Crohn's & Colitis Foundation's 2025 Fundraising Event
Join Penn's GOTS the RUNS for Take Steps for Crohn's & Colitis as they raise research funds to CRUSH CROHN'S & COLITIS!
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WHEN: Friday, May 9th, 2025
5pm Lot P Tailgate w/ Food Trucks 6pm Festival Opens 6-8pm DUNK the Doc! 6:45pm Line up to DUNK Dr. Nandi! 7pm Program Begins 8pm Raffle announcements 8:20pm Fireworks Show! WHERE: Citizens Bank Park- Home of the Philadelphia Phillies! WHAT: Join us for a celebration with rock bands, singing, dancing, face paint, magicians, superheroes, and free swag. Also joining us this year is a special feature- the dunk tank!!! The team will enjoy a walk on the field its self and private VIP tours of the locker room! Registration: https://takesteps.crohnscolitisfoundation.org/team/PennsGotTheRuns |
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COMING SOON:
CORE-IBD website is live as of today!
This is a project that provides support and information to individuals diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), as well as their families, friends, and caretakers. The CORE-IBD portal provides access to resources like education, communication tools, and connections for a diverse population of people diagnosed with this disease.
To see more information about this and access the website- follow the button below!
Penn Staff Spotlight:
Anna Jung, Pharm D. and Chisom Amaeze, Pharm D.
The I3 team had the pleasure of interviewing two of Penn Medicine's specialty GI pharmacists, asking them questions about Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) and their experience working in the field and supporting patients.
Here is what they had to say:
Q: What is your role for patients at Penn who are diagnosed with IBD?
Anna: "We create clinical initiatives to improve quality of care for not only IBD patients but our GI clinic patients as well. We are focused primarily on IBD...so I'd guess it's about 80% IBD and then 20% other specialties. We provide medication education, injection training, laboratory monitoring, and then we follow up with patients to make sure they are staying adherent to their meds. We wear many hats and do a lot of behind the scene responsibilities... Chisom is going to laugh but I always say we work together as a team, and our role differences can be analogous to the Philadelphia Eagles... I am like Jalen Hurts and Chisom is like Saquon Barkley"
Chisom: "I'm not mad at it... they are good at what they do"
Anna: "I've been in the clinic for 10 years now and a pharmacist for 20 years... Chisom came on board 3 years ago and she is an amazing pharmacist and is an amazing asset to the department and to the clinic."
Chisom: "Sometimes I like to give myself the name of 'chaos coordinator'...a lot of things are going on in my position and it kind of requires you to be flexible, a jack of all trades. I am handling education on one front, access issues, being a patient advocate... whatever the patient needs me to be in that moment to help get their medication is what I have to be. Right then and there."
Q: Are there any barriers that come to mind when thinking of an IBD patients trying to manage their disease?
Chisom: "Insurance. Number one... it's always Insurance. Insurance has their own rules and own dictations as to what can and can't be done before a patient tries a therapy. A doctor can have all this knowledge and experience... they know what would work best for the patient, and the insurance could say 'No, we want the patient to try something else first'. And then it becomes this back and forth... resulting in delays in therapy. Therefore, it's possible a patient cant get started on medication right away and it may take a couple weeks which can significantly impact the patient and their care"
Anna: "Like one of our IBD doctors here at Penn always says, 'You may have a plan in place and then insurance comes and bursts your bubble'. "
Chisom: A lot of our biologics, they're not cheap. As a result, they're not cheap for the patients. So even if the insurance will cover some of it, a lot of the copay is left is up to the patient, and that can still be in the thousands. Luckily, there are copay cards or manufacturer cards that can assist with this financial burden, but there are still scenarios where unfortunately patients cannot afford the medications they are prescribed."
Q: What is some advice you would give to patients with IBD?
Anna: "I always want to convey to patients that we are your team here. We want to partner with the patients and want them to be successful in their health goals, whether it be achieving remission or controlling symptoms. But at the same time, even though we are here as a team to support the patient, the most important person is the patient themself. With that mindset, we want to always make them feel empowered that they can do something too, by becoming informed. Like to Chisom's point, there is a lot of resources available and even though insurance puts up a lot of frustrating barriers, it's important for patients to be knowledgeable and aware of what they can do, what their rights are, and how they can advocate for themselves too. These biologics, again, are not cheap. It takes a lot of navigating on how to get things approved for our GI patients."
Chisom: "I always tell patients, whenever I reach out to them in the initial time they are starting new medications, 'You have my number. Save it. Please call me'. They have this resource and sometimes it can be difficult to get a direct number, so I recommend them to please use it."
Here is what they had to say:
Q: What is your role for patients at Penn who are diagnosed with IBD?
Anna: "We create clinical initiatives to improve quality of care for not only IBD patients but our GI clinic patients as well. We are focused primarily on IBD...so I'd guess it's about 80% IBD and then 20% other specialties. We provide medication education, injection training, laboratory monitoring, and then we follow up with patients to make sure they are staying adherent to their meds. We wear many hats and do a lot of behind the scene responsibilities... Chisom is going to laugh but I always say we work together as a team, and our role differences can be analogous to the Philadelphia Eagles... I am like Jalen Hurts and Chisom is like Saquon Barkley"
Chisom: "I'm not mad at it... they are good at what they do"
Anna: "I've been in the clinic for 10 years now and a pharmacist for 20 years... Chisom came on board 3 years ago and she is an amazing pharmacist and is an amazing asset to the department and to the clinic."
Chisom: "Sometimes I like to give myself the name of 'chaos coordinator'...a lot of things are going on in my position and it kind of requires you to be flexible, a jack of all trades. I am handling education on one front, access issues, being a patient advocate... whatever the patient needs me to be in that moment to help get their medication is what I have to be. Right then and there."
Q: Are there any barriers that come to mind when thinking of an IBD patients trying to manage their disease?
Chisom: "Insurance. Number one... it's always Insurance. Insurance has their own rules and own dictations as to what can and can't be done before a patient tries a therapy. A doctor can have all this knowledge and experience... they know what would work best for the patient, and the insurance could say 'No, we want the patient to try something else first'. And then it becomes this back and forth... resulting in delays in therapy. Therefore, it's possible a patient cant get started on medication right away and it may take a couple weeks which can significantly impact the patient and their care"
Anna: "Like one of our IBD doctors here at Penn always says, 'You may have a plan in place and then insurance comes and bursts your bubble'. "
Chisom: A lot of our biologics, they're not cheap. As a result, they're not cheap for the patients. So even if the insurance will cover some of it, a lot of the copay is left is up to the patient, and that can still be in the thousands. Luckily, there are copay cards or manufacturer cards that can assist with this financial burden, but there are still scenarios where unfortunately patients cannot afford the medications they are prescribed."
Q: What is some advice you would give to patients with IBD?
Anna: "I always want to convey to patients that we are your team here. We want to partner with the patients and want them to be successful in their health goals, whether it be achieving remission or controlling symptoms. But at the same time, even though we are here as a team to support the patient, the most important person is the patient themself. With that mindset, we want to always make them feel empowered that they can do something too, by becoming informed. Like to Chisom's point, there is a lot of resources available and even though insurance puts up a lot of frustrating barriers, it's important for patients to be knowledgeable and aware of what they can do, what their rights are, and how they can advocate for themselves too. These biologics, again, are not cheap. It takes a lot of navigating on how to get things approved for our GI patients."
Chisom: "I always tell patients, whenever I reach out to them in the initial time they are starting new medications, 'You have my number. Save it. Please call me'. They have this resource and sometimes it can be difficult to get a direct number, so I recommend them to please use it."
STAND UP FOR SCIENCE 2025 RALLY -- PHILADELPHIA
Dr. Bewtra, Krithi, and Brittany had the chance to attend the Stand Up for Science 2025 Rally hosted at City Hall in the heart of Philadelphia. The Stand Up for Science 2025 Rally was a rally held on March 7, 2025 hosted by scientists, researchers and their supporters across the United States as a response to the drastic changes happening in the government that are directly affecting scientific research and funding. The Philadelphia rally had speakers from multiple institutions (Penn Medicine, Drexel University, Temple University, Jefferson Hospital) discussing their life's work along with how these budget cuts are affecting their research and employment. It was disappointing to hear the imminent challenges that these incredible people are facing due to the government -- but it was simultaneously incredibly empowering to see over 2,000 people in the crowd coming together to support science and research here in Philadelphia. Here's to hoping for a better future for science and research!
FEBRUARY 3 -- HAPPY RETRACTION DAY!
Retraction Day, observed on February 3, is a very monumental day in science. It is aimed at raising awareness about the importance of scientific integrity, focusing on the retraction of a very controversial paper. On February 3, 2010, The Lancet, a prominent medical journal, formally retracted the 1998 paper by Andrew Wakefield, which stated that the MMR (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella) vaccine caused autism, which sent the public into panic and caused a mass anti-vaccination movement. The retraction in 2010 occurred after significant research and investigations into the claims, and it was concluded that Wakefield had misrepresented the facts in his research.
To learn more, watch the video below!
To learn more, watch the video below!
Health is Art!
Did you know that the hepatitis B vaccine can prevent cancer? Learn more below!
