Running for a Cause: B.A.A. 10K runners support BWFH

On June 24, runners will gather on Boston Common for the start of the 2018 Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) 10K road race. Among them will be nearly 60 runners from Team Brigham Health fundraising specifically for Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital.

The funds raised by Kerstin Palm, OT, Lucia Sloane, PT, and Angela Serig, OT, from the Outpatient Rehabilitation Services Department will go directly to BWFH’s Lymphedema Patient Care Fund. “Patients with lymphedema require specific bandaging supplies and medical-grade compression garments which are critical to help reduce and manage this chronic condition. Use of compression helps to improve mobility and prevent progression of the disease, as well as prevent wounds and infections,” explains Serig. “Many insurance companies do not cover the cost of these garments which can be expensive and difficult for patients to afford. Funds raised last year by the department helped to cover the cost of garments for a range of patients with lymphedema due to endometrial cancer, head and neck cancer, breast cancer, phlebolymphedema and primary lymphedema.”

Surgical breast physician assistants Katie McLean, Jenna Macone, Katie Anderson and Lara Novak have organized a team that includes many of BWFH’s breast cancer surgeons. Team Saving Second Base is running to support Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Breast Center at Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital. “Every day, our Surgical Breast Group works in conjunction with multiple disciplines, including but not limited to plastic surgery, our BWFH OR family, pathology and radiology. This race has given us an opportunity to take our tight knit team out of the hospital, and raise funds that will directly support our incredible patient population,” says McLean. “Our team is currently made up of personnel from almost all disciplines listed above, and we are excited by the number of surgeons who have agreed to join us! I think this just demonstrates the importance we place on working together as a team, whether it involves patient care or out of work events, each and every day.”

Team Mental Health is running in support of the Ashton Family Foundation at BWFH. BWFH’s Director of Inpatient Psychology and Training Christopher AhnAllen, PhD, is organizing the team. “Our 2 South family is a wonderful set of bright, warm and committed faculty and staff who are experts at providing acute care for those with serious mental illness. I have been honored to be a part of this family and to recognize the substantial commitment that the Ashton Family has provided for our 2 South patients.”

Team member Rachael Rosales, MD, says, “I’m a first-year psychiatry resident, and I’m running to support mental health efforts for others through the Ashton Family Foundation AND for myself and my new colleagues by working together to promote our own physical fitness! I’ve never run a 10K before, and I’m excited to do it for a good cause with some stellar teammates!”

Also on Team Mental Health is Sharon Giardino, LICSW, who says, “I’m running to elevate the work that our dedicated staff provide to people who experience mental illness, as well as to actively challenge society’s perceptions and stigma of understanding mental illness. My run will support the Ashton Family Foundation, which is a fund that will directly benefit the patients who come into our care, most importantly it will set aside funds for a peer specialist to continue to work with our patients. I have seen the impact peer specialists can have as they offer their lived experiences, providing hope to people with mental illness. Whether it’s dealing with hearing voices, experiencing ambivalence about taking psychiatric medications or coming into the mental health system for the first time, everyone deserves to be heard and respected. A peer specialist offers their experiences and advice that helps our patients feel at ease during their most difficult times, and during times of change and growth.”

Julia Trumble, LICSW, and Cynthia Nichols, LICSW, both work in the Outpatient Suboxone Practice for Opioid Addiction at BWFH. Together, they are Team Addiction Recovery. “In addition to Suboxone treatment, we see patients who struggle with other substance use disorders on top of co-occurring psychiatric disorders,” Trumble says. “We have both been working with people who struggle with substance use disorders since graduating from our respective MSW programs. We both feel that addiction treatment saves lives and are committed to raising awareness on this important issue. Massachusetts is in the middle of an opiate epidemic and Suboxone treatment is a very important tool in the treatment of opiate use disorder. We have personally seen the benefits of Suboxone treatment and other medication-assisted treatments through our clinical work over the years. Because of this, running and training for the 10K is a very meaningful event for us.”

These are just some of the runners raising funds in support of BWFH. To support one of these runners or others, click here.