For three years, 79-year-old Jerry Mock didn’t fully enjoy family vacations or gatherings with friends because his gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) was so debilitating that eating even a bite of food after 1 p.m. guaranteed he’d have intense burning pain in his throat and chest that night.

When 32-year-old Dana Shaw was diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) during her pregnancy with her first child, she was happy to learn she could meet with a physician about the condition through video conferencing rather than taking time off from work for an appointment.

Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) is the first health system in the nation to receive the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) Program of Distinction designation, an acknowledgement of excellence for infection prevention and control programs that meet stringent standards established by the association.

The use of human pancreatic islets to conduct diabetes-related research has greatly expanded in recent years, and a Human Islet Phenotyping Program (HIPP) at Vanderbilt University Medical Center has been established to provide important islet data to investigators worldwide.

As Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) gears up for the Nov. 2 launch of eStar, teams throughout the medical center are hard at work to ensure the transition is seamless and positive for patients and their families.

To celebrate the release of her first children’s album, “I Believe in You,” legendary country music singer-songwriter Dolly Parton visited Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt on Friday, Oct. 13, and performed songs from the album for patients, their families and hospital staff.