Neighborhood Fund Recipient Marjorie Elliot is a Reason to Love New York
In its special holiday issue, New York Magazine listed forty-two Reasons to Love New York. Ninth among them was Marjorie Elliot, a local Washington Heights resident who opens her home every Sunday afternoon for Parlor Entertainment. Ms. Elliot has played at the P&S Faculty Club and has been the recipient of several Medical Center Neighborhood Fund grants, just one of the many health, social services, and cultural groups that the fund helps support. For more information on Parlor Entertainment, please contact Ms. Elliot at 212-781-6595. For more information on the Neighborhood Fund, click on the link to the left.
Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health Co-Sponsors Congressional Briefing on Capitol Hill
The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research is a coalition of over 300 health groups, medical and scientific societies, and academic and research organizations who are committed advocates for government support of medical research. To that end the group sponsors a series of briefings for members of Congress that focus on how the country’s investment in the National Institutes of Health is fostering scientific discoveries that enhance the health and well-being of Americans. On December 5, the Mailman School of Public Health was the co-sponsor of a briefing session on infectious diseases and the role that NIH and NIAID have played in meeting the health challenges of HIV/AIDS and influenza. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of NIAID, was the featured speaker on the talk, “NIH’s Role in Fighting Infectious Disease: From Basic Science to Personal and Public Health.”
According to latest CDC estimates, there are over 1.2 million people currently living with HIV in the U.S. -- 20% of whom are unaware of their infection -- and more than 50,000 new infections are diagnosed each year. Dr. Fauci noted in his presentation that the capability of microbial pathogens to persist and re-emerge is extraordinary, and the perpetual challenge is balancing this with the appropriate public health measures biomedical research, and technological advances.
Dr. Fauci also said that NIAID has a dual mandate to both “maintain and grow a robust basic and applied research portfolio in microbiology, infectious diseases, immunology and immune-mediated diseases and respond rapidly to new and emerging disease threats, while working towards new and improved interventions.”
Lt. Governor Duffy Visits CUMC
 
Lt. Governor Duffy Tours Research Facilities at CUMC and Meets with Dean Goldman
On Monday November 21st New York State Lieutenant Governor Robert J. Duffy spent part of his afternoon meeting with researchers and touring Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC). Lt. Governor Duffy serves as Chair of the State’s Regional Economic Development Councils and has spent much of his first eleven months in office touring the State and working to develop strategies to create jobs and foster economic development. Lt. Governor Duffy was joined by his Director of Policy, Brian Quiara.
The tour started out at the New York State Psychiatric Institute where he chatted with Executive Director and Chair of Psychiatry Dr. Jeffrey Lieberman. While at the Psychiatric Institute he visited Dr. Victoria Arango’s laboratory where he saw how researchers take slices of the human brain and analyze them in order to better understand the disease mechanisms of various mental illnesses. Dr. John Mann showed how they can use the data gathered from the brain slicing to better understand and prevent suicides.
Next the Lt. Governor met with Dr. Ian Lipkin from the Center for Infection and Immunity at the Mailman School of Public Health. Dr. Lipkin discussed how the Center analyzes viruses and works with federal, state, and local governments to prepare for, prevent, and respond to infectious disease outbreaks. Dr. Lipkin also showed Lt. Governor Duffy the Biosafety Level III laboratory, the most sophisticated facility of its kind in the New York City metropolitan area.
The final stop on the tour was a private meeting with Dean and Executive Vice President Lee Goldman. Dean Goldman and the Lt. Governor discussed ways that New York State could promote biomedical research and thus improve the economy and create jobs. Prior to becoming Lt. Governor, Mr. Duffy was Mayor or Rochester so he had spent a lot of time at the University of Rochester and had a very good appreciation of the important role that an academic medical center can play in the local economy. He said his visit to CUMC and his travels around the State had definitely reinforced that belief, telling Dean Goldman, “You and your faculty are doing some incredible things here, for health care, for innovation and for the economy. You have a lot to be proud of.”
Although the visit was short, the Lt. Governor said he found it very interesting and educational. He hopes to come back and spend more time on campus.
Community Leaders Applaud CUMC's New Special advisors for Community Health Affairs
Rep. Charles Rangel and other political and community leaders from throughout Harlem, Inwood and Washington Heights joined Columbia University Medical Center’s leadership Monday to formally welcome Drs. Rafael Lantigua and Dennis Mitchell to their new positions as Dean’s Special Advisors for Community Health Affairs.
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Columbia Football Northern Manhattan Appreciation Day
Senator Espaillat and Roar-ee chat before the game
State Senator Adriano Espaillat and Assemblymember Guillermo Linares were among the hundreds of residents and community groups from Northern Manhattan who cheered on the Columbia Lions football team on September 24th at Wien Stadium at the Baker Athletics Complex. This was Columbia’s first Northern Manhattan Neighbors Appreciation Day and neighborhood residents received free admission and other amenities with proof of residency. Community School District 6 band Clave Azul performed the National Anthem before the game.
“I think the first ever Northern Manhattan Neighbors Appreciation Day was a huge success. Hundreds of fans from the local neighborhood had the opportunity to attend a Columbia football game and spend the afternoon at Baker Field,” said Sandra Harris, Assistant Vice President for Government and Community Affairs at Columbia University Medical Center. “We hope to see more Washington Heights and Inwood residents at future football games and other events at the complex.” Community residents will be able to obtain free tickets for the following football games: Saturday, October 29th vs. Yale, Saturday, November 5th vs. Harvard, and Saturday, November 19th vs. Brown. Tickets are available through a local community organization - Inwood Community Services. For more information you may contact the GCA offices at 212 305-8060 or cumcgca@columbia.edu for further information.
August 4, 2011
Rafael Lantigua, MD, and Dennis Mitchell, DDS, MPH, have been appointed Dean's Special Advisors for Community Health Affairs effective August 1, 2011. In these new roles, Drs. Lantigua and Mitchell will counsel all four medical center deans on community health issues and facilitate new collaborative initiatives with community and academic stakeholders. They also will work closely with the Office of Government & Community Affairs and provide a faculty voice in efforts to engage community health organizations and to optimize academic and community partnerships. Their understanding of the community will help align CUMC and other resources with the goal to improve healthcare services in northern Manhattan.
 Dr. Lantigua, professor of clinical medicine and associate director of the Division of General Medicine, and Dr. Mitchell, assistant professor of clinical dentistry and senior associate dean of diversity affairs, bring decades of community health experience in Washington Heights, Inwood and Harlem to their new positions. Since joining P&S in 1980, Dr. Lantigua has had a special interest in improving the health of aging minorities. He was the driving force behind CALME, the Columbia Center for the Active Life of Minority Elders, which supported research to reduce health disparities affecting minority elders and established an important bridge between Columbia researchers and the neighboring community. Dr. Lantigua also helped start the Columbia Center for the Health of Urban Minorities to shift community based-research from studies for the community to studies with the community. He is co-director of the Columbia Community Partnership for Health, part of the Irving Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, and a co-founder of Alianza Dominicana. Dr. Lantigua earned his medical degree at the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic.
 Dr. Mitchell, a member of the College of Dental Medicine faculty since 1991, has a longstanding involvement in research investigating oral health disparities affecting minority and economically disadvantaged populations, particularly in northern Manhattan. Dr. Mitchell helped establish CDM's Community DentCare Network to provide dental services in the community to underserved residents of northern Manhattan who need affordable dental care. The annual number of visits to the community network continues to grow since its inception in 1996, reaching 55,000 visits in the 2009-2010 academic year. Dr. Mitchell is also actively involved in initiatives aimed at increasing the number of minority oral health providers. Dr. Mitchell earned his doctor of dental surgery degree from Howard University and his master's degree in public health from Columbia.
New York Medical Schools Deans Make Push in Washington for Biomedical Research, Graduate Medical Education
(l-r), Vincent Verdaille (Albany Medical College), Steven Scheinman (Upstate Medical College), Senator Harkin, Dean Goldman, Michael Cain (University at Buffalo), and Robert Goldberg, (Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine) gather after meeting in Senator Harkin's office
Joined by colleagues from the University at Buffalo, Upstate Medical University, Albany Medical College, and the Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine, Executive Vice President and Dean Lee Goldman traveled to Washington to advocate on behalf of Columbia and academic medicine. The mid July trip took place in the midst of the tense negotiations going on between President Obama and Congress on how to control spending and increase the debt limit ceiling.
Of special concern to the Deans were funding for domestic discretionary programs, including most importantly the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and for graduate medical education (GME). With both parties wanting to avoid raising taxes and/or cutting entitlements like Social Security and Medicare, the fear is that the squeeze will be put on research and other non-defense priorities. Cutting GME, especially Indirect Medical Education, is also being seriously considered.
Dean Goldman met with several members of the New York Congressional Delegation including Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D), Congressman Charles Rangel (D) and Congressman Richard Hanna (R) as well as the staff in several other offices. All members of the delegation were supportive of the medical schools’ agenda and promised to fight for GME and research. The Group also had the chance to meet with Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA). Senator Harkin is Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Service, Education and Related Agencies, the subcommittee with jurisdiction over the NIH budget. He has been one the greatest champions for the NIH throughout his career.
Columbia Well Represented at Cancer Institutes Advocacy Day
Dr. Olive in between Congressman Brian Higgins (D-NY) and Dr. Eric Cottington, Vice President of Research at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
On May 11th Kenneth Olive, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Medicine and Pathology at the Columbia University Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center Washington took part in the Association of American Cancer Institutes (AACI) annual advocacy day. Cancer center directors and scientists from across the country came to Washington to lobby on issues of importance to the cancer research community, chief among them funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Olive was joined by colleagues from New York University, Memorial Sloan Kettering, and Roswell Park. Together the group held over a dozen meetings with Members and staff of the New York Congressional Delegation urging them to support increased funding for the NIH. He discussed his current work in pancreatic cancer research and the challenges facing a young investigator trying to start a career in science, impressing people with his dedication to making progress in treating this deadly disease. At the end of the day Dr. Olive noted, “It was a long day, but very productive I believe. I think we were able to make our case in support of NIH funding. Everybody with whom we met was very interested in what we had to say and seemed to understand the importance of federal support of cancer research.”
Project Medical Education Comes to CUMC
- Community residents were “medical students for a day” through Project Medical Education.
- They met with representatives of the four CUMC schools and took mini-classes.
- They also toured areas of New York-Presbyterian Hospital/CUMC and the NYS Psychiatric Institute.
We looked at pathology slides, stood in the control room of a catheterization (cath) lab, and viewed a portion of a frozen brain. All this and more made for one very full day—the fourth Project Medical Education to be held at Columbia University Medical Center. Organized by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the program gives participants a taste of what it is like to be a medical student. In 2010, the AAMC held fifteen Project Medical Education Programs throughout the country. In Washington, DC, participants may be members of Congress and their staff members. The seventeen CUMC participants included community board members and a school administrator, among others, as well as this writer.
At CUMC, the program is another way for our Upper Manhattan neighbors to get to know us. As Ross Frommer, deputy VP for government and community affairs and associate dean of CUMC, explained, “Project Medical Education is an opportunity for community leaders to learn about academic medicine and the day-to-day activities here at CUMC.”
Morning activities included a mini-class in a new interactive classroom in the Hammer Health Sciences building. Associate professor of clinical pathology Patrice Spitalnik compared slides of a colon with a benign polyp with slides of a colon with cancer. Even we novices could see the differences among the orderly rows of cell nuclei in the normal colon wall, the less orderly in the colon polyp, and the very disorderly, proliferating nuclei of the colon with cancer."
Over at the New York State Psychiatric Institute, we met with members of the Center of Excellence for Cultural Competence, who help non-English-speaking patients navigate the health care system. One innovation is the use of computers as interpreters. The computers can even put in their own two cents, as when they say, “Doctor, that word has a different meaning in the patient’s culture.”
Victoria Arango, professor of clinical neurobiology, then spoke to us about her research on the brains of suicides. A technician cut a slice from a frozen piece of brain and prepared a slide, which she held up for all to see. Though somewhat unsettling, the demonstration was a reminder that complex phenomena such as suicide must be approached from many angles. While staff of the Center of Excellence for Cultural Competence address suicidal behavior among Latina adolescents, Dr. Arango investigates possible neurobiological contributions to suicide.
At the Mailman School of Public Health, we watched a short, entertaining video, “What Does Public Health Do?,” produced by the American Public Health Association. Sally Findley, professor of population and family health, said that those in public health “work to help physicians address things that they can’t do in clinical visits.” Examples include researching ambient pesticide, creating handbooks for parents and teachers of children with asthma, and studying the effect of neighborhood “walkability” on body mass index.
In the afternoon, we met with Ira Lamster, dean of the College of Dental Medicine. When one participant asked Dr. Lamster why some dentists are painless while others hurt, he quipped that some trained at Columbia and others didn’t. We then toured a floor of the dental clinic.
At the hospital, Michael Guiry, director of cardiac services, gave us a talk, complete with animations, on cardiac stents. We then visited the control room of a cath lab. When nurses began wheeling a patient into the operating area, Mr. Guiry hustled us away.
At the end of the day, a participant, Adam Stevens, assistant principal of the Community Health Academy of the Heights, in Washington Heights, said, “If our kids could see all of this stuff, I bet a lot of them would want to become doctors.”
Control Room of Catheterization Lab
Photo: Manhattan Times/Mike Fitelson
Assemblyman Gabryszak Visits CUMC
Dr. George Hripcsak (l) and Vincent Tomaselli (r) chat with Assemblyman Gabryszak
On April 7th, the Columbia Center for Advanced Information Management (CAIM) hosted a visit by New York State Assemblyman Dennis Gabryszak. The Buffalo area Democrat is Chairman of the Assembly Task force on University-Industry Cooperation. The Columbia CAIM is part of the State supported Centers for Advanced Technology program and the Assemblyman heard presentations from several faculty members who work with the Center. CAIM Deputy Director Dr. Vincent Tomaselli noted that in addition to learning about the work the faculty are doing, the Assemblyman got a good idea of how industry works with experts at Columbia to use technology to promote economic development. Assemblyman Gabryszak remarked, "It was a fascinating afternoon, and I am impressed by the high success of this center. There is a great variety of projects; all of which are of the utmost importance to our society. This type of university-industry cooperation in which Columbia is engaging is an excellent model for others throughout the State."
Mailman School Student Groups Convene Minority Health Forum on Obesity
In response to the obesity epidemic in New York City, several student groups at Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health hosted a panel of experts on March 24th, 2011 to discuss the state of obesity in the city’s minority communities. Scott Stringer, Manhattan Borough President, was the featured keynote speaker.
Mr. Stringer underscored the importance of working with community members to set the agenda to reach policy goals and increase access to healthier foods and opportunities for physical activity -- a central tenet of the current administration. “Manhattan residents are some of the healthiest in the country, yet over 22% of adult New Yorkers are obese,” said the Borough President. “Scarcity of fresh foods and produce is most prevalent in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color, contributing to the disproportionate disease burden carried by the city's minority populations.”
Experts from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Healthy Mondays Campaign, a project of the Mailman School’s Harlem Health Promotion Center, provided insights on the socioeconomic and political structures that cause these health disparities. The panelists, moderated by the regional health administrator for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services covered such topics as the role of food deserts, community mobilization, nutrition education, and food prices.
Michael Hernandez, the Project and Community Outreach Manager for the Healthy Monday campaign spoke about encouraging feasible steps that improve people’s diets and lifestyles. “You can't emphasize enough the importance of listening to community members when designing culturally specific public health interventions.”
A particular goal of the sponsoring Mailman student groups, Students for Food Policy and Obesity Prevention (FPOP), Future Healthcare Leaders (FHL), and the Black and Latino Student Caucus (BLSC); and Black and Latino Student Organization (BALSO) and Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) at Columbia College of Physicians & Surgeons, is for these dialogs to become a springboard for further discussion on developing strategies to combat the obesity epidemic in New York City.
“This forum was a true collaboration of Columbia student groups who are taking action on the problem of obesity in minority communities.” said Mariana Cotlear, president of Students for Food Policy and Obesity Prevention. “We are extremely fortunate to be studying Public Health in New York, a city that is pioneering food policy and health promotion initiatives in this country. We are hoping to fuse the expertise of the public health community with our academic work in order to lay the groundwork for our future professional work in obesity prevention.”
Dean Goldman Featured in Manhattan Times Anniversary Issue
Last month the Manhattan Times, the local newspaper for Washington Heights and Inwood, published a special ten year anniversary issue, looking back over the past ten years how far the community has come and also looking forward where it will go over the next ten years. The special issue included in depth interviews with several thought leaders from northern Manhattan, including Columbia University Medical Center Executive Vice President and Dean Lee Goldman. In the interview, Dean Goldman talks about the role of CUMC in the community and also discusses the importance of biomedical research.
Community Board 12 Recognizes Dyckman Scholars
Local Students Attending Columbia
At its November meeting, Community Board 12 recognized this year’s Dyckman Institute Fund Scholarship recipients. All are students from Washington Heights and Inwood who attend Columbia College. The 2010-2011 recipients are Freshman Aury Garcia, Sophomore Jason Tejada, Junior Christopher Davidson, and Senior Patricia Rojas. Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Dean Feniosky Peña-Mora, who spent part of his childhood in Washington Heights, also attended.
Sandra Harris Recognized by Local Community Group
Sandra Harris receives the Washington Heights - Inwood Coalition's Community Service Award from
Helen Morik
On November 17th Sandra Harris, Assistant Vice President for Government & Community Affairs at Columbia University Medical Center, was recognized by the Washington Heights – Inwood Coalition at its annual Dessert Reception. State Senator-elect Adriano Espaillat was also honored.
Helen Morik, Vice President for Government & Community Affairs at New York Presbyterian Hospital and President of the Coalition, presented Sandra with the Coalition’s Community Service Award, noting that Sandra was being honored for being an “advocate for and supporter of community based organizations in Washington Heights and Inwood.”
HHS Secretary Speaks at the Mailman School Graduation
Secretary Sebelius and Dean Fried before the Mailman School Executive MPH graduation
The Honorable Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), was the speaker at this year’s graduation ceremony for the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health Executive Masters in Public Health program. Held October 15th, 2010 in Low Library, over forty students received their degrees.
Secretary Sebelius started out by noting how many people at HHS were either alumni or faculty from the Mailman school, most notably Dr. Sherry Glied, the new Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. After promising Dean Linda Fried not to take any more faculty with her back to Washington, the Secretary discussed health care reform, which her Department must now implement, and the role that today’s graduates can play in making it work. She also focused on ways to promote prevention and wellness and improve quality and outcomes.
Dean Goldman Publishes Op-ed on Medical Practice Reform
On October 8th, The Albany Times Union ran an op-ed written by Dean Goldman that argues in favor of medical malpractice reform. The piece was in response to an earlier op-ed written by Nicholas Timko, President of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association criticizing Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch’s plan to control Medicaid costs. The Times Union also started an online forum on the topic.
Ravitch Medicaid plan has a good remedy for malpractice reform
By Lee Goldman
Published: 12:00 a.m., Friday, October 8, 2010
Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch's report on "Controlling Increases in the Cost of New York Medicaid" is a well-conceived document. Its recommendations, especially those relating to medical malpractice reform, deserve respect and serious consideration.
First and foremost, Ravitch does not recommend reducing incentives for improving patient safety or leaving the families of patients partially uncompensated. In fact, he recommends several common sense ideas that would address the New York medical malpractice crisis, lower costs to both patients and providers, and improve patient safety.
Rising Medicaid costs are a significant driver of increased health care costs. Last year, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office concluded that enacting medical malpractice reform would, on average, reduce malpractice insurance costs by 10 percent nationwide, and probably more in New York, resulting in a more than $300 million of overall reduction in health care spending in our state budget.
Monday's commentary by Nicholas I. Timko, president of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, "Keep patients safe to reduce costs," tries to create the false choice between patient safety and reform. But the current malpractice system does a very poor job of promoting patient safety or compensating victims of real medical errors.
Mr. Timko lists several good ideas for improving patient safety -- ideas that I expect nearly every doctor would support -- yet alone they will not lead to a fairer and less expensive system. The problem is that the current system punishes doctors and other providers for bad outcomes, not bad medicine, and the two often are not the same. Doctors who take steps like those Mr. Timko recommends and practice within the accepted standards of care should be protected from liability.
In New York, nearly every obstetrician and every neurosurgeon will at some time be sued for medical malpractice. We can argue over how many bad obstetricians and neurosurgeons there are in any state, but New York has many of the best doctors in the world. If nearly every doctor who practices in either of these two fields -- good, bad, or average -- will be sued, the system obviously is not working.
We need serious malpractice reform, not preservation of the current mess or just some changes around the margins. The ideas put forth by the lieutenant governor are a common sense step in the right direction.
Lee Goldman, M.D., is the dean and executive vice president of Columbia University Medical Center in New York City.
Dean Goldman Speaks at Event to Commemorate the “Day that Harlem Hospital Saved the Civil Rights Movement”
Doctors Goldman, Palmer, and Forde
On September 20th, 1958, while at a book signing on 125th Street, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was stabbed in the chest. Severely injured, Dr. King was rushed to Harlem Hospital where his life was saved by a dedicated team of doctors, nurses, and other health professionals.
On September 20th, 2010, Harlem Hospital leadership hosted a special event to commemorate this historic event as Lee Goldman joined John Palmer, Executive Director of Harlem Hospital, to mark the day that Harlem Hospital saved the life of one of America’s greatest leaders and in doing so, perhaps saved the civil rights movement as a whole. Joining Drs. Goldman and Palmer, were the Reverend Al Sharpton, who was the Keynote Speaker, and Dr. John Cordice, who, as a doctor on staff at Harlem Hospital, was actually in the operating room fifty two years ago as Dr. King was being treated. The moving ceremony included music, poetry, and a video of a portion of Dr. King’s famous “Mountaintop” speech, in which he told the story of having been stabbed and of having his life saved at Harlem Hospital.
Among the special guests at the event was Dr. Kenneth Forde, Jose M. Ferrer Professor Emeritus of Clinical Surgery and Special Lecturer. Dr. Forde, who currently sits on the Columbia University Board of Trustees and is Chair of the Health Sciences Committee, spent much of his career at Harlem Hospital. Dean Goldman’s remarks follow.
It is a great honor for me to be here today to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. and Harlem Hospital. I especially want to thank Dr. John Palmer who invited me to be part this celebration with Reverend Sharpton, Dr. John Cordice, Councilman Jackson, and many other distinguished guests. I am also joined here today by Dr. Kenneth Forde, a distinguished former surgeon here at Harlem Hospital, a Professor of Surgery at Columbia, and a now a trustee of Columbia University and the Chairman of Columbia’s Health Sciences Committee.
In 1958, Martin Luther King, Jr. came to Harlem Hospital with a steel letter opener lodged in his chest, adjacent to his aorta, the main artery that goes from the heart to supply blood to the rest of the body. If he had so much as sneezed, the blade would have punctured his aorta and killed him almost instantaneously. But, for his good fortune and the world’s good fortune, he was brought here, to Harlem Hospital, where doctors, nurses, and other health professionals moved him quickly to the operating room where that blade was removed, along with, I might add, two ribs and part of his breast bone. This delicate and life-saving procedure required the rapid response, technical expertise, and attention to detail that have always been the hallmarks of Harlem Hospital.
In the United States, only three national holidays are named after Americans. If it hadn’t been for Harlem Hospital, history would have been different and a great tragedy would have occurred. Martin Luther King’s life would have been shorter that it was, and the civil rights movement would have lost its most important leader. We never would have realized as much benefit from a true American hero - - one of only three people whose positive impact on America so rightly justified the creation of a national holiday. Were it not for Harlem Hospital, Reverend King himself noted that he never would have made it to the mountaintop and never would have been able to do all the things he did to improve America and all of us.
Harlem Hospital saved Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life. But we all know that here, every day, the people at Harlem Hospital save lives. Harlem Hospital saves lives in the Emergency Department and the Trauma Center. Harlem Hospital saves lives in the operating rooms and in the intensive care units. Harlem Hospital saves lives of people with heart attacks, strokes, and pneumonia. Harlem Hospital saves lives with preventive programs for people with high blood pressure, diabetes, and other risk factors. Harlem Hospital saves lives of children and adults, starting with prenatal care and continuing into old age.
The people whose lives are saved here every day are unlikely to have national holidays named after them. Most of them do not have blades adjacent to their aorta or death only a sneeze away. Yet every day, the people here at Harlem Hospital save lives. And for that we all should be not only grateful but proud.
Columbia University is also both grateful and proud to be part of Harlem Hospital and part of the Harlem community. We look forward to an ongoing relationship in which, together, lives continue to be saved, great doctors continue to be trained, important research continues to be performed, and the people of Harlem continue to benefit.
Thank you very much for inviting me to be part of this wonderful celebration.
Dean Goldman Lobbies Congress on the Importance
of Academic Medical Centers in New York
The Associated Medical Schools of New York held its annual Washington, D.C, advocacy day on July 28th. Dean Goldman was joined by fellow Deans from the medical schools throughout New York State as they lobbied on medical education, patient care, and research issues. The Deans also distributed a new report showing the economic impact of academic medical centers in New York. Produced by Tripp Umbach, the same company that does economic impact studies for the Association of American Medical Colleges, the report showed that New York’s medical schools and associated teaching hospitals contribute over $85 billion to the state’s economy and support nearly 700,000 jobs.
The Deans started out with a Tuesday meeting with Peter Orzag, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, the Special Advisor on Health Care Policy. Dr. Emanuel was the speaker at the White Coat Ceremony last year welcoming the College of Physicians & Surgeons Class of 2013. Dr. Emanuel and Director Orzag were very interested in learning how the medical schools were preparing for and planning to implement health care reform, especially wanting to get their thoughts on increasing the number of primary care physicians and bundling payments. Dr. Emanuel was also interested in changes to the medical school curriculum.
In previous years, the Deans had hosted a breakfast for members of the New York Congressional Delegation. This year the Deans split up and had smaller group meetings with individual Members of Congress. Dean Goldman met with Congressman Charles Rangel, who represents the medical center, Congresswoman Nita Lowey of Westchester, and Congressman Dan Maffei of Syracuse, as well as staff from the offices of Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand and Representatives Ed Towns and Anthony Weiner. At the end of the day several Deans met with Dr. David Blumenthal, National Coordinator for Health Information Technology.
NEW YORK (July 6, 2010) – Columbia University Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital have partnered with Greenmarket to bring a new farmers market to campus. The collaboration was made possible by the CHALK (Choosing Healthy & Active Lifestyles for Kids) Center, and was heralded in a
ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by New York City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, New York State Asssemblyman Adriano Espaillat and Democratic District Leader Maria Luna, among others.
The Fort Washington Greenmarket is located on Fort Washington Avenue between 168th and 169th streets and is now open every Tuesday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through November. The market is managed and maintained by Greenmarket, which operates farmers markets throughout New York City.
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| City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, Dr. Herbert Pardes, president and CEO of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, and Lee Goldman, executive vice president and dean of health and biomedical sciences and dean of the faculties of health sciences and medicine at Columbia University visit a stand at the opening of the Fort Washington Greenmarket. (Credit: Diane Bondareff) |
Dr. Herbert Pardes, president and CEO of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, and Lee Goldman, executive vice president and dean of health and biomedical sciences and dean of the faculties of health sciences and medicine at Columbia University, also attended today’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The market is the result of hard work among NewYork-Presbyterian’s Ambulatory Care Network (ACN) and Columbia University Medical Center, in collaboration with the Hospital’s sustainability initiative, NYPgreen, and Columbia University Medical Center’s green initiatives.
In addition to its fresh food offerings, the farmers market will host cooking demonstrations, nutritional counseling, and health promotion and education events. Hospital and university programs interested in taking part in health promotion activities at the Fort Washington Greenmarket may send their inquiries to chalk@nyp.org.
To view the New York 1 News story on the market's opening, please click here.
The Fort Washington Greenmarket is organized and managed by GrowNYC, which houses Greenmarket, the city’s leading farmers market organization with 50 markets across the city.
Dean Goldman Joins Fellow Medical School Leaders for Roundtable Discussion in Albany
On May 24th, the Associated Medical Schools of New York (AMS) hosted a roundtable discussion in Albany on the Impact of Medical Education on New York. Close to ninety people, including members of the State Legislature and senior members of the Executive branch, attended the session which took place in the Blue Room of the State Capitol. Antonio Gotto, M.D., Dean at Weill Cornell Medical College, moderated the discussion along with Jo Wiederhorn, Executive Director of AMS. Dr. Lee Goldman was a member of the panel along with his fellow Deans from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, New York University School of Medicine, and the Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine.
The Roundtable coincided with the release of a report on the Impact of Medical Education on the State of New York. Dean Goldman noted that according to the report, the academic medical centers’ combined total economic impact equals more than $85.6 billion. This means $1 out of every $13 in New York’s economy is related to AMSNY medical schools and their primary hospital affiliates. Further, AMSNY medical schools and their primary hospital affiliates support approximately 694,000 jobs or one in every 11 jobs in New York. It is projected by 2016, there will be more than 300,000 jobs created in New York’s education and healthcare sectors. Dean Goldman also highlighted the importance of biomedical research funding and spoke about Columbia’s new program with Bassett Health Care in Cooperstown.
Dr. Edward Gelmann Lobbies Congress on Cancer Issues
On May 5th, Dr. Edward Gelmann, Deputy Director for Clinical Research at the Columbia University Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center, took part in the annual Association of American Cancer Institutes’ annual lobby in Washington. Along with researchers and clinicians from cancer’s sixty institutes across the country, Dr. Gelmann lobbied Congress on issues of importance to the cancer institutes, most notably funding for the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute, and funding for the Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Gelmann was joined by representatives from the cancer centers at New York University and the Roswell Park Cancer Institute. They met with several Members of the New York Congressional delegation, including Congressman Brian Higgins and staff from the offices of Senators Schumer and Gillibrand and Representatives Serrano, Lowey, and Weiner.
Joint Columbia/NYPD Counseling Program Gets $500K Infusion through Leadership of Congressman Michael McMahon
Pictured from left to right: John Feal, founder and president of the FealGood Foundation; Rep. Michael McMahon (D-NY); Ellen Stevenson, associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center; and Jeffrey Lieberman, chairman and the Lieber Professor of Psychiatry at CUMC
Nearly $500,000 in new federal funding has been awarded to Project COPE, a free and confidential program run by the NYC Police Foundation and Columbia University Medical Center to help members of the NYPD deal with post-traumatic stress and other mental health issues arising from the 9/11 attacks.
A ceremony at the 9/11 “Postcards” memorial on Staten Island was held Wednesday, March 31, 2010. Gathered at a press conference that followed were John Feal, founder and president of the FealGood Foundation; Rep. Michael McMahon (D-NY); Ellen Stevenson, associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center; and Jeffrey Lieberman, chairman and the Lieber Professor of Psychiatry at CUMC.
In the wake of 9/11, Columbia and the New York City Police Foundation worked together to create Project COPE, which also provides mental health care services to civilian members of the department and their families. Because many first responders are trained to give acute care, those suffering trauma from 9/11 may wait years before reaching out for medical help and counseling, Dr. Stevenson said at the event.
“Given the traumatic events of 9/11, it is no surprise that even nine years later, the brave men and women of the NYPD, their families and, civilian employees continue to face difficult mental health challenges,” Lee Goldman, Dean of the Faculties of Health Sciences and Medicine and Executive Vice President for Health and Biomedical Sciences at Columbia, told Rep. McMahon in a special letter. “Project COPE has been there to help, and the funding from the Department of Justice that you helped secure is crucial in maintaining the viability of this valuable program.”
The program provides NYPD officers and civilian employees with private counseling sessions. Their family members are eligible for services on an emergency basis. Rep. McMahon said these continuing services were necessary because those who responded to the World Trade Center in the wake of the attacks needed “more than speeches and tributes.”
The new funding follows earlier support in 2004, through a Department of Justice grant that provided $200,000 for Project COPE.
Dr. Jeffrey Lieberman said that emergency workers who face situations of great stress, including those who are exposed to acts of war or terrorism, can suffer “indelible emotional effects.” But if those affected seek treatment early enough, he said, “those effects can be softened and alleviated.”
To reach Project COPE’s toll-free hotline, call 1-800-845-8965.
Coogan's Salsa, Blues & Shamrocks 5K Run 2010
(March 7, 2010) -- It was a crisp, bright morning as more than 5,600 runners and walkers -- and 65 registrants from the CUMC family -- of all ages participated in the Coogan's Salsa, Blues & Shamrocks 5K Run this year. Some 20 different musical groups, including gospel, bagpipes, meringue, klezmer, salsa and brass bands, serenaded the runners along the route, which started and finished just north of the Armory on Fort Washington Ave., after a loop through Fort Tryon Park. As in years past, the event raised money for youth fitness programs at the Armory Track and Field Hall of Fame, as well as the New Balance Track and Field Center.
Seizing on near-perfect early March racing conditions, Derese Deniboba, 27, won for the men, completing the 3.1 mile course in 14:34 minutes, while Claudia Camargo, 38, won for the women with a time of 16:11.
A sanctioned New York Roadrunners race, the Coogan's Salsa, Blues & Shamrocks Run is also a celebration of the strong community ties that Coogan’s and Columbia University Medical Center share with northern Manhattan. In preparation for this year’s race, Plus One Fitness Center helped runners and walkers train for the event.
Give Kids A Smile Day
On February 5th, the College of Dental Medicine celebrated the 8th Annual Give Kids A Smile Day. This national event promotes oral health awareness and treatment to children in underserved communities throughout the country. In Northern Manhattan, our very own College of Dental Medicine provided over one thousand area children with oral health education, screenings and referrals. The Columbia dental team, comprised of students, faculty and hygienists screened over six hundred children at various schools in the Harlem and Washington Heights/Inwood communities; out of the children screened, 22% had cavities and were referred for treatment.
In the United States, 4.5 million children experience tooth decay, severe enough to cause pain every day. This epidemic is particularly prevalent in low and modest income families throughout the country. In northern Manhattan, the College of Dental Medicine has set the bar in the provision of quality oral health care to low-income, underserved children and families. The school was recognized for its outstanding work in the community by various government officials who presented Dean Ira Lamster with proclamations, citations and service recognition a day of free oral health services among them: Governor David Patterson, US Senator Charles Schumer, Assemblyman Herman Denny Farrell, Assemblyman Adriano Espaillat, Councilmembers Robert Jackson and Ydanis Rodriguez. To learn more, visit the College of Dental Medicine Community DentCare initiatives or the Give Kids a Smile websites.
Pictures from Give Kids a Smile Day:
College of Dental Medicine students pictured with Hon. Robert Jackson, NYC Councilmember and Dean Ira Lamster, CUMC College of Dental Medicine
Pictued from left to right: Hon. Herman "Denny" Farrell, NYS Assembly; Hon. Ydanis Rodriguez, NYC Councilmember; Dean Ira Lamster, CUMC College of Dental Medicine; and Hon. Robert Jackson, NYC Councilmember
Speaker Quinn Visits CUMC
Speaker Quinn addressing senior leaders from CUMC and NYPH
Pictured from left to right: Hon. Robert Jackson, NYC Councilmember; Dr. Herbert Pardes, President & CEO, NYP;
Dr. Lee Goldman, Executive Vice President & Dean, CUMC;
Hon. Christine Quinn, NYC Council Speaker; Hon. Ydanis Rodriguez, NYC Councilmember
On February 5th New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn was the guest at the latest Columbia University Medical Center Public Policy breakfast. These breakfasts bring elected officials and other leaders to campus for the opportunity to have an informal discussion about health care policy. Speaker Quinn was joined by New York City Councilmen Robert Jackson and Ydanis Rodriguez, both of whom represent the area around the Medical Center.
About twenty senior leaders form CUMC and New York Presbyterian Hospital had the chance to hear Speaker Quinn talk about some of the major health care challenges facing New York City, among them the possible closure of Saint Vincent’s Hospital, which is in the Speaker’s district. After her short prepared remarks, there was a very free flowing and informative discussion. Dean Goldman brought up the issue of upgrading the 168th Street subway station, noting that a world class medical center should have a world class subway station. Kathleen Crowley, Associate Vice President for Environmental Health and Safety asked a question about recent changes to the New York code that is now requiring not-for-profits to pay fire inspection fees. She noted that because of the research intensive nature of both the Morningside and Medical Center campuses, this change would cost Columbia several hundred thousand dollars.
Community Board 12 Recognizes 2009/2010 Dyckman Institute Scholars
Columbia College senior Iliana Feliz with her parents
On January 26th, Community Board 12 recognized the local Columbia College students who are the recipients of the Dyckman Institute Fund scholarship for the 2009/2010 academic year. This year’s winners are freshman Jason Tejada, sophomore Christopher Davidson, junior Patricia Rojas, and senior Iliana Feliz. The Dyckman scholarship provides financial support to outstanding undergraduate students living in the Upper Manhattan neighborhoods of Washington Heights and Inwood. In the current academic year, approximately 20 students from these neighborhoods benefit from almost $700,000 in need-based scholarships to attend Columbia College and the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science.
After a short video presentation about the Dyckman Institute Fund Scholarship and attending Columbia, the members of the board had a chance to hear from Ms. Feliz, who was accompanied by her parents, Jose and Domingo Feliz. She spoke about how experiences at Columbia and what the scholarship has meant to her and her family, noting that without the financial aid package she received from Columbia she would not have been able to attend and receive such a wonderful and valuable education. Unfortunately, the other three recipients were not able to attend. Board President Pamela Palenque-North congratulated Ms. Feliz and said that, “Community Board 12 salutes each scholar on their commitment to excellence and academic achievement. We are proud to have these students serve as role models for the children and youth of our Washington Heights and Inwood community.”
One of 300 individual need-based scholarships available to Columbia students, this program’s origins can be traced to founding father Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton’s widow, Eliza, donated the building and land for the Hamilton Free School — the first school in Washington Heights — in 1818. In 1860, the school became the Dyckman Library, the first free public library in Upper Manhattan. In the early 1920’s the library became the Dyckman Institute, which operated both a museum devoted to local archaeology in Inwood Hill Park and a publishing house. In 1943, the trustees of the institute decided to dissolve it and to establish a scholarship fund at Columbia for students from Washington Heights and Inwood.
Watch Dyckman Institute Scholars Video
Dean Goldman Speaks to the Washington Heights/Inwood Chamber of Commerce
Dean Goldman and Chamber of Commerce President and Coogan's owner Peter Walsh speak to members of the Washington Heights/Inwood Chamber of Commerce
On January 28th, Dean Goldman addressed over 40 small business owners during the Washington Heights/Inwood Chamber of Commerce monthly breakfast. The Chamber’s membership includes many small businesses from Northern Manhattan, many of the area’s larger institutions like Isabella Geriatric Center and Yeshiva University. CUMC and New York Presbyterian Hospital are members as well. The meeting was hosted at Coogan’s Restaurant by Peter Walsh, current Chair of the Chamber and co-owner of the restaurant, welcomed Dean Goldman. Local elected officials were also in attendance, including newly elected New York City Coucilman Ydanis Rodriguez who also addressed the members.
Dean Goldman took a few minutes to talk about Columbia University Medical Center, focusing on it’s the three missions – research, education, and patient care – and highlighting some the Medical Center’s strengths in each of these areas. He highlighted the work of all four schools and the partnership with New York Presbyterian.
The Dean’s comments then turned towards his commitment to the community and how CUMC works with its neighbors to make the area a better place to live, work, study, and heal. He said that going forward he was hoping to create a better, more inviting, campus atmosphere. Specifically he discussed the need to upgrade the 168th subway station, creating a campus like atmosphere along the Haven corridor and an overall healthier and safer community for patients, student, employees and visitors. Dean Goldman also made a pitch to members of the Chamber to ask them to support funding for the National Institutes of Health, noting how important NIH funding is for advancing health and science, and for the overall strength of CUMC and the local economy.
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