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Paula L. Stillman

What I Do

Director of Community Engagement of The Institute of Emerging Health Professions at Jefferson University

My Background

Dr. Stillman is responsible for leading a number of strategic priorities – including coordination and development of initiatives in urban health to further enhance Temple's ability to meet the comprehensive healthcare needs of the under-served population of North Philadelphia. As part of the Institute for Population Health, she is responsible for the creation of innovative outreach strategies including community health workers and the implementation of integrated systems across all clinical and administrative users of clinical data and metrics. Dr. Stillman served previously as Senior Vice President for Special Projects at Christiana Care Health System in Newark, DE, and as Senior Vice President of Quality and Care Management at Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health System. Throughout her career in academic medicine, Dr. Stillman has held a number of faculty appointments and administrative positions including Dean and Provost at Eastern Virginia Medical School and Curriculum Dean at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. After earning a medical degree from New York University School of Medicine, Dr. Stillman completed residency training in pediatrics at Boston City Hospital and the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson. She earned an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. She has a black belt in lean six sigma. She is a master of the American College of Physician. She has received international recognition for her contributions to medical education, performance assessment, and the use of standardized patients.

Hospitalists, first do no harm. Pay attention to each patient's needs

My husband was recently hospitalized for 3 days at Jefferson. He is fine now and back to normal. When you are hospitalized, your care is taken over by a "hospitalist." These are doctors who only take care of patients in the hospital. Our past experience with hospitalists has not been optimum. Often, they do not take time to learn the patient's past history, repeat studies that have already been done elsewhere, and fail to communicate with the primary care physician who has been following the patient. They usually see the patient one time a day and there can be a lag time between when a study is ordered, is done, and then acted upon.

Paula L. Stillman 

A single payer system could mean more coordinated care

I do not want to have to switch my health care coverage. For the past 15 years, I have had multiple spinal epidural injections to relieve my sciatic nerve pain. The injection lasts for 4-6 months and I am pain free during that interval. All of my records and images are at a major hospital in Delaware where I worked for 8 years. When I left that position I went on Medicare. My injections continued without a copay. I now work at a major health system in Philadelphia and receive health coverage through that health care system.

Paula L. Stillman 

Support counselors can keep addicts in recovery and out of prison

I recently had the opportunity to train an extraordinary group of individuals to be community health workers. They were former addicts in recovery, who were also receiving training to be certified recovery specialists for those still addicted. Many of them had been incarcerated and were also trained as forensic peer specialists to help fellow prisoners about to be released. Most of my students had previously been homeless and many now lived in shelters and were on welfare. I spent seven weeks with them and got to know them very well. After graduation, almost all of them had job offers.

Paula L. Stillman