Monthly news Roundup for August

U.S. News & World Report Ranks Cardiology and Heart Surgery program #4 in the Nation

As the MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital maintains its status as the top children’s hospital in South Carolina, its heart team ranks among the best in the country. That’s according to the 2023-2024 Best Children’s Hospital Rankings by U.S. News & World Report. The Cardiology and Heart Surgery program comes in at No. 4 nationally, and the MUSC Health Pediatric and Congenital Heart Center achieved third in the nation status for outcomes. These are amazing accomplishments for pediatric cardiothoracic surgeons, the entire Pediatric and Congenital Heart Program Team, and a truly amazing statewide team. Read More

Heather Evans, M.D., MS, Named Chief of Surgery at the Ralph H. Johnson Veterans Affairs Medical Center

 

Trauma surgeon Heather Evans, M.D., MS, has been named the Chief of Surgery at the Ralph H. Johnson Veterans Affairs Medical Center, a role previously held by Mark L. Lockett, M.D., who now serves as Deputy Chief of Staff for Acute Care Services. “We are extremely excited to welcome Dr. Evans to the VA.  Her surgical expertise and research experience will expand the capabilities of our Surgical Department,” said Lockett.  “She will help usher in a new era of grow in all facets of our mission – outstanding clinical care, cutting edge research, and training the next generation of surgical professionals all while serving those who served our country.”

Evans, a trauma surgeon with expertise in robotic and minimally invasive general surgery procedures, joined MUSC in the Department of Surgery in 2018, where she also serves­ as the Vice Chair of Clinical Research and Applied Informatics. “We were fortunate to have recruited a surgeon into our department with her tremendous academic credentials,” said Prabhakar Baliga, M.D., chair of the Department of Surgery.  “I am delighted to see her promoted to this leadership role at the VA. I believe Dr. Evans will be truly impactful to the care of the veterans and to the innovation at the VA.”

The Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center is the highest volume surgical program within Veterans Integrated Service Network 7 (GA, SC, AL) with a high complexity of care.  As Chief of Surgery, Evans will lead 133 employees across 17 clinical divisions. Read more.

Barry Gibney, D.O., Named Thoracic Surgery Section Head

Prabhakar Baliga, M.D., Chair of the MUSC Department of Surgery, is pleased to announce that Barry Gibney, D.O., has been named the new Section Head of Thoracic Surgery in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery. In this role, Dr. Gibney will lead the team of thoracic surgeons, including Ian Bostock, M.D., MS, and Kate Engelhardt, M.D., MS, to develop a robust thoracic surgery program dedicated to advancing care through clinical expertise, research and education.

;With the addition of our two fellowship-trained thoracic surgeons, it is an excellent time in the program’s growth to name Dr. Gibney to this new role,” said Baliga. “I’m excited to see the new heights it will reach under his leadership.” Read more.

Pediatric ECMO Program Achieves Platinum-Level ELSO Award

The Pediatric ECMO Program at the MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital was once again awarded the platinum-level Award for Excellence in Life Support from the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO), an international consortium of centers offering ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) for support of failing organ systems in infants, children and adults. This award is the highest attainable level of achievement an ELSO Center of Excellence can receive and recognizes select programs worldwide that have demonstrated the highest level of performance, innovation and quality in the delivery of extracorporeal life support.

“We take great pride in maintaining excellent outcomes when challenged with high patient volume and complexity,” said Laura Hollinger, M.D., Medical Director of Pediatric ECMO Program. “Our team performed over 100 procedures during pediatric extracorporeal life support last year, and nearly half of our patients had no ECMO-related complications.” According to Hollinger, the pediatric ECMO program can achieve these remarkable milestones through the highly specialized and dedicated multidisciplinary team at the MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital.

A full announcement will be made in September, after the ELSO Annual Meeting.

MUSC researchers awarded $3.1M for research to improve graft survival for African American kidney transplant recipients

While kidney transplant remains the best treatment option for end-stage renal disease, differences in outcomes exist among different racial and ethnic groups. 

African Americans have worse 5-year graft outcomes and are twice as likely to experience graft loss as compared to whites.

David Taber, Pharm.D., MS, is the principal investigator on a $3.1M National Institutes of Health/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIH/NIDDK) study that aims to demonstrate an effective and efficient multimodal approach to improve long-term outcomes in African American kidney recipients while reducing health disparities. Read more.

Lloyd "Mac" Felmly, M.D. Joins the Department of Surgery 

The Department of Surgery is pleased to announce that pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon Lloyd “Mac” Felmly, M.D., has joined the Division of Pediatric Cardiothoracic Surgery, where his expertise will help enhance the division’s clinical programs, and he will help develop and lead the pediatric lung transplant program. Dr. Felmly has experience in aortic and mitral valve repair, heart and lung transplantation, the treatment of anomalous coronary arteries, and double switch operations for patients with congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries and other complex disorders such as heterotaxy. Read more.

More News

Mike M. Mallah, M.D. gave an inspiring Humanism in Medicine talk, which is the Keynote Lecture for the College of Medicine White Coat Ceremony on Saturday, August 12. During the Ceremony, in addition to remarks from the dean, there are two invited speakers – one member of the alumni association and one faculty member.

Andrea Abbott, M.D. MSCR was invited to give the James Colbert Lecture at the MUSC Faculty Awards Ceremony on August 15 at 4:30 p.m. 

Keith Smalls, TTVIP client advocate, was an invited speaker at a panel discussion entitled Healing Economies: Justice, Repair & an Economy that Works for Everyone during the 2023 NEXUS Global Summit.