Penn Medicine Princeton Health

Sometimes, listening to your intuition can make all the difference—maybe even save a life. That’s exactly what happened when Stella Chang, a nurse at the Infusion Center at Princeton Medical Center, noticed something wasn’t right. When a reliable patient missed his appointment without calling, she didn’t ignore the red flag. Instead, she took action, setting off a chain of events that led to a life-saving rescue. Her colleague shared the full story when nominating Stella for a DAISY Award for extraordinary nursing: "One of our oncology patients failed to show for his treatment. This patient is consistently on-time or early, and always communicates any changes to us. Stella recognized his failure to show or call as out of character for him and took it upon herself to reach out to him on his cellphone. She made several attempts to reach him – all of them unsuccessful. She then notified his medical oncologist who asked her staff to contact the patient’s niece. The niece confirmed that the patient lives alone, called his residential director, and requested a welfare check. The patient was found on the floor where he had fallen and laid for 10+ hours. He was too weak to get himself up and out of reach of his phone. He was transported to our Emergency Department and admitted. Had Stella simply written this off as a 'no show' the outcome could have been very different." Congratulations Stella!

This Employee Appreciation Day, we're celebrating the dedication of our incredible team. Thank you for your compassion and expertise that make a difference in every healing moment.

Many young people don’t think about getting colorectal cancer, but more and more adults under 45 are being diagnosed. At age 38, Joe, a husband and dad to 1-year-old twin boys, started noticing some digestive issues and decided to talk to his doctor about a colonoscopy. The test revealed colon cancer, but thanks to early detection, Joe got the treatment he needed and is now back to his busy life. He’s grateful for the care he received at Penn Medicine and is passionate about spreading the word—don’t ignore symptoms like bleeding or changes in bowel habits, and get screened. Early detection makes all the difference! #ColonCancerAwarenessMonth

According to Carolyn Green Bernacki, DO, Associate Medical Director of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Penn Medicine Princeton House Behavioral Health, more children and teens have been engaging in nonsuicidal self-injury over the past decade. https://spr.ly/6046LOtKA

Penn Medicine Princeton Health gastroenterologist Anish Sheth, MD, and other experts shared insights about gut-healthy lifestyle insights in a @Parade article. https://spr.ly/6040xIRIr

“This is it, this pain is going to force me to stop training,” Katie Florio thought while training for the Philadelphia Marathon—16 weeks into her pregnancy. Pelvic floor pain manifested at the worst possible time, threatening her training regime ahead of the Olympic Marathon Trials and Philadelphia Marathon. But that’s when Florio met Claire Todd PT, DPT, PRPC, a Penn Medicine physical therapist and endurance runner and running coach. With Todd's help, Florio exceeded her goals. She not only ran at the Olympic Trials, but won the marathon in November 2024, 13 months after her son's birth. https://spr.ly/6048aQtby

On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day--the only federal holiday designated as a National Day of Service--many Princeton Health employees will join others across Penn Medicine, honoring Dr. King's legacy by participating in service events and volunteer opportunities. #MLKDay

First things first: How does alcohol impact health? In short, alcohol affects almost every organ and tissue in the body, including the brain, heart, lungs, liver, stomach, and more. “We observe its effects on the brain most readily because the brain is the organ of behavior,” Henry Kranzler, MD, director of the Center for Studies of Addiction at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, tells SELF. Read the full article: https://spr.ly/6044aRTaj

As bird flu continues to ramp up, experts are watching closely for signs of mutation that allows the virus to more easily infect human cells. Several vaccines for bird flu are already in development, including one at Penn Medicine, using the mRNA platform developed by Nobel Prize winner Drew Weissman, MD, PhD. Scott Hensley, PhD, of Microbiology, who is leading the development of the vaccine at Penn, explains why the mRNA platform is ideal for this type of virus, and why it's important to invest in vaccines now, before the virus becomes a pandemic. https://spr.ly/6042aurY0

CAR T cells have cured cancer for many patients. But the current treatment process is a laborious one. CAR T cell therapy pioneer Carl June, MD, has teamed up with Nobel Prize Laureate Drew Weissman, MD, PhD, to explore the possibility of using mRNA vaccines to help a patient's own body create the CAR T cells needed to train the immune system to fight cancer.