Department of Medicine 2019 Annual Report
Our Broad Reach
A Look Inside
Welcome to our Department of Medicine annual report for 2019.
You’ll see some impressive statistics about us in here: We are 15 divisions comprising 606 faculty, 920 staff and research associates, and 475 trainees. We have 30 endowed professorships. We brought in $136 million to support our sponsored research. Our work in 2018 included 556 grants from both federal and non-federal entities and clinical trials.
But there’s a human side to those numbers, and this year’s report reflects that. You’ll find an array of stories detailing the activities of the divisions, centers, programs, and institutes that make up the Department of Medicine. We’ve grouped the articles in this report into three sections reflecting the energy we put into caring for patients, caring for each another, and caring for communities both local and global.
Much of our work focuses on patients – those who come to Stanford seeking our clinical expertise. We learn about Manali Patel’s research into simple ways to improve terminally ill patients’ quality of life, and Alan Pao’s efforts to help those with kidney stones avoid forming more stones. What better way to teach beginning medical students about interacting with patients than what’s described in the Walk with Me article?
Internally, we focus on how we care for our own Department of Medicine community of staff, faculty, trainees, and research associates. Stories like REACH describe our attention to wellness and wellbeing. Angela Rogers’s resident symposium celebrates the work residents put into their dedicated research month. And in the profile of Tamara Dunn we are reminded of the need to increase diversity and inclusion and to build resilience.
The local communities that we serve are described in stories about the staff-led SCOPE community service program as well as the GI division’s move to Redwood City. We learn about the Million Veterans Program, an enormous database that will help both the veterans who contribute their data to it and the entire field of medicine. Our care for global communities is highlighted by Michael Baiocchi’s work with at-risk Kenyan girls as well as by Kari Nadeau and Michele Barry’s contributions to the study of climate change’s effects on children, especially those younger than age five.
This Department of Medicine does amazing work. Read all these articles about your peers and perhaps yourself and take pleasure in the role you play in what we do. When it comes to the achievements of the Department of Medicine, we all play a part.
Sincerely,
Robert Harrington, MD
Chair, Department of Medicine
Caring for our Patients
A Breakthrough Drug Facilitates Safer Bone Marrow Transplants
DAVID MIKLOS, MD, PHDDAVID MIKLOS, MD, PHDWithin the walls of the Center for Clinical Sciences Research, scientists are hard at work developing life-saving treatments for patients with blood and bone marrow cancers. Since 1987, Stanford has...
Stanford Amyloid Center: From Start-up to Premier Status
RONGLIH LIAO, PHD (left), reviews research data with lab instructor SEEMA DANGWAL, PHD.RONGLIH LIAO, PHD (left), reviews research data with lab instructor SEEMA DANGWAL, PHD.Although Kevin Anderson had committed no crime, he was facing a death...
When It Comes to the Kidneys, This Center Leaves No Stone Unturned
ALAN C. PAO, MDALAN C. PAO, MDHalf a million Americans go to the emergency room annually for kidney stone issues, and one in every 10 people in the United States will develop a kidney stone during his or her lifetime. Kidney stones are exactly what...
Tackling a Fundamental Disease: Multiple Disciplines Take on Hypertension
VIVEK BHALLA, MDVIVEK BHALLA, MDA multidisciplinary clinic at Stanford is redefining what it means to live with hypertension. About one in every three American adults has the condition, generally known as high blood pressure. It’s difficult to...
Stanford Vasculitis Clinic: Infrequently Asked Questions about Uncommon Diseases
ORNELIA WEYAND, MDORNELIA WEYAND, MDVasculitis, a group of uncommon diseases characterized by inflammation of the blood vessels, caught the attention of Cornelia Weyand, MD, when she was an immunology and rheumatology fellow at Stanford in the...
Putting Bioethics into Practice
KATE LUENPRAKANSIT, MDKATE LUENPRAKANSIT, MDBioethics is a rapidly evolving, more-relevant-every-day kind of field. And for Kate Luenprakansit, MD, clinical assistant professor of hospital medicine and clinical bioethicist, it has become a major...
Delivering Care by Taking a Step Back
Lay health worker GEE ZHU (center) and MANALI PATEL, MD (right) meet with patient DONALD FREDERICKLay health worker GEE ZHU (center) and MANALI PATEL, MD (right) meet with patient DONALD FREDERICKCan someone with no medical training improve the...
Walk with Me: Early Clinical Experiences for Medical Students
Current Walk with Me partners: patient VANESSA DEEN JOHNSON (left) and medical student CLAIRE RHEE.Current Walk with Me partners: patient VANESSA DEEN JOHNSON (left) and medical student CLAIRE RHEE.Motivated to integrate the science and art of...
Caring for Each Other
A Portfolio to Capture Faculty’s Inventive Side
RYAN VAN WERT, MDRYAN VAN WERT, MDAs faculty members are being considered for promotion, they compile their CVs, including their publications and lists of professional activities, to paint a holistic picture of their academic achievements. But for...
Conference Showcases Residency Research
MAGGIE NING, MD, presents her work to SHRIRAM NALLAMSHETTY, MD.MAGGIE NING, MD, presents her work to SHRIRAM NALLAMSHETTY, MD.Wearing a black Stanford Medicine fleece over his blue scrubs, third-year internal medicine resident Gilad Jaffe, MD,...
Stanford Center for Clinical Research: The Engine That’s Powering Clinical Research
KEN MAHAFFEY, MD (right), discusses site-based research with REBECCA MCCUE.KEN MAHAFFEY, MD (right), discusses site-based research with REBECCA MCCUE.The Stanford Center for Clinical Research (SCCR) is the “operational engine” that enables many...
Showing a Commitment to Cost Savings and High-Value Patient Care
Staff meet to discuss the appropriate use of accommodations project. From left: ARPITA PATEL, RN; ROSDY PAMATIAN, RN; LISA SHIEH, MD, PHD; DAVID SVEC, MD, MBA; PAUL GEORGANTES, MSN, RN, CNL.Staff meet to discuss the appropriate use of...
New Cardiology Faculty
NITISH BADHWAR, MD (left), in the electrophysiology lab.NITISH BADHWAR, MD (left), in the electrophysiology lab. The cardiovascular medicine division has added two new faculty members, both of whom have skills that complement and supplement those...
Residency Training with a Side of Wellness
ANGELA ROGERS, MD: LEE BROCKUS, MD and his wife; ROBERT HARRINGTON, MD; SHRIRAM NALLAMSHETTY, MD; KAI SWENSON, MDANGELA ROGERS, MD: LEE BROCKUS, MD and his wife; ROBERT HARRINGTON, MD; SHRIRAM NALLAMSHETTY, MD; KAI SWENSON, MDIt’s a crisp, bright...
Tamara Dunn in Focus
TAMARA DUNN, MDTAMARA DUNN, MDA steady hum of energy and activity seems to constantly surround Tamara Dunn, MD, clinical assistant professor of hematology. Perhaps it’s the time of day — it’s early evening, a notoriously hectic time, and she’s...
Integrating Medicine with Basic Science
JUSTIN ANNES, MD, PHDJUSTIN ANNES, MD, PHDJustin Annes, MD, PhD, assistant professor of endocrinology, gerontology and metabolism, and ChEM-H faculty fellow, feels that he owes a great deal of credit for his unique research program to the ChEM-H...
Caring for our Community
FAIR Compliant Biomedical Metadata Templates | CEDAR
MARK MUSEN, MD, PHDMARK MUSEN, MD, PHDMaking Large Data Easily Available OnlineSeveral years ago, Mark Musen, MD, PhD, wrote: “The ultimate Big Data challenge lies not in the data, but in the metadata — the machine-readable descriptions that...
Humans and AI, Not Humans versus AI
SONOO THADANEY, MBA (left) and ABRAHAM VERGHESE, MDSONOO THADANEY, MBA (left) and ABRAHAM VERGHESE, MD“I hold out hope that artificial intelligence and machine-learning algorithms will transform our experience, particularly if natural-language...
Can AI Really Improve Care?
ARNOLD MILSTEIN, MD (right), collaborates with FEI-FEI LI, PHD, director of the Artificial Intelligence LabARNOLD MILSTEIN, MD (right), collaborates with FEI-FEI LI, PHD, director of the Artificial Intelligence LabArnold Milstein, MD, came to...
A Database of a Million Veterans
LAWRENCE LEUNG, MD (left), and PHILIP TSAO, PHDLAWRENCE LEUNG, MD (left), and PHILIP TSAO, PHDThe goal is simple but ambitious: collect samples and medical data from a million American veterans to create an enormous database of medical information....
GI’s Move to Redwood City: Creating Multiple Opportunities
LINDA NGUYEN, MD (right), performs a procedure.LINDA NGUYEN, MD (right), performs a procedure.Not long ago, new patients at the gastroenterology and hepatology (GI) division would sometimes wait for months for a non-urgent appointment. They were...
A Push for Biomedical Innovation: Three Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Stories
CATHERINE BLISH, MD, PHDCATHERINE BLISH, MD, PHDThe Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Initiative springs from a basic goal: “to make fundamental discoveries and develop new technologies that will enable doctors to cure, prevent, or manage all diseases during...
Crossing Divisions to Solve Global Climate Change
MICHELE BARRY, MD (right), discusses effects of climate change with KARI NADEAU, MD, PHD (left)MICHELE BARRY, MD (right), discusses effects of climate change with KARI NADEAU, MD, PHD (left)“Global climate change has direct effects on our health,...
Committee That Advises Medicare on Service Prices Is Biased — but Bias Has Its Benefits
DAVID CHAN, MD, PHD DAVID CHAN, MD, PHD Physicians on a committee that recommends prices for health care services under Medicare are biased toward their own specialties, resulting in proposals that could generate more income for their own...
A Project to Reduce Rape of Young Kenyans
Stanford researchers CLEA SARNQUIST and MICHAEL BAIOCCHI, PHD (center left and right), work with Kenyan researchers and data colletors to refine their latest survey.Stanford researchers CLEA SARNQUIST and MICHAEL BAIOCCHI, PHD (center left and...
Stanford Community Outreach Partnership Efforts (SCOPE)
KRISTIN BARKLUND, KIMYA STIDUM, MARGARET WEI, PERMSUK LAMPRASITIPON, ANTHONY DUONG, AMANDA PECORARO, LOTO REED, ELSIE WANG.KRISTIN BARKLUND, KIMYA STIDUM, MARGARET WEI, PERMSUK LAMPRASITIPON, ANTHONY DUONG, AMANDA PECORARO, LOTO REED, ELSIE...
“This is one of the great joys of being in an academic institution: discovery and mentorship all in one moment.”
— Justin Annes, MD, PhD
“I’m heartened that diversity and inclusion have come to the forefront of discussion at Stanford, and that Stanford is showing that these issues are important.”
— Tamara Dunn, MD
“Pitting humans against machines is not the point. Rather, how best to relevantly engage both for the sum to be greater than the parts should be the focus.”
— Abraham Verghese, MD
“At the end of this, there’s a patient at the center of all of these discussions.”
— Kate Luenprakansit, MD
“People, both faculty and staff, come to Stanford to be part of a noble cause, and that nobility extends not just to academic and clinical contribution, but to social and community contribution as well.”
— Sang-Ick Chang, MD, MPH