Dear Colleague: 

Thank you, Dr. Schulick!
Richard Schulick, MD, MBA, Chair of Surgery and Director of the CU Cancer Center, has announced that he will be joining the University of Rochester Medical Center next spring as Chief Clinical Officer, Senior Vice President for Health System Strategy, and Vice Dean for Clinical Affairs.

On behalf of the entire CU Anschutz community, I want to offer our profound gratitude and respect to Dr. Schulick for his outstanding leadership here for the past 14 years. Dr. Schulick’s time at the University of Colorado started in 2012 as the Chair of Surgery, and his leadership responsibilities expanded in June 2018 to lead the CU Cancer Center.

Dr. Schulick has been a stellar contributor, building outstanding programs of excellence in surgery and leading our CU Cancer Center through a renewal of its program grant from the National Cancer Institute, receiving a strong rating in March 2022, the best it has ever received.

In the Department of Surgery, Dr. Schulick has attracted and retained outstanding faculty and division leadership. With more than 460 faculty, research, and administrative staff, the department is responsible for the training of 165 residents and fellows and attracted $18 million in new grant funding in 2024. The department consistently ranks in the top 20 Departments of Surgery on the Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research’s annual rankings of NIH funding.

Our surgical and cancer programs are a major asset that contributes to Children’s Hospital Colorado’s consistent Top 10 ratings on the annual U.S. News rankings. The hospital was recognized earlier this month for having top 10 programs in Pulmonary and Lung Surgery, Cardiology and Heart Surgery, Urology, Gastroenterology and GI Surgery, and Cancer.

During Dr. Schulick’s tenure as cancer center director, he spearheaded numerous initiatives and achieved many notable successes. Through improved outreach programs, the CU Cancer Center has boosted participation in clinical trials. Nationally renowned program leaders have been recruited through targeted programs and collaboration. Multidisciplinary cancer clinics have become a standard of care to allow patients to be evaluated in one day by multiple specialists. Our five-year cancer survivor numbers routinely exceed national and state averages.

Dr. Schulick will remain in his leadership roles through the end of 2025, and also remain with our school through January 2026. James DeGregori, PhD, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics and Deputy Director of the CU Cancer Center, will serve as the center’s interim director. In addition, the cancer center will have a one-year extension on its current NCI grant renewal while we complete a search for a new permanent director. The interim Chair of Surgery will be announced soon.

“This is a wonderful institution, and I am so grateful for all of my many colleagues who I’ve grown and learned with through the years,” Dr. Schulick said. “I am doing this with mixed emotions. The most important part of any institution is the people, and I will miss the people here.”

Dr. Schulick and his family will always be important members of the CU Anschutz community. His service has been vital to our success. He said he’s a true believer in the high quality of our campus, noting that two of his children graduated from our medical school, and one is currently in our dental school. We wish Dr. Schulick the best in the next chapter of his impressive career.

2025 State of the Campus
Chancellor Don Elliman will deliver his State of the Campus address in a new town hall format on Thursday, October 30, at 4 p.m. I will join a panel discussion along with Liz Concordia, President and CEO, UCHealth, and Jena Hausmann, President and CEO, Children’s Hospital Colorado. Together, we’ll answer your questions and discuss the progress, partnerships, and priorities shaping the future of our academic medical campus.

Don’t miss this opportunity to hear directly from campus leadership about our shared vision and ask your questions about the direction of CU Anschutz in our evolving health care landscape. Register to attend. The event will take place in the First Floor Auditorium of Education 2 South. In-person space is limited, and an online option will be available.

Faculty Updates
Kristina Wilson MD, MPH, Associate Professor of Clinical Practice of Orthopedics and Medical Director, Sports Medicine Center, Children’s Hospital Colorado, has been selected as one of five fellows in the 2025-2026 class of the National Academy of Medicine’s State Health Policy Fellowship program. Dr. Wilson’s fellowship will be administered in partnership with the University of Colorado’s Eugene S. Farley Jr. Health Policy Center.

Elena Hsieh, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, has received the Common Mechanisms of Autoimmunity Insight Award from Breakthrough T1D (formerly JDRF), the Lupus Research Alliance, and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Dr. Hsieh is one of seven awardees, who each will receive up to $150,000 to fund a one-year pilot investigation of potential therapies or shared mechanisms underlying type 1 diabetes, lupus, and/or multiple sclerosis.

Edwin de Zoeten, MD, PhD, Professor of Pediatrics, has been elected to the position of councilor for the North American Society For Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition leadership.

Recent Publications
Caley Orr, PhD, Associate Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology, is a co-author of an article, “New fossils reveal the hand of Paranthropus boisei,” published October 15 by Nature. An article in the CU Anschutz newsroom provides details.

Halden F. Scott, MD, MSCS, Professor of Pediatrics, and Sara J. Deakyne Davies, MPH, research informaticist at Children’s Hospital Colorado, are co-authors of an original investigation, “Derivation and Validation of Predictive Models for Early Pediatric Sepsis,” published October 13 by JAMA Pediatrics.

Foster Goss, DO, MMSc, Clinical Professor of Emergency Medicine, is a co-author of a research letter, “Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonist Order Fills and Out-of-Pocket Costs by Race, Ethnicity, and Indication,” published October 10 by JAMA Health Forum.

Catherine G. Derington, PharmD, MS, Assistant Professor of Medicine and investigator with the Adult & Child Center for Outcomes Research & Delivery Science, is a co-author of an original investigation, “Liraglutide vs Semaglutide vs Dulaglutide in Veterans With Type 2 Diabetes,” published October 13 by JAMA Network Open.

Caroline Vloka, MD, Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology, is co-author, and Sophie D. Liao, MD, Associate Professor of Ophthalmology, is corresponding author of an invited commentary, “Expanding the Potential Treatment of Thyroid Eye Disease,” published October 9 by JAMA Ophthalmology.

David Keller, MD, Professor of Pediatrics, is corresponding author on behalf of the Pediatric Policy Council, of a comment, “The Science of Health: Pediatric Research that should have been in the MAHA report,” published October 10 by Pediatric Research.

Abridge Rollout Begins
I’m excited to announce the rollout of Abridge, a powerful new tool that will help our faculty serve patients better, while reducing clerical workload and enhancing clinical experience.

In partnership with UCHealth and Children’s Hospital Colorado, we are introducing Abridge, an AI-powered clinical documentation solution designed to enhance provider efficiency and streamline patient care. Abridge uses cutting-edge technology to transform patient-clinician conversations into structured clinical notes in real-time, seamlessly integrating with our electronic health records.

• Adult health: licenses will be available to physicians, APPs, licensed mental health professionals, residents, fellows, and medical students on Monday, October 27.
  • Training Materials 
  • Contact the HelpDesk in your region for technical assistance.
  • Stay tuned for more information from UCHealth on go-live support (i.e., office hours, chat groups).
• Child health: licenses will be rolled out in waves starting on Monday, October 27.
  • More information will be announced soon via CMIO corner and clinical informatics emails.
  • Informaticists will be leading this effort, with all interested faculty completing online training and then meeting with your informaticist to ensure success.

Faculty and Resident Well-Being Survey Reminder
It’s time for the faculty and resident well-being survey.

The survey is confidential, only takes 10-15 minutes, and includes tailored questions depending on your role and work setting. Your input will guide institutional priorities; track progress on well-being goals; and help leaders make informed, data-driven decisions. The survey is for residents, fellows, and School of Medicine-paid faculty members, who are 50% or more FTE and started before July 31, 2025.

For School of Medicine faculty at Children’s Hospital Colorado: This year, the school and Children’s Hospital Colorado have combined their surveys into a single effort, meaning there is no separate CHCO Med Staff Survey.

To encourage participation, the school is offering:

• Lottery for 500 $50 and 250 $25 Amazon gift cards (better odds for early responders!)
• Departmental awards to support local well-being initiatives

Your feedback is essential to making our School of Medicine a place where faculty and trainees can thrive. For an update on how last year’s responses helped guide meaningful change, check out this webpage.

We are aiming for at least 50% participation, so please check your inbox for a message from the SullivanLuallin Group to get started, or click on the link Clinician and Resident Survey or the Scientist and Non-Clinical Faculty Survey, depending on your role.

Federal Government Updates
The federal government shutdown continued last week, creating uncertainty for our critical missions. I appreciate the insights from our federal relations teams and encourage you to stay informed via the CU System Federal Updates and Actions webpage and the CU Anschutz Federal Updates webpage.
 
In more encouraging news, our campus announced adoption of new guidance and a rubric developed by the new School of Medicine Grant Alignment for Non-Federal Support (GRANT) committee to help investigators navigate recent NIH policies on research involving specific demographic groups and health disparities. This is a meaningful step toward aligning with evolving government requirements and supporting inclusive, impactful research for all our funders.
 
I thank the School of Medicine GRANT Committee, led by Adit Ginde, MD, MPH, Interim Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Research and Lilia Cervantes, MD, MSCS, Professor of Medicine, for their thoughtful leadership, deep expertise, and tireless efforts, which was instrumental in shaping the guidance now being used across campus. Their work reflects a strong commitment to empowering our research community and ensuring faculty are well-supported in meeting new federal requirements.

A School of Medicine-specific process document will soon be available to further assist faculty in grant development. Contact [email protected] with any questions about this new guidance.

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 Anschutz School of Medicine

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