Spring 2013 Newsletter

It was an honor for me to assume the Presidency of the Mid-Atlantic Section last October in Philadelphia, and a thrill to have my father, a former President of the Section himself, be a part of the ceremony. We are one of the few father-son teams to serve as Presidents of the MAAUA and I am proud to follow in his footsteps.

The Annual Meeting in Philadelphia was an educational success and I thank Drs. Mike Rommel and Edouard Trabulsi for their organization and facilitation of an outstanding program. We achieved record professional attendance and responses to the meeting content were across the board favorable. Our current Program Committee, lead by Dr. Kurt McCammon, is hard at work organizing the program for the 2013 Annual Meeting at The Greenbrier in West Virginia this coming October and we hope to live up to the excellent program standards set by previous Committees. We are planning for the Section’s traditional abstract sessions, point-counterpoint discussions, the Young Urologist/Residents Jeopardy Bowl, and other outstanding scientific presentations. Dr. Ronald Hrebinko of the University of Pittsburgh Physicians has graciously agreed to give the Paul F. Schellhammer Lecture in Urologic Oncology on Friday morning, October 25th and Dr. Francis X. Keeley, Jr from Southmead Hospital in Bristol, England will give the Hugh Hampton Young Lecture on October 26th.

Over the years our Section has developed a rotation for Section Annual Meetings – we rotate between city venues and more resort locations, such as The Greenbrier or the Nemacolin Woodlands Resorts which is where the 2010 Annual Meeting was held. While Philadelphia was a very popular city for attendance at last year’s annual meeting, a number of local members opted to commute or stay at other hotel venues, which resulted in the Section not meeting its contractual hotel block. I would like to take this opportunity to stress the importance of supporting the Section and staying at the Section’s host hotel. While I am confident we will not run into this issue at The Greenbrier in 2013, I do encourage all our Section members and conference attendees to reserve your hotel rooms at The Greenbrier early. urologymanagement.org/maaua/meeting/housing.cfm

Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your President.

Louis L. Keeler, III, MD


2013 was the first year the Mid-Atlantic Section sent a resident to the Joint Advocacy Conference in Washington, DC. Dr. Christopher Bayne was selected out of a handful of regional resident and fellow applicants and has provided Section members with a superb summary of his experience at the JAC, which may be found in the subsequent pages of this newsletter. The initiative to send a resident or fellow to the JAC each year was spearheaded by Dr. Mark Edney who chairs the Section’s Health Policy Committee. This concept is brilliant and it is encouraging to see there is interest in health policy amongst up and coming urologists.As Section Secretary, I have the privilege to be very involved with the MAAUA’s business matters and educational initiatives. I am happy to report that the Section continues to maintain steady membership figures and our Annual Meetings continue to provide cutting edge, innovate content which supports increasing urologist participation year after year. But one important note I would like to highlight this season is the outstanding level of involvement of the young urologists in the Mid-Atlantic Section. We know that with an aging population it is incredibly important to foster young urologists and their engagement in our organization and the AUA. Below are a few examples of how our Section’s young urologists have illustrated their interest and enthusiasm in our specialty.

  • This year the Section will again send a team to the AUA Residents Bowl to compete next month in San Diego. The Section’s team (Drs. Thomas Clements, Jayram Krishnan, Samuel Robinson, Jay Simhan, and Jack Lambert) is the winning team from the MAAUA Urology Jeopardy competition held at the Section’s Annual Meeting in Philadelphia last year in which nearly all MD and DO urology residency programs from our region participated. For those who attended the competition in Philadelphia, you will remember the room was full and the audience engaged. Please plan to attend the national AUA Residents Bowl in San Diego and cheer on our residents! Drs. Clements and Simhan will also compete in the inaugural AUA Chief Residents Debate next month in San Diego.
    http://www.aua2013.org/program/residents.cfm
  • I am proud to report that Dr. Phillip Pierorazio was selected by the AUA Research Council to display his work at the Research Forum on May 5th at the San Diego Convention Center. This is an outstanding achievement for Dr. Pierorazio and I encourage our Section membership to support him with your attendance. Dr. Pierorazio was selected to serve as the Section’s candidate out of many qualified regional applicants.
    http://www.aua2013.org/program/research-programs.cfm
  • Finally, the Board of Directors continues to review numerous AUA Leadership Class applications each cycle. Current AUA Leadership Class participants, Drs. Jay Raman and Mark Fallick, continue to be involved with activities at the national AUA and Sectional level and represent the Mid-Atlantic well.
    http://www.auanet.org/content/about-us/scholarships-and-programs/leadership-program.cfm

The level of enthusiasm young urologists have expressed does not go unnoticed by the national AUA and was a topic of discussion at the Section Secretaries meeting this past January in Linthicum, Maryland. At this meeting we also discussed allied health professional involvement and membership, and the Sections’ various processes regarding nominations for AUA Awards and representative selection. More information on these discussion topics should be available soon.

Finally, I would like to congratulate Dr. Mike Rommel on a successful Presidency of the Mid-Atlantic Section. 2012 was a great year under his leadership and it was a pleasure to work with him on leadership matters as well as the 2012 Annual Meeting.

Thank you for the privilege to serve as your Section Secretary and I hope to see many of our members, including our young urologists, residents, and fellows, at the national AUA conference next month.

Edouard J. Trabulsi, MD


I would like to thank the Mid-Atlantic Membership for the opportunity to serve the Section as your new Treasurer.

2012 was a solid year for the Section financially. As previously reported to you, the organization has two corporations financially; a 501(c)6 which is titled the MA-AUA, and a 5-1(c)3 which is titled the MA-AUA Education Fund.

Total assets for the MA-AUA as of December 31, 2012, the Section’s fiscal year-end, were \$871,441 and consisted of \$77,546 in the checking account and \$794,871 in the investments portfolio while taking into account \$975 for 2013 prepaid dues. There were no liabilities. Total receipts were \$104,265 and total expenses were \$87,684 which, after consideration of a \$65,586 gain in investments, resulted in an operating surplus of \$82,167 for the 501(c)6 at the close of 2012.

Total assets for the MA-AUA Education Fund as of December 31st were \$204,346 and consisted mostly of funds in the checking account with an additional figure of \$237 for accounts receivable. Total liabilities were \$29,533 in accounts payable. Total receipts were \$420,406 and total expenses were \$363,044 which resulted in an operating surplus of \$57,362 for the 501(c)3 at the close of the fiscal year.

Per the recent meeting of the Section Board of Directors, I will be working in tandem with the Finance Committee on a review of our investments this year. Although our portfolio has performed as expected during a volatile economy, a regular examination is important so that the best return can be obtained for the organization.

As Dr. Keeler has noted in his President’s Message a number of our attendees in Philadelphia chose to either commute or stay at other hotels and the Section did not meet the contractual block.. While we did meet our food and beverage commitments and the Board understands that this location had numerous hotel options, I cannot stress enough the importance of staying at the Section’s host hotel for a given Annual Meeting and the special rates that have been put into place for our attendees. For this year’s meeting at The Greenbrier in 2013 please reserve your hotel rooms via the following link and this should be done as soon as you register: urologymanagement.org/maaua/meeting/housing.cfm

Thank you all again and I look forward to seeing you at The Greenbrier in West Virginia this October.

Michael D Fabrizio, M.D.


FINANCE

The AUA continues to remain on solid ground with respect to finances. Because of an excellent return on investments, through November 2012, the organization saw an approximately 15 million dollar increase in assets above budget and an almost 5 million dollar operating surplus. The surplus was due to an excellent job in maintaining control of expenses and from receipt of funds from the Hinman trust as well as other initiatives within the Foundation. The national meeting continues to be the major source of revenue and, thus, is extremely important to the organization.

The newly formed Finance Committee has begun meetings and is an excellent addition to the Board structure. Subcommittees of the Finance Committee are the Audit Committee and the Compensation Committee.


JOURNAL OF UROLOGY
The Journal has recently completed a strategic planning meeting and has presented several initiatives to the Board that were recently approved. The Board agreed to add 8 Assistant Editors for Adult Urology, agreed to a one year trial of a new technology page, agreed to an increase in the pool of statisticians and set aside a pool of monies to compensate fast track reviewers and non-urology reviewers. These steps have all been taken to enhance the Journal and improve turnaround time for acceptance and publication of articles.


INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION
Phase 3 is now underway – the number of international and International Residents-in-Training has gone from just over 200 in 2007 to nearly 700. “Best of” and “Highlights” of the AUA are underway in 5 countries and the International Academy was launched this past May. Fifteen international societies will hold their meetings in conjunction with the AUA meeting in San Diego.


QUALITY
The Board approved the Quality Program Strategic and Tactical Plan presented by the new QIPS Committee. Goals and responsibilities were outlined for 6 specific areas: (1) Develop Physician Performance Measures, (2) Engage National and Federal Organizations to promote AUA’s Quality Initiatives, (3) Develop Appropriateness criteria and Patient Safety products, (4) Convene a Quality Attachment 23 Improvement Summit, (5) Provide Quality Improvement Assistance and (6) Collaborate with other AUA departments and committees.


DATA
The Board approved funding for a pilot stage 1 trial of a Pathology Data Project. This will look at: Immunohistochemistry staining rates, Time interval between biopsy date and pathology report date, distribution of diagnostic categories (cancer, benign, HGPIN, ASAP), Amendments and addenda to pathology reports and Number of cores/cassettes per biopsy. This project is being conducted in partnership with LUGPA.

The Board also discussed a prostate cancer registry. A more thorough and in depth analysis will be completed along with a proposed budget by the October Board meeting.


PUBLIC POLICY AND PRACTICE SUPPORT
Dr. Penson gave an update on PSA discussions and the efforts of the VA to adopt the USPSTF policy statement. Dr. Gonzalez testified before the Institute of Medicine’s Committee on Governance and Finance of Graduate Medical Education focusing on the workforce shortage in urology and specialty medicine.

The Board approved a variety of legislative priorities for 2013 including promotion of PSA screening, reform of the USPSTF, addressing workforce issues, preservation of appropriate In-Office Ancillary Exception and monitoring of the ACA Implementation for its impact on urologists. The AUA is also involved with various coalitions to repeal the IPAB, eliminate the SGR and a variety of other issues.

The Board also approved a recommendation from the Health Policy Council to have a non-voting member from the SUU be appointed to the Health Policy Council.


STRATEGIC PLANS
Four areas were discussed – the International Education Plan, Research Advocacy, Quality and Non-Physician Providers. The NNP is an ongoing issue that will include discussions among the Section Secretaries Membership Council and ongoing surveys about the urologists’ use of NPPs and where the greatest educational need exists.


MEMBERSHIP
The Board approved a variety of new members in all categories – approximately 420 new members, 77 reinstatements and 20 resignations.


POLICY STATEMENTS
The Board reviewed and reaffirmed a variety of policy statements including a revision of the In-Office Ancillary Services Policy that is now on the website.


BYLAWS
The Board approved the Bylaws Committee’s recommended changes including those relating to disciplinary proceedings and revised protocol for rebukes and formal appeals relating to member expulsions.


MANAGEMENT SERVICES
The Board reaffirmed that the AUA solidify current client services, maintain a diverse client portfolio and continue to develop staffing models to optimize resources.


BOARD MEMBER EVALUATIONS
At the present time the Compensation Committee completes an annual review of all paid physician consultants to the Board. The Board Section representatives are not and have never been evaluated. Over the course of the next several months a process will be developed for Section representative evaluations – these results will be sent back to the individual Sections.

Respectfully submitted,
John H. Lynch, M.D.


MAAUA 2012 Annual Business
Meeting Minutes
 (as reported to the Mid-Atlantic Section since spring 2012) 

Donald Armento, MD (Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania)
March 09, 2010, Loving husband of Ann (née Donaldson). Beloved father of Donald (Anita), David (Carrie), Anina Pfeiffer (David) and Felisa Dibble (Timothy). Sadly missed by 14 grandchildren and his brother Robert.


Thomas M. Birdsall, MD (Haverford, Pennsylvania)
Thomas Morrison Birdsall, M.D., of Haverford, PA, died on Tues. Sept. 27th, 2011 at age 87. Beloved husband of Elizabeth S. Birdsall and devoted father of Elizabeth Ann Johnson (Ronald), Thomas Morrison Birdsall Jr. (Stephanie), Sandra Birdsall Atteberry (William), Mary Birdsall Raiken (Dennis), Christopher Pennock Birdsall M.D. (Melinda), and Susan Birdsall Dingle (Jonathan). He is also survived by 12 grandchildren, Todd, Thomas, Thomas III, Cassandra, Lyn, Kristine, Alec, Dannielle, Ryan, Andrew, Jeffrey and Katie; and 10 great grandchildren, Shea, McKenzie, Kaylin, Derek, Eleanor, Scarlett, Elizabeth, William, Jacob and Chloe; and his sister Eugenia Birdsall Stuart.


Patrick C. Devine, MD (Norfolk, Virginia)


John Feminella, Jr., MD (Richmond, Virginia)
John George Feminella, Junior, M.D., F.A.C.S., died Monday, September 1, 2008. He was born on January 15, 1941 in Brooklyn, NY, son of the late Dr. John G., Sr. and Evelyn P. Feminella. He attended Colgate University from 1958-1962, and he graduated with honors, earning degrees in both Mathematics and Physics. While at Colgate, Dr. Feminella won the Osborne Math Prize for the highest average in Mathematics, and he was a member of Sigma Chi Fraternity. Dr. Feminella received his graduate Medical degree from New York Medical College in 1966, and he did his residency training at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center from 1968-1972. During his training at Columbia, Dr. Feminella published several notable papers, and he and his colleagues were among the first to suggest the role of communicable diseases in genital carcinogenesis. Dr. Feminella also published research on the cancer associated antigen test to detect urological cancers.

After Residency Training, Dr. Feminella moved to Petersburg, Virginia, where he practiced as a Board Certified Urologist for 35 years. He founded and was President of Petersburg Urological Associates, Ltd. Since 1973 until shortly before retirement in 2006. He was on the active medical staff of Southside Regional Medical Center, consulting staff of John Randolph Hospital, and a clinical Instructor of Urology at the Medical College of Virginia. He was an active member of the Richmond Academy of Medicine, the Medical Society of Virginia, the American Medical Association, the American Urological Association, the American Association of Clinical Urologists, the American Lithotripsy Society, and he was a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.

Dr. Feminella also received several honors from grateful patients, who established scholarships in his name at both his medical school and residency hospitals. Aside from other accolades, Dr. Feminella received one of his most significant and unsolicited achievements by being named a Top Physician in the Guide to America’s Top Physicians in 2004-2005, published by the Consumers Research Council of America.

He is survived by his beloved wife, Jayne, and his devoted and loving daughters, Dr. Jayne Noel Feminella and Joy Elizabeth Feminella; his sister, Evelyn Unger; and nieces, Jennifer and her husband Steve Croston, Eve and her husband, Kevin Lignelli; and brother, Stanley and his wife, JoAnn; and nephews, John and Forbes Feminella.


David J. Gillis, MD (Lutherville, Maryland)
Dr. David J. Gillis, a retired Baltimore urologist and nationally known expert and collector of American Flyer model electric trains, died of cancer October 2, 2008 at his Lutherville home. He was 70. Dr. Gillis, who was the son and grandson of physicians, was born in Baltimore and raised in Guilford. He was a 1956 graduate of Loyola High School and earned a bachelor’s degree from Loyola College in 1960. After earning his medical degree from the University of Maryland in 1965, he completed a residency in urology at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington.

In 1970, Dr. Gillis established his practice on York Road at the Beltway just north of Towson, where he saw patients until retiring in 1988.

In addition to being an instructor in urology at the Johns Hopkins University’s School of Medicine, he was on the staff of St. Joseph Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center and Johns Hopkins Hospital.

His professional memberships included the American College of Surgeons and the American Urological Association. Dr. Gillis began collecting American Flyer S-gauge trains in 1946, the year they were introduced by the A. C. Gilbert Co. of New Haven, Conn.

“After all, I’ve been afflicted with a passion for American Flyer for about as long as S-gauge has been around. And I’m still under the spell,” Dr. Gillis told Classic Trains magazine in a 2007 interview.

In 1967, Dr. Gillis married Katherine Macatee, who was supportive of and later became interested in her husband’s hobby. Their four children also went to “work” on their father’s railroad, which occupied most of the basement of their Chapel Ridge Road home.

Dr. Gillis and his family eventually completed an 18-by-38-foot layout on which he was able to operate 12 trains at once. “He collected hundreds of engines and thousands of cars,” said Mrs. Gillis, who was responsible for building all the model railroad’s scenery.

“When he wanted to expand the layout and add on to the house, I only agreed to it if he let me have a library on the second floor,” she said. “I got my library.”

When model railroad publisher and author Bruce Greenberg published his Greenberg’s Guide to American Flyer S Gauge during the 1980s and early 1990s, he used much of Dr. Gillis’ American Flyer equipment and layout as a backdrop for his book.


John W. Hollowell, MD (Portsmouth, Virginia)
John W. Hollowell, MD, 89, died December 7, 2011, at home in Portsmouth, Virginia. A Tidewater native, Jack was the son of Mattie Leggett and Edward Caleb Hollowell of Deep Creek, Virginia. Following graduation from Deep Creek High School, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the College of William and Mary in1943 and a medical degree from the University of Virginia School of Medicine in 1946. He completed a surgical internship at the University of Virginia Hospital and then served two years’ active duty as a lieutenant in the United States Navy Medical Corps. After leaving the Navy, Jack relocated to New York City where he was a resident from 1949 to 1952 at Roosevelt Hospital (now St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center) in Manhattan. There he met Mary Louise Akert, a Roosevelt Hospital student nurse from Flin Flon, Manitoba. They married in January 1953 at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Manhattan.

Declining an offer from Roosevelt’s Chief of Urology to practice medicine in New York, Jack returned with his wife to Portsmouth to become the city’s first urologist. In addition to practicing urology for four decades, he was an attending urologist and chair of the surgical departments at both Portsmouth General and Maryview Hospitals, a consultant to the US Naval Hospital in Portsmouth, and assistant professor in the Department of Urology at Eastern Virginia Medical School.

Jack’s other professional accomplishments included terms of service as President of the Medical Society of Virginia, President of the Tidewater Urological Society, and President of the Portsmouth Academy of Medicine. He also served on the Boards of Directors of Portsmouth General Hospital, Tidewater Health Care, Eastern Virginia Health Systems, Tidewater Regional Health Planning Council, and the Hampton Roads Health Coalition; on the Medical Advisory Committee of the Tidewater Kidney Foundation; and as co-chair of the development fund of the University of Virginia Medical Foundation and of the State of Virginia Medicare Advisory Committee.

In the community, Jack served as Chair of the Portsmouth City Planning Commission , United Way of Hampton Roads Portsmouth Campaign, and Craney Island Commission; a member of the London House Board of Directors; and several terms on the Vestries of St. Christopher’s and Trinity Episcopal Churches. He was a member of the Rotary Club of Portsmouth for 55 years, which he served as President and where he was a Paul Harris Fellow. The Commonwealth of Virginia General Assembly issued a Joint Resolution in 1993 commending Jack for his “distinguished career of service to the citizens of Portsmouth and the Commonwealth.”

Jack is survived by his wife of almost 59 years, Mary Louise, and four children: Heather Hollowell of Portsmouth, Mary Louise Shelton (and husband Curtis Lee Shelton) of Cary, NC, Lesley Hollowell (and husband E. Stanley Murphy) of Portsmouth, and John Warren Hollowell, Jr. (and wife Cynthia East Hollowell) of Lancaster, VA; four grandchildren: Sarah Tucker Hollowell and Emma East Hollowell, John Curtis Martin Shelton, and Mary Caroline Amnunziata; sister Judith H. Leach of Deep Creek and brother Frank Lee Hollowell of Bethesda, MD. He was predeceased by both parents and a sister, Mary Louise Hollowell, and brother, Edward C. Hollowell, Jr.


Aaron G. Jackson, MD (Washington, DC)
February 28, 2012. Dr. Aaron Gordon Jackson was born to public school educators and raised in Jackson, Mississippi, He went “north” to Atlanta, GA to Morehouse College where he graduated with honors in 1956 with a B.S. degree in Chemistry. Dr. Jackson obtained his Doctorate of Medicine in 1960 from Howard University College of Medicine and did an internship at Freedmen’s Hospital from 1961- 1963. Dr. Jackson went on to serve as a Lieutenant in the US Navy as a Battalion and Regimental Surgeon to the Seventh Regiment of the First Marine Division at Camp Pendleton, CA. His service included a deployment to Guantanamo Bay during the Cuban Missile crisis in 1962. Following his military duties, Dr. Jackson went home to Mississippi with his young family of wife and 3 children to practice medicine in the small Delta town of Greenwood, Miss. Greenwood was the center of much of the civil and voting rights activities during this period, and, as the only African American physician in a 50-mile radius. After five years of general practice in Mississippi and with a family of six, he was accepted into the Residency program at the University of Iowa in Iowa City under the guidance of the renowned urologist, Dr. Ruben Flocks.

Upon completion of his residency in 1972, Dr. Jackson moved to Washington to begin his practice and academic career in urology at Howard University. His professional activities included:

  • President, Washington Urological Society
  • President, Mid-Atlantic Section-American Urologic Association (AUA)
  • Member of the AUA nominating committee (over 15 years of service)
  • Chair, National Medical Association Urology Section
  • President, Medical-Dental staff, DC General Hospital
  • President, Washington urologic society

His most prized professional memberships included:

  • The Society of University Urologists
  • The American Society of Andrology
  • The American Academy of Pediatrics
  • The American College of Surgeons

Dr. Jackson authored and co-authored over 200 scholarly publications and has collaborated on countless federally and commercially funded research grants. As the urology residency program director at Howard University Hospital for over 20 years, Dr. Jackson trained over 60 urologists most were of African, African American, Caribbean, middle eastern, Asian extraction. He also has been involved in teaching and mentoring countless residents and students over his illustrious career.

Dr. Jackson’s civic memberships have included: Northwest Kiwanis Club (President, 1982); Board, Independent Living for the Handicapped; Board, Washington Performing Arts Society. Dr. Jackson married Alexine Clement Jackson in 1958, and they have five children (1 now deceased) and 11 grandchildren. Until his passing, Dr. Jackson served as a productive member of the division of urology at HUH, providing quality patient care and invaluable insight into modern health care challenges.

Personally I cannot begin to describe the gratitude that I have for having Aaron Jackson in my life. I have learned so much about the practice of medicine, professional and personal relationships, and work ethic from him. For over 20 years he served as a teacher, mentor, advisor, colleague and most importantly a true friend.

Dr. Jackson was a past President of the Mid-Atlantic Section, AUA.

Chile Ahaghotu, M.D.
Associate Professor and Chief of Urology
Howard University Hospital


William R. McCune (Martinsburg, West Virginia)
William Richard McCune, M.D., passed away Friday, Jan. 27, 2 012 at his home. Dr. McCune was born Jan. 15, 1922, in Gassaway, W.Va., the son of the late Carl and Eunice McCune. He grew up in Gassaway with his future wife, Mary Lou Groves. They were both active in 4-H throughout their childhoods. As a Gassaway High School student, he played trumpet in both the high school and state 4-H bands. He was a solo trumpeter in the West Virginia All State Band. He attended West Virginia Boys State in 1939. Dr. McCune graduated from West Virginia University in Morgantown, W.Va., and in 1946 graduated from the Medical College of Virginia. He then joined the U.S. Navy and was stationed first in Detroit, Mich., and later at a tuberculosis hospital in Corona, Calif. He was honorably discharged from the Navy in July 1949. He then settled with his family in Hedgesville, W.Va., practicing medicine from an office in his home. In 1952, he moved his family and his practice to Martinsburg, W.Va. He practiced general medicine in Martinsburg until 1960, and delivered many of the children born in Berkeley County in the 1950s. The last delivery in which he assisted was that of his youngest grandson, William Richard McCune III, on Sept. 8, 2004.

Dr. McCune returned to medical school at the University of Maryland in Baltimore in 1960, and graduated as a specialist in urology in 1964. He returned to Martinsburg, where he had not entirely given up practice, and began his career in this community as a urologist. He closed his private practice in 1992, and was then asked by the Martinsburg Veterans Administration to attend temporarily to patients with urologic problems. He expected to stay six weeks. He stayed, practicing urology, at the Martinsburg Veterans Administration for six more years, retiring once more from the practice of medicine in 1998. While he was successful in giving up his practice, he never let go of his patients. As long as he was physically able, he visited old patients in local nursing homes and hospitals. He was an active member of Trinity United Methodist Church from 1953 until 2009, when he became a member of Trinity Episcopal Church in Martinsburg. During his practice, Dr. McCune was long active in the Eastern Panhandle Medical Society. With other physicians, he was instrumental in founding the Eastern Panhandle Heart Clinic in the early 1950s. He taught at the nursing schools at Kings Daughters Hospital and City Hospital in Martinsburg for a number of years.

Dr. McCune served on the board of directors of Merchants & Farmers Bank in Martinsburg from 1979 until 1989. Joining the Martinsburg Rotary in 1950, Dr. McCune left Rotary in 1960, when he returned to medical school. He rejoined Rotary in 1964, and remained an active member until his death. He became a Rotary Paul Harris Fellow in 2002.

Dr. McCune was active in Boy Scouts through most of his adult life. All four of his sons are Eagle Scouts. As an adult Boy Scout volunteer, Dr. McCune received a Statuette Award in 1978, and the Silver Beaver Award in 1980. He served as president of the Shenandoah Area Council from 1987 to 1989. He was given the Distinguished Citizens Award by the Potomac District of the Shenandoah Area Council (BSA) in 2000. Dr. McCune was a 32nd Degree Mason, receiving his Scottish Rite 32nd Degree at the same time with three of his sons, Richard, Brance and Alex. He was a member of Exhausted Roosters. After retirement, he spent much of his time as a gentleman farmer.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by one brother, Ralph McCune. He is survived by one daughter, Elizabeth M. Hamrick and husband, Page Hamrick III; four sons, William Richard McCune Jr. and wife, Judy, Christopher Groves McCune and wife, Ellen, Brance Lindsey McCune and wife, Debbie, and Alex Groves McCune and wife, Tammy; 16 grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; one brother, Eugene McCune; and locally by one sister-in-law, Jody Groves. Mary Lou McCune, his wife of 68 years, died Nov. 6, 2011.


John J. Murphy, MD (Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania)
John Joseph Murphy, MD, born October 2, 1920, passed away on February 6, 2012. Dr. Murphy earned his Bachelors in Science degree at the University of Scranton in 1942, earned his medical degree at the University of Pennsylvania in 1945 and went on to complete an internship at the University of Pennsylvania, enrolled in the US Army Medical Corps through Walter Reed, completed surgical training at the University of Pennsylvania, and urology training at the University of Michigan. Murphy returned to the University of Pennsylvania in 1953 and held the position of Professor and Chief there from 1964 until 1979.

His significant contributions to medicine were in the areas of urinary diversion, neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction, pediatric lower urinary tract dysfunction, pediatric videourodynamics, partial nephrectomy, and prostate cancer.

Dr. Murphy belonged to the AAGUS, American Surgical Association, Halstead Society, American College of Surgeons, and was an Honorary Professor of the Royal College of Surgeons (Dublin).

John Joseph Murphy may be remembered best for his Presidential Address during the Mid-Atlantic Section of the American Urological Association Annual Meeting in 1975 during which he said, “Teaching of the proper indications for surgical intervention is especially important. The student must be taught that the fact that he is capable of doing a procedure well is not an indication for its use…Emphasis must be placed on learning when not to operate by utilizing good and honest clinical judgment.”

Dr. Murphy was a past President of the Mid-Atlantic Section, AUA.


Harvey P. Rawls, MD (Virginia Beach, Virginia)
Harvey Pretlow Rawls, MD, 82, went to be with his Lord on Sunday, April 25, 2010. Harvey was born in Suffolk on May 27, 1927 to the late Dr. Japheth Edward and Mrs. Emma Holland Rawls. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Margaret Lucille Rawls; his brothers, Dr. Charles Rawls and Dr. Japheth Rawls Jr.; his sisters, Ann Newman, Mary Sue Parker, Emmaline Bentley and Marcella Saeker; a stepson, Michael Swider, and the mother of his children, Marie Louise Edgar. Left to cherish his memory are his sister, Margaret Bullard of Mebane, N.C.; his children, the Honorable Deborah L. Rawls of Virginia Beach, Dr. Harvey P. Rawls Jr. of Virginia Beach and Dr. William H. Rawls and his wife Susan of Norfolk; grandchildren, William M. Hutchens III, Harvey P. Rawls III, Guy Edward Rawls, Virginia Frances Rawls, William H. Rawls Jr. and David Edward Rawls; stepdaughter-in-law and caregiver, Rosemary Swider; stepson, John Swider; and his faithful companion, Buddy.

After proudly serving his country in World War II, Harvey attended Elon College in North Carolina and graduated from The Medical College of Virginia in 1952 as a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. He served his internship at Norfolk General Hospital from 1952 until 1953 and completed his residency in urology at the Medical School of the University of Virginia in 1956. He was certified by the American Board of Urology in 1961, became a fellow of the American College of Surgeons in 1976 and was a member of the American Medical Association until his retirement. He was also a member of the Norfolk Rotary Club and the Norfolk Academy of Medicine. Our dad enjoyed a 40-year medical practice in Tidewater, beginning with his association with the late Dr. John Hill as Hill and Rawls Urology in Norfolk in 1956, and then as a founding partner of Hill, Rawls and O’Connor, then Hill, Rawls, Gallo and Mosquera, Rawls, Gallo, Drucker and Gonzalez, and finally Urology Associates of Tidewater from which he retired in 1992. His practice continues today as Urology of Virginia.

Many thousands of patients in our community benefited from his well-known medical and surgical skills, as well as his kindly bedside manner. In addition to his medical practice, Dad’s big passion in life was the time he spent deep sea fishing out of Rudee Inlet, Oregon Inlet and Palm Beach, Fla. on his boats, the Faircee I, II, III, IV and V. He loved nothing more than being out on the ocean and hooking a big billfish, whether in a tournament or with family, and he reveled in teaching each of his children and his grandchildren all about boats, fishing and the sea.


William H. Sipe, MD (Charlottesville, Virginia)
William Henry Sipe M.D., 83, passed away on Tuesday, November 30, 2010, at the University of Virginia Medical Center in Charlottesville, Virginia. Dr. Sipe was born in Harrisonburg, Virginia, on April 29, 1927, the son of the late William Edgar and Edith Minerva Rothgeb Sipe. He resided in Newport News, Virginia, for 31 years and in Albemarle County for the past 19 years.

Dr. Sipe graduated from the University of Virginia in 1948, and received his medical degree from the University of Virginia in 1951. Following graduation from medical school, his specialty training in urology was at St. Luke’s Hospital, Chicago, Illinois, Tulane University Charity Hospital, New Orleans, Louisiana, and the Medical College of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia. His specialty training was interrupted for two years while he served as a Captain in the United States Air Force.

Dr. Sipe practiced urology for three years in Roanoke, Virginia, and thirty-one years in Newport News, Virginia, where he retired as President of the Hampton Roads Urology Clinic Inc. In 1991, he moved to Albemarle County, where he became an Associate Professor of Clinical Urology at the University of Virginia School of Medicine for thirteen years. His contact with the students, residents and fellows was a rewarding and enjoyable experience for which he was grateful. In 2004, Dr. Sipe retired after forty-seven years in the field of urology.

Dr. Sipe was associated with and a board member of multiple medical, urological and community societies, serving as an officer in many. He has loved the University of Virginia, where he was a Kappa Alpha, Phi Beta Pi, Lambda Pi, Varsity Football (1945, 1946), “V” Club, and a member of the Raven Society. He served on the Alumni Association Board of Managers from 1972 until 1978), and on the Athletic Council from 1978 through 1980. In 2010, he was inducted into the Harrisonburg High School Sports Hall of Fame. He always found joy in reading, following sports, and the company of his children and grandchildren, as well as tennis and croquet.

He was predeceased by his wife of fifty-five years, Mary Ann Yancey; his daughter, Elisabeth Susan Sipe; and his brother, James Rothgeb Sipe.

Dr. Sipe is survived by three children, William Henry Sipe III and his wife, Stephanie Hudgins, of Rock Hill, South Carolina, Mary Hedley Sipe of Richmond, Virginia, and Charles Yancey Sipe and his wife, Cameron Carter Clark, of Charlottesville, Virginia; seven grandchildren, William Henry Sipe IV, Charles Yancey Sipe Jr., Edie Garland Bethke, William Harrison Burton, Landon Clark Sipe, Ann Carter Sipe, and Chloe Elisabeth Sipe.


Rene Octaviano Sullesta, MD (Charleston, West Virginia)
Rene Octaviano Sullesta, MD of Charleston, went into the grace of Heaven, March 11, 2013 after a battle against cancer. He received a doctor of medicine from the University of Santo Tomas, Manila, Philippines. He did post-graduate work at Frankford Hospital, Philadelphia, PA. He practiced urology for 30 years and was on staff at Charleston Area Medical Center and St. Francis Hospital. Professional affiliations include fellowship in the American College of Surgeons, American Urological Association, West Virginia State Medical Association, and Tri-State Filipino-American Association. In his spare time, Rene enjoyed tending his garden, fishing, and singing in the church choir. A true believer in God, he did not fear death, instead looking forward to eternal salvation in Christ. Surviving: wife, Joan; son, Michael (Ashley) of Wheeling; daughter, Rebecca (Brian) of Washington, D.C.; sister, Enriqueta Sullesta-Sason (Jan); sister, Alicia Velasco (Nono); niece, Ann Velasco; nephew, John Mark Velasco, all of the Philippines.

I attended the 2013 Urology Joint Advocacy Conference (JAC) in Washington, DC on a generous scholarship from the Mid-Atlantic Section of the American Urological Association (AUA). It was my first professional urology conference. Like any junior resident, I just wanted to fit in and not make a fool of myself. I began the conference by accidently taking the seat of the immediate former president of the AUA at the opening keynote address. Dr. Sushil Lacy kindly smiled and overlooked my rookie mistake. At that moment I knew I was among friends.

Two things immediately caught my attention at the JAC. First was the altruism of the urologists in attendance. These were, for the most part, private practice physicians who gave their time and income to attend the conference. I met urologists from Maryland to California, all of whom had descended on Washington with one purpose: to advocate for their profession and patients. Second was the absolute paucity of residents. By my unscientific sampling, there were two other residents in attendance, which is far too few when one of the main legislative asks was Graduate Medical Education funding.

The energy at most professional conferences comes from the podium when big-name researchers present groundbreaking data. The JAC is very different in this respect. The first two days of presentations at the JAC is about preparation for the main event. On the third day, the loafers hit the pavement. I joined three other Virginia urologists, and together we visited five congressional offices on Capitol Hill.

I had never visited Capitol Hill or lobbied in my life, yet there I was in Washington, toting the urology agenda to everyone who would listen. I sat in the inner office of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and explained how the United States Preventative Services Task Force Transparency and Accountability Act stood to improve men’s’ health. I met with the Health Care Fellow for Senator Mark Warner in the marble corridors of the Russell Senate Building and discussed expanding fertility benefits to military men and women injured while defending American freedom. Everyone on Capitol Hill listened intently to what I had to say; even as I explained my role as a resident physician, they trusted my expertise.

Through the course of the three day conference, it became brutally clear to me that if we do not make ourselves visible on Capitol Hill, Congress will overlook—even if inadvertently—our profession and patients. The congressional offices were knowledgeable about health policy issues, but they were not urology policy experts. How could they be? The offices were sincerely grateful for an opportunity to learn how laws directly impacted their constituents. If we don’t tell Congress how its policies can help or harm our patients, who else will?

The JAC was a career-defining moment for me. Next year, I hope more residents like me take up the call in Washington. Our patients need us on Capitol Hill every bit as much as they do in the exam room or operating room.

Christopher Bayne, MD
The George Washington University

The AUA, AACU, LUGPA and UROPAC came together again this year on March 10-12 at the Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill for another tremendously successful Joint Advocacy Conference. After 2 days of insightful commentary by members of Congress and policy leaders, we once again hit the Hill to bring Urology’s legislative agenda to our representative’s offices in person. Topping the list of legislative priorities again this year are the urology lead issues of USPSTF reform, GME funding/workforce issues, protection of the In-Office Ancillary Exception (IOAE) to the Stark Law, and promotion of an interagency urotrauma task force. We also work with coalition partners to promote SGR reform, repeal of the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), and advocating for surgical specialties’ position with respect to payment and delivery system reform.

The Mid-Atlantic Section, in an inaugural program, sponsored Dr. Chris Bayne a senior resident at The George Washington University to attend the JAC. We can declare the program a resounding success and confirm what we’ve suspected: that the Section has many young urologists of Dr. Bayne’s caliber and interest just waiting for the opportunity to advocate and lead on behalf our great specialty. You can read his summary of his experience nearby. This is a good place to underscore for you that the success of the JAC, the energy and future advocacy potential of young urologists like Dr. Bayne and indeed our collective voice on Capitol Hill all are for naught if we don’t adequately fund our UROPAC. UROPAC is our Congressional access. It’s the oil that lubricates our federal advocacy machine. There are around 9,000 Urologists in the country in all practice settings and the contribution rate to UROPAC is a paltry 18%. This is embarrassing and it’s a self-inflicted wound that we can repair. In the 2010 cycle we were for the first time a million dollar PAC and in the top 8 medical PACs in Washington. We’ve slipped now to number twelve. Whether you are in academic practice, large group, multispecialty group, hospital employed or independent- we all have current and pressing legislative concerns and we should all be mutually concerned for the state of our specialty regardless of practice setting. If you haven’t given this cycle, log in now (www.uropac.org) and do it while you’re thinking about. And make it an annual habit.

Finally, the results are in for the MAAUA member health policy needs assessment that we sent out over the winter. The response represented a diversity of practice settings and geography within the Section. The major concerns reported were declining reimbursement, increasing overhead and regulatory requirements, access to care for our patients, GME and workforce issues, and research funding. Also interestingly, despite the fact that we in the MAAUA have the highest concentration of state urology coalitions (advocacy bodies with attorneys and lobbyists) as distinct from state societies- there is a perceived need for much better participation in these coalitions and for better state-level relationship building between urologists and state lawmakers. The Health Policy Committee will continue to discuss this issue and be a resource for you if you are making state-level efforts to improve advocacy.

See you in May in San Diego and in October at The Greenbrier! 


71st Annual Meeting at the Greenbier
SAVE the DATE October 24-27, 2013!

Visit meeting.urologymanagement.org/maaua for more details.

Thomas R. Clements, MD
Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
Graduation Date: 6.30.2013 
*Also competing in the AUA Chief Resident Debate

Tom Clements was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago. After completing his undergraduate degree at Brigham Young University, he attended medical school at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He is currently a chief resident at Penn State Hershey Medical Center. Upon graduation, he will be joining Urology of Central PA, a large private practice group located in Harrisburg, PA. He is married and has three daughters.


Jayram Krishnan, MD
UMDNJ/SOM/Kenndey Mem Hsp/Our Lady of Lourdes
Graduation Date: 6.30.2013

Jay Krishnan was born in Bridgeport, CT and was raised in Philadelphia, PA. He has two older brothers who are also in Medicine. He majored in General Arts from Villanova University then proceeded to the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine for his Doctor of Osteopathy. He did a combined program that also included a Masters in Business Administration (Healthcare Management). Jay moved to Bethesda Maryland where he completed a surgical Internship at the National Naval Medical Center. The next fours years, Jay served in the United States Navy as a General Medical Officer with deployments to Japan, Korea, Iraq and Afghanistan. Following his military commitment, Jay entered a Urologic Surgery residency at UMDNJ.


Samuel P. Robinson, MD
Virginia Commonwealth University
Graduation Date: 6.30.2014

Dr. Robinson was born in Augusta, Georgia and obtained his undergraduate degree in history from the University of Georgia where he also received his EMT-I certification. He attended Mercer University School of Medicine and graduated AOA. He is currently a PGY-4 at VCU Medical Center in Richmond Virginia and was recently awarded first prize in the resident prize essay competition at the Annual Meeting of the Mid Atlantic Section of the AUA. His interests include Oncology and Endourology. Outside of work, he enjoys playing soccer and traveling Internationally.


Jay Simhan, MD
Temple University School of Medicine
Graduation Date: 6.30.2013 
*Also competing in the AUA Chief Resident Debate

Jay Simhan, MD is currently a chief resident in Urology at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dr. Simhan graduated summa cum laude with highest honors and a BS degree in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. After obtaining his medical degree at UNC-Chapel Hill as well, he subsequently completed a General Surgery internship at Temple University Hospital. Currently, he is an active resident member of the Mid-Atlantic Section of the AUA and also serves on the Executive Committee of the Philadelphia Urologic Society. Dr. Simhan’s urologic interests are in urologic trauma, reconstruction, and oncology. After graduation from residency, he plans on completing a fellowship in Urologic Trauma, Reconstruction, and Prosthetics at UT-Southwestern.


 

Jack W. Lambert, III, MD
Eastern Virginia Grad. School of Med.
Graduation Date: 6.30.2013

I was born in Maryville, Tennessee. I graduated from Tufts University in Boston, MA in 2003 as an English Literature major and attended the University College of London for one of those years. I moved back south and attended the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center for medicine and graduated in 2008. I then moved to Norfolk, Virginia at EVMS for my urology residency and am currently finishing my chief year there and will become the laparoscopic fellow at that institution next year.