AHC News Capsules 11/13/07
November 13, 2007
NEWS CAPSULES
is a biweekly newsletter for faculty, staff, and students of the Academic Health Center. Please send submissions to Jacob Portnoy at port0179@umn.edu.
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We have been back from Southeast Asia for a week, and I continue to mentally unpack from the remarkable range of meetings and experiences of the trip. It is now clear that the University and Academic Health Center have a role in providing the coordinating infrastructure necessary to enable our students and faculty to learn from and engage in other parts of the world. The opportunities in India for clinical research, for faculty and student exchanges, and for collaborative programming and funding were presented in each location we visited. In Delhi, the Indian Council for Medical Research is eager to collaborate with our faculty researchers. In Bangalore, medical and nursing schools at St. John’s University and at Narayana Hrudayalaya have the potential to expose our students and faculty to a range of issues in care delivery. And the potential for collaboration between our School of Public Health with Manipal University of Health Sciences promises great strides for the public health of India, as well as greater learning for our students and faculty. As we produce our program outline for the University’s presence in India, I’ll seek opportunities to engage you further in the development.
– Frank B. Cerra, M.D.
Sr. Vice President for Health Sciences
First systemic therapy for fatal childhood disease performed
Researchers at the University of Minnesota recently performed the first bone marrow and cord blood transplant to treat an 18-month-old boy with a rare and fatal condition, recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa. The disease causes skin to slough off with little movement or friction.
Study finds Medicare lacks tools, incentives to enforce evidence-based coverage policies
There has been much discussion among providers, payers, and policymakers to encourage evidence-based medicine as a means to improve quality and reduce costs. According to School of Public Health research, Medicare lacks sufficient information in most cases to apply a policy and does not have the resources or incentives to acquire the information. Medicare appears reluctant to aggressively enforce policies that affect medical judgments, even if those decisions are inconsistent with scientific evidence. For more information, go to: http://www.ahc.umn.edu/news/releases/medicare110107/home.html.
Michael Osterholm, M.P.H, Ph.D. (School of Public Health), was selected by the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) as the 2007 recipient of the State Excellence in Public Health Award. This award recognizes outstanding service on behalf of the public health community at both the state and national levels.
Vernon Weckwerth, Ph.D. (School of Public Health), has received the 2007 Award for Global Engagement, a University-wide award given to faculty and staff members in recognition of outstanding contributions to global education and international programs. Weckwerth was recognized for his work to improve the delivery of health services throughout the world.
Marna Ericson, Ph.D. (Medical School), received an award as a semi-finalist in the International Science and Engineering Visualization Challenge for a photograph of arthropod muscle (left). Ericson won the competition in 2004 and has placed in each of the last four years. For more information on the competition, go to: http://www.sciencemag.org/sciext/vis2007/.
Denis Clohisy, M.D., has been named the new head of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. Clohisy’s main areas of interest include the development of experimental models of bone cancer, the discovery of new bone cancer therapies, and the study of the mechanisms that drive bone cancer pain.
James D. St. Louis, M.D., will join the Department of Surgery as a tenured associate professor in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery. St. Louis will hold the Aldo Castañeda Professorship in Congenital Heart Surgery.
François Sainfort, Ph.D., has been named head of the Division of Health Policy and Management in the School of Public Health. He also has been named a Mayo Professor of Public Health. For more information, go to:
http://www.ahc.umn.edu/news/releases/sainfort110107/home.html.
Web site for health care consumers receives excellence award
Taking Charge of Your Health, a Web site for consumers created by the Center for Spirituality & Healing in collaboration with the Life Science Foundation, has been awarded the Health Care Standard of Excellence from the Web Marketing Association. Taking Charge of Your Health is a free, interactive Web site that provides tools and resources to help consumers make informed health care choices. To see the site, go to: http://www.takingcharge.csh.umn.edu/.
New interdisciplinary concentration area approved
The Health Disparities interdisciplinary concentration is now available to Master of Public Health students in the School of Public Health. This concentration area addresses the unequal burden of health risks, morbidity, and mortality experienced by minority cultural and social groups in the United States, as well as unequal quality of and access to health care. The Health Disparities concentration joins three other interdisciplinary areas: Complimentary and Alternative Medicine; Global Health; and, Public Health Policy.
University's Course Guide system improved
Updates include a fix for issues with the new "media upload" function. Instructors and departmental scheduling coordinators can now upload syllabi, an instructor photo and bio, and a short video clip to course descriptions. The course guide is available for graduate and undergraduate courses. The new streamlined system allows instructors and / or staff to enter course information. To view a tutorial, go to: http://onestop.umn.edu/onestop/faculty/Course_Guide.html.
Finding breakthroughs in biomedical engineering
The “What If” campaign is designed to encourage Academic Health Center and Institute of Technology faculty to consider new approaches to medical device design or improvements upon existing technologies. Sponsored by the Institute for Engineering in Medicine (IEM), the first two rounds of the campaign awarded more than $170,000 in funds. IEM is now accepting applications for round three. To submit an idea, go to: http://www.iem.umn.edu.
Gain insights on future trends in the life science industry
Be part of the largest gathering of life science professionals in the Upper Midwest at the Sixth Annual LifeScience Alley Conference & Expo, Dec. 6, at RiverCentre in St. Paul. Access a wealth of industry information and network with over 1,200 attendees representing the health care, medical device, biopharma, pharmaceutical, agricultural and industrial biotechnology, and renewable energy sectors. The University is a sponsor of this event. For more information, go to: http://www.lifesciencealleyconference.org.
Medical School white coat ceremony
Twin Cities first-year students will symbolically don the professionalism and responsibilities of becoming a physician along with their first white coats at 2 p.m., Nov. 17, in Northrup Auditorium. On the Duluth campus, about 375 people attended the White Coat event that took place Oct. 6.
Memorial service to honor anatomy donors
Students in the Program in Human Anatomy Education will recognize donors and their families for the contributions that make anatomy education possible, 6:30 p.m., Nov. 13, at Ted Mann Concert Hall. The program begins at 7 p.m. and an informal reception will follow.
“Research documentation in the medical record”
The next Clinical Research Coordinator’s Group meeting is 7:30-9:00 p.m., Dec. 4, in 2-520 Moos Tower. Speakers will be Adrienne Baranauskas, director, Fairview Research Administration, Theresa Nguyen, EHR clinical training analyst, University of Minnesota Physicians, Cindi Walsh, clinical analyst, Fairview Health Services.
Scholarly publishing Web cast
The Health Sciences Libraries are sponsoring a Web cast on scholarly publishing and open access, 1-3 p.m., Nov. 20. For more information and to register, go to: http://www.biomed.lib.umn.edu/node/1420.
LECTURES
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“What Every Family Physician Needs to Know about Integrative and Holistic Health Care”
Karen Lawson, M.D., and Bill Manahan, M.D., will speak at Family Medicine and Community Health Grand Rounds, 12:15 – 1:15 p.m., Nov. 28, in 1-450 Moos Tower. The event is presented by the Center for Spirituality & Healing and Mankato Family Medicine Residency. Lunch will be served.
“The Essential Role of Biomedical and Health Informatics in Academic Health Centers: Minnesota Leads the Way”
Senior Vice President for Health Sciences Frank Cerra will welcome Don E. Detmer, M.D., M.A., president and chief executive officer of the American Medical Informatics Association for a presentation on the power and strength of informatics in the health sciences, 4-5 p.m., Dec. 11, in Mayo Memorial Auditorium. A reception will follow.
“Whole Systems Research: What is it and Why is it important?”
Marja Verhoef, PhD, Canada Research Chair in Complementary Medicine, Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, will speak noon-1:30 p.m., Nov. 19, at Mayo Memorial Auditorium. The event is sponsored by Minnesota Consortium for CAM Clinical Research. For more information, contact info@mncam.org.
TIME CAPSULE
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The move to an interprofessional model
In 1967, an effort to double the class size of students in health science programs to 6,900 by 1986 was brought before the Board of Regents. The plan included a change to the existing educational model that would encourage a "closer integration of all health science programs" with "significant implications for the training of physicians, dentists, nurses, pharmacists, and members of the growing number of associated health professions." Today, the interprofessional model is still the core of the educational mission of the AHC. Learn more about the 1967 proposal.
AHC News Capsules is a biweekly newsletter for faculty, staff, and students of the Academic Health Center. Please send submissions to Jacob Portnoy at port0179@umn.edu.
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