Division of Infectious Diseases

Plazomicin: Will it be the future of MDRO treatment?

Today at our UNMC Infectious Disease Research Conference, Dr. Kelly Cawcutt’s presentation included details on Plazomicin, a new antibiotic recently granted FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation,  aimed at treating multi-drug resistant organisms (MDROs). Antibiotic resistance continues to be a clinical problem. The CDC Antibiotic Threat Report has estimated 2 million infections with antibiotic resistant organisms and […]

Feb 6, 2018

Dr. El-Ramahi on “Why I Love ID”

Why I Love ID: “I love ID because it is an exciting field and every day brings interesting cases and unique challenges. It is a field where I have a chance to form strong doctor-patient relationship since we spend a lot of time talking to the patient and as a group, we do ask a […]

Feb 5, 2018

I Am Woman, Hear Me Roar…In Infectious Diseases and More!

February 3 is National Women Physicians Day. This day was chosen to celebrate Women Physicians in honor of Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell’s birthday. Dr. Blackwell was the first woman to matriculate at a US medical school, and her acceptance in 1847 was initially a joke. In those times, medicine was very much a man’s world, but […]

Feb 3, 2018

Can Social Media Revolutionize Academic Medicine?

As we approach our first anniversary in the blogosphere, it was fitting that our very own Dr. Kelly Cawcutt was invited to write a commentary on  a recent publication in the journal Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology that explored the use of Twitter messaging at four major Infectious Diseases/Infection Control conferences worldwide. Dr. Cawcutt’s commentary, entitled Twitter Me This—Can […]

Jan 31, 2018

Dr. Marcelin on “Why I Love ID”

Why I Love ID: “The patients I encounter as an Infectious Diseases specialist are so fascinating. Because we are interested in all aspects of a patient’s history, ID docs get to learn some cool things from their patients. I once had a patient who trained animals for show competitions, and another who taught me how […]

Jan 25, 2018

Erin Van Surksum, PA on “Why I Love ID”

Why I Love ID –  “I love ID because it is never boring. There are so many microorganisms that can cause infection, so many medications we can use to treat, so many side effects to monitor, and so many factors that play a role in patient’s developing these infections. No wonder there are so many […]

Jan 22, 2018

UNMC ID Division Retirement Announcement

The UNMC Division of Infectious Diseases extends our best wishes to Elaine Litton, who retired from the University on January 5th. Elaine has been valued member of the Division of Infectious Diseases with 13 years of service as our Division Administrative Assistant. The Division hosted a Retirement Tea for Elaine on January 5th 2018. It […]

Jan 18, 2018

Effect of variations in clinical practice on blood culture volumes

Blood cultures obtained from central venous catheters (CVC) contain a significantly greater volume of blood than those obtained via peripheral venipuncture.  This is the main finding from a study recently published by investigators at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) (Jones RL, Syles HR, Fey PD and Rupp ME).  “Effect of Clinical Variables on […]

Jan 5, 2018

Policies, Principles and Pragmatism: Are We Following Evidence or Emotion Regarding Infection Control in the OR

In this recent invited article in Clinical Infectious Diseases, our surgical colleagues highlight the ongoing debate regarding what surgical attire should be worn in the operating room.  Highlighted issues are what type of hats should be donned, including those noted in the picture of skullcap versus bouffant, whether or not scrubs are safer or more […]

Dec 29, 2017

ID Administrator completes MBA degree as Distinguished Graduate

The University of Nebraska Medical Center Division of Infectious Diseases would like to congratulate our Division Administrator Jonathan Nguyen who recently successfully completed his MBA program at University of Nebraska. In recognition of his hard work,  Jon was singled out for honors by being selected as the Distinguished Graduate of his class by the business […]

Dec 27, 2017