News

Notes&Spring 2013

Achievements

Welcome

Activities

A Note From the Dean

Opportunity

Alumni

Calendar

Publications & Awards

Outreach & Service

Thinking Together: Unmet needs in health care

The details are still being worked out, but it is already clear that Georgia Regents University wants to become one of the greatest research universities of our country – an ambitious goal that is fully achievable with creativity and hard work. The many accomplishments of faculty members described in this issue of our College newsletter will quickly convince you.

Let's examine the desired ultimate outcomes of research. Profound statements? Interesting data? Published papers? Obviously these are important milestones, but they are not sufficient to make a big difference in the lives of many people. We need something more – new goods and services that reach those in need worldwide. We need innovation.

The first step to innovation is seeking answers to three simple questions: • What is the specific, unresolved health need that you have identified? • What are the estimated societal consequences (e.g., number of people affected, adverse health outcomes, economic loss)? • What suggestions do you have for a potential solution, product, or service (e.g., function, size, structure, weight, price, safety)?

If you have found a matched pair – a health issue and promising answer – you are ready to disclose an innovation. Send us a message and we will connect you with the right people to turn the dream into reality.

Together, we will shape the future of health care. Our great research university will also be a university of innovation. Our College will also become a source of hope for people everywhere.

Best wishes,

Andrew BalasDean and ProfessorGeorgia Regents University

Editor’s note

Outstanding CAHS news has been pouring in, as you’ll see in this latest issue of News & Notes. So much so that we plan to begin bi-monthly editions to keep up. Please keep sharing your faculty, staff, student, and alumni news!

A note From the Dean

Akinwuntan named Fulbright Scholar; takes on enterprise leadership roles

Congratulations to Abiodun Akinwuntan (PT), who has received a Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board award to teach and conduct research in Nigeria. As the only Fulbright Scholar in that country, he will bring the latest technologies and evidence-based neurological rehabilitation concepts to courses at the College of Medicine of the University of Lagos, and study virtual reality-based contextual rehabilitation as compared to conventional rehabilitation.

Here at home, Abiodun has joined the GRU Internal Advisory Committee for Research, which provides guidance and recommendations to the Senior Vice President for Research on strategic planning, assessment and evaluation related to the university’s research mission. He also now serves as a member of the James and Jean Culver Vision Discovery Institute’s Internal Advisory Board.

Novak named Governor’s Teaching Fellow

Congratulations also to Malorie Novak (PT), who has been selected for the Summer 2013 Governor’s Teaching Fellows program, a two-week symposium of structured instructional and faculty development activities and independent study. The program is jointly sponsored by the Institute of Higher Education and the Center for Teaching and Learning at the University of Georgia to provide Georgia’s higher education faculty with expanded opportunities to develop important teaching skills.

Grant provides funding for Augusta Area Asthma Camp

Kitty Hernlen’s efforts to provide a free day camp experience and asthma education for local children has been rewarded with a $15,000 unrestricted grant from the Community Foundation for the Central Savannah River Area. This will be the second year the Department of Respiratory Therapy has offered the Augusta Area Asthma Camp, which will take place in July at Camp Tanglewood.

There’s an app for that

Charlotte Chatto (PT) collaborated with colleagues in IT to create an iPad app that helps students learn the parts of the brain, their relationship to each other and how they connect through neural tracts. The Build-A-Brain app uses 3D models and a game-like setup and will soon be available through the iTunes store. She will present the app April 18 in Savannah at the annual conference of the Association of Medical Colleges’ Southern Group on Educational Affairs.

Achievements

An international review request

After her research on the effects of alcohol on the liver was published in Germany, Tiana Curry-McCoy (MLIRS) was asked by the Hungarian Scientific Research Fund to review an international grant.

Mazzoli co-PI on two interdisciplinary IPPH grants

Andrew Mazzoli (RT) is co-PI on two Community Partnership Grants from the GRU Institute for Public and Preventive Health: “Cardiometabolic Risks in Hispanic Farm-Workers: A Health-Fair Model Study in the Southeastern Region,” which focuses on pulmonary function and screening for obstructive sleep apnea; and “Preventing Hospitalizations for Pediatric Asthma through Improved Provider-Patient/Family Communication of the Asthma-Action Plan.” Both grants are interdisciplinary and include investigators from the IPPH, the Department of Pediatrics and the Colleges of Allied Health Sciences and Nursing.

Achievements

WelcomeNew faces

Amanda Yarberry Behr has joined the Department of Medical Illustration as Assistant Professor. She earned a bachelor’s degree in scientific illustration from the University of Georgia and a master's degree in medical and biological illustration from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Amanda previously was Director of Medical Illustration for Quality Medical Publishing in St. Louis and is owner and President of Visage Studios, LLC. She is President-elect of the International Anaplastology Association.

Hilda Alexander has joined the Dean’s office as Grants Development Specialist to provide research administration, grants management, and project planning and development. Hilda has an extensive background in program administration with for-profit and non-profit businesses and community organizations. She has an MBA in Public Administration from Strayer University and a bachelor’s degree in health care management from Southern Illinois University.

Also in the Dean’s office, Candice Yates is our new Administrative Assistant, providing support for academic and student affairs, clinical affiliation contract management, and the Faculty Council. Candice previously was a Centralized Scheduling Specialist for Georgia Regents Medical Center and an Office Specialist in the College of Nursing. She has extensive human resources, accounting, and marketing experience and earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Winthrop University.

Rebekah Thomas joins the Physician Assistant Department part-time as Assistant Professor, assisting Donald Maner with pharmacology courses.

Stepping up

Barbara Russell (MLIRS) has been appointed Interim Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives and Faculty Development. Barbara has a doctorate in Educational Administration and has served the College in many roles, including several elected faculty representative positions, President of our Alumni Association, and a contributor to the Allied Health Faculty Practice Plan, for which she will provide leadership support as Elizabeth Wark (PT) transitions into a faculty role. Elizabeth will lead the development of a post-professional residency program in Physical Therapy, and we thank her for her many years of service as Assistant Dean for Faculty Practice.

Lynn Jaffe has been named Program Director in the Department of Occupational Therapy.

A fond farewell

Carol Campbell (HMI) retired April 1 after 28 years with GRU. Her many friends and students honored her at a retirement reception March 28.

Ben Herz (OT) has accepted a new position as founding Director and Chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy at Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Va. We wish him all the best.

Publications & AwardsJaffe recognized for excellence with Fellows Award

Lynn Jaffe (OT) will receive the Roster of Fellows Award from the American Occupational Therapy Association at the 2013 Annual Conference & Expo in San Diego April 27. The award recognizes those who have made a significant contribution to the continuing education and professional development of association members. Lynn is cited for excellence in teaching, advocacy and mentoring.

Students receive scholarships

First-year dental hygiene student Charlina Hollie-Blackwood has been awarded the Connie Drisko Scholarship by Women in Philanthropy, an organization that funds programs and projects with high-impact potential for positive change in the lives of local women. The $10,000 scholarship, named for GRU College of Dental Medicine Dean Connie Drisko, is awarded to a student who has expressed an interest in an academic career in dental hygiene. Interim Chair Ana Thompson expresses the department’s “grateful appreciation to Dr. Drisko for her continuous support of the dental hygiene profession.”

Senior MHS-CLS students Daniel Anderson and Lacey Campbell attended the Clinical Laboratory Management Association Winter Educational Event in December in Atlanta, where they each received a $2,500 Future Laboratory Leader scholarship. Bookmarks – faculty members in print

Lori Bolgla (PT) has a chapter in the recently published book “ACL Injuries in Female Athletes – Causes, Impacts, and Conditioning Programs” titled Gender Differences in Core Strength and Lower Extremity Function during the Single-Leg Squat Test. Her article “Achilles tendon rupture” was published in the February 2013 issue of the Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy. Mario Cruz (PT ’09) is co-collaborator.

Michael Iwama (OT) is co-author on the articles “Well-being and Occupational Rights: An Imperative For Critical Occupational Therapy” published in Vol. 19 of the Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, and “The Kawa Model: Therapists’ Experiences in Mental Health Practice” in Vol. 28 of Occupational Therapy in Mental Health.

Abiodun Akinwuntan (PT) co-authored the paper “United States Version of the Stroke Driver Screening Assessment: A Plot Study,” which appeared in the January/February 2013 issue of Topics in Stroke Rehabilitation. He also co-authored “Simplified Modified Rankin Scale Questionnaire Correlates with Stroke Severity,” which has been accepted for publication in the journal Clinical Rehabilitation.

Coming attractions

Lester Pretlow (MLIRS), Barbara Russell (CLS), Bridget Evans (GRHS Core Laboratory Lead Technologist) and Shamala Johnson (CLS ’10) will have an article in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science.

A manuscript by Ana Thompson (DH), Veerinder Pannu (DH), former Interim Chair Marie Collins and Darshanjit Pannu (CDM) will appear soon in the Journal of Dental Education.

ActivitiesHelp where you need it

Peter Shipman, Greenblatt Library liaison to CAHS, is available for faculty and students needing assistance with library resources or research in EC-1207 on Tuesdays and Thursday from noon- 1 p.m. or by appointment. Contact Peter at pshipman@gru.edu.

Iwama makes international keynote addresses

Michael Iwama (OT) gave three international speeches in recent months: in October, the keynote address, “Culturally Relevant Theory in Colombian Occupational Therapy Practice,” at the Annual Conference of the Colombia Society of Occupational Therapists in Bogota; in November, the opening plenary address, “The Kawa (River) Model: Realizing the Potential of Venezuelan Occupational Therapy,” at the Venezuela Association of Occupational Therapy Annual Conference in Caracas; and in December, the keynote address, “Culture and Theory Adaptation, the Fluss Model in German Contexts,” at the Occupational Therapists of Westphalia and Lower Saxony meeting in Osnabruck, Germany.

Bhat speaks on self-care for professionals

Anita Bhat (HMI) spoke on “The Art of Radical Self-Care for Health Care Professionals” at Duke Integrative Medicine's annual Integrative Health Coach Professional Training Program in October at Duke University in Durham, N.C.

RT faculty address international congress

Kitty Hernlen (RT) made three presentations at the 58th International Congress for Respiratory Care held in November in New Orleans: “The Implementation of an In-school Asthma Education Program for Children with Asthma Developed by Respiratory Therapy Students,” “An Evaluation of Peak Performance USA Education Program” and “The Results of an Indoor Air Quality Policy Change on Elevated CO2 Levels in School.”

At the same conference, Andrew Mazzoli (RT) presented “Screening for Obstructive Sleep Apnea: An Expanded Role for Respiratory Therapists.”

Dexter speaks on insomnia and depression

Kathy Dexter (PA) made two presentations March 21 at the Spring CME Conference of the Georgia Association of Physician Assistants at Lake Lanier, Ga., “The Lion Sleeps Tonight (But Your Patient Doesn’t): Managing Insomnia” and “How to Save a Life: Managing the Depressed Patient.”

Dadig imparts recertification knowledge

Bonnie Dadig (PA) presented a recertification test preparation workshop in January at the Washington Academy of Physician Assistants meeting in Seattle.

Students collaborate with faculty, make national presentations

Senior PT students Matt Bounds and Sam Greavu, in collaboration with Lori Bolgla (PT), made a platform presentation in January on "Comparison of Hip Strength and Core Endurance in Males With and Without Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome" at the American Physical Therapy Association Combined Sections Meeting in San Diego.

GRU a strong presence at ASCLS annual meeting

Katherine Pinson McNeil (CLS ’09), President of the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science -Georgia Chapter, presided over the organization’s 65th annual meeting March 8 in Lawrenceville, Ga., which was coordinated by Barbara Russell (CLS) and Barbara Kraj (CLS).

Professor Emeritus Elizabeth Kenimer Leibach (CLS) gave the keynote address, “Preparing for Health Care Delivery in the Era of Electronic Health Records,” and Russell and Lester Pretlow (MLIRS) presented the microbiology and chemistry reviews, respectively, for students and practicing professionals preparing for Board of Certification exams.

Kathleen Sheaff (CLS ‘12) and Lacey Campbell (CLS ‘13) received the ASCLS “Keys to the Future” award, which recognizes leadership potential and provides structured mentoring. Lacey, the organization’s National Student Forum Chair, and Kathleen, the ASCLS-GA Student Forum Secretary, coordinated the meeting’s student forum elections and then attended the Legislative Symposium March 18-19 in Washington, D.C., where they met with Representatives and Senators on behalf of the profession. Crystal Mino (CLS ’13) was elected Chair of the Georgia Student Forum.

CAHS across campus

Greg Passmore (NMT) co-led a panel presentation on “Applied Mathematics in Health Care” for 36 local teachers in January. The STEM Professional Development Academy, a partnership between GRU and the Richmond County School System, helps a select group of K-12 educators develop skills in STEM areas.

Miriam Cortez-Cooper (PT), Malorie Novak (PT), Stevie Redmond (PA) and Barbara Russell (CLS) attended the College of Dental Medicine’s faculty retreat on Interprofessional Education and Practice in December.

Andrew Mazzoli (RT), Malorie Novak (PT) and Judith Stallings (PA) are the inaugural Fellows of the Health Sciences Leadership Program developed by the College to support faculty members who aspire to leadership roles. The 12-month program offers development opportunities within an experiential learning environment.

Malorie Novak (PT) has completed the GRU Educational Innovation Institute’s Educational Research Fellowship, which helps faculty develop educational research skills and supports their professional development while encouraging collaborative research relationships within and outside our university. No more than three Fellows are accepted annually.

Coming up

Kathy Dexter (PA) will speak on “The Forgetting: When Memory Loss is Not Alzheimer’s” at the American Association of Physician Assistants’ annual conference May 29 in Washington, D.C.

Ana Thompson (DH) has been invited to present in June at the Minority Dental Faculty Development Phase II Meeting in Washington, D.C.

Bonnie Dadig (PA) will provide an overview of our Physician Assistant Training in Primary Care grant project June 19 to the Health Resources and Services Administration in Washington, D.C.

Michael Iwama (OT) will give the opening keynote address at the United Kingdom College of Occupational Therapists 37th Annual Conference and Exhibition in Glasgow, Scotland in June.

Opportunity

The Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice has manuscript slots open for the October 2013 issue. If interested in submitting, contact Editor Sharron Walls for more information.

AlumniRecognizing our wonderful Distinguished Alumni

On Saturday, April 27, the College will recognize our college and department Distinguished Alumni during an Alumni Weekend banquet in the Partridge Inn. Two collegiate Distinguished Alumni awards will be given – to Robert (Fred) Mullins for Professional Achievement, and to Janet Bush Tankersley for Loyalty.

Mullins, a 1991 graduate of the Physician Assistant program who went on to receive his medical degree from MCG in 1996, is Medical Director and President of the Joseph M. Still Burn Center at Doctors Hospital and Chairman of the Joseph M. Still Research Foundation.

Tankersley, Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy at GRU, received her physical therapist assistant associate’s degree in 1990 and her bachelor’s degree in physical therapy in 1996. She then earned a doctorate in physical therapy in 2005 from the A.T. Still University’s Arizona School of Health Sciences.

Departmental awards include: Dental Hygiene, Emmanuel Ngoh (DH ’90, CDM ’94); Radiation Therapy, Chris Hall (RTT ’99, PA ’07); Respiratory Therapy, Dabney Eidson (’96); Nuclear Medicine Technology, Catherine Mitchell; Clinical Laboratory Science, Ethel Darcell Thaxton (‘88); and Physical Therapy, Martha Hinman (‘80).

Faculty, staff and students are invited as we honor our special alumni. For reservations, visit www.gru.edu/alumniweekend/.

Recent alumni in print

Carrie Smith (PA ‘11) is co-author of the article “A Collaborative Approach to Myasthenia Gravis” published in the December 2012 issue of The Clinical Advisor. Carrie is a physician assistant in the Neurosciences Department at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, S.C.

Vanessa Yawn (PA ’12) published “Best Approaches to Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome” in the December 2012 issue of Advance for Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants. Vanessa is a physician assistant with Jacksonville Dermatology Associates in Jacksonville, Fla.

The article “Sequential Assessment of Troponin in the Diagnosis of Myocardial Infarction” by Irsha Washington (CLS ’12) and Brandon Edwards (CLS ’12) will appear in an upcoming issue of Clinical Laboratory Science, the first journal publication of research conducted by our CLS graduate students. Irsha now works in the Microbiology Section at Georgia Regents Medical Center, while Brandon is employed at Northside Hospital in Atlanta.

Alumni Outreach & ServiceHelp a helping hand

Hannah Blackmon, a Respiratory Therapy senior, will join Children of the Nations after graduation as an intern leader and medical consultant at the Banta Children's Village and Medical Clinic in Sierra Leone, a country in Africa still recovering from a devastating 10-year rebel war. If you would like to help Hannah in fundraising efforts for this four-month volunteer expedition, visit cotni.org/venture/trips/228956/participant/229154.

In the right place at the right time

In November, Physician Assistant students were volunteering at the monthly Christ Church screening clinic along with their preceptor Rebecca Rote when a patient suddenly went into acute respiratory distress. The students managed the patient until EMS arrived for transpot to GRMC, where he was admitted to the MICU.

We serve our communities – judging, walking, caring

Tiana Curry-McCoy (MLIRS) served as a judge at the new Technical Career Magnet School’s inaugural Science Fair Feb. 29.

Dental Hygiene students provided free care to nearly 100 students from Collins Elementary School Feb.1 during the annual Give Kids a Smile event. Read more at news.georgiahealth.edu/archives/7447.

In November, the Student Clinical Laboratory Science Association delivered personal care items they had collected across campus to residents of the Georgia War Veterans Nursing Home.

The Physician Assistant Class of 2013 held two free Flu Shot Clinics at Christ Church and Mercy Clinic in November and December.

In January, Mariana D’Amico (OT) and Abiodun Akinwuntan (PT) visited the Visually Impaired Support Group in Milledgeville, Ga., providing information about low vision equipment, technology, services and driving.

Barbara Kraj (CLS) and students Kathleen Sheaff, Brett Rice and Lacey Campbell represented the Clinical Laboratory Sciences program at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Walk to Cure Diabetes Nov. 3 at the Savannah Rapids Pavilion. The GRU team raised more than $7,000.

Occupational Therapy, Physician Assistant, Physical Therapy and Respiratory Therapy students joined providers and students from the College of Nursing on a four-day mission trip to Trinidad in December. The students were integrated into all aspects of running a free health care clinic: triage, provider stations, pharmacy, laboratory and therapy. The trip was sponsored by Medical Campus Outreach. L-R: Carleigh Mikszan (PT), Megan Clark (PT), Lauren Wessel (OT), Leah Rose Finney (PT) and Amy Wallace (PT)

More than 80 friends of former Department of Respiratory Therapy Chair Randy Baker (second from left) participated in Randy’s Run Nov. 17 at the Savannah Rapids Pavilion, raising over $2,000 for student aid and scholarships.

Calendar April 29 Last day of classesApril 30 – May 6 Spring examsMay 10 GraduationMay 15 Summer classes beginMay 16 Add/DropMay 27 Memorial Day holidayJune 25 MidtermJune 28 Last day of classes

(Medical Illustration)July 4 Fourth of July holidayAugust 1 Last day of classes

August 5-6 Summer exams

S E N D U S F E E D B A C K :

H E R E

Please send information about student, faculty, staff and alumni news, including community and outreach events; appointments; program and membership updates; grants, awards and publications;

alumni activities; and your newsletter comments, suggestions and ideas to the editor:

Sharron Walls EC-3408

706-721-7955 shwalls@gru.edu Phil Jones photos