Name:                                                David Dorsky, M.D., Ph.D.

Academic Rank:                                Associate Professor          

Department(s)/Center:                      Infectious Diseases

Position sought:                                Vice President

Dr. David Dorsky has had more than twenty-five years of clinical practice, teaching and basic laboratory research at UConn Health Center.  He has been involved in AAUP chapter activities since 1998, worked on the organizing campaigns of 1999-2000, was Vice-President of the UCHC-AAUP chapter from 2003-2009, was principal clinical organizer during the union campaign in 2009, and chaired the Constitution Committee in 2010. Since then he has participated by working on the Ad Hoc Operations Committee, the Grievance Committee, and the Search Committee for the executive director. David will work for a UCHC-AAUP union that will articulate faculty concerns and allow the faculty to play a meaningful role in UConn Health Center governance.

The union framework is secure and has an outstanding executive director, thanks to the hard work of the officers and committee members; now it is positioned to address some areas that leadership should advocate for among the councils and membership. First, the union must find ways to communicate much more effectively with its members and encourage more active participation. Second, the contract should be strengthened, aside from compensation issues which are presently in negotiation, and a great deal more work needs to be done on the “reopeners” in the areas of faculty participation in governance, work rules (especially for clinicians), job security for in-residence faculty, and grievance procedures. Third, with all the changes at the UConn Health Center related to “Bioscience CT,” which will include significant faculty additions and attritions, the union must effectively assert its right to participate in the decision-making now that will have huge effects later on. Based on his participation in union activities since 2010, David has shown that he can work well with our colleagues, council members, and committees. He will emphasize respect, tolerance of different points of view, and resolution of internal disagreements through democratic processes. He also promises that, as an officer of this union, when contacted by a member, he will always ask “How can I help?”

 

Name:                                                Santhanam Lakshminarayanan, M.D. (Laks)

Academic Rank:                                Associate Professor

Department/Center:                          Medicine

Position sought:                                Vice President

 Dr. Santhanam Lakshminarayanan is an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Rheumatology at the UConn Health Center. He is a graduate of The Armed Forces Medical College in Pune, India. He completed his residency and rheumatology fellowship training at the University of Connecticut Health Center and joined the Rheumatology faculty in 2002. He is the Director of the Rheumatology Fellowship Program. He is on the medical advisory board for the Lupus Foundation of America, CT Chapter, American College of Rheumatology (ACR) subcommittee for medical student and resident education, and ACR New England OSCE program development for rheumatology fellows. He believes that the faculty needs a strong voice that administration will hear. The Union will be that voice. The Union should be based on fairness. He has never minced words or ducked issues. He is excellent at building bridges and creating partnerships. He is not an obstructionist and while not confrontational by nature has never turned away from a conflict when the cause is right. This mix of honesty, frankness and the capacity to seek common ground and forge compromise will be essential in shaping our future. He is a good listener. He has the courage of his convictions. The same dedication that he shows in his clinical and educational capacities he will bring to the Faculty Union. We are now equal partners in the mission.  He believes that the success of the individual faculty members will help the success of the institution and the success of the institution overall should benefit each individual faculty member. The relationship should be mutually beneficial with accountability on all sides. He believes that, if there ever was a time for a strong faculty union it is now. While the changing healthcare landscape may be cause for angst for the administration it is even more unsettling for the faculty with increasing demands on their time with the implementation of the electronic medical record and all the compliance issues that come with it. Nationally RVU targets for physicians have been reduced because physician productivity has gone down since the introduction of EMR. More faculty in the clinical realm are noticing that they are spending more time than ever before completing the medical record. A lot of the time is spent after hours, with a sense of loss of control over their professional and personal lives. Increased involvement and engagement of the clinical faculty is more important now than ever before. He is very busy clinically and with the fellowship but truly believes in the merits of a faculty union that will work towards excellence in all aspects of the Medical School and the Health Center. This is why he chooses to run for office.