At TTUHSC, innovation and collaboration are critical pillars for our vision to transform health care. As such, they are also the driving force of our five-year strategic plan. You can learn more on our website at https://bit.ly/34GnhSJ.

More than 30 years ago, TTUHSC conducted its first telemedicine visit (see “Telemedicine’s Perfect Storm” in Pulse Winter 2021). Through innovation, this practice of distance medicine has evolved into one significantly impacting multiple areas of health care.

When Moses began working at TTUHSC in 2008, she was the only clinician in the medical school’s Department of Family and Community Medicine. “I needed help, but more importantly, I needed help from providers who would stay in the community,” said Moses, a licensed psychologist and director of behavioral health for TTUHSC at the Permian Basin.

The community wanted this, too, as they understood the mental health provider shortage’s impact and were willing to partner with Moses through funding and resources support.

overed in layers upon layers of personal protective equipment, Ebtesam Islam, MD, PhD, FCCP, (Resident ’16, ’13; Medicine ’09; Biomedical Sciences ‘05) spends five hours stabilizing one patient. Sweat drips down her back as she does chest compressions, shouting orders so she can be heard through her mask. Up to six people in the room giving medications, stabilizing the airway, starting intravenous fluids, etc. — it’s stressful, but she remains steadfast in the work. “It’s somebody’s life,” she adds. “And you want so bad to save them.”

As a pulmonary and critical care physician in the medical intensive care unit at University Medical Center in Lubbock, Texas, Islam treats the sickest of the sick. But previous patients have not compared to the challenge of caring for a COVID-19 patient. Every hour of every 12-hour shift, she’s pushed to the very limits of her abilities and stamina.

acey Thornhill, PharmD, (Pharmacy ’10) still finds it difficult to talk about April 2020. She and her husband, Jared Thornhill, PharmD, (Pharmacy ’10) had finally embarked upon Lacey’s lifelong dream of opening her own pharmacy. They gave up the security of her job. They gave up the insurance benefits that came with said job for them and their three young daughters. They gave up the comfort that came with those safety nets. They could not afford to fail.

Medicine Graduate: 1996

As owner and sole physician of Waco Primary Care, Karl M. Trippe, MD, will occasionally ask another physician to cover for him, but otherwise, he says, “I’ve had my phone on for 10 years.” He even answered a call right before walking his daughter down the aisle at her wedding – although, he he did say he’d have to call them back.

Trippe recognizes that the always-on-call lifestyle isn’t for everyone, but he values the autonomy — the ability to take as much time with a patient as he wants, for instance, and to make referrals without in-house corporate pressure.

The result, he says, is a strong personal relationship with his patients. “I don’t think I’ve bought a carton of eggs in I don’t know how long,” he says with a chuckle.

Trippe does hope to add a partner in the next year, with a goal of someone taking over the practice in 15 or 20 years. He would like nothing better, he says, than to identify a like-minded physician to continue the independent path he’s forged. — Tina Hay

Working with the TTU football team as a graduate student provided further confirmation she was on the right track. The school’s aggressive approach to rehabilitation created a robust environment with athletes involved in preventive exercises, recovering from surgery and everything in between.

Carden recently returned to TTU as an assistant athletic trainer after finishing an internship with the San Francisco 49ers. — Kim Catley

UpdateNews & Notes

UpdateNews & Notes | Friends We’ll Miss

For almost 25 years, The United Family’s gifts have supported scholarships for pharmacy students at TTUHSC, and their generosity has most certainly come full circle. More than 80 TTUHSC graduates currently work in The United Family’s 40 Texas pharmacies. Throughout the pandemic, United Supermarkets pharmacies also have been a valued community partner for TTUHSC in health education and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. These are just two examples of the company’s many gifts impacting the missions of TTUHSC and Texas Tech University.

“We give where we think it might have the most impact in the areas we serve,” said Taylor. He points to TTUHSC and The United Family’s congruous footprints, serving the western half of Texas across to the DFW Metroplex and into eastern New Mexico.

“You always want the best return on your investment, and we feel like we’ve gotten a huge return both on our personal investments and for United,” said Taylor. He and his wife, Jan, also give personally to the universities. “There’s no doubt that Texas Tech and the (Texas Tech University) Health Sciences Center are universally good – but more importantly, they’re good for this region and the entire state.”

New Year, New Gear!