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This Week@WesternU, March 11-15, 2019

by Rodney Tanaka

March 11, 2019

Read 4 mins

The state of WesternU: robustly healthy and future ready

Western University of Health Sciences was built on an audacious vision, and with a new Strategic Plan in place is poised to reach new heights. 

WesternU President Daniel R. Wilson, MD, PhD, gave his “State of Our University” address March 6, 2019. The University is robustly healthy, with strong finances, strong colleges, strong partnerships, and a strong strategic plan, he said. 

“We have sound operations and a broadening reach. We have bright horizons and a wealth of opportunities from which to select here in California and Oregon and elsewhere in the United States and internationally,” Wilson said. “We are blessed with truly talented, loyal and creative people. I have not been in an institution that has such a strong mission-driven culture and close-knit familiarity. It’s very special here.” 

Click here to read the full story and to view a slideshow.

Click here to watch Dr. Wilson’s State of the University address.

 

 

WesternU VP Baron named SVP/Provost

David Baron, DO, MSEd, Vice President for Clinical and External Relations at Western University of Health Sciences, will become Senior Vice President and Provost of the University effective July 1, 2019. 

Baron was selected by WesternU President Daniel R. Wilson following a national search that began in fall 2018. He joined WesternU in May 2018 after serving for eight years in a variety of roles within the Department of Psychiatry at the Keck School of Medicine, including as Vice Dean for Global Health, Professor of Psychiatry and Neurosurgery, Vice Chair of the Department, and Chief of Service at Keck-USC Hospital. 

Click here to read the full story.

 

 

From the College of Podiatric Medicine:

WesternU’s College of Podiatric Medicine to hold Dean’s Distinguished Lecture March 13
The College of Podiatric Medicine (CPM) will hold its fourth annual Dean’s Distinguished Lecture at 5 p.m. Wednesday, March 13, 2019 at Western University of Health Sciences’ Health Education Center, Lecture Hall 1, 701. E. Second Street, Pomona, Calif. 91766.

The lecture will be streamed via Zoom link to COMP-Northwest Lecture Hall 1. Live streaming of the event will be available via this link: https://westernu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_4wh7zimFSqO_LQKw0mcbbw.

Keynote speaker Franklin J. Medio, PhD, President of Consulting Services for the health professions, Charleston, South Carolina will present “The Recognition of Podiatric Medicine as a Medical-Surgical Specialty: Breaking Down Barriers through Education and Training.”

Click here to read the full story.

 

 

From the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific:

Kudos on accomplishments
Dr. Vicki Wedel and research collaborator Dr. Tim Gocha gave a poster titled “Re-assessing determining season at death in young adults” at the annual meetings of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences in Baltimore, Maryland, where Dr. Wedel also served as a judge for the Emerging Forensic Scientist competition. 

Dr. Wedel also gave an interview to CNN on anthropological search techniques in advance of a landfill search for the remains of a missing Colorado mom: https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/26/us/kelsey-berreth-landfill-search/index.html.

Dr. Matt Wedel’s research on the recurrent laryngeal nerve is featured in an episode of the popular “Medlife Crisis” series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzIXF6zy7hg

Last month, WesternU COMP-Northwest held a joint military medical training with the U.S. Army Reserve. The university hosted about 60 members of the 396th Combat Support Hospital out of Vancouver, Washington on Feb. 23. Military personnel, alongside WesternU COMP-Northwest military medical students, practiced IV insertions; bleeding control measures, such as tourniquets; airway management; chest tube placement; and much more during the Saturday training. Military personnel were also able to spend time practicing their skills in the Medical Anatomy Center.

“These medics will be sent to places where their skills and decision-making processes may mean life or death to soldiers in the field,” said Derrick Sorweide, DO, FACOFP, assistant professor of family medicine for WesternU COMP-Northwest. Sorweide is a major in the U.S. Army Reserve. “By training them in as real as possible situations, and getting them access to fellow soldiers and health care workers who have seen trauma situations, we will be teaching medics coping skills and building camaraderie. The training will make them ‘cooler under fire,’ and as such, better able to perform the tasks required for the situation.”

 

 

From the College of Graduate Nursing:

Kudos on accomplishments
College of Graduate Nursing Assistant Professor Michael Marinello, MSN, RN, FNP-C and CGN Professor and Assistant Dean Rodney Hicks, PhD, RN, FNP-BC, FAANP, FAAN, wrote a guest editorial, “Reemphasizing the value of query letters in the digital age,” in the Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. March 2019 – Volume 31 – Issue 3 – p 147–148

 

 

From the College of Veterinary Medicine:

Kudos on accomplishments
CVM Associate Professor Brian Oakley gave an invited talk at the scientific sessions of the International Poultry Processing Expo in Atlanta in February. Dr. Oakley’s talk, “Microbiome Transplants: Lessons Learned and Future Directions,” summarized work done at WesternU funded by several intramural and extramural grants and involving WesternU students Ella Richardson (DVM Class of 2018), Jory Clark (DVM Class of 2020), Joseph Geiger (DVM Class of 2022), Veronica Fernandez (MSMS Class of 2019), and post-docs Elton Vasconcelos and Gustavo Ramirez. 

 

 

From University Advancement:

Alumni event
Calling all alumni! Join the Alumni Association on Saturday, March 16, 2019 for a day in Pasadena including a tour of the Art of France exhibit at the Norton Simon Museum and lunch at True Food Kitchen. The tour begins at 10:30 a.m. with a luncheon to follow. Tour and luncheon is $40 and tour only is $15. To make a reservation please visit: https://commerce.cashnet.com/WesternU.AlumniEvent.

Click here to view a flier.

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