Newswise — The University of Chicago Medicine Kovler Diabetes Center has named two associate directors to support adult and pediatric diabetes care.
Celeste Thomas, MD, has been named associate director of the Kovler Diabetes Center to coordinate inpatient and outpatient quality improvement initiatives and focus on adult outpatient care and education programming.
Thomas’s clinical and academic interests are focused on understanding ways to efficiently improve the quality of diabetes care in both inpatient and outpatient settings. Specifically, she is working with cross-specialty teams to decrease iatrogenic hypoglycemia and improve blood glucose control for patients.
Thomas maintains professional interests in the prevention of diabetes and health disparities through lifestyle interventions, primary care endocrinology in women, and improving clinical practices through education, understanding and compassion for those facing the challenges of diabetes.
Thomas, a Chicagoland native, received a Master of Science from Stanford University in civil and environmental engineering before completing medical school at Northwestern. She completed a residency in internal medicine as well as an adult endocrine fellowship at the University of Chicago, before joining the faculty of the Section of Adult and Pediatric Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism in 2013.
“Dr. Thomas has made an enormous contribution to clinical and translational care, education and research on our campus, and we are honored to have her in this new leadership role at Kovler,” said Louis Philipson, MD, PhD, director of the Kovler Diabetes Center.
Meanwhile, Siri Greeley, MD, PhD, has been named associate director of the Kovler Diabetes Center to coordinate pediatric inpatient and outpatient diabetes care and focus on outpatient education programming for families, parents, caregivers and educators. His outreach efforts also will extend to a variety of communities on the south side of Chicago.
Greeley’s clinical and academic interests are focused on diabetes in children, specifically rare genetic forms of diabetes, or monogenic diabetes. Since 2006, he has pursued patient-oriented and outcomes-based clinical research, with a focus on monogenic neonatal diabetes. Along with Elbert Huang, MD, Greeley published a formal analysis of the cost-effectiveness of genetic testing in neonatal diabetes, showing that testing not only improves quality of life but also represents one of few examples of a medical advancement that is actually cost-saving.
Greeley’s overall goal is to clarify responses to treatment as well as improving long-term outcomes among the rare group of patients with various forms of monogenic diabetes. Greeley has over 50 publications, including several studies that have gained international attention and helped guide treatment considerations in these patients. His ongoing studies include efforts funded by the National Institutes of Health and the American Diabetes Association to understand sleep disturbances, brain functioning and insulin secretion in patients with certain genetic mutations, as well as the long-term neurodevelopmental consequences of diabetes that begins at a very young age.
Greeley received his medical degree and doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania before completing his pediatric residency and pediatric endocrine fellowship at the University of Chicago. He is currently an assistant professor of pediatrics.
“Dr. Greeley has made an enormous contribution to the science of diabetes genetic medicine, pediatric diabetes care, education and research on our campus, and we are honored to have him in this new leadership role at Kovler,” Philipson said.
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