Dear Colleagues,
I’d like to start by announcing the launch next week of our Capacity Management Center, which is designed to streamline and optimize patient transfers between UConn Health and community partner hospitals. We’ll do this by replacing the manual, paper-based process with real-time data entry into Epic (our electronic health record), ensuring a more complete and efficient flow of information during transitions of care. Please read more about this on The Hub.
This promises to help modernize our transfer process and strengthen coordination with our hospital partners. I’d like to thank the many folks who had a hand in making this possible, including Lavanya Nangunoori, IT project manager, Carole Mclaughlin, Epic training coordinator, Wendy Robinson, nursing administrative supervisor, Anna Humennyj, associate director of nursing operations, and Michelle DeLayo, AVP nursing operations and quality.
As you may know, we are in the process of rolling out a referral center on the outpatient side, starting last month in general surgery, colorectal surgery, plastic surgery and vascular surgery. This state-of-the-art referral center will simplify the new appointment scheduling process for patients and referring providers by developing standard operating procedures, standardizing communication documentation, enhancing scheduling decision trees and rules, tracking referrals, expanding staff, and improving technology.
We expect to expand this across UConn Health over the next year, and beyond that, into the UConn Health Community Network. For this I’d like to acknowledge the work of Tina Tolomeo, consultant director, Dean Moroniti, IT project manager, and our Epic team, Jennifer Foster, UMG administrative manager, the clinicians and managers who were the first group to implement this process, and Anne Horbatuck, UMG COO and AVP for ambulatory operations.
This week I have been happy to hear about the progress that has been made on the Rural Health Transformation (RHT) projects. For those who have not heard about RHT, this is a five-year, $50 billion federal program aimed to improve healthcare, access, workforce development, and healthcare innovation in rural communities.
The state of Connecticut has received a grant of $154 million for Year 1 under RHT, and has chosen 30 projects to fund. I am proud to say that various UConn and UConn Health colleagues — including those from AHEC, the UConn Center on Aging, the School of Medicine/GME Office, the Department of Family Medicine, the Health Disparities Institute, and the OVPR’s office — are working collaboratively with other state agencies on seven of these projects, with contracts totaling over $12.3 million in Year 1 alone.
The FDA recently approved a drug that has been the result of years of collaboration with Connecticut Children’s to treat glycogen storage disease type Ia. GSDIa is a rare genetic metabolic disorder that requires intensive round-the-clock dietary management to maintain safe blood glucose levels. Our work in gene editing and clinical trials in this area goes back to 2018, under the direction of Dr. David Weinstein. Dr. Rebecca Riba-Wolman has led this effort since 2020 and has brought it to this milestone, which has major promise for those with GSDIa and their caregivers. Please read more about this on UConn Today and join me in congratulating Dr. Riba-Wolman and her team on this remarkable progress.
I would like to take a moment here to acknowledge some very sad news. We learned this week of the sudden passing of UConn police officer Sammy Ahmetovic. Officer Ahmetovic joined the UConn Police Department a little more than a year ago. He had been assigned to patrol operations in Storrs and was a frequent visitor to the staff in our urgent care center in Downtown Storrs. We join the UConn Police Department, the entire UConn community, and Officer Ahmetovic’s family in grieving.
I have a few medical school updates to highlight, starting with a powerful impact cross-campus collaboration: Dr. John Birk, chief of gastroenterology, is leading a new, very promising and exciting research collaboration with UConn faculty researchers who founded the start-up UConn TIP company Encapsulate, Inc. Together, they are pursuing the advancement of testing Encapsulate’s Biochip System to see if they can really move the needle to personalize pancreatic cancer chemotherapy treatments and improve outcomes for patients and their families very soon who receive a pancreatic cancer diagnosis. Their innovative clinical trial collaboration was just on the front-cover of the Hartford Courant on Aug. 21 and you can also read about it on UConn Today.
In case you missed it, the School of Medicine is out with its latest 2026 Annual Report: For the Love of UConn. And you can really feel the love we all share for each other and our important work at UConn in this year’s edition. Thanks for all the contributions made once again by our amazing medical school faculty, staff, and learners to our prestigious medical school and our academic medical center’s mission.
Lastly, I’d like to share these words from a patient, in praise of Dr. Robert Arciero and his orthopedic surgery team:
My husband and I are extremely grateful for Dr. Arciero. As an avid horseback rider for most of my life, I’ve unfortunately not been immune to the risks of my sport and Dr. Arciero has fixed my knee three times. Every time, he’s respected and understood that my goal is always to get back in the saddle as soon as possible and I couldn’t be more grateful. Not only has he fixed me up many times, he’s done 5 knee surgeries on my husband due to soccer injuries and having to fix things prior surgeons had botched. We are so appreciative to Dr. Arciero and his whole team!
Congratulations to Dr. Arciero, our orthopedic surgery staff, and all who support them and make it possible for them to deliver such fantastic care!
And thank you, to all reading this, for all you do.
Andrew C. Agwunobi, MD, MBA
Chief Executive Officer
EVP for Health Affairs
UConn Health
Dear Dr. Andy
It seems like the spotted lanternfly made its way here. We have seen a couple in the main building. Is there anything being done to get rid of them?
I’ve shared this with our leaders in facilities, who are well aware and doing what they can to deal with it. As J.J. Odom, our director of building and grounds, explains, these insects are widespread and there’s no residual or preventive treatment available to keep them away, leaving spraying at the point of contact the only proven option for our pest control vendor.
The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection says these flies are harmless to people but of course, they are a nuisance. For those comfortable doing so, it is permissible to kill these flies if you encounter them. For reference, the Connecticut Agricultural Experient Station has a page dedicated to identifying and stopping the spread of this invasive species.
Thank you for the question.
Have something you want to ask Dr. Andy? Submit your question on The Hub.(opens in new tab)
Hub Highlights
Collaboration with Connecticut Children’s leads to the first FDA-approved drug for the rare genetic metabolic disorder GSDIa.
The Department of Public Health Sciences distributes more than 1,700 essential items to those in need in the community.
Read about our Health Disparities Institute’s work in menopause equity.
Visit the Hub Now(opens in new tab)
Note: Unlinked content is only available on The Hub(opens in new tab), for which you must be on the UConn Health network to access.
We’re launching a Capacity Management Center, to streamline patient transfers, Tuesday.
Hear from our medical school’s public issues council about federal student loan limits.
Learn who from our dental faculty has been promoted.
Plus, inpatient and ED providers and hospitalists can now use DAX Copilot, an AI tool to assist with documentation. Go to The Hub now for these and other announcements and features and stay up to date with the latest UConn Health news!
