Reporter Nov 1 2013

October 31, 2013

Photo: The power of music

Country music group Rascal Flatts visited the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt Wednesday for a special Halloween performance for patients and their families, and afterward visited with patients in their rooms.

By VUMC News and Communications
October 31, 2013

Knowing who their physician is boosts patient satisfaction

Knowing who your doctor is — and a couple of facts about that person — may go a long way toward improving patient satisfaction, according to a Vanderbilt study in the Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma.

By Craig Boerner
October 31, 2013

Pioneers of Discovery: Investigator driven to divine cellular ecosystem’s rulebook

Ken Lau, Ph.D., a new assistant professor in Cell and Developmental Biology, is out to determine the rules that lead to cells converting from one type to another, for example, when a healthy cell becomes a cancer cell.

By Bill Snyder
DNA sequence
October 31, 2013

VU ‘crosslinks’ study sheds light on chemical toxicity

Vanderbilt researchers have characterized the chemical structures of a series of DNA-protein “crosslinks” that may lead to better ways to avoid the cancer-causing potential of environmental chemicals and prevent some drug toxicities.

By Bill Snyder
October 31, 2013

Surprising find displays parking valet’s integrity

Vanderbilt University Medical Center valet parking attendant Derege Degene was on a normal run to the garage when he spotted an envelope on the Medical Center Drive sidewalk. He could tell there was something inside and took a peek.

By VUMC News and Communications
October 31, 2013

Fisk, VU planning novel academic bridge program

Fisk University and Vanderbilt University have begun planning for a novel academic bridge program comprising a three-year accelerated Fisk undergraduate degree, weighted toward courses in natural science, mathematics or computer science, followed by a computer science master’s degree from Fisk, bridging to a Biomedical Informatics Ph.D. from Vanderbilt.

By Paul Govern
October 31, 2013

Penn named to vision group’s scientific advisory panel

John Penn, Ph.D., vice chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at Vanderbilt, has been named to the Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) Scientific Advisory Panel.
By Jessica Pasley
October 31, 2013

Whetsell helps Nashville Opera production’s medical accuracy

Two of Nashville biggest industries — music and health care — come together in the Nashville Opera’s upcoming production of “The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat,” based on a medical case study from the book of the same name by the popular author and neurologist Oliver Sacks.
By VUMC News and Communications
October 31, 2013

Daily huddles help smooth VUH patient transition process

Daily multidisciplinary patient transition huddles are now in effect for all but four units of Vanderbilt University Hospital.
By Paul Govern
October 31, 2013

Photo: Discovery Lecture

Michael Klein, Ph.D., dean of the College of Science and Technology at Temple University, discusses his use of computer simulation to explore ion channels and other complex molecular structures in the cell, during his Flexner Discovery Lecture last week.
By VUMC News and Communications
October 31, 2013

Lee named to lead Neurosurgical Anesthesiology

Lorri Lee, M.D., has been named chief of the newly formed Division of Neurosurgical Anesthesiology.
By Jill Clendening
October 31, 2013

Program helps children complete MRIs sedation-free

Natalie Ortiz is a typical six-year-old first grader — happy, active and fidgety — the kind of patient often sedated for a lengthy Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan.
By Nancy Humphrey
October 31, 2013

Effort to prevent childhood obesity hits halfway point

A joint effort between Vanderbilt and Metro Nashville Parks and Recreation to prevent childhood obesity and enhance literacy promotion for preschoolers has reached an important milestone — the halfway mark.
By Doug Campbell