This Week@WesternU, June 6-10, 2016
From the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific:
COMP-Northwest graduates 105 physicians
“I charge each and every one of you to always remember at the end of every action, every thought, every deed, there is a patient.”
That was the parting message given to Western University of Health Sciences’ College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific-Northwest’s newly minted osteopathic physicians at their Commencement ceremony on Friday, June 3.
“Your patients and communities will come to recognize you as one of those special physicians from COMP-Northwest,” said COMP and COMP-Northwest Dean Paula M. Crone, DO. “Those caring, compassionate, humanistic doctors that no one expected still exist. I am proud to say that they do, and that all of you will carry that forward.”
WesternU COMP-Northwest conferred diplomas to 105 new physicians at the ceremony, which was held on the medical school’s campus. The Class of 2016 consists of 65 men and 40 women, the majority of whom have ties to the Northwest.
Click here to read the full story.
Click here to view a recording of the ceremony.
Kudos on accomplishments
Dr. Vicki Wedel of COMP and CDM participated in Sankofa 5, discussing “Bone health in historical Africans and African Americans.” Sankofa is a gathering of the scientists and historians who have been analyzing the remains and funerary objects of 420 of potentially 10,000 slave burials from the New York African Burial Ground in lower Manhattan. Dr. Wedel was invited to speak at the conference by the Institute for Historical Biology at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. The conference takes its title from a Ghanian word that means “it is okay to go back and fetch that which was lost,” in this case referencing African identities and cultural practices. Click here to visit the African Burial Ground National Monument’s web page.
Mathew Wedel, PhD, of COMP and CPM gave an invited talk titled “The Scale of the Cosmos” at the Riverside Telescope Maker’s Conference at Camp Oakes, Big Bear, California, on Sunday, May 29.
Dennis Muscato, MS, was an invited speaker at Harvard Institute of Lifestyle Medicine “Tools for Healthy Change” Course on May 20-21, 2016 in Boston. The course provides evidence-based strategies, tools, and techniques to effect healthier changes in patients, including diet, exercise, sleep, weight loss, and stress management. Approximately 350 physicians and medical professionals attended this sold-out event. The talk focused on the Lifestyle Medicine Medical Education Collaborative (LMEd) and joining the global movement (www.LifestyleMedicineEducation.org ). WesternU COMP and COMP-Northwest are recognized leaders in lifestyle medicine medical education. Dennis Muscato serves on the leadership board of LMEd in mentoring medical schools globally in lifestyle medicine medical education.
From University Advancement:
WesternU’s Towne & Gown Golf Classic set for June 2
Western University of Health Sciences invites the public to an exciting day of golf to benefit student scholarships.
The annual Towne & Gown Golf Classic will be played Monday, June 27, 2016 at Red Hill Country Club, 8358 Red Hill Country Club Drive, Rancho Cucamonga, California 91730. Registration and lunch starts at 11 a.m., followed by a noon shotgun start. A dinner and awards ceremony will follow.
Click here to read the full story.
Click here to visit the Towne & Gown website and to register for the tournament.
From the College of Graduate Nursing:
Kudos on accomplishments
Quannetta T. Edwards, PhD, FNP-BC, WHNP-BC, AGN-BC, FAANP, attended the weeklong World Health Assembly meeting at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, where she was a Delegate to the World Health Organization Assembly representing the Global Health Council in Washington, D.C. A major focus of this year’s Assembly meeting was the Sustainable Development Goals for 2030.
From the College of Pharmacy:
Kudos on accomplishments
Congratulations to MSPS student Alexander Armendariz, who received a travel award from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to present his research on the effects of opioid analgesics on the sensory and affective components of acute and inflammatory pain at the annual meeting of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD).
SAMHSA is the agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that leads public health efforts to advance the behavioral health of the nation and provides all the statistical/epidemiological data on drug abuse/use and mental health related issues collected by the federal government. This is a prestigious award given to a limited number of qualified recipients.
From the College of Veterinary Medicine:
Kudos on accomplishments
WesternU, CVM, and CVM Associate Professor Ohad Levi played host to a small animal laparoscopy course. Attending were five veterinarians and two veterinary technicians. The course was organized by Dr. Levi, principal instructor, and other faculty members from WesternU: Drs. Lyon Lee, David Clark, Domonique Griffon and Maria Fahie. The practical part was in the PHC on campus with the invaluable contribution of the PHC staff in particular, Dr. Clark, and the RVT’s of the PHC: Annette Chavarria-Marron and Leslie Tortez. This was the second presentation of the course. It was unique in that it was the first time training general practitioners together with their own technicians.
CVM Professor Beth Boynton presented “veterinary medicine as a career” to eight classes of fifth-grade students at Poplar Elementary recently. Several students in each class were actively considering veterinary careers.
Associate Professor Linda Kidd, DVM, PhD, DACVIM, has been informed that funding for the grant proposal “Investigation of Association between Thrombocytopenia and Occult Vector Borne Disease in Greyhound Dogs with and without a History of Racing” has been awarded by the Canine Health Foundation. The study is a collaboration between the College of Veterinary Medicine, with Dr. Kidd as the principal investigator, Ed Breitschwerdt, DVM, DACVIM, at North Carolina State University Vector Borne Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, and Helen Hamilton, DVM, DACVIM, a longstanding preceptor for WesternU CVMs Core Internal Medicine course.
From the Medical Anatomy Center (MAC):
Kudos on accomplishments
Brion Benninger, MD, MSs, Executive Director, Professor of Medical Innovation, Technology & Research, had his abstract,“Telequantum Medical Education: Developing Teleportation, Telecommunication and Tele Emotion Skills During Basic Science Curriculum to Train Medical Students Current and Future Telemedicine Healthcare,” accepted for an oral presentation at a Telemedicine Conference. Dr. Benninger thanked COMP Dean Paula M. Crone, DO, for her support and shared vision of educating medical students with telemedicine technologies.
