August 2008
Dean's Comments
A most encouraging meeting I had, early in July, was with faculty participating in the DIME program. After spending much time on the difficult decision-making related to the budget squeeze, I found it refreshing to concentrate on the mission that keeps us all together. Our job is, after all, the education of future health professionals, and it was very good to see such a committed and upbeat group of educators assembled to discuss how to teach medicine to our students. I want to use this space to affirm that the purpose of the recently launched Taskforce on Teaching Revenue Allocation, headed by Dr. Tom Hunt, is an effort towards securing the teaching function more solidly in our school-wide budget processes.
If there is any time in the year when teaching is even more in the foreground than others, it is during the dog days of summer. In late June and early July I had the pleasure of meeting most of our incoming residents. From the kindness of senior residents in welcoming their new colleagues, Dr. Mimi Bar-on’s warm-hearted welcome and the optimism of the new class, it is absolutely heart-warming to see this and, for a moment, to turn away from all the HR issues, forced NNRs, threatened CMS cuts and other abbreviations that clutter the administrator’s daily calendar.
In August, the highlight of the month will be the welcome to our new medical student class, our second with 62 students. I want to single out Drs. Cheryl Hug-English and Jennifer Kimmel for their successful efforts in accommodating an enlarged size class during these trying times. I am looking forward to the White Coat ceremony and to meeting our new students and their families. Again, I will have the opportunity to experience why it matters what we do, and I hope many of our faculty will have a chance to participate in at least some of these activities.
Obviously, there will not be welcome parties or graduation ceremonies every month, but I do hope we can keep the spirit of “Education First” alive. Even in my current job, I look forward to rounding with residents and students at UMC every Friday morning, and I think it speaks to the kind of school we are that I meet chairs and other leaders in our school with their own respective groups of students– be it Dr. Gremse, Dr. Lenhart, Dr. Carrison or Dr. Zamboni. Our new chair of Internal Medicine in Las Vegas, Dr. Michael Jakoby, also is someone I first met in the hallways of UMC. As we all know, the clinical practice is critical to our survival as a medical school in many ways, but let’s not forget that we practice medicine because we enjoy the work and want to pass our enthusiasm, as well as our expertise, on to the students who join us.
Ole J.Thienhaus, M.D., MBA
Dean,
University of Nevada School of Medicine
Medical Education
Exemplary resident research recognized
Seventeen residents made poster or platform presentations during Resident Research Day in Las Vegas in June and six were recognized for excellence. Among the platform presentations, Ming Zjou, M.D. placed first in clinical science for "Preinatal outcomes in IVF patients with vanishing twin syndrome" and Naveen Gande, M.D. took second for "Routine HIV screening in outpatient setting: is it feasible and acceptable?" Michael Benassi, M.D. took first in the basic science category with "Comparison of a new fluid warming device to existing military devices."
Within poster presentations, Gande placed first for "Successful treatment of severe refractory lupus with rituximab,” Benjamin Cousins, M.D. took second for his presentation of "Reevaluating the role of invasive biopsy for the diagnsosis of systemic necrotizing vasculitis: is the benefit worth the costs?" and Aditi Singh, M.D. placed third for "Fever of Unknown Origin and Castleman's Disease."
In Reno, the nine presenters shared the recognition and no "winners" were announced.
Class of 2010 passes first step of boards
Cheryl Hug English, M.D., MPH, associate dean for admissions and student affairs, shares the good news that all the outstanding students in the class of 2010 passed step one of their boards.
Faculty
Jakoby named chair of internal medicine in Las Vegas
Michael Jakoby, M.D., M.A. has been named chair of the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Nevada School of Medicine in Las Vegas. Jakoby, who replaces Daniel Goodenberger, M.D., begins in this new role Aug. 1.
Read more
Martin awarded AAFP grant
Elissa J. Palmer, M.D., chair of the Department of Family and Community Medicine in Las Vegas, announces that Kate Martin, M.D., pictured, a third year resident in the department, was recently awarded at $5,000 grant from the American Academy of Family Physicians Foundation for a study proposal entitled, "Assessment of Perceptions and Evaluation of Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease of Women Living in Las Vegas, Nevada."
According to Palmer, "Dr. Martin is an outstanding resident both in medical knowledge and clinical skills with a dedication to Nevada and to the Las Vegas community."
Pixley published in Scandanavian Journal of Rheumatology
John Pixley, M.D., an associate professor in the Department of Internal Medicine in Reno, has an article entitled "Membranous glomerulopathy associated with rheumatoid arthritis may respond rituximab" in the July 2008 issue of the Scandinavian Journal of Rheumatology. In the article Pixley and his co-authors identify a poorly recognized complication of rheumatoid arthritis and a potential therapy.
School initiates 'ALSO' program
The School of Medicine recently completed its first course in Advanced Life Support for Obstetrics training for the state. The program, dubbed ALSO, provided a two-day certified training program for healthcare practitioners across the state to help prevent and manage medical emergencies in obstetrical care and deliveries.
Forty healthcare providers including registered nurses, obstetricians, family medicine physicians, nurse midwives and labor and delivery nurses from Reno, Las Vegas, Owyhee, Lovelock, Fallon, Ely and Quincy, Calif. attended the course which was held this spring in Las Vegas. Read more
New hires, promotions and recognitions
New staff hired for Reno, Las Vegas clinics
The following staff members were recently hired for University Health System clinics in Reno: Lora Gibson, RN, Pediatrics; Alexis Ezell, medical assistant to rotate between clinics; Diana Janssen, medical assistant, The Plaza Internal Medicine; Lori Cole, LPN, and Elisabeth Dominguez, office specialist, pediatrics; Katie Ramey, medical records specialist, and Debra Jorgensen, office supervisor, Family Medicine Center and Antonia Salazar, office specialist, primary internal medicine office.
In Las Vegas, Joo Hyun Chun and Tse Lee, ultrasonographers were hired in the obstetrics and gynecology department while internal medicine now has the services of Sheena Perry, scheduler; Erika Garrison, account representative; Teah Farmer, coding assistant; LeKeitha Lyles, front office specialist and Maria Vargas, medical records specialist. Audrey Lin, lab assistant; and Lisa Hunt and Maria Sanchez, front office specialists, join the pediatrics department while Gabrielle Hudson, medical records specialist, is working at the family medicine clinic.
Saephan recognized by residents
Janice Saephan, a medical assistant at Reno's The Plaza Internal Medicine office, was recently given a distinguished employee award by resident physicians at the annual resident graduation dinner, recongizing her for dedication and hard work. This is the first time a medical assistant has received this award.
School Notes
Pancake breakfast, White Coat ceremony on Aug. 15
Faculty and staff members are invited to welcome the 62 members of the incoming Class of 2012 to the School of Medicine at the annual pancake breakfast and White Coat ceremony on Friday, Aug. 15. The breakfast will take place at 8 a.m. on the Quad between the Howard and Manville Buildings. Later that day, at 3 p.m. in the ballroom of the Joe Crowley Student Union, will be the White Coat Ceremony, when new students will affirm their commitment to the medical profession.
Foundation donates to health sciences education building
The John Ben Snow Foundation, which grants funds for educational and humanitarian purposes, recently committed to donating $150,000 to the health sciences education building for construction in 2010. While the foundation has supported a variety of University of Nevada projects and programs over the past 25 years, this is the largest single commitment it has made to a capital project at the School of Medicine.
Savitt Medical Library offers RSS feeds
Computer RSS feeds makes it easy for students and faculty to browse content and receive automatic updates from websites when new items are published. One beneficial application of RSS for researchers and clinicians is to receive the latest tables of contents of favorite journals. A list of journals with RSS feeds at the library is available. For more information or help setting up table of contents feeds, contact Terry Henner, head of information and education services, at 682-7301.
School assists with funding for AEDs
Through a federal rural health grant, the School of Medicine Center of Education and Health Services Outreach secured funding for 24 automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, for the Nevada Highway Patrol and Nevada Project Heartbeat, a public/private partnership dedicated to improving the survivability of sudden cardiac arrest victims in Nevada. "We are granting the 24 AEDs to the highway patrol for deployment in patrol vehicles for their central command," said Julie Redding, program coordinator for CEHSO. The AEDs will be used in rural communities including Fallon, Fernley, Lovelock, Yerington and Tonopah.
State job openings at the School of Medicine
Visit the University of Nevada, Reno Web site for a current list of state jobs at the University of Nevada School of Medicine.
In This Edition
Medical Education
Exemplary resident research recognized
Class of 2010 passes first step of boards
Faculty
Jakoby named chair of internal medicine in Las Vegas
Pixley published in Scandanavian Journal of Rheumatology
School initiates 'ALSO' program
New hires, promotions and recognitions
New staff hired for Reno, Las Vegas clinics
Saephan recognized by residents
School Notes
Pancake breakfast, White Coat ceremony on Aug. 15
Foundation donates to health sciences education building
Savitt Medical Library offers RSS feeds
School assists with grant funding for AEDs
Past Editions 2008
Inside Nevada Medicine is a service of the Office of Health Science Communications, University of Nevada School of Medicine and is published monthly. Faculty, staff, residents and students are encouraged to submit items of school-wide interest to Editor Anne McMillin for publication. Deadline is the 20th of the month prior to publication. Copyright 2008 University of Nevada School of Medicine.