Wake Forest Baptist February Awards and Recognitions

February 27, 2014

Wake Forest Baptist Associate Professor Named President of Hand Surgery Group

Ethan R. Wiesler, M.D., associate professor of orthopaedics at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, has been named president of the Southeastern Hand Club, a regional hand surgery group. The presidential term lasts one year. Prior to his appointment, Wiesler served on the board of directors for four years, three as secretary – treasurer and one as vice president.

The 35-year-old group was founded to engage in frank discussion of controversial issues and techniques, and present problem areas and cases.

Zhongyu Li, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of orthopaedics at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, also sits on the board as secretary – treasurer.

Wake Forest Baptist Associate Vice President Named One of the Triad’s 40 Leaders Under Forty

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Feb. 26, 2014 – The Business Journal has named Conrad Emmerich, associate vice president of resource management at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, as one of the Triad’s 40 Leaders Under Forty.

Selected for both his career achievements and community involvement, Emmerich runs the medical center and hospital supply chain, overseeing 575 employees in multiple departments. He also co-chaired the 2013 Annual Children's Museum of Winston-Salem Storybook Soiree with his wife, leading a team of volunteers to raise nearly $90,000.

The 40 Leaders Under Forty program honors recipients for their accomplishments and contributions to the Piedmont Triad as well as their potential in the years to come. This year's recipients were honored at a reception and awards presentation on Feb. 20 at the Elliott University Center on the UNC-Greensboro campus.

Wake Forest Baptist Receives Performance Achievement Award

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Feb. 26, 2014 – Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center has been awarded the American College of Cardiology Foundation’s National Cardiovascular Data Registry (NCDR) ACTION Registry–GWTG Platinum Performance Achievement Award for 2013 – one of only 196 hospitals nationwide to do so.

The award recognizes Wake Forest Baptist’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients, and signifies that Wake Forest Baptist has reached an aggressive goal of treating these patients.

To receive the award, Wake Forest Baptist consistently followed the treatment guidelines in the ACTION Registry–GWTG Premier for eight consecutive quarters and met a performance standard of 90 percent for specific performance measures.

Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center Receives Two Intelligent Hospital Awards

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Feb. 26, 2014 – Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center was recognized at the 2014 Healthcare Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Conference for its SPOT initiative.

 SPOT is a collection of projects that applies Real-Time Location System technologies to improve performance with respect to patient safety, throughput, resource utilization, productivity and regulatory compliance.

Wake Forest Baptist received an Intelligent Hospital award for Best Comprehensive Integration and another for Improving Regulatory Compliance.

HIMSS it is the largest organization for healthcare-focused information technology in the world.

Wake Forest Baptist Assistant Professor Receives Research Grant

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Feb. 26, 2014 Tadhg O’Gara, M.D., assistant professor of orthopaedic surgery at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, has received the 2014 Aspen Spinal Bracing Research Grant from the Foundation for Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

O’Gara will conduct a pilot study on whether posture contributes to adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). The most common type of scoliosis, AIS occurs after the age of 10. The cause is unknown.

O’Gara and his team will study the use of a specially designed belt and a smart-phone application to measure the effect of targeted exercises to improve posture and reduce the severity of scoliosis.

Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center Information Technology Teams Recognized

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Feb. 26, 2014 – Two Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center Information Technology Infrastructure Teams have been recognized by the HELP Desk Institute (HDI) for outstanding customer service.

Network Administration, led by Mary Whited, and the Voice and Telecommunications Team, led by Chris Conner, were included in the top 50 HDI Customer Satisfaction Elite groups.

Every year, HDI recognizes outstanding technical service and support centers around the world. These centers are ranked based upon the highest customer satisfaction survey responses over a calendar year. The two teams will be recognized at the HDI Annual Conference and Expo in April.

Media Relations

Shannon Putnam: news@wakehealth.edu, 336-713-4587