Every year the Chief Residents deliver a Grand Rounds in Internal Medicine. Though social distancing kept Medical Alumni Auditorium mostly empty, hundreds still logged on to cheer these four beloved members of the department dazzle them in their role for one of the last times.

Before that could begin, though, Manish Suneja, MD, Residency Program Director and Vice Chair of Education, and E. Dale Abel, MD, PhD, Chair and DEO of the department presented the Education Awards. These awards are voted on by the residents themselves and so carry an extra weight. The Chiefs were also recognized individually with a small token of the department’s appreciation. “Every year,” Suneja said, “I could not do my job without the Chief Residents.” This year, he continued, for many reasons was more challenging than a typical year, and he expressed his gratitude to these Chiefs for all their aid in helping him, the program, and the department weather the storms.

Below: A photo of Carole Tormollon (center) receiving her Outstanding Support Staff of the Year Award from Gwen Beck, MD, (left) were just sent in.

And then it was time for the Chiefs’ presentations. Their acumen was on display in equal measure to their humor and clear communication skills. Jennifer Strouse, MD, presented a curious case of a prostate abscess. Mohammad Salman Ansari, MD, detailed a case of methotrexate pneumonitis. Brenden Boyle, MD, explained an improvement in training for code blues. Andrei Schwartz, MD, highlighted the many causes that could be behind a presentation of eosinophilia.

As a postscript and a sign of just how much the Chiefs themselves have appreciated the department, all the weekly and annual traditions, as well as our need to communicate them, Strouse alerted us to a moment that she believed worth documenting. Earlier that morning, she told us, Abel would be leading Chair’s Rounds with her in scrubs. Maybe a photo, she asked? Naturally.

We’ll miss these Chiefs! Congratulations and best wishes to all four of you.