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This Week@WesternU Oct. 6-10, 2014

by Rodney Tanaka

October 9, 2014

Read 4 mins

Together We Read

The Pomona Public Library Foundation will present “”A Tribute to Ray Bradbury”” at 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12 in WesternU’s Health Education Center.

The “”Together We Read”” event will feature a screening of the 1998 film “”The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit”” and a panel discussion with cast members Joe Mantegna, Edward James Olmos and Liz Torres, director Stuart Gordon and official Bradbury biographer Sam Weller.

Admission is $25 at the door, $20 if purchased online at

www.pomonalibraryfoundation.org, or $20 at the door with a valid Pomona Library card or student ID.

Click here to read more.

WesternU gala to raise money for student scholarships

Western University of Health Sciences will raise money for student scholarships and honor pioneers in health care at its annual fundraising gala, “”A Tribute to Caring,”” Saturday, Nov. 8, 2014 at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, California.

Click here to read more.

Click here to visit the ATC website and to buy tickets.

Western Diabetes Institute is IPIHD finalist

Western University of Health Sciences’ Western Diabetes Institute (WDI) is a Finalist for the 2015 cohort global health care entrepreneur selection process of the International Partnership for Innovative Healthcare Delivery (IPIHD).

“”WDI’s integrated practice unit is being increasingly recognized by people around the world,”” said WDI Executive Director Andrew S. Pumerantz, DO, FACP. “”The ‘integrated practice unit model’ is an important disruptive innovation with the potential to improve access to high-value care for a large number of people around the world affected by diabetes and associated multiple health conditions.””

Click here to read the full story.

Center for Oral Health receives grant to assess older adults

The Center for Oral Health has received a $170,000 grant from The California Wellness Foundation to conduct an oral health assessment of older adults in California.

Click here to read the full story.

From the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific:

Kudos on accomplishments

Dr. Thomas Squier and Dr. Y. Xiong of Basic Medical Sciences have published the following articles in the Journal of the American Chemical Society and Proteomes, respectively:

Beech BM, Xiong Y, Boschek CB, Baird CL, Bigelow DJ, McAteer K, Squier TC (2014) Controlled Activation of Protein Rotational Dynamics Using Smart Hydrogel Tethering. J Am Chem Soc 136 (38), 13134-13137.

Weber TJ, Magnaldo T, Xiong Y. ALDH1A1 Deficiency in Gorlin Syndrome Suggests a Central Role for Retinoic Acid and ATM Deficits in Radiation Carcinogenesis. Proteomes. 2014; 2(3):451-467.

Dr. Glen Kisby of the Department of Basic Medical Sciences has published the following book chapter: Spencer PS, Garner CE, Palmer VS, Kisby GE. Environmental neurotoxins linked to a prototypical neurodegenerativ disease. in Environmental Factors in Neurodevelopment and Neurodegenerative Disease, Aschner M and Costa L (eds),Elsevier, pp 1-64.

Several COMP faculty members and students were published last month:

Lisa Warren, DO, and OMS IV Rachel Davidge published an article on Infantile Digital Fibromatosis, featured in Consultant for Pediatricians, September 2014 issue. The journal can be viewed by

clicking here.

OMS IV student Kristina Djekic was the lead author of a brief report published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. The report focused on work she completed between her first and second year of medical school. Djekic was also published in January 2014: “”Diabetes Case file: Practical Problems, Real Solutions”” for the American Diabetes Association.

OMS IV James Fry recently had his abstract published, “”Predictors of Acute Kidney Injury in Patients undergoing Lower Extremity Amputation.””

COMP alumnus Scott Ellner, DO 99, was the featured speaker at the 2014 Annual Clinical Assembly of Osteopathic Surgeons in Boston, Massachusetts on September 19, 2014. Dr. Ellner spoke about the “”Evolution of Surgical Quality”” to a packed audience, highlighting key insights into driving performance improvement in surgical care. Dr. Ellner follows the well-known management axiom- if it is not measured, then it cannot be improved. “”We are now being held accountable for our surgical outcomes which will be tied to future reimbursement by the payers,”” said Ellner. In addition, “”Every health system should have a structured quality program built into each service line or department because it reduces complications, decreases costs and saves patient lives.”” Currently, Dr. Ellner has created a medical student curriculum on patient safety and teaches these principles at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. He also serves as Vice-Chairman of the Department of Surgery at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut.

John and Carol Dinges of Lebanon, Ore., donated funds last week to begin the John and Carol Dinges Medical Education Award.

Preview Day was held on Saturday, Oct. 4 at COMP-Northwest. The event was an opportunity for students in high school and older to learn more about medical school, osteopathic medicine, the College’s admissions program, and much more. The event was co-sponsored by the Osteopathic Physicians & Surgeons of Oregon.

COMP-Northwest students are organizing an inaugural Community Health Fair, planned for noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 18, in Lebanon. The event is open to all and is aimed at promoting health lifestyle choices through diet, exercise and relaxation techniques.

Click here to view a flier.

COMP-Northwest professor Dr. Brion Benninger continues innovative firsts by combining Glass, Ultrasound and novel finger probes.

Click here to read more.

Congratulations to the WesternU Men’s Indoor Soccer Team for winning the Upland Arena Championship. Fielded by some of COMP’s brightest talents, these men extended their camaraderie beyond the classroom and were able to dominate competition finishing 10-1 for the season.

Lee National Denim Day

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. With this in mind, COMP faculty and staff participated again this year in Lee National Denim Day, which supports the fight against breast cancer.

Lee National Denim Day

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