This Week@WesternU, March 26-30, 2012

Ray Symposium

“Reforming Health Care: Policy, Politics and Patient Care,” by keynote speaker Joshua S. Benner, PharmD, ScD, President and CEO, RxAnte, Inc. and Visiting Scholar, The Brookings Institution.

5-6 p.m. Thursday, April 12, 2012 in the Health Education Center, Lecture Hall I. Reception immediately following the Symposium. Presented by the College of Pharmacy and the Interprofessional Education Program. Please RSVP by April 2 to Renee Cook at 909-706-3826 or rcook@westernu.edu. Click here for more information.

Health Screening and Resource Fair

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 14, 2012 on the WesternU Esplanade, 701 E. Second St., Pomona, Calif. 91766. Free screenings for blood pressure, dental, glucose, osteopathic manipulative therapy and vision and education on asthma and healthy living, colorectal cancer awareness, emergency preparedness, heartburn awareness and medication therapy review (please bring a list of your medications and dosage). Sponsored by WesternU and Target Pharmacy. Click here to view a flier in English and Spanish.

Toastmasters Open House

Toast of the Towne Toastmasters Club will be having an open house at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 27, 2012 in Compatriots Hall, HSC. Come and learn how Toastmasters International can help you overcome the fear of speaking in public. Refreshments will be served. Enjoy a fun and entertaining learning experience. RSVP to Louise Clark at 909-469-5588 or clarkl@westernu.edu.

WesternU enhances outreach to American Indian students

WesternU welcomed the Inter-Tribal Education Collaborative (ITEC) to its Pomona campus on March 22, 2012, among its many outreach activities with American Indian communities.

ITEC includes representatives from local tribes, tribal schools and Native American advocacy groups, as well as UC Riverside, Loma Linda University, Cal Poly Pomona, University of Redlands and Pitzer College.

Click here to read the full story.

From the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific:

Kudos on accomplishments

COMP-Northwest received the Small Business of the Year Award from the Lebanon Area Chamber of Commerce.

Click here to read a story from the Albany Democrat-Herald.

From the College of Allied Health Professions:

Department of Physical Therapy Education News

Congratulations to several faculty members who were recently elected to positions within the San Gabriel Valley District of the California Physical Therapy Association. Associate Professors Casey Chaney, PT, PhD, OCS, CSCS, Sandra Stuckey, PT, MA, PhD, and Georgeanne Vlad, PT, MA, will hold the office of Assembly Representatives, while Dr. Chaney will also serve on the Nominating Committee.

From the College of Veterinary Medicine:

Kudos on accomplishments

Veterinary Professor and equine internist Dr. Joseph Bertone has been nominated “Equine Continuing Educator of the Year” for 2012 by the Western Veterinary Conference (WVC). The WVC boasts one of the largest single assemblies of veterinary practitioners and related groups in the world by offering “Practical, Progressive, Educational” sessions to 14,874 attendees this year. Founded in 1928, WVC has grown in size and expanded in scope and impact on the veterinary profession for more than 80 years. Dr. Bertone has been a consistently invited to speak at WVC since 2001. This year his four presentations included equine neurology and pharmacology topics.

From the College of Optometry:

Two Eye Care Center faculty members will be highlighted on “The Wellness Hour,” hosted by Randy Alvarez. This 30-minute program provides health information to the public. The shows will air on ION Television (check your local listings) as follows:

Dr. Kristy Remick: 10 a.m. April 2 and 7:30 a.m. April 18

Dr. Bennett McAllister: 7:30 a.m. April 10 and 10 a.m. April 25

Kudos on accomplishments

Bennett McAllister, OD, FAAO, and Stuart Mann, OD, FCOVD, celebrated St. Patrick’s Day by speaking to the annual meeting of the largest group of teachers and parents of the visually impaired in California. CTEBVI (California Transcribers and Educators of the Blind and Visually Impaired) is the main resource of new information on the care and education for California’s visually impaired school age population. Dr. Mann spoke about how the brain uses visual input for many aspects of learning beyond small character recognition like book print and how vision therapy can maximize the child’s learning opportunities. This is in keeping with the College of Optometry’s rehabilitation emphasis. Also in this regard was Dr. McAllister’s presentation on making sense of doctor reports in the classroom. By giving teachers the key to extrapolating from reports to academic tasks, visually impaired children can be better served. This merging of low vision rehabilitation with vision therapy techniques is promising to better the education of visually impaired youth and give them more opportunities to advance their lives.

From the College of Podiatric Medicine:

Four faculty members from the College of Podiatric Medicine were honored as “America’s Most Influential Podiatrists” by Podiatry Management (http://www.podiatrym.com/) magazine.

The two-part series was published in January and March 2012. On the list were Robert A. Christman, DPM, EdM, professor of Podiatric Medicine, Surgery & Biomechanics; Lawrence B. Harkless, DPM, Founding Dean; Lester J. Jones, DPM, MS Ed, Executive Associate Dean, Academic Affairs; and Kathy Satterfield, DPM, FACFAOM, MAPWCA, Director, Pre-Clinical Curriculum. Click here to read the full story.