On Saturday, April 28, at the Englert Theatre, the 116th Annual Aesculapian Frolics were held by the Carver College of Medicine. The evening features skits, musical performances, and presentations of the winners of student, faculty, and staff awards. The long-standing tradition of these awards are driven entirely by the medical students themselves. Each class nominates and votes for whomever they believe to be the most deserving each year.
Congratulations to the following nominated and winning members of Internal Medicine for the 2017-18 academic year!
M2/PA2 Teacher of the Year
Winner: Manish Suneja, MD, Clinical Professor
Nominees:
Amal Shibli-Rahhal, MD, MS, Clinical Professor
Jason Barker, MD, Associate Professor
Kyle Brown, MD, MSc, Associate Professor
Scott Vogelgesang, MD, Clinical Professor
M3 UIHC Faculty of the Year
Nominees:
Alan Gunderson, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor
Rolando Sanchez, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor
M4 UIHC Faculty of the Year
Winner: Donald Brown, MD, Professor
Nominee:
Tim Thomsen, MD, Clinical Professor
M3 UIHC Resident/Fellow of the Year
Nominee:
Keenan Laraway, MD, 3rd Year Resident
M4 UIHC Resident/Fellow of the Year
Winner: Keenan Laraway, MD, 3rd Year Resident
Nominee:
Nat Thompson, MD, 2nd Year Resident
Ben Pardini Award
Ben Pardini was an inspirational and beloved teacher, researcher, and health care provider before his passing in 2008. As a physician assistant, he embodied the spirit of teamwork and service. He maintained a desire to better his community, the UIHC, and CCOM through teaching students, pursuing knowledge through research, and providing the highest quality of patient care. The annual Ben Pardini Interdisciplinary Teaching Award has been established to honor Mr. Pardini’s memory by recognizing those who share his ideals.
Candidates should be non-physician members of the healthcare community (e.g., physician assistants, nurses, social workers, pharmacists, nutritionists, etc.) who demonstrate a passion for teamwork, education, service, and patient care.
Winner: Christine Harlander, ARNP, Palliative Care
Nomination: “Christine Harlander is a ARNP who works with the Palliative Care Service. The entire palliative care team demonstrates a passion for teamwork, education, service, and patient care, but I feel Christine goes above and beyond in all of these aspects. During my month rotation in palliative care, I was able to see Christine interact with multiple patients and their families. Her compassion and empathy helped her connect to patients/families in a very short amount of time, which is often crucial during these difficult times. She was able to lay out the options available and help the families navigate the medical system. In addition to patient care, she was committed to providing a valuable learning experience for myself and the rest of the team. She would let me see patients first and help create the plan. During my time with her she too, the time to teach me things like the uses of various medications as the focus shifts to comfort and helped me use the opioid conversation scale. She was never afraid to bounce ideas off of the other doctors or advanced practice providers, and was able to work with the chaplains, music therapy, and other available services to help provide care for the whole person, not just their medical problems. My time on palliative was one of the most rewarding experiences I had in medical school, and this was partly due to the excellent care and instruction that Christine Harlander provided for both myself and the patients we cared for together.”