Syracuse Sun

State University of New York Upstate Medical University issued the following announcement on Oct. 29.

Upstate Medical University Interim President Mantosh Dewan, MD, delivered an upbeat, grateful and hopeful State of the University address Wednesday afternoon that highlighted the heroic work of more than 10,000 employees during the last year.

Dewan’s one-hour presentation, entitled “Year of Challenge, Year of Hope,” was delivered in-person to 30 Upstate leaders.

Speaking without notes, Dewan talked about the power of the “Upstate Strong” motto that emerged during the pandemic and has remained central to Upstate’s work as an academic medical center. Despite taking heavy financial losses early on, Upstate’s diligence, vision and planning have helped the university and hospital emerge stronger than before.

“In every area we are doing better than we were pre-COVID and it’s because of all the work each one of you does every day,” Dewan said.

Dewan stressed his appreciation for people’s ingenuity and willingness to collaborate during the health crisis. Efforts big and small allowed Upstate to take care of patients and staff but also extend knowledge and care to the Central New York community and around the state. Among his many examples, Dewan cited the team of medical professionals who traveled to Stony Brook University to help care for more than 400 people sick with the virus; the medical students who published a weekly paper about the latest research about the virus; and Radiation Oncology that spent nearly $1 million to purchase PPE for the hospital.

“These are just examples of everyday people, stepping up and doing the right thing and doing it very generously.”

Dewan’s presentation was punctuated with dozens of photos of Upstate staff wearing masks and Upstate Strong apparel. Dewan highlighted the compassion of Upstate employees by noting a spiritual care volunteer who played “Amazing Grace” on a guitar at the bedside of a patient dying from COVID-19.

Upstate welcomed state and local leaders to campus in 2020, many of whom visited to learn more about Upstate’s advancements in healthcare, medicine and research. Dewan cited Upstate’s “game-changing” work to develop and make available pooled saliva testing for the coronavirus, its work testing the Pfizer vaccine and its testing of three antibody treatments for COVID-19. Upstate continues to be a regional and national leader in research, Dewan said, noting that Upstate published 619 more papers in 2020 than it had in 2019, and research funding levels remained consistent in 2020 at about $35 million.

In the last year, Upstate has also made a renewed commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and is focusing on creating a stronger sense of “belonging” for everyone on campus. Dewan described this summer’s social unrest and Black Lives Matter movement as “a wake-up call for us.”

Dewan said he was optimistic about the year ahead because of the “superheroes” he gets to work with every day. Thanks to their persistence during the pandemic and thoughtful planning for the future, Upstate is operating at near pre-COVID levels and is able to continue expansion projects including The Nappi Longevity Institute, a new neurological institute and the Golisano Center for Special Needs, which is scheduled to open in January.

“We are privileged to serve and the importance of that has never been clearer,” he said.

Original source can be found here.