Check out your Company Bowl for anonymous work chats.
Gary Grosklaus is eager to bring in this fall’s cranberry harvest; he hasn’t been able to work with his cousins at the family marsh for two years as he waited for the life-changing gift of two new organs. That gift arrived in the form of a simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplant on Feb. 20. By that time, Grosklaus had been managing Type 2 diabetes for more than 15 years. The Wisconsin Rapids native was first referred to a kidney specialist at UW Health in March 2022. He began dialysis a month later to remove extra fluid and waste products from his blood. Due to his declining kidney function, he was placed on the transplant waiting list in January 2023. He had to wait a little more than a year for a donor. “I was ready for surgery, and I knew I was in good hands,” Grosklaus said. “From the nurses to the doctors, the entire staff was extremely friendly and made sure to explain everything to me before my surgery.” With his transplant, the UW Health Transplant Center reached the remarkable milestone of 20,000 organs transplanted. Dr. Jennifer Philip, kidney transplant surgeon, UW Health, performed the surgery. “This achievement illustrates the excellence and teamwork of our entire transplant team,” said Philip, who is also an assistant professor of surgery at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. “Every transplant we do is significant for us and life-changing to the patient and their successful recovery is what motivates us to do this work.”
UW Health, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development and Madison College have partnered to create the nation’s first respiratory therapist registered apprenticeship. The three-year program is currently open to UW Health staff, and they can submit applications starting April 1. Graduates will earn an associate degree and can become licensed registered respiratory therapists after passing board examinations. Like many health care roles, respiratory therapists are needed for a variety of reasons, according to Bridgett Willey, director, Allied Health Education and Career Pathways, UW Health. “Respiratory therapists are in high demand, providing essential care for patients, now more than ever,” Willey said. “They provide critical and life-sustaining support to our patients every day, not only those dealing with COVID-19, but a variety of acute and chronic respiratory conditions.”
According to the National Women’s History Alliance, this year Women’s History Month is honoring women who advocate for equity, diversity and inclusion, and few embody that theme more than Shiva Bidar-Sielaff. She serves as the vice president and chief diversity officer at UW Health, as well as the associate dean for diversity and equity transformation at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. “Shiva has dedicated herself to promoting equity in health, education and the workplace,” said Naomi Takahashi, director of diversity, equity and inclusion, UW Health and UW School of Medicine and Public Health. “Her passion drives our team and reflects how far we’ve come and what we’re capable of continuing to do.” Bidar-Sielaff was born in Iran and relocated to Spain during the Iranian Revolution when she was 9 years old. Her experiences as an immigrant were formative, leading her to a career in championing equity, she said. “I learned what it feels like to be different and to be bullied for it,” Bidar-Sielaff said. “Fortunately, I also learned the value of inclusive spaces and diverse perspectives.” Her paternal grandmother grew up in a small village instilling in her grandchildren the importance of compassion and love. Her maternal grandmother was one of the first women to go to the university in Iran. “She was an original feminist,” Bidar-Sielaff said. “She showed me what I could do.”
Construction work is on schedule at UW Health Eastpark Medical Center, with a plan to begin seeing patients on Oct. 28. More than two dozen specialties will open their doors to patients in three phases, with most areas operational by mid-November. Eastpark Medical Center is across from East Madison Hospital on the east side of Madison. It will be a 470,000-square-foot, seven-story facility housing a variety of out-patient care programs including oncology and integrated specialty care for women. Proton Therapy to treat cancer is expected to begin in late 2025.
A novel program that trains people to be medical assistants marks five years of success and continues to grow. Forty new registered apprentices started the program earlier this month, and 20 apprentices graduate from the program on Nov. 17. Since the medical assistant registered apprenticeship program began in November 2018 at UW Health, it has provided education and training for more than 200 participants from the Madison area, mostly employees from UW Health, along with some employees from UnityPoint Health – Meriter and SSM Health, according to Bridgett Willey, director, Allied Health Education and Career Pathways, UW Health. “When we launched, we were the first registered apprenticeship program of its kind in Wisconsin and only the third in the nation,” Willey said. Medical assistants perform administrative and certain clinical duties under the direction of a physician. They often take and record vital signs and medical histories, prepare patients for examination, draw blood and administer medications as directed by physicians.
Kelly Wheeler, a Navy veteran and UW Health medical assistant tech, spends three days a week working at her hometown clinic in Cottage Grove giving vaccinations, taking patients’ blood pressure and working with providers to care for patients. It was a job that she did not think possible right out of her military service, despite having spent the last seven years doing similar work in the Navy, because in most states military health care experience cannot be used to apply to civilian health care roles due to credential and licensing requirements. Wheeler, 25, was a Navy corpsman from 2016 to '23, meaning she was a medical worker on a military base performing a variety of tasks like dispensing vaccines, analyzing lab samples and assisting in surgeries. “I loved my time in the Navy and I followed in my dad’s footsteps enlisting right after high school to be a Navy corpsman like he was,” said Wheeler, who is also a 2016 Monona Grove High School grad. “When I was looking at the next steps in my medical career post-military service, I realized my military health care experience did not apply to civil health care and I would have to start at the beginning with classes and training, and that was daunting.”
We are Magnet®, again! This week, we received the official notification from the Commission on Magnet that UW Health has once again, been re-designated as a Magnet® organization! UW Health is among an elite group: One of only seven Magnet organizations in WI and part of only 7% of Magnet facilities in the world that have four or more designations! Magnet designation is the most prestigious title a health care organization can achieve for nursing excellence and quality patient care. For patients and families, being a Magnet organization lets them know they will receive the highest level of care. For health professionals, Magnet shows that we are set up for excellence.
For the 12th consecutive year, U.S. News & World Report ranked University of Wisconsin Hospitals on its Best Hospitals list as the best in Wisconsin. This prestigious achievement reflects a reputation for innovation and remarkable patient care, which is unmatched in the state and recognized worldwide, according to Dr. Alan Kaplan, chief executive officer, UW Health. “As we reflect on 12 years as the best hospital in Wisconsin, I am proud of the teamwork it takes to maintain this level of excellence,” he said. “UW Health will continue to set the standard for remarkable care, innovative practices and health equity.” U.S. News & World Report surveyed more than 5,000 hospitals as part of the Best Hospitals rankings. In addition to the No. 1 ranking in Wisconsin, University of Wisconsin Hospitals had three medical and surgical specialties ranked among the best in the nation: ear, nose and throat, obstetrics and gynecology, and orthopedics. Obstetrics and gynecology was ranked among the top 10 in the nation, tied at No. 9, moving up from the top 15 last year. Six additional medical and surgical specialties were rated as high performing: cancer, gastroenterology and gastrointestinal surgery, geriatrics, neurology and neurosurgery, pulmonary and lung surgery, and urology.
UW Health’s board of directors Thursday approved moves intended to boost surgical, emergency and inpatient capacity at two of the health system’s hospitals. One project, at University Hospital, will add a six-story structure planned to include 22 emergency department rooms, 22 flexible care beds and 48 inpatient rooms. The second project, at East Madison Hospital, is designed to add six operating rooms, 40 recovery rooms, 20 rooms for post-anesthesia care, 14 flexible care rooms, 20 emergency department rooms and four care rooms that can be shared between the emergency department and medical imaging. The moves are part of UW Health’s broader expansion plans to meet the growing demand for its hospital services, according to Dr. Peter Newcomer, chief operating officer, UW Health. The increasing demand for care at UW Health is driven by multiple factors, including a strong reputation as the best hospital in Wisconsin, local population growth, an aging population and a series of capacity challenges faced by regional and rural health systems.
Today, Newsweek announced the inaugural list of America’s Best Cancer Hospitals 2023, naming UW Health | Carbone Cancer Center the top cancer hospital in Wisconsin and 30th in the United States. This award is presented by Newsweek and Statista, a data-gathering statistics provider, and is designed to provide patients and families with a comprehensive resource for informed decision-making on leading cancer hospitals in the U.S. Three data sources were used for the evaluation. One was a nationwide online survey of health care professionals and hospital managers with knowledge about oncology such as oncologists, hematologists and oncology nurses. They were asked to recommend leading cancer hospitals in the U.S. Another source was hospital quality metrics with a focus on indicators relevant to oncology care. Finally, they used patient surveys that covered patients’ experiences during hospitalization. Overall, 175 hospitals were ranked.
