Event Recap: An Evening of Discovery, the GPF Foundation’s 5th Annual Event, October 13, 2022
On October 13, 2022 at Northmoor Country Club a gathering of more than 150 supporters – and potentially hundreds more viewing a livestream feed – learned about progress made on educational and medical initiatives conducted over the last year by the GPF Foundation.
“An Evening of Discovery” featured a keynote address by Dr. Brian Greene, renowned theoretical astrophysicist, and professor at Columbia University (New York). Dr. Greene mesmerized the audience with his thoughts on the origins of time and space and fielded a variety of questions from guests.
Rosalind Franklin University was the recipient of the 2022 Harm Reduction Award, presented from the podium by last year’s winner, Dr. Jerrold Leikin who highlighted just a few of the many activities that the university has collaborated on with the Foundation in a relationship that dates to 2018 when GPFF was launched.
Of note is the Full-Code medical simulation case that has been successfully completed approximately 40,000 times worldwide. The case, developed by James Carlson and Dr. Robin Dyer, both of Rosalind Franklin, allows medical personnel to be immersed virtually in providing care to a patient suffering from an overdose. The simulation allows participants to collect information on the patient’s condition, order diagnostic testing, determine a diagnosis, make treatment decisions, and receive feedback on what was done correctly and areas for improvement.
NFL Hall of Famer Tony Dungy, who was with two Super Bowl winning teams as both a player and coach, made an appearance at the Annual Event. Dungy, currently a football analyst with NBC Sports, graciously agreed to be interviewed on-camera by GPFF friend and supporter Mark Carlson (former star quarterback at Deerfield High School and Dungy’s teammate at the University of Minnesota).
Lake Forest’s Larry Potash, co-news anchor of the Emmy Award winning WGN-TV Morning News, again served as moderator, adroitly keeping all aspects of the evening on schedule and interesting.
Nancy and Ross Friedman provided a fast-moving recap of the Foundation’s significant progress to date, including:
Successful rollouts of comprehensive, peer-to-peer video presentations addressing risks, outcomes, appropriate treatment, and safe zones related to recreational drug dangers.
Development of educational tools to reach a much larger, and possibly younger audience, utilizing technology.
Medical initiatives focused on the overwhelming lack of consistency regarding diagnoses and treatment protocols within the medical community. Due to several extraordinary relationships with doctors and hospital systems, positive feedback demonstrates that this a blind spot in the medical community.
Broadcast news coverage of the successful launch of the simulation case on Full-Code.
Now the Foundation is considering several large-scale initiatives, including Endowed Medical School Fellowships, Diagnostic Drop-Down Menu Development, Community Outreach & Education, Partnership with Lurie Children’s Hospital, and First Responder Training.
GPF Foundation is meeting its goals, becoming widely known and earning a reputation within the academic and medical communities that allows for greater opportunities for saving lives.