Included in this newsletter:
August 1st - August 31st Meeting and Event Calendar
August
3rd: Emergency Drill Planned, 8AM - 4PM. More details below.3rd: Neuropathology Conference Josh Sonnen, MD, NP Fellow, 8:00-9:00am R&T auditorium.
4th: Monthly Tapas Presentation at SLU: Oncolytic adenoviruses: Progress and Challenges Thursday, 8/5, 4:00 PM, South Lake Union, 815 Mercer St., 111 Auditorium. Andre Lieber, MD PhD, Research Associate Professor, Medical Genetics, UWSOM. SLU Shuttle Schedule Faculty Sponsor: Stephen M. Schwartz.
7th: Annual Summer Picnic to Welcome New Residents and Fellows, Noon - 4PM at Dr. Fine's home. Contact Michelle Rickard for more information.
17th: Neuropathology Conference Josh Sonnen, MD, NP Fellow, 8:00-9:00am R&T auditorium.
24th: Neuropathology Journal Club Thomas Montine, MD, PhD, Professor Neuropathology, 9:30-10:20am HMC path conference rm 2EC16.2.
26th - 27th: Annual Pathology Retreat. Visit the retreat website for more information.
Pathology Seminars: A list of seminars can be found on our Department of Pathology website (http://www.pathology.washington.edu/).
Announcements
Dr. Montine was elected Vice-President of the American Association of Neuropathologists (AANP). AANP is the official organization of Neuropathologists in the United States and the largest organization of neuropathologists in the world with members from many countries. Dr. Montine will serve a one year term from June 2006 to June 2007.
Dr. Hevner was awarded the Kurt Jellinger Prize in Neuropathology. This is an international competition to which Dr. Hevner submitted a paper, "The cerebral cortex malformation in thanatophoric dysplasia: neuropathology and pathogenesis," that was selected as the winner. The article will be published in Acta Neuropathologica, a top journal in neuropathology. Dr. Hevner will present the Jellinger lecture at the annual meeting of the German Society of Neuropathology and Neuroanatomy (Graz, Austria), and will be appointed to serve on the Editorial Board of Acta Neuropathologica for an initial term of 3 years. More information can be found on the German Society of Neuropathology and Neuroanatomy website.
Effective with July 25 pay, PERS 2 and LEOFF 2 participants will see an increase in the employee contribution rates. PERS 1 participants will continue to pay the 6% contribution rate as provided in state law.July 1, 2005, the State of Washington Department of Retirement Systems (DRS) implemented a rate increase (based on legislation enacted during the 2005 session) for employee contributions in both the PERS 2 and the LEOFF 2 plan.
New contribution rates are (These contributions are tax-deferred.):
- PERS 2: 2.25% of gross eligible wages (increase from 1.18%)
- LEOFF 2: 6.09% of gross eligible wages (increase from 5.09%)
There is also an increase in the employer contribution level. The new UW employer contribution levels are:
- PERS 2 & 3: 2.44% of gross eligible wages (increase from 1.38%)
- LEOFF 2: 4.39% of gross eligible wages (increase from 3.25%)
*Note that Plan 3 members do not contribute to the defined benefit portion of their retirement benefits - this is funded by the employer contribution. However, the employer contribution rate to all PERS plans has increased per the above table and is always the same for both PERS 1, 2, & 3.
This rate increase is the first of a four year phase-in of contribution level increases. More information on the rate increases can be found at the website of the Office of the State Actuary.
The Actuary's offce is responsible for projecting employee and employer contribution rates required to fund the retirement plans. These projections are based on the population enrolled in retirement and expected benefits to be paid. The legislature can adjust the rates proposed by the State Actuary in their budget process.
If you have any questions regarding this matter, please send email to benefits@u.washington.edu.
The South Lake Union Group is a development of the fellows and scientists at the University of Washington SLU campus to encourage new and enrich existing scientific opportunites and collaborations in the Seattle area. We seek to enhance our training oportunites by providing new venues for interactions among the various academic and industrial elements of Seattle biotech. We are excited by the concentration of exciting new research being conducted in Seattle and hope to contribute to further growth and development.
US News ranks UWMC in top 1 percent nationwide for the third consecutive year. In specialty rankings, 11 UWMC programs are now ranked among the top 20. The rehab program, based at UWMC and HMC, is now ranked 3rd in the nation. Geriatrics, also at both hospitals, ranked 10th. UWMC ranked among the top nationwide in: Orthopaedics (9); ear, nose, and throat (10); hormonal disorders (10); respiratory disorders (11); cancer (11); cancer (11); gynecology (16); digestive disorders (17); rheumatology (19); and kidney disease(20).
Renal Pathology (Dr. Charlie Alpers), Bone and Soft Tissue Pathology (Dr. Brian Rubin) and GI & Hepatic Pathology (Dr. Melissa Upton) have received provisional accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. Dr. Rochelle Garcia will be submitting our application for the Surgical Pathology fellowships later this fall. In response to the abolishment of the credentialing year requirement by the American Board of Pathology, accreditation of our fellowship programs benefits our funding situation and improves our desirability for recruiting. As part of this process, Dr. Melissa Upton changed the title of the GI Fellowship to GI & Hepatic Pathology Fellowship. This change better reflects the teaching mission of the fellowship and the significant experience with hepatic pathology of the fellows at UWMC.
In addition to 22 residency positions, our training program will have 11 fellowship positions in the Dept. of Pathology – Bone & Soft Tissue, Cytopathology, Dermatopathology, GI & Hepatic, Neuropathology (2), Renal, Surgical (4). We also work with the Pediatric Pathology program at Children’s, Hematopathology in Laboratory Medicine, Transfusion Medicine at the Puget Sound Blood Center and Forensic Pathology at the King County Medical Examiner’s Office. Starting in 2005, we will be increasing our resident positions one per year for four years.
The Residents' IWeb (Intraweb) will be moving August 8-9 to MyPath under Academic in the left-hand navigation menu. Users will need to access the site with their UWNetID. The move will provide better security of sensitive information and a more central location for this comprehensive resource of all things related to the Pathology Residency Program. The site has undergone a major update this spring and offers even more information to residents, faculty and staff. If you have problems accessing the site from MyPath, please contact Michelle at msrme@.
Launched in 1974, the Science in Medicine lecture series spans the Fall, Winter, and Spring Quarters and consists of thirteen lectures which recognize the outstanding research of our faculty. Visit their website for the schedule and more information.
Seattle Transit Tunnel Closure
Starting June 4th the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel will close on weekends so that the Sound Transit contractor can begin work on the tunnel retrofit for joint light rail and bus use. On September 24th the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel will completely close for up two years for construction. Sound Transit and Seattle Metro will provide the following service options during construction:
*New street-level bus routes once the tunnel closes
*Innovative commuting options, street improvements and improved bus stops
For more information regarding the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel and service updates please visit the following websites:
http://transit.metrokc.gov
http://www.seattletunnel.org
www.soundtransit.org
Emergency Drill Planned, August 3rd
Several local and regional agencies will be testing their ability to respond to an emergency involving mass casualties caused by a weapon of mass destruction in a drill to be held at the UW on Aug. 3rd. The drill will occur from 8AM - 4PM and will cause transportation disruptions in the area on campus bounded by University Way and Roosevelt Ave, and NE Campus Pkwy and Lincoln way. This area will be used by police, fire and transport vehicles. Seattle Metro transit routes will be rerouted to avoid the area of the drill.Path People
New UWMC Pathology Employee: Please welcome our new program assistant, Lori Dohrn, to the anatomic pathology main office starting August 8th. Lori will be working in archives at Sandpoint half-time and coordinating research requests half-time. Lori's first several weeks will be spent at Sandpoint getting pathology materials organized before training in research. She has several years experience working in a medical and academic setting and we look forward to her working with us.
New Pathology Appointments
- Jolanta Kowalewska, M.D. appointed to the position of Clinical Assistant Professor effective July 1, 2005
- Nora Disis, M.D. appointed to the position of Adjunct Associate Professor effective August 1, 2005.
Residents and Fellows Photo Page
At long last the 2005-2006 Resident and Fellow photo page will be distributed the first week of August. If you do not receive one by August 15, contact Michelle at msrme@u.washington.edu
Recap: Pathology Night at Safeco Field
The annual Pathology Night at Safeco Field was a memorable one this year. Over sixty Department of Pathology employees, friends and family members watched the Seattle Mariners lose to the Rafael Palmiero and the Baltimore Orioles 6-3 on July 15th. The highlight of the game was Rafael Palmiero's 3,000th hit, becoming the 26th player in Major League Baseball history to reach that milestone. Mr. Palmiero gained further notoriety off the field for his recent 10-day suspension for violating the league's performance-enhancement drug policy.