Archive Department News & Events

Dr. David Bernhardt & UW Health Sports Medicine Team Up to Offer Free Physicals to Uninsured High School Athletes

Dozens of high school athletes may not be allowed to step onto the field or join the huddle this year because many families do not have health insurance to pay for medical physical exams, which are required by the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association before the first day of practice.

Eighty-five thousand students will participate in high school athletics this year in Wisconsin. Of those living in Dane County, it’s estimated that two to five percent have no health insurance to pay for these necessary physical exams.

To help student-athletes get into uniform and back in the race, the Dane County Sports Medicine Council is teaming up with UW Health Sports Medicine Center and the MEDIC program, managed by students of the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, to offer a free athletic physical clinic on Tuesday, August 14. UW Health physicians, athletic trainers, residents, medical students and Spanish translators will be present at the South Madison Health and Family Center—Harambee at 2202 South Park St. from 6 to 8 p.m. to provide athletic physicals and immunizations.

“This is a nice opportunity to take care of a large group of student athletes who have no health insurance or very limited financial resources,” said Joe Greene, supervisor of athletic training services at the UW Health Sports Medicine Center. “Getting these physicals done in a timely manner helps to keep these young people participating and active at what they like to do.”

Greene and Dr. David Bernhardt, a pediatric sports medicine specialist with UW Health Sports Medicine, will provide medical direction for the clinic. Both are members of the Dane County Sports Medicine Council, the organization that is sponsoring the event. The staff at UW Health Sports Medicine Center has been working with other entities to offer free athletic physicals for several years. Medical student volunteers are coordinated by MEDiC, a registered student organization at the University of Wisconsin.

“This is a great collaborative effort between the hospital staff, medical students and the schools,” Greene said, “and the families and athletes are always very appreciative.” Last year, more than 40 student-athletes in the Madison area attended the clinic.

Summertime Equals Fitness Loss for Middle-Schoolers; University of Wisconsin Research Shows Activity Drops Off

Children get in shape during the summer, spending their time biking, running, playing T-ball and tennis. Or do they?

In a finding that surprised the researchers, pediatricians and sports medicine experts at UW Health found that fitness improvements by 17 students who participated in a fitness-based physical education program at school lost those benefits during the three months of summer. The study appears in the June 2007 edition of the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine.

The study focused on a group of overweight middle schoolers at Riverside Bluff Middle School in Stoughton. The youngsters participated in a year-long lifestyle-based physical education class that emphasized nontraditional activities like biking and walking instead of traditional sports.

At the beginning and end of the school year, UW researchers measured the fasting insulin levels, maximum oxygen consumption and body composition of the middle-schoolers. After nine months in the fitness intervention program, the children had improved in each category. Three months later, another measurement showed that maximum oxygen consumption had declined over the summer, while body fat percentage and fasting insulin levels had increased. None of the children were given specific exercise instructions during the summer.

“To us, this was really surprising,” says Dr. Aaron Carrel, a pediatric endocrinologist with UW Health and lead researcher on the study. “We thought kids would be active during the summer, but the results of the third measurement show that they weren’t. Clearly, fitness levels change when kids are out of school.”

Randy Clark, who manages the exercise science lab at UW Health Sports Medicine and performed the fitness scans on the children, was similarly surprised.

“The results are almost inconceivable to someone from my generation,” he says. “We lived outside, played capture the flag, kick the can and wiffle ball until it was too dark to see. In fact, I can remember coming in for dinner and sitting on the edge of my chair the whole time. I could not wait to be excused because I wanted to get back out to the action and play with my friends.”

While the study focused on overweight children, Carrel and Clark believe that the findings are relevant to all children, since overall fitness plays a more significant role in children’s health than weight or body mass index. To Carrel, the study’s findings offer proof not just that school-based fitness programs can have a tangible impact on improving students’ health, but that parents may need to consider becoming more involved in helping their children stay fit year-round.

“I hope this study will draw more attention to the role of fitness in overall health, and encourage parents to make sure their kids are staying active—throughout the year,” says Carrel.

Gordon Tuffli, MD, Honored by Wisconsin Medical Alumni Association

Gordon Tuffli, MD, professor emeritus, was recently awarded the Wisconsin Medical Alumni Association’s Emeritus Faculty Award for his contributions to medical student mentoring and education. Congratulations to Dr. Tuffli for this honor.

Athletes Give Childhood Cancer Research Big Bounce

Midwest Athletes Against Childhood Cancer, Inc. (MACC Fund) will extend their long tradition of helping children with cancer, by presenting part one of a two part pledge to support pediatric oncology research.

The Milwaukee-based organization, well known for its three decades of philanthropy, will present a check to the UW Paul P. Carbone Comprehensive Cancer Center (UWCCC), fulfilling the first phase of a two-year $660,000 pledge to advance the work of seven UWCCC scientists.

The funds include $50,000 grants to six researchers and an additional $30,000 to a seventh investigator. Although the funds support individual research projects, all proposals have a common theme of advancing the understanding and treatment of childhood cancer and the researchers are working as part of a team focused on laboratory, translational, and clinical pediatric oncology.

“We are very pleased that these research projects were all selected for support by the MACC Fund,” says Dr. Paul Sondel, head of the UW Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Division. “Their support enables novel pediatric oncology research at UWCCC to move forward, promising hope to children diagnosed with cancer.”

Last fall the MACC also announced a $3.5 million capital gift to the UWCCC to establish a laboratory wing devoted to childhood cancer research in the soon-to-be-completed Interdisciplinary Research Complex (IRC) on the UW-Madison campus. That gift will provide full laboratory space for six researchers in the research center.

The MACC Fund was founded in 1976 by former Milwaukee Bucks player Jon McGlocklin and then Bucks radio announcer Eddie Doucette to help find a cure for young cancer patients.

Anna Huttenlocher, MD, Receives the Burroughs-Wellcome Fund’s Clinical Scientist Award

Anna Huttenlocher, MD, Associate Professor, was recently awarded the Burroughs-Wellcome Fund’s Clinical Scientist Award in Translational Research for her work titled, “Diagnosis and Treatment of Autoinflammatory Disease.” The Clinical Scientist Awards in Translational Research program supports established independent physician-scientists who are dedicated to translational research—the two-way transfer between work at the laboratory bench and patient care.

The program is intended to help protect award recipients’ time to pursue the vital link between basic and clinical research. Importantly, the program aims to identify and reward proven mentors and to increase their capacity to train the next generation of investigators skilled in translational research.

Dr. Huttenlocher is one of 11 recipients nation-wide, which provides $150,000 per year for five years.

Paul Sondel, MD, PhD, Receives the University's 2007 Hilldale Award

Paul Sondel, MD, PhD, Professor, was a recent recipient of the University’s 2007 Hilldale Award, one of four faculty recognized for excellence in teaching, research and service.

The award honors professors in biological sciences, physical sciences, social studies and arts and humanities.

The award recognized Dr. Sondel’s research focusing on the hypothesis that the immune system can have a beneficial impact on treating cancer. His most recent studies involve the preclinical and clinical development of a humanized antibody that recognizes a tumor antigen that’s linked to human recombinant IL-2, a fusion protein now in clinical trials at the UW Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Paul Sondel, MD, PhD, Receives the 2006 Harold P. Rusch Award in Translational Cancer Research

Dr. Paul Sondel, MD, PhD, has been named the 2006 recipient of the Harold P. Rusch Award in Translational Cancer Research to a clinical scientist. Two awards are given annually to recognize faculty who have made seminal contributions to translational research and the understanding of disease, especially neoplastic disease.

Bruce Klein, MD, Receives the 2006 Collaborative Health Sciences Program Award (CHSP)

Dr. Bruce Klein, MD, is a recent recipient of a 2006 Collaborative Health Sciences Program Award (CHSP). The UW School of Medicine & Public Health’s Medical Education & Research Committee (MERC) developed this award to support novel ideas and new approaches to research and education that will benefit the health of the people of Wisconsin.

Dr. Klein’s project, Wisconsin Infectious Disease Drug Discovery, is intended to address the public health crisis of infection due to antibiotic resistant germs by creating an anti-infective drug discovery program to develop new drug therapies. The goal is to identify novel compounds with antimicrobial activity against the organisms that are major clinical problems for vulnerable patients.

Dr. Klein’s award is for $300,000 over three years.

Dr. Christine Seroogy Receives American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology's Education and Research Trust (ART) Faculty Development Award

Christine Seroogy, MD, was recently awarded the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology’s (AAAAI) Education and Research Trust (ART) Faculty Development Award. This is the highest award given to Allergy/Immunology faculty by the AAAAI. The total award is $300,000; $100,000 per year for 3 years. Dr. Seroogy is also the first female recipient of this award.

Dr. Aaron Carrel Teams Up with Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction to Improve Childhood Fitness

Aaron Carrel, MD, is the academic partner with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction in a recent award of $446,568 from the Wisconsin Partnership Program to improve childhood fitness through the development and evaluation of a voluntary state-wide, school-based electronic instruction and tracking program among middle schools in selected communities throughout Wisconsin.

Dr. Norm Fost Receives Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Human Research Protection

Norm Fost, MD, MPH, recently received the Award for Excellence in Human Research Protection from the Health Improvement Institute, that organization’s lifetime achievement award that recognizes excellence in promotion the well being of people who participate in research.

Dr. Norm Fost Receives University of Oklahoma Biomedical Ethics Prize

Norm Fost, MD, MPH, professor of pediatrics and bioethics and director of the Program in Bioethics, has received the 2007 Patricia Price Browne Prize in Biomedical Ethics from the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine. Now in its founding year, the award recognizes outstanding contributions to the field of biomedical ethics. Peer-nominated recipients demonstrate leadership in medical ethics through serving on appropriate committees or commissions, through advocacy of policies, provision, or organizations of services, serving as a role model in the field, and demonstration of innovation, creativity and commitment to addressing ethical issues in healthcare.

Fost is being honored for his extensive experience in ethical and legal issues in healthcare. He has been chair of the UW Health Sciences Human Subjects Committee and the UW Hospital and Clinics Ethics Committee for 29 years. He has published numerous articles in the field and has taught courses on human subjects research ethics at the FDA Staff College. He has served on numerous federal committees and commissions on a variety of ethical and regulatory issues. He currently serves on the Food and Drug Administration’s Pediatric Subcommittee and as chair of its Pediatrics Ethics Committee. He was a member of the National Academy of Science Committee on Guidelines for Stem Cell Research, which published a report in 2005.

Dr. Anna Huttenlocher Awarded Graduate School’s H.I. Romnes Fellowship Award

Anna Huttenlocher, MD has been awarded $50,000 as the recipient of the Graduate School’s H.I. Romnes Fellowship award. This program, funded by WARF in recognition of the leadership of the late WARF Trustee President H. I. Romnes, is designed to bridge the gap between the Research Committee's initial research support for new faculty and the Mid-Career Award for Faculty Research. The nominee should be an exceptional tenured faculty member who has attained tenure within the prior four years (e.g., since July 2003).

The H. I. Romnes Faculty Fellowship awards are made possible by the impressive research efforts of UW-Madison faculty and staff. Technology arising from these research efforts is licensed by our patent management organization, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), to industry. Income from successful licenses is returned to the Graduate School to fund a variety of research activities throughout the divisions on campus, including these awards.

The Romnes award is a $50,000 flexible research fund that is initially set up for five fiscal years. Dr. Huttenlocher's award will begin 7/1/2007.

Dr. David Allen Receives Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education’s Parker J. Palmer Courage to Teach Award

Dave Allen, MD, received the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education’s (ACGME) Parker J. Palmer Courage to Teach Award for 2007. Parker J. Palmer is the author of the book "The Courage to Teach" and whose promotion of the concept of "living divided no more" has proven relevant to teaching in academic health centers. Please browse the photos and letter excerpts from residents, faculty, and other colleagues applauding the awardees' dedication to teaching, patient care, leadership/mentorship, and being an all-around "nice" person. Congratulations to this year's recipients!

Dr. Ellen Wald Named the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society 2006 Distinguished Physician of the Year

The Distinguished Physician Award is presented annually to a pediatrician who has an extensive and distinguished career in pediatric infectious diseases marked by significant accomplishments and contributions in infectious diseases, including those as a clinician, educator and/or investigator. The pediatrician’s accomplishments and contributions are nationally and internationally recognized for their excellence, and support the Society’s mission to advance the knowledge of pediatric infectious diseases and its application to the care of children.

The Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society is organized exclusively for scientific and educational purposes and not for profit. Its purpose is to enhance the health of infants, children and adolescents by promoting excellence in diagnosis, management and prevention of infectious diseases through clinical care, education, research and advocacy.

Find out more about the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society (PIDS).

Dr. Christopher Green Named UW Children’s Hospital Medical Director

We’re pleased to announce that Dr. Chris Green has agreed to assume the role of Medical Director of the UW Children’s Hospital effective immediately.

Dr. Green has a long history of leadership in the UW Children’s Hospital and the UWSMPH most recently serving as the Interim Chair of Pediatrics.

In this new role, Dr. Green will work in collaboration with the Children’s Hospital Leadership Team to provide medical leadership, clinical oversight, and quality of care for UWCH. He will also work in partnership with each of the Divisions within the Department of Pediatrics and with the Pediatric Surgeons and other physicians involved in the care of children at UWCH.

Dr. Timothy Corden Recognized for Work in Injury Prevention

Recently, Wisconsin residents saw the passage of Wisconsin Act 106, a piece of legislation that strengthens Wisconsin's child passenger safety laws. Instrumental in the success of this legislation, Timothy Corden, MD, provided influential support and advocacy during the process.

Read More

Ellen Wald, MD, Named as Chair of Pediatrics at UW

Ellen Wald, MD, has been named as the new Chair of Pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin Medical School and physician-in-chief at the UW Children’s Hospital. Wald will assume her duties in January 2006, comes to Madison from Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, where she is currently chief of Allergy, Immunology and Infectious Diseases. She is an internationally recognized expert on the diagnosis and treatment of pediatric infectious diseases. Wald has conducted research in the areas of sinusitis, otitis media, group A streptococcal infections, urinary tract infections and bacterial meningitis.

In addition to her post at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Wald is professor of pediatrics and otolaryngology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, where she first became an assistant professor in 1978. She is chair of the section of infectious diseases of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a member of the sub-board of infectious diseases of the American Board of Pediatrics.

“Dr. Wald has an outstanding reputation in the field of pediatrics – as a clinician, scholar and leader,” said Philip Farrell, MD, PhD, dean of the UW Medical School. “We are very pleased that she has accepted our offer to chair the Department of Pediatrics. This is an incredibly exciting time, especially with the new American Family Children’s Hospital scheduled to open in 2007.”

Dr. Wald earned her medical degree from SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York. She completed her residency in pediatrics at Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn and her fellowship in infectious disease at the University of Maryland Hospital in Baltimore.

In 1997, Dr. Wald received the Pediatrician of the Year award from the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and in 2001, she was honored with the Howard. Mermelstein Award for Excellence in Pediatrics. She has been recognized for her teaching ability on many occasions, including in 2001, when she received the Children’s Resident Teaching Award.

Dr. Wald will succeed Christopher Green, MD, who has served as Acting Chair of Pediatrics since 2004, when former Pediatrics Chair Aaron Friedman, MD, left the UW to assume the chairmanship of Pediatrics at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.

Little Babies~Big Dreams

Meriter Hospital is designing a new state-of-the-art newborn intensive care unit (NICU) that will enhance our ability to meet the individualized physical, emotional and developmental needs of the tiniest and newest members of our community.

Each year at Meriter, our medical staff cares for more than 450 infants, approximately half of whom are born between 24 and 36 weeks gestation. This new unit combines the best in medical technology and outstanding emotional support in an environment that will promote better medical outcomes for our tiniest patients.

Philanthropy will provide the margin of excellence in this project to move from a merely good design model to a truly great facility. To learn more about this project, please visit their website or contact Meriter at (608) 267-5300.

Breaking Ground for a New Era of Pediatric Care in Wisconsin

Building on more than 75 years of experience caring for sick children, University of Wisconsin Children's Hospital is embarking on a new era of first-class care for kids with the construction of a $78 million state-of-the-art American Family Children's Hospital that will cater to the unique needs of young patients and their families.

Read More

CHETA - UW Children's Hospital Emergency Transport Ambulance and Pediatric Transport Service

In order to better serve the children in our region, a collaboration between UW Med Flight and the physicians, nurses and respiratory therapists from the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit of UW Children's Hospital has led to the development of a ground ambulance service called "CHETA," the UW Children's Hospital Emergency Transport Ambulance. The new UW Critical Care Transport Program, representing these combined efforts of Med Flight and CHETA, is now capable of responding to sick and injured children by air or by ground, making it a full-service medical transport program. In addition, the team composition can be tailored to the level of care required for the patients being transported, allowing less sick patients to receive a high level of care but still having the highest level of care available to respond in case of an emergency.

Pediatric patients are not "little adults" and their response to illness and injury is much more time-sensitive. This fact alone requires that specialized pediatric critical care be brought to the bedside of those children before they arrive at the Children's Hospital. By bringing specially trained pediatric physicians, nurses and respiratory therapists to them while they are still in their community hospitals, studies have shown improved survival. "Early resuscitation, stabilization and on-going management of these children leads not just to improved survival but ultimately a better quality of life for these sick and injured children," states Tom Brazelton, MD, MPH, FAAP, pediatric critical care physician and medical director of CHETA. "In developing this ground ambulance for pediatric patients, the UW Children's Hospital has taken the next step in fulfilling its mission as a comprehensive and dedicated children's hospital, capable of delivering the highest level of care available anywhere for the children of Wisconsin."