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Dedication of the Rodebaugh Diabetes Center

photo by Marguerite Miller

Dr. Clayton Kyle, Dr. Mark Schutta and Dr. Mitch Lazar at the Rodebaugh Diabetes Center's dedication.

 

Last Wednesday, the new Penn Rodebaugh Diabetes Center at HUP was officially dedicated. UPHS has relocated and expanded the Center, which is now on the fourth floor of Penn Tower. It was recently renamed in recognition of a generous gift from the estate of Mrs. Grace Rodebaugh, Ed '25, L '35, who died June 25, 1999. In the early 1980s, she and her husband, Everett, W '22, had created their charitable remainder trusts to foster research on diabetes and to show their appreciation for Dr. G. Clayton Kyle, Med '47, a Penn diabetes specialist. The Conference Room in the Rodebaugh Diabetes Center is named for Dr. Kyle, who said that this  has fulfilled his dream of a state-of-the-art center.

Dr. Arthur Rubenstein, EVP for UPHS and Dean of the School of Medicine, called the dedication an auspicious occasion and thanked the many generous patients who made this a reality.

Dr. Andrew Schafer, chair of the department of medicine, said this will be a "world-class clinic with cutting-edge facilities" that will provide "unsurpassed care using an interdisciplinary approach."

Dr. Mitchell Lazar, chief of the division of endocrinology, diabetes, and metabolism, noted a "sobering fact," one out of every three children in the U.S. born in the year 2000 will develop diabetes. He said the disease  has reached epidemic proportions.

Dr. Mark Schutta, the medical director of the Center, pointed out how Dr. Kyle has been innovative and ahead of his time. In the 1950s, long before it was generally accepted that tight glycemic control and frequent testing of blood sugar was necessary to prevent complications, Dr. Kyle was recommending such unheard of practices to his patients.

The Rodebaugh Center is  dedicated to the treatment and prevention of diabetes, a chronic disease afflicting over six percent of the U.S. population: nearly 18 million Americans. Using a team approach including board-certified endocrinologists specializing in diabetes care, podiatrists, diabetes nutritionists, certified diabetes nurse specialists and certified diabetes nurse educators, the center is able to address the many needs of diabetic patients. The Center is dedicated specifically to providing comprehensive care for patients with diabetes, pre-diabetes and other endocrine problems.

In addition to patient-oriented services such as nutrition and diet counseling, and diabetes education, the Center participates in research and clinical trials designed for advancing the treatment of diabetes and ultimately finding a cure. HUP is one of only 12 centers worldwide conducting highly complex experimental islet cell transplantation research in type 1 diabetes patients.

For more information about the Penn Rodebaugh Diabetes Center, call (215) 662-2468 or visit online at pennhealth.com.