UVA Heart and Vascular Center Fontaine

03/26/2026

03/26/2026

It’s only been in recent diet culture that fiber has become a bad word. As people focus on protein – sometimes exclusively! – our intestinal broom has gotten swept up in the madness. But fiber has a lot of benefits. And most of us aren’t getting nearly enough.

"There are many health benefits of fiber. It helps with weight loss, helps with constipation, it reduces your risk of colore**al cancer, and it reduces your risk of diverticulitis. So basically, we all are not getting enough fiber in the current American diet," says Traci Hedrick, MD, a colon and re**al surgeon at UVA Health.

🥗 Check out this easily-digestible guide on everything you need to know about fiber and more at https://bit.ly/4d4blLI

03/25/2026

We have officially opened Central Pharmacy Services — a critical hub for all four of our regional medical centers and a key tool in widening UVA Health's reach across Virginia and more than a dozen other states from Florida to Massachusetts through pharmacy home delivery services.

💊 The new 30,000-square-foot facility just a few miles north of Charlottesville includes a state-of-the-art automation system that will help the pharmacy team process up to 4,000 prescriptions per shift, so patients get their medications sooner.

"Great healthcare is built on quiet excellence, the kind performed behind the scenes, long before a patient ever walks through our doors," UVA Health Pharmacy Director of Central Fulfillment Services Adrienne Cobb, PharmD, DPLA said at Friday's ribbon-cutting ceremony. "The work we do here may not always be visible, but it is essential to patient care, makes a real difference, and gives us purpose.”

💊 Learn more about Central Pharmacy at

03/25/2026

A new algorithm developed by the UVA Center for Diabetes Technology — when paired with a continuous glucose monitor — can help people with type 2 diabetes better manage their condition by recommending personalized insulin-dose adjustments, according to a new study.

In a 16-week clinical trial, participants who used the algorithm saw their average time in a safe blood-sugar range jump from 54.1 to 75.3 percent. Those who self-monitored saw a much smaller increase, from 50.2 to just 55.3 percent.

🔗 Learn more at https://bit.ly/480cWi3

03/24/2026

Today, Mailinh Nguyen is a typical high schooler in Virginia. But not long ago, she was very ill from lupus.

With lupus, your immune system mistakenly attacks your body’s own healthy cells. “I had a flare up, which caused multiorgan system failure in my body,” remembers Mailinh. “And it mainly impacted my lungs. Which is why I was put on ECMO, to help support my lung function.”

Mailinh needed to stay in the hospital at UVA Health to treat her lupus. Her condition was so severe, her care team brought in ECMO, which stands for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, to support for her heart and lungs. With ECMO, Mailinh was able to get the treatment she needed for her lupus, putting her on the road back to normal.

🩵 Learn more about ECMO life-support treatment and Mailinh's experience at https://bit.ly/41hAWcO

03/24/2026

"It's our goal at the University of Virginia, really, to make sure that patients have a comfortable procedure and an excellent procedure." – Cynthia Yoshida, UVA Health gastroenterologist

💙 March is Colore**al Cancer Awareness Month! Most colonoscopy screenings don't find cancer. We find small growths we can remove BEFORE they turn into cancer.

If cancer is found with a screening, you'll have an excellent chance of beating it. Colore**al cancer is highly treatable at an early stage and before any symptoms start.

Learn more about the full spectrum of screening options at https://bit.ly/4svTAK9

03/23/2026

03/22/2026

We're proud to announce that two University Medical Center clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) have received national recognition! 🏥

At the 2026 Annual Conference of the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists (NACNS), Kim Elgin, DNP, APRN, ACNS-BC, PCCN, CMSRN, was honored with the Brenda Lyon Leadership Award. The award honors individuals who demonstrate extraordinary leadership in advancing the mission of NACNS. The Advanced Practice Provider (APP) Director (who's marking 32 years of working with UVA Health — also earned the National Magnet Nurse of the Year® for Structural Empowerment in 2022, and was inducted as a Fellow of the Clinical Nurse Specialist Institute (FCNS) in 2023 and as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN) in 2025.

Kristi Kimpel Wilkins, MSN, APRN, CCNS, CCRN, earned the Evidence-Based Practice/Quality Improvement Award at the same conference. This year will mark Wilkins' 27th year with UVA Health, where she has led several initiatives that have improved patient safety, reduced harm, and optimized healthcare resources.

03/21/2026

The UVA School of Medicine has climbed to No. 36 nationally in National Institutes of Health (NIH) research funding — up from 39th last year and 43rd just five years ago. In 2025, the School received more than $203 million NIH awards, a reflection of the quality and competitiveness of the research happening here.

"Our scientists and clinicians are doing incredible work to advance discoveries from bench to bedside and to accelerate how quickly we can get new treatments to the patients who need them." — Colin Derdeyn, MD, Interim Dean, UVA School of Medicine

From Alzheimer's research to ovarian cancer to the growing momentum of the Paul and Diane Manning Institute of Biotechnology, UVA is building something significant: for patients, for the region, and for the future of medicine.

03/21/2026

03/20/2026