This month’s What’s New shares the experience of a patient whose battle with ulcerative colitis led him to Pennsylvania Hospital. Not only does this story illustrate the collaboration between the Gastroenterology and Colon and Rectal Surgery teams, but it also demonstrates our commitment to untangling even the most complicated cases in an effort to improve the health and wellness of every patient who comes through our doors.
In the spirit of sharing GI successes, I’d also like to touch on just a few of the changes our program has undergone this summer in an effort to create a better experience for patients and staff. For example, the patient monitors throughout the unit have been replaced with state-of-the-art models. The outpatient endoscopy unit also officially transitioned to Penn Chart/EPIC to serve our patients more consistently and efficiently. It is my hope that each of these safety-driven updates will decrease variations in care and propel our excellent standard of care to the next level. PAH also continues to prioritize the education of our residents, and we have established a new GI radiology/pathology rotation that expands their opportunities to learn unique procedures and image interpretation.
We also recently celebrated the longtime service of William H. Lipshutz, MD, who retired after a 45-year career at PAH. Dr. Lipshutz served as the section chief of Gastroenterology for more than 30 years and founded Pennsylvania Hospital Gastrointestinal Associates, now part of CPUP. His departure was bittersweet, but I am confident that the program he helped build will continue to redefine the highest standards for innovative research and advanced clinical care. The newest members of our GI team — Sara Attalla, MD, Farzana Rashid Hossain, MD, Caroline Kerner, MD, Akriti Saxena, MD, and Ryan Urbas, DO — specialize in fields ranging from inflammatory bowel disease to therapeutic endoscopy, and I have no doubt that they and all of our incredible GI physicians, nurses, and staff will continue to strengthen our services, extend our reach, and ensure optimal outcomes and excellent experiences.