Big turnout for MUSC's Values in Action Awards, including a tiny visitor

The bond between two colleagues at the Medical University of South Carolina’s Values in Action Awards showed just why MUSC President David Cole and his wife, Kathy Cole, created the awards: to showcase and celebrate people who represent MUSC at its finest.

The awards’ five categories included collaboration, compassion, innovation, integrity and respect. Karlin Ferguson, marketing and corporate communications director at MUSC Health in Columbia, nominated Alyson McGugan in the respect category. The Coles agreed with her selection. They named McGugan, who directs Sleep Centers for the MUSC Health Midlands Division, one of three winners in that group.

Ferguson explained why she nominated McGugan. “Google defines ‘respect’ as to admire someone or something deeply as a result of their abilities, qualities or achievements. Whether it's through her exceptional work her commitment to supporting her colleagues or her genuine care for others, she continually sets the standard for respect in our community,” Ferguson said of McGugan, director of Sleep Centers for the MUSC Health Midlands Division.

“Alyson doesn't just lead by example. She lifts up others, fosters a positive environment and demonstrates what it truly means to treat everyone with dignity and respect. She is a true role model, a colleague, a really good friend.”

The other two winners in the respect category were Erin Harvey, M.D., and Jim Tomsic.

Matthew Kasson, M.D., nominated Harvey. In his letter, he had high praise for her. “Dr. Harvey shows respect not only to those superior to her, but to all patients and providers she interacts with.”

At the ceremony, Kasson revealed that Harvey is his wife, bringing their son on stage to congratulate her.

Kevin Smuniewski nominated Tomisic. Smuniewski, program director for Student Wellness and Sports and Recreation, called Tomisic an unsung hero of MUSC in the Wellness Center for the last 32 years. “He's helped build a culture of trust.”

The respect winners were among 13 total honored at the ceremony.

Collaboration

The collaboration category had three winners as well.

Gigi Smith, Ph.D., associate provost for Education Innovation & Student Life at MUSC, nominated Erica Bligen, leader of the Office of Student Engagement. Bligen said she was shocked to win. “I am very humbled by this. The work that I do is a hard job. Every day I show up. I'm trying to make the day before the day better than the day before.”

Diann Krywko, M.D., a professor of Emergency Medicine at MUSC, nominated nurse leader Sarah Brown for collaboration as well. “She leads by example. She's constantly elevating her team and involving her care team members in decisions and granting autonomy to them,” Krywko said of Brown.

The other collaboration winner was Mike McGinnis, assistant provost for Finance and Administration. His nominator, MUSC’s executive vice president for Academic affairs and provost Lisa Saladin, Ph.D., said there was a lot of support for his selection. 

“Mike has been here for 24 years, and he's probably the most dedicated, honorable and respected employee that I've ever had the pleasure of working with. I think it speaks volumes for this award that letters of support for his nomination came from five out of the six colleges.”

Compassion

There were two winners in the compassion category: licensed social worker Meg Wallace and Patrick “Eddie” Wellman of MUSC’s Engineering and Facilities team. 

Two people who know Wallace well joined her on stage at the Nov. 18 ceremony in the Drug Discovery Building. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences faculty members Michael de Arellano, Ph.D., and Alyssa Rheingold, Ph.D., work closely with Wallace. Rheingold explained why they nominated her.

“In a world that feels bleak and dark sometimes, I usually tell my children to look for the helpers. Look for those that exude light and hope. And Meg just truly exudes light and hope and for me personally, but for our staff and our team at the Crime Victims Center and for all the people that she serves directly and indirectly by the work she does.”

 

Laura Dell’Aiera, division director of Cardiovascular Perfusion in the College of Health Professions, nominated Wellman. She described an incident that stayed with her. 

“A student arrived late to class and she said that the pedal had fallen off of her bike on her way to campus. And so we emailed Eddie asking to borrow a few tools so that we could try to put it back together,” Dell’Aiera said.

“And by the time class had ended, Eddie had located the bike, had it flipped over and he was repairing the bike for her. And really to me, it not only was a sign of his compassion in that moment, but it also taught her a lot about true empathy in her future as a health care provider.”

Innovation

There were three winners in the innovation category. Enterprise chief digital transformation officer Crystal Broj nominated one of them, Franco Cardillo. He’s the executive director of Digital Strategy at MUSC. 

Broj said Cardillo was behind major improvements involving patient records and appointments and reduced reliance on people for jobs that could be done through automation, freeing up employees to concentrate on work that required a higher level of ability. 

Like some of his fellow winners, Cardillo said he felt humbled by the honor. “What we get to do with technology is kind of the easy part, but it's really talking to the people and kind of getting the culture to embrace what we're doing” that’s a bigger challenge, he said – a challenge he embraced.

A second winner in the innovation category, Lori-Ann Ferraro, Ph.D., serves as Speech Language Pathology’s director of Clinical Education. Her nominator, Christina Pelatti, Ph.D., directs the SLP Division.

“While Dr. Ferraro embodies all of the MUSC values, she really sparkles in the area of innovation and is a true pioneer in speech language pathology, clinical education, specifically Dr. Ferraro has built and implemented our graduate program's clinical education model. In doing so, it is truly one of a kind,” Pelatti said.

A third innovation winner, Baron Short, M.D., specializes in brain stimulation, psychiatry and bio-behavioral medicine. His nominator, Benjamin Kalivas, M.D., is also a brain stimulation and psychiatry expert. He said Short has helped make MUSC the first clinical site for an innovative treatment for major depressive disorder. 

“His motivation for doing this, his motivation for tackling these problems that we have in psychiatry, that we have in health care, that we have every day, is not just to have the coolest, newest thing in the world at our hospital, which he also does, but it's the why behind that is to help people who desperately need our help with these technologies.”

Integrity

The final two Values in Action winners were in the integrity category. A group of colleagues nominated Kevin Branson. He serves as program coordinator for MUSC’s Addiction Sciences Division in Charleston. His nominators said he has a great positive influence on the team’s culture.

Branson said he was grateful for the recognition. “I enjoy coming to work every day and getting to be a part of this team. I feel like we're doing some great things and it's just a joy to be here and be a part of it.”

The other integrity winner was Shelley Garvin, faculty coordinator in the James B. Edwards College of Dental Medicine. Dean Sarandeep Huja nominated her. “There have been so many and extraordinary nominees out here and around MUSC, but I can tell you that you did the right thing with Ms. Shelley Garvin. She's the real deal,” Huja said.

“Mrs. Garvin is a walking encyclopedia and utilizes her wealth of knowledge for the benefit of the college. She's a role model to everyone, including myself.”

About Values in Action

President Cole and his wife launched Values in Action in 2016. They had a lot of nominees to consider this year: more than 115. Winners receive a certificate, a keepsake, an engraved brick on the Charleston Medical District Greenway and a monetary award. Get more information about this year’s winners here.