Dear Colleague:  

Learn Serve Lead, the annual meeting of the Association of American Medical Colleges, is around the corner. If you’re heading to Atlanta for the meeting November 8-12, I hope you’ll attend and support our colleagues who are presenting their work and leading conversations among the attendees. I encourage you to get involved and share great examples of your work too.

Judith Regensteiner, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Director of the Ludeman Family Center for Women’s Health Research, will be presenting at the AAMC meeting as a panelist discussing “Why Consider Sex as a Variable in Medical Research?” on Saturday, November 9.

Also on Saturday, three leaders from our school will serve as table hosts during lunch for focused discussions:

• Tecca Wright, Senior Program Manager for Strategic Projects and Initiatives for the Vice Chancellor of Health Affairs and School of Medicine Dean’s Office, “Aligning Departmental and C-Suite Visions: Bridging Gaps in Academic Medicine Culture” at Table 17.
• Sarah Milla, MD, Professor of Radiology and Chief of Pediatric Radiology at Children’s Hospital Colorado, “Using Art to Engage Learners and Leaders” at Table 97.
• Matt Rustici, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, “New Trends in Transition-to-Residency Courses” at Table 117.

An extra special feature at this year’s meeting will be an art exhibit displayed in the main entrance hall of the conference. The AAMC invited our school to display work from “We Are All Artists,” which was created by participants in the Colorado Resiliency Arts Lab (CORAL) and has been displayed during the past year at Children’s Hospital Colorado and at the Colorado state capitol.

Marc Moss, MD, Professor of Medicine and CORAL Director, said the program helps members of our campus community use creative arts therapy to address burnout and other forms of psychological distress. The exhibit and CORAL’s work are featured in an article in the School of Medicine newsroom. Kudos to all for their leadership!

Faculty Updates
Jean Kutner, MD, Professor of Medicine, has been named Chief Academic Officer for UCHealth, a newly established role to further integrate and advance UCHealth’s position as the only academic and community-based health system in Colorado. Dr. Kutner became the inaugural Chief Medical Officer for University of Colorado Hospital in 2014. A search for her successor as CMO has been launched and she will serve in both roles until her successor begins.

Abigail Person, PhD, Professor of Physiology and Biophysics, is the recipient of a 2024 Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award from the National Institutes of Health to research the role of cerebellar information in controlling movements. The Javits Award is a conditional, seven-year research grant given to scientists for their superior competence and outstanding productivity. Javits Awards provide long-term support to investigators with a history of exceptional talent, imagination, and preeminent scientific achievement.

David Mathes, MD, Professor and Chief of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, has been named Vice President of Academic Affairs for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons/Plastic Surgery Foundation. The foundation’s academic affairs council is responsible for identifying and discussing issues and trends and for developing an agenda to address issues facing the academic development and practice of plastic surgery.

Recent Publications
Eden English, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, is first author of a research letter published October 14 by JAMA Network Open that studied the use of a large language model to draft replies to patient messages. During the study period, from September 2023 to March 2024, the Patient Advice Message Chatbot, called PAM Chat, generated more than 21,000 drafts. Of those, nearly 2,600 were used. Of the 166 users, including nurses, medical assistants, and clinicians, nurses had a more favorable view of PAM Chat.

Lotte Dyrbye, MD, MHPE, Senior Associate Dean for Faculty and Chief Well-being Officer, is lead author of a research report published in September by Academic Medicine finding that male, Asian, Black or African American, and sexual minority students had a higher risk of burnout, while female, Hispanic, White, and heterosexual or straight students had a lower risk of burnout during the COVID -19 pandemic. Dr. Dyrbye and her co-authors examined graduation questionnaires of a national sample of medical students from 2019-2021. An article in the School of Medicine newsroom provides additional detail.

Kathy L. Ding, a member of the MD Class of 2025, is corresponding author of a basic science article published October 11 by Pediatric Research finding that the anti-fibrotic agent Nintedanib preserves lung growth and prevents pulmonary hypertension in a hyperoxia-induced lung injury model. Steve Abman, MD, Professor of Pediatrics, is senior author. Caroline Smith, a medical student, and Gregory Seedorf, a professional research assistant, are co-authors.

Joshua Barocas, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, is corresponding author of an original article published October 16 by the Journal of Urban Health that examines the association of sweeps of homeless camps and crime in Denver. The article’s first author is Pranav Padmanabhan, a research assistant and MPH student. An article in the campus newsroom has additional detail.

Have a good week,

John H. Sampson, MD, PhD, MBA
Richard D. Krugman Endowed Chair
Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs and
Dean, University of Colorado School of Medicine