President's Corner

What an adventure it is to be able to observe, up close and personal, great advances in so many fields of medicine, made daily by the Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

The philanthropic efforts of you who are the membership of the Canby Robinson Society have enabled spectacular strides to be made in the wide array of specialties offered right here at Vanderbilt.

In turn, we have tried to provide you with a variety of opportunities to learn about your investment in the future.

At our most recent board meeting, we toured three specialty centers, which have recently moved into the brand new South Tower of Medical Center East. Under the direction of Dr. Fred Bess and Dr. Bob Ossoff, we saw the new Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center for Otolaryngology and Communication Sciences. Dr. Tom Elasy then led us through the Vanderbilt Eskind Diabetes Center and Dr. Kurt Spindler was our guide in the Vanderbilt Orthopaedics Institute.

Another setting for learning is in the lab. In the fall, we joined a small group of second-year students for "organ recitals" in which we learned about diseases affecting the bones, joints and muscles, liver diseases, gastrointestinal diseases, endocrinologic diseases and diseases of the Nervous System.

Earlier this year, we watched Dr. Jay Smith perform Robotic Surgery. On another occasion, Dr. Jay Deshpande introduced "Sim-Man," a life size, programmable "person" on which students can practice procedures and gain skills covering a multitude of scenarios - a terrific learning tool. In addition to this adult size "patient," VUMC also has an infant to enhance pediatric skills. There were also opportunities to learn about the Center for Human Genetic Research and to observe a hip replacement by teleconferencing.

Other ways that you may become acquainted with the scope of what is going on at VUMC is through the publications - the VUMC Reporter, Vanderbilt Medicine magazine, House Organ and Lens, which come to you courtesy of CRS. More information is available through our new CRS Web site, www.mc.vanderbilt.edu/crs/.

In addition, all members can access the physician referral directory online. New members in the Middle Tennessee area will receive hard copies. I encourage you to take advantage of opportunities to learn about the amazing things that are happening here. In order to spread our story more broadly, we are co-hosting events with the Medical Alumni Association in other areas of the country. In addition to inviting medical alums, we are inviting non-medical CRS members in the area. Missy Eason, executive director of the CRS, has already attended CRS/Medical Alumni functions in San Francisco and Huntsville.

In addition to the advances in technology, in facility, in research, and in faculty, which your gifts make possible, you also provide scholarships for a number of exceptional students. How could you make a better investment in the future?

Our next investment in the future is Dr. Lonnie Burnett, Frances and John C. Burch Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, who is incoming president of CRS. He has an outstanding background in his field and a great respect for the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. The Canby Robinson Society will thrive under his leadership.

Fran Hardcastle
President,
Canby Robinson Society

Missy Eason
Director of Donor Relations,
VUMC

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Charlie Mann Provides Medical Student Scholarship

Charlie Mann's motto ought to be "just send me the bill." The founder of Specialty Surgical Instrumentation has been a longtime supporter of Vanderbilt and a friend to many physicians and others associated with the school. When he and his wife Deborah were approached with the idea of providing a Vanderbilt medical student with a scholarship, he gave them his motto.

Born in Nashville in 1937, Mann has lived in Nashville all of his life. Ironically, he earned his business degree from the University of Tennessee, but his heart belongs to Vanderbilt. He started SSI in 1976 as the first and largest specialty O.R. distributor in the United States. He served as the vice chairman of the Tennessee Health Care Facilities Commission and quickly established a close working and personal relationship with Vanderbilt.

"My relationship with Vanderbilt has been ongoing for many, many years. I have a tremendous respect for Vanderbilt," he said.

Bill Ewers, M.D., a good friend of Mann's and a past president of the Canby Robinson Society, asked Mann to join the Canby Robinson Society and serve on its Board of Directors.

"That gave me more insight into what goes on at Vanderbilt," he said. "They asked me if I would consider sending a Vanderbilt medical student through school, and I said sure, because I believe in Vanderbilt. I think it's a wonderful institution. It's one of the best in the country in so many ways."

Mann's association with Vanderbilt didn't stop there.

He recalls receiving a phone call from a Vanderbilt neurosurgeon on a Sunday afternoon. The surgeon had nine cases to do on Monday and needed his microscope repaired, which had gotten knocked to the floor. Mann went over to the Medical Center and spent about five hours repairing it. More recently, when he learned a 7-year-old boy had been critically injured near Santa Fe, Tenn., where Mann lives, and was taken to the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt, Mann contacted Vanderbilt and arranged to pay all of the boy's medical bills.

"I called Harry Jacobson, and said I would pay the medical bills for Vanderbilt, the ER doctors and Maury Regional Hospital because it would have thrown the boy's family into bankruptcy," Mann said. "The good Lord has been awful good to me and I believe in giving back. I came along at a great time. My gratification is in knowing I helped that little boy survive, just like I am helping men and women become doctors. It just makes you feel good."
- Kathy Whitney

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Charles and Deborah Mann

Welcome New CRS Scholars

This year's eight Canby Robinson scholars have interesting and varied backgrounds. They come to Vanderbilt from hometowns scattered throughout the country and from colleges and universities both big and small. Some have traveled extensively while others speak second languages. Most have been involved in community service and intend to continue to do so once they graduate. One thing they all have in common is that each of them received a memorable phone call from Dean Steven Gabbe, M.D., informing them that they had been selected to receive the coveted Canby Robinson Society Scholarship, which provides a full, four-year scholarship plus stipend to Vanderbilt Medical School. The new Canby Robinson Society Scholars are:

Nicholas Markham is from Indianapolis, and is a graduate of Colby College in Waterville, Maine. Markham is in the M.D./Ph.D. program and feels that the seamless integration of the graduate and medical curricula stands out among peer institutions. "The care and attention devoted to each student within the graduate and medical schools is astounding," he said. Markham got the call from Gabbe's assistant, Benita Bobbitt. "But she could not tell me what it was about. I instantly thought that I had done something wrong or somehow was being asked to not attend," he said. "I finally spoke with Dean Gabbe over the phone, and was tremendously surprised and relieved to hear the news. It was one of the few moments in my memory when I was literally speechless."

Emily Kendall grew up in Evansville, Ind., and went to Harvard where she majored in chemistry and physics but spent a lot of time during her last two years studying literature and social sciences. She spent last summer backpacking in Europe and is currently planning an international emphasis project that may send her to Africa or Latin America next summer. As a student, she loves anatomy, which has her considering surgery as a career option. Another passion is international health. She says the CRS scholarship was a large factor in her decision to attend Vanderbilt. "I can already tell that Vanderbilt is going to be an unusually personal academic experience. The degree of faculty interaction already amazes me," she said.

Brent Taylor, from Edisto Island, S.C., also attended Harvard College where he played rugby. His volunteer activities have included tutoring immigrants in English and serving as a "big buddy" mentor for children with disabilities. He graduated from Harvard in three years and spent the first half of the year between college and medical school in Guatemala working in the Social Security Trauma Hospital of Guatemala City. The second half of his year off was spent pursuing aviation, and he obtained his pilot's license and instrument rating for flying single-engine airplanes. "The Canby Robinson Scholarship made it possible for me to commit to Vanderbilt without reservation and affords me freedom from financial concerns as I pursue my goals in medicine," he said.

Jude McElroy is from New York City. He went to Washington University in St. Louis and graduated in 2002. Before coming to Vanderbilt, he worked on the human genetics of pulmonary hypertension at Columbia University. He is in the M.D./Ph.D. program and plans to stay in academic medicine. "I want to study the genetics and mechanisms of learning and developmental disabilities," he said. "I feel that training in child psychiatry or pediatric neurology would help me." He received a phone call from Gabbe in April informing him that he would receive the scholarship. "I was very honored that the dean of the medical school took the time out of his day to call me," he said.

Rebecca Dezube is from Northern Virginia and also graduated from Harvard. She rowed intermural crew and played rugby in college. She said she is interested in public health and health policy. She was napping when Gabbe called to tell her she'd received the CRS scholarship. "I was ecstatic to learn about the scholarship. There was a lot of jumping and screaming and waking up of the neighbors," said Dezube, who deferred medical school for a year. "The scholarship played a huge role in my decision to attend Vanderbilt, because of the financial aspects, being part of such an impressive group, and because the scholarship made me feel wanted by the school."

Natalie Jacobowski graduated from Vanderbilt University. One of her hobbies is swing dancing. Like many CRS scholars, she has always been active in community service, participating in various activities such as serving as a patient care volunteer at Alive Hospice. She says that so far, she loves medical school. "Of course, it is a lot of work and is a challenging experience, but I have never wanted to do anything more than I have wanted to do this. It is an incredible feeling to feel this excited about what I am doing, and I hope that I always remember this feeling as the driving passion for what I want to do with the rest of my life."

Katharine Gurba grew up in Kansas City, Kan., and went to Rice, where she studied biochemistry and English. She deferred acceptance to medical school in order to do more theater training, an important interest of hers through college. She has played cello and piano since age 9, and whenever she has time, she likes to paint, run/work out, and read poetry. She is interested in studying Neurology. She was starting to doze when the call came. "My grandmother, who was over at our house that day, yelled downstairs that somebody from Vanderbilt was on the phone. That somebody turned out to be Dean Gabbe," she recalls. "I was still a bit fuzzy-headed from my nap, but I woke up rather quickly. Nonetheless, I was still a bit confused. When my parents got home that night, I told them, 'I think I just got a big scholarship.'"

Akshay Shah is from the suburbs of New Haven, Conn., and attended Yale University. While in school, he worked as an EMT in the Yale-New Haven Hospital Emergency Department, volunteered with Habitat for Humanity and founded and operated a new charter school in New Haven. In his free time, he likes to bicycle and play both capoeira and squash. When Gabbe called him one night last spring to offer him the scholarship, Shah thought he was joking. "When I realized that he was actually serious, I jumped up and down, nearly cried, and then called my parents. Receiving the CRS scholarship was one of the most important factors in my decision to attend Vanderbilt," he said. "I'd been waffling between a few schools, but the chance to graduate medical school without incurring more debt was impossible to resist. I love it here."
- Kathy Whitney

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What's in a Name?

What's in a name? Why does someone want his or her name on a building, room or floor of a hospital or space on a university campus? It's a common sight - donor walls and plaques, recognizing spaces or programs dedicated in the name of family members, a spouse or friend. But why honor the people closest to them in such a public way?

Three generous donors have made a commitment to provide vital support to Vanderbilt by electing to honor a family member or friend by publicly naming a space in Vanderbilt University Medical Center's newest clinical area, Medical Center East, South Tower. It is their hope that making such a public statement of a very private commitment will encourage their children and grandchildren to continue the tradition of giving, encourage others to give, and to give back to an institution that has provided care for their family and friends.

Tom Cone graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1960 and became involved in the Vanderbilt Alumni Association, eventually becoming president of the National Alumni Association and a member of the Board of Trust. Since that time, his two grandchildren, Catherine and Emily, have utilized the services of Bill Wilkerson Center's Pediatric Speech and Hearing Clinic. His wife, Charlotte, and daughter-in-law spent a lot of time there.

"Since our experience, Charlotte and I wanted to find a way to help the Center grow and thought we'd make a family donation," Cone said. "My family feels extreme gratitude for the services provided by the center," Charlotte Cone added. "It is our hope that many more kids can be helped in the same way." Their gift established the Charlotte H. and Thomas F. Cone Speech and Language Center, which provides therapeutic intervention for children of all ages who are struggling with a variety of speech, language, hearing and related disorders.

Tom Cigarran has been a friend to many people at Vanderbilt, a longtime football supporter, and has served on the board of the Medical Center. He's in the health care business, but education is his pet project, he said. "My major interest is education of all kinds, kindergarten through 12th grade," he said. He was able to celebrate his love of education through his gift to name the Cigarran Family Conference Room. "The room is used by residents and other physicians in an educational manner," he said. "I didn't want to name it after myself. One of the reasons I'm doing it is to get my children and their spouses and their children to develop an interest in philanthropy." The Cigarran Family Conference Room is located at the Vanderbilt Orthopaedic Institute.

Former Ambassador to France Joe Rodgers usually gives anonymously, but this time gave his gift in the Rodgers/Dale Family Foundation name. He formed the foundation about five years ago in hopes of getting his children and grandchildren to understand and learn how to give money, he said. "I've gotten so many blessings out of giving, and it's true that God blesses the giver," he said. Rodgers has diabetes and has suffered many complications. "I have just gotten outstanding treatment at Vanderbilt through Drs. Stephen Davis and Anderson Spickard III," he said. The Rodgers/Dale Family Foundation has made a gift to name the Adult Waiting Area in the Vanderbilt Eskind Diabetes Clinic. "It's nice to receive all of my care in one place," he said, referring to the clinic. "That's why this new clinic is so important. Before this new clinic, I was going to four different places, now it's a one-stop shop," he said.

A naming opportunity is a commitment to the important work taking place in clinical care, research and training at Vanderbilt. But most importantly - it is a statement that each gift can make a difference and can have an impact on patients receiving care today and those who will seek treatment and a cure in the future.
- Kathy Whitney

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Where Are They Now?

After graduating from Vanderbilt in 1995, Mark Winkle, M.D., headed to Rochester, N.Y., to do both his internship and residency at the University of Rochester. He did a year of general surgery internship and four years of Otolaryngology training. He currently lives in Grand Rapids, Mich., and is a partner at the Ear, Nose, and Throat Center, a four-physician Otolaryngology group. He is a general otolaryngologist, performing most aspects of ENT, and is active in the local head and neck oncology board. He also runs the only botox clinic for spasmodic dysphonia in western Michigan.

As a medical student, he had the opportunity to work with James Netterville, M.D., which he says helped put him on his career path. "He is one of the most gifted and gracious physicians I have ever met," Winkle said. "To this day, my favorite procedure is thyroplasty/ silastic vocal cord medialization, where patients with a paralyzed vocal cord can regain voice immediately while the procedure is performed under local anesthesia. I can thank my Vanderbilt experience for exposing me to such great teachers and role models."

Winkle married his wife Shelly the summer before starting medical school. They have three children: Jonathan, 7, Matthew, 5, and Katherine, 3.

"Life seems amazingly full, especially with three young kids and their activities. I love to coach little league basketball and soccer for my kids, play guitar - I miss the great guitar stores in Nashville - and am active in our church. I play golf, but never seem to get any better, which is my excuse to play more golf."

When he looks back on his years at VUSM, what stands out in his mind the most is "the obvious care and support that the entire staff, from the deans down through the financial aid staff, took for each individual student. You can get the knowledge and experience to be a physician in many places, but it is extremely rare to find a supportive and nurturing environment like Vanderbilt," he said.
- Kathy Whitney

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Canby Robinson Society board members tour the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center for Otolaryngology and Communication Sciences with Bob Ossoff, M.D.