AHC News Capsules 04/04/07

April 4, 2007

NEWS CAPSULES is a biweekly newsletter for faculty, staff, and students of the Academic Health Center. Please send submissions to Jennifer La Forgia, lafor016@umn.edu.

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One of our top priorities in the health sciences is to become a talent magnet for excellent faculty, staff, and students. We want people to hear about this University's work, and then choose to come here to be part of our institution. Of course, we often grow our own top talent within the University that is then attracted away to serve other leading organizations. That is the case with Dean Jeffrey Klausner of the College of Veterinary Medicine. A top leader in academia, Jeff's reputation caused the highly regarded Animal Medical Center in New York City to come calling. On behalf of the University, I'm deeply sorry to lose Jeff's leadership and dedication to the University. Yet, I also am proud to know that Jeff's great achievements here have been recognized for the outstanding outcomes they are. We're proud of your work, Jeff, and wish you well in the Big Apple. (See story below.)

– Frank B. Cerra

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LEGISLATIVE UPDATE —

The Minnesota Senate and House of Representatives are in the midst of their Passover/Easter Recess, and will reconvene at the Capitol on Tuesday, April 10. A quick look at current status of AHC-related issues:

• The Minnesota Biomedical Sciences Research Facilities Authority, the innovative approach for financing the construction of four new biomedical research buildings, was included in the Senate Capital Investment bill, which passed prior to the recess. The House of Representatives did not include the creation of this Authority in their bill, and University representatives are hard at work to convince the House to move this initiative forward by accepting the Senate program during final negotiations.
• A bill to establish state policy regarding pursuit of stem cell research is likely to be acted on in the House, but has yet to be heard by committee in the Senate. There is no funding attached to this proposal, but it is being monitored for the controversy it is generating.

HEADLINES —

Jeffrey Klausner, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine since 1998, has announced he will step down this summer to become the new president of the Animal Medical Center in New York, the city's largest animal care, education, and research facility. Klausner, who joined the University 30 years ago as assistant professor in CVM, has helped enhance the national stature of the college. During his tenure as dean, its budget increased from $44 million to more than $70 million and private gift-giving to the college more than doubled.

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, part of NIH, has named the University of Minnesota as one of six sites across the country to establish a Center of Excellence for Influenza Research and Surveillance. The center will receive $22.5 million over seven years to focus on surveillance of avian influenza viruses and to provide the federal government with information and public health strategies for controlling the impact of an influenza pandemic. To learn more, go to http://www.sph.umn.edu/

The Master's in Healthcare Administration (MHA) program in the School of Public Health jumped into second place in this year’s U.S. News and World Report rankings of health-care management programs. This is up from fifth place. The rankings are based on surveys sent to leaders in academic health-care management programs across the county.

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Barbara Elliott (Medical School) and Jim Rothenberger (School of Public Health) were selected to receive Outstanding Community Service Awards. The award, established in 1999 by President Bruininks, honors members of the U community who have devoted their time and talent to make substantial and enduring contributions to improve public life and the well-being of society.

Russell Luepker (School of Public Health) testified before the U.S. House and Senate Finance Committees on funding for the Minnesota Department of Health Heart Disease and Stroke Unit. The funding is threatened by cutbacks to the Centers for Disease Control.

Rosalie Kane (School of Public Health) received the U’s Distinguished Women Scholars Award. She was recognized for her outstanding accomplishments in improving long-term care and support services for elderly people worldwide.

James Swift (School of Dentistry), president of the American Dental Education Association, testified before the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Related Agencies on March 27 to advocate for ADEA funding recommendations for NIH research, dental education, dental workforce programs, and access to dental care for the underserved.  

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UPDATES —

The School of Dentistry is first among 56 accredited U.S. dental schools in the number of participants attending school-sponsored continuing education programs, according to the Association for Continuing Dental Education. Students come from around the country and the world to attend the sessions.

Information forums on the planned University of Minnesota Children’s Hospital, Fairview show the facility will consolidate children’s and maternity services on the Riverside campus. The pediatric facility will include four inpatient units (two for medicine and surgery, one for bone marrow transplant and one pediatric intensive care unit), a pediatric emergency department, radiation oncology center, and four new operating rooms. The proposed 185,000 square-foot building will be in front of and connected to the Riverside East building. The project also includes renovation of behavioral units and obstetrics units (now in process). To see the schedule of April forums, go to http://www.uofmmedicalcenter.org/medlinks/c_348286.pdf.

The Bio-Medical Library has introduced two new tools:  Reference assistance through instant messaging (http://www.biomed.lib.umn.edu/services/reference/im) and a guide about electronic books (http://www.biomed.lib.umn.edu/help/guides/ebooks).  Also, check out this website (http://www.biomed.lib.umn.edu) for upcoming workshops on finding full-text articles, health statistics, and more.

The first traffic disruptions due to the East Gateway District construction for the new TCF stadium began March 25 with road work on University Avenue between Oak Street and Huron Boulevard. The Hawkeye Lot will close May 15, and the Huron Boulevard parking complex will close July 1. For more updated information, go to http://www.umn.edu/pts/stadium.htm.

Invite the neighbors! University of Minnesota Physicians will hold a grand opening for the new Smiley’s Clinic located at 2020 E. 28 th Street in Minneapolis. Phillips and Seward neighborhood residents will join the celebration on April 11, 3:30–7:30 p.m. Clinic staff will offer a number of free health screenings at the event, including blood pressure and blood sugar, as well as access to information about clinic services, including smoking cessation plans. The event will include refreshments and entertainment.

Summer construction projects affecting AHC East-Bank buildings include: a major brick-work and window-replacement project on the Chapel Court, the major courtyard within the Mayo Memorial Building, and the relocation of the large oxygen tank from the River Flats area (below East River Road) to an area between Masonic and the Diehl/PWB buildings. Both projects are scheduled to begin this month. Every effort will be made to curtail dust, noise, and disruption.

PROFESSIONAL MEETINGS —

“Design of Medical Devices Conference,” touching all disciplines within the AHC, is coming up April 17–19 at the Radisson University Hotel. Registration is due by April 6. For full details, go to http://www.me.umn.edu/dmd/.

What is the protocol when a clinical trial reveals an unexpected condition (in a patient) not related to the research variable? The conference “Managing Incidental Findings in Human Subject Research: From Imaging to Genomics" will present recommendations from an NIH-funded project to develop standards. Many national experts will speak, May 1, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Cowles Auditorium, Humphrey Center. Advance registration is encouraged. See http://www.lifesci.consortium.umn.edu/conferences/incidentalfindings.php.

The AHC will host a conference “Collaborating Across Borders:  An American-Canadian Dialogue on Interprofessional Education,” Oct. 24–26, to share best practices and to chart a course for improved collaboration in health care. The deadline for abstracts is April 30. For more information, go to http://www.ipe.umn.edu or contact Barbara Brandt at brandt@umn.edu.

LECTURES —

Distinguished Visiting Scholar Series: Robert J. Genco, D.D.S., Ph.D., will present “Oral and Systemic Disease: Crossing the Barriers of Interdisciplinary Research in Academic Health Centers,” Wednesday, April 18, 12:15–1:15 p.m. in 2-520 Moos Tower. Genco is director of the Buffalo Periodontal Disease Research Center and a distinguished professor in the Department of Oral Biology in the School of Dental Medicine at the State University of New York at Buffalo.

Pre-eminent epidemiologist Mervyn Susser will deliver the School of Public Health’s 2007 Gaylord Anderson Lecture, 4 p.m., April 26, at McNamara Center. Susser is Sergievsky Professor of Epidemiology Emeritus of Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and Faculty of Medicine.

Past chair and current member of the Nobel Prize Committee on Medicine, Carl Groth, M.D., Ph.D., presents “Alfred Nobel, the Man and the Prize,” April 10 at 3 p.m. in the Mayo Auditorium. Groth, of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, is a pioneer in kidney, pancreas, liver and islet transplantation. A reception honoring Groth will follow at 4 p.m.

Clinical Research Conference: Selcuk Adabag (Medical School) will present on “The Association of Myocardial Fibrosis on Magnetic Resonance Imaging with Arrhythmias and Sudden Death in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy” on Monday, April 16, 8–9 a.m., in 2-101 Nils Hasselmo Hall.

OPPORTUNITIES —

The AHC Translational Research Grant Program will fund three new grants with up to $200,000 over two to three years. Awards will go to new projects with no outside funding and preference will go to projects that create new collaborations. The goal is to move concepts developed at the University from basic research to clinical testing. The deadline for applications is May 18. Awards will be announced in July. For program and application details, go to http://www.ahc.umn.edu/research/funding/translational/home.html.

“Human Rights, the Burden of Disease and International Tobacco Control” is the topic for the annual School of Public Health Roundtable Series, April 27, 8:30 a.m.–noon in Cowles Auditorium of the Humphrey Center. Keynote speakers will be Carolyn Dresler, M.D., of the University of Arkansas and former head of the Unit for Tobacco and Cancer Group at the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon, France, and Benjamin Mason Meier, J.D. L.L.M., an IGERT International Development and Globalization Fellow in Columbia University’s Department of Socio-Medical Sciences. To register go to http://cpheo.sph.umn.edu/cpheo/events/roundtable/Roundtable_042706.html.

The AHC’s Office of Education announces the second annual Best Practices Institute: Excellence in Health Professions Education to be held May 17–18 on the U’s Minneapolis campus. The institute will provide faculty opportunities for skill-building in small group workshops, plenary sessions, lunch-hour panel discussions with deans from the six AHC schools and colleges, a student panel, and a show-and-tell poster and technology session. Visit http://www.BPinstitute.umn.edu to view a detailed schedule and to register.

“Taking Charge of Your Health” is the theme of the spring Mini Medical School to run Monday evenings, April 9–May 7, 6–8:30 p.m., in the Mayo Auditorium. The series, developed with the Center for Spirituality & Healing, will cover: diet and nutrition; relationships and family; stress mastery; and life purpose. The cost is $75. To learn more and register, go to http://www.ahc.umn.edu/minimed. If you have questions, email minimed@umn.edu.

"Enhancing Student Learning: Conversations About Research and Practice" will be the topic of the April 23 teaching-and-learning conference sponsored by Academy of Distinguished Teachers, UMTC Center for Teaching and Learning, and UMTC Digital Media Center. The conference is free, but registration is required. To register, go to http://www.irr.umn.edu/adt/adtconference07/register.cfm. To learn more, go to http://www.adt.umn.edu/conference07 or contact Karen Zentner Bacig, kbacig@umn.edu or 612-624-5082.

Scientific Writing Development Series is a four-part program being offered by Office of Clinical Research for AHC faculty and staff. The Friday sessions from noon to 1 p.m. will be:
April 13 -- Tackling the Writing Process
April 20 -- Anatomy of a Manuscript
April 27 -- Writing Effective Introductions and Abstracts
May 4 -- Responding to Reviewer Comments
Locations include 1-450G Moos Tower (Twin Cities) and via polycomm in Duluth at 146 Med and 389 Pharmacy. Registration is required at https://intranet.ahc.umn.edu/ocr/writing/registration.html.

AHC News Capsules is a biweekly newsletter for faculty, staff, and students of the Academic Health Center.  Please send submissions to Jennifer La Forgia at lafor016@umn.edu.