UPMC Children’s GI IBD Specialist Whitney Sunseri, MD, Honored by Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation with “Whatever It Takes Award”
October 24, 2022
Whitney Sunseri, MD, assistant professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh was honored with their 2022 “Whatever It Takes Award” from the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation local chapter for her ongoing dedication to the care of pediatric patients with inflammatory bowel diseases and her support and work advancing the mission of the foundation.
Each year, the Foundation’s local chapter presents the “Whatever It Takes” award to an individual who has gone above and beyond with their service and support for the chapter and its mission. Dr. Sunseri was honored at the Chapters annual Take Steps fundraiser and walk-a-thon.
Dr. Sunseri has a long history of work with the Foundation’s chapter, in addition to her clinical work at UPMC Children’s treating patients with IBD, her role as assistant program director of the Pediatric Gastroenterology Fellowship Program, and as the program director for the Pediatric Gastroenterology Advance Practice Provider fellowship.
Dr. Sunseri received this year’s award for her work and leadership as a member of the Executive Leadership Council in 2019, her annual commitment as Camp Doctor for West Virginia Camp Oasis, a week-long sleep away camp for children with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, and most recently for her Exclusive Enteral Nutrition challenge.
In the Spring of 2022, for eight weeks, Dr. Sunseri consumed all of her nutrition and daily calories from a 100% diet of complete meal replacement shakes. Dr. Sunseri’s challenge was done to increase awareness around exclusive enteral nutrition as an induction agent for mild to moderate luminal Crohn’s Disease.
“The challenge was also a way for me to empathize and connect more deeply with my patients. If I am recommending this option as a therapy to my patients and their families, I wanted to make sure I could do it as well so others could learn from my experience,” says Dr. Sunseri. “It was an invaluable and very eye-opening experience, highlighting what I already knew as a clinician that cares for children with IBD: that they are all amazingly resilient, courageous, and stoic in the face of significant health challenges. I am forever in awe of them.”
Dr. Sunseri documented her eight-week experience on her personal Instagram account @Afterstoolspecial.
Learn more about Dr. Sunseri and her background here, and learn more about the IBD Center at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.
