Twelve members and colleagues of the Duke Neurology Department received Neurology All Stars this December recognizing their work expanding patient care, helping their colleagues, and going above and beyond the call of duty. December’s All Star Awards include Nzita Lutete, Maria Minor, and Tasnim Mushannen, Roshni Dhoot, Irene Abella, Amy Obssi, Andy Liu, Steven Polack, Wayne Feng, William Powers, Alex Limkakeng, and Richard O’Brien. Read the nominations below to learn more about our most recent All Stars, or nominate yourself or a colleague for an All-Star Award here.
Nzita Lutete
“Merdi did an impeccable job on our night shift. She did all of the following in a single night. She assisted with an emergent overnight LP for a patient. For another patient, she coordinated STAT MRIs for suspected acute cord injury from transverse myelitis, expedited IV steroids for him, coordinated overnight STAT plasma exchange for him, and coordinated a SICU fellow to place the vascath for the PLEX for him overnight. She is a superstar, and we are blessed to have her!”
Nominated by Tasnim Mushannen and River Jordan
Maria Minor and Tasnim Mushannen
“Maria coordinated an excellent educational series for ED residents on neurologic emergencies, and gave neurology residents, fellows, and faculty the opportunity to help present these lectures. Tasnim gave a lecture on dizziness, including exam techniques that help localize, and an ED intern correctly used these techniques to order a CTA for a dizzy patient, which showed a PICA occlusion. Amazing job to Maria, Tasnim, and that ED intern! It has been a great way to exchange knowledge, answer their neurology-specific questions, and build camaraderie between EM and neurology residents.
Nominated by Roshni Dhoot
Wayne Feng, William Powers, Alex Limkakeng
“I wanted to nominate Dr. Wayne Feng, Dr. William Powers, and Dr. Alex Limkakeng for their work in obtaining grant funding for the Duke-UNC Envision regional coordinating center through NIH StrokeNet. This will further allow Duke to participate, collaborate, and lead high-impact clinical trials in acute stroke intervention, secondary prevention, and recovery, and provide residents and fellows with more clinical research experiences.”
Nominated by Dylan “Rhino” Ryan
Irene Abella
“A patient called in today and was adamant that Irene Abella supervising provider be made aware of how wonderful and helpful she was at his recent appointment. He was very appreciative of everything and wanted to share this with her and her supervisor.”
Nominated by Tinasia Ingram
Andy Liu
“In clinic Friday Kim Askren came into the provider room to tell Dr Liu that one of his patients had shown up unexpectedly. In spite of an already full schedule, Dr Liu immediately agreed to see the patient, diffusing a difficult situation for both the patient and the staff.”
Nominated by Rich O'Brien and Michelle Maher
Amy Obssi
“Amy has been a wonderful addition to the Memory Disorders division. She is an outstanding research coordinator but more importantly a better person. Her genuine warmth comes across when speaking with colleagues. I have a high suspicion that this is the case with study participants as well since she was able to recruit an entire family afflicted with a genetic disorder for one of our studies.”
Nominated by Andy Liu
Richard O'Brien
“Dr. O'Brien is the All Star of All Stars! There is an endless number of reasons why he is the All Star of All Stars. I have never seen or heard of a Chair of Department who spends as much time as he does with residents in morning reports and resident continuity clinic. Whenever I reflect on my residency experience thus far, I often think of the many times that Dr. O'Brien has made a situation more light-hearted and less stressful. He is one of the most humble people I have ever met, and he lifts everyone else around him- as evident by how he celebrates All Stars every week. He radiates joy wherever he goes and is always smiling, although being a Chair of a department is probably by no means an easy job. These are only a few of the reasons why he is the All Star of All Stars. We are incredibly grateful to have him as our Chair of the Department. Thank you for everything you do, Dr. O'Brien.”
Nominated by Tasnim Mushannen
Roshni Dhoot
“Resident clinic was running behind schedule in the setting of multiple complex patients and Roshni stepped in to see an extra patient so that they would not be waiting for so long and that everyone would get out at a reasonable time. Her attitude and willingness to be a team player to deliver great patient care and help out her colleagues is admirable.”
Nominated by Tanziyah Muqeem
Steven Polack
“One of my patients had spent days trying to set up a follow up with me due to an urgent issue. By the time she reached Steve, she was very upset and frustrated. He spent a lot of time with her on the phone providing support and consolation. When I saw her in clinic, she shared that Steve was not only able to get her an urgent follow up appointment, but he went above and beyond, spending a long time with her on the phone consoling her and providing her with support. This made a real impact on her and she felt much better after talking to Steve.”
Nominated by Daniel Parker