Bucksbaum Institute appoints new Junior Faculty Scholars

Bucksbaum Institute appoints new Junior Faculty Scholars

July 9, 2013

The Bucksbaum Institute for Clinical Excellence has named its latest round of Junior Faculty Scholars.

The three scholars are Raymon Grogan, MD, assistant professor of surgery and director of the endocrine surgery research program; Olwen Hahn, MD, assistant professor of surgery; and John Schneider, MD, MPH, assistant professor of medicine and director of global health programs.

"These faculty members have all demonstrated a commitment to improving the lives of their patients and the broader public," said Mark Siegler, MD, the Lindy Bergman Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine and Surgery and executive director of the Bucksbaum Institute. "We want to encourage their continued research into finding better ways to care for patients, communicate with patients, and improve treatment outcomes."

The Bucksbaum Institute began in 2011 with a $42 million endowment gift from the Matthew and Carolyn Bucksbaum Family Foundation. The goals of the institute are to improve patient care, strengthen the doctor-patient relationship and enhance communication and decision-making between patients and physicians.

Grogan, a specialist in the surgical management of thyroid, parathyroid, and adrenal gland diseases, received Bucksbaum Institute Pilot Grant Program funding for research on the psychology of thyroid cancer patients in an era when the incidence of the disease is increasing.

"The Bucksbaum Institute for Clinical Excellence is a unique program that holds the doctor-patient relationship in the highest regard," Grogan said. "I am honored to have the opportunity to do research and advance the doctor-patient relationship. It is particularly relevant and needed during this current time when our health care system is in a major transition."

Hahn, who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer and genitourinary malignancies, including bladder, kidney, prostate and testicular cancers, received pilot grant funding for her research into improving communication skills for oncology trainees. This work includes workshop-based sessions for senior fellows to role-play with faculty over difficult conversations they will face with patients, including discussing end-of-life care, relaying bad news, and balancing hope and realism.

In 2011, Hahn received the University of Chicago's Distinguished Clinician Award.

Schneider is an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist in the departments of Medicine and Health Studies. Clinically, he focuses on adolescent and adult HIV prevention and primary care at ACCESS Grand Boulevard clinic, a federally qualified health center located in one of the domestic HIV epicenters. These clinics care for patients who have complex medical and social conditions.

"What I aim to accomplish as a Junior Faculty Scholar is how to advance adherence communication with my patients," said Schneider. "This is particularly relevant to the marginalized or otherwise vulnerable communities that I serve.

"Specifically, how can we develop systems and strategies for HIV infected patients to take medication that can save their lives and prevent transmission to those they are connected to," he added.

Joining the three Junior Faculty Scholars are seven new Associate Junior Faculty Scholars:

  • Sarah Collins, MD, Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology
  • Jonas de Souza, MD, Department of Medicine (hematology/oncology)
  • Jonathan Kohler, MD, Department of Surgery (general surgery)
  • Emily Landon, MD, Department of Medicine (infectious diseases)
  • Pamela McShane, MD, Department of Medicine (pulmonary and critical care medicine)
  • Yasmin Sacro, MD, Department of Medicine (general medicine)
  • Sachin Shah, MD, Department of Medicine (general medicine)

Earlier this year, the Bucksbaum Institute named Michael Bishop, MD, professor of medicine and director of the Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Program, as its second master clinician. The three-year appointment will enable Bishop to mentor faculty and student scholars to improve crucial doctor-patient communication skills and clinical care.

Bishop joined vascular surgeon Ross Milner, MD, an authority on aortic aneurysms and co-director of the Center for Aortic Diseases, who was named the first Bucksbaum master clinician last autumn.