American College of Surgeons meeting.
JUNE 2014
Page 17
Members of the Wayne State Surgical Society
Charter-Life Members
Ahn, Dean
Colon, Fernando I.
Gerrick Stanley
Allaben, Robert
Conway, W. Charles
Ames, Elliot L.
Davidson, Scott B.
Grifka Thomas J.
(Deceased)
America, Kathryn C.
Edelman, David
Auer, George
Flynn, Lisa M.
Bassett, Joseph
Fromm, Stefan H.
Bouwman, David
Fromm, David G
Clink, Douglas
Galpin, Peter A.
Lange, William
(Deceased)
Rose, Alexander
Rosenberg, Jerry C.
Lim, John J.
Sarin, Susan
Herman, Mark A.
Lucas, Charles E.
Shapiro, Brian
Huebl, Herbert C.
Montenegro, Carlos E.
Johnson, Jeffrey R.
Narkiewicz, Lawrence
Johnson, Pamela D.
Novakovic, Rachel
Kovalik, Simon G.
Ramnauth, Subhash
Smith, Daniel
Stassinopoulos, Jerry
vonBerg, Vollrad J.
Walt, Alexander
(Deceased)
Weaver, Donald
Whittle, Thomas J.
Wilson, Robert F.
Wood, Michael H.
Zahriya, Karim
Washington, Bruce C.
Rector, Frederick
Members of the Wayne State Surgical Society
Albaran, Renato
Heartwell, Barbara
Siegel, Thomas S.
Bambach, Gregory A.
Hinshaw, Keith
Sankaran, Surya N.
Baute, Peter B.
Horness, Mark D.
Sferra, Joseph
Bloch, Robert
Ivascu, Felicia A.
Shaheen, Kenneth W.
Bodzin, Jason
Joseph, Anthony
Shanti, Christina
Carlin, Arthur
Klein, Michael D.
Sullivan, Daniel
Dawson, Konrad L.
Kline, Gary
Tarras, Samantha L.
Dente, Christopher J.
Kaderabek, Douglas
Tennenberg, Steven D.
Diebel, Lawrence
Lopez, Peter P.
Thomas, Gregory A.
Dolman, Heather
McIntosh, Bruce
Thomas, Steven V.
Dulchavsky, Scott A.
Mueller, Michael J.
Ziegler, Daniel W.
Gallick, Harold L.
Nicholas, Jeffrey M.
Geller, Evan R.
Paley, Daniel S.
Gutowski, Tomasz
Phan, Than H.
Hardaway, Michelle
Prendergast, Michael
AN OPERATION A YEAR FOR WSU
January 1, 2014 through
December 31, 2014
The WSU department of Surgery has instituted a new group of alumni who are remembering their training by donating the proceeds of one operation a year to the department. Those who join this new effort will be recognized herein as annual contributors.
We hope that all of you will remember the department by donating one operation, regardless of difficulty or reimbursement, to the department to help train your replacements. Please send you donation to the Wayne State Surgical Society in care of Dr.
Charles E. Lucas at Detroit Receiving Hospital, 4201 St. Antoine Street (Room 2V), Detroit, MI, 48201.
Kathryn C. Amirikia
David Edelman
Pamela D. Johnson
Thomas S. Siegel
Gregory A. Bambach
Peter A. Galpin
Simon G. Kovalik
Thomas, Steven V.
Jason Bodzin
Even R. Geller
John J. Lim
Karim Zahriya
W. Charles Conway
Mark A. Herman
Lawrence Narkiewicz
Scott B. Davidson
Jeffrey Johnson
Rachel L. Novakovic