New emergency medicine residency announced
The emergency medicine residency program - the first of its kind for South Texas - has been approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. University Hospital, San Antonio’s largest emergency center and the leading civilian Level I trauma center for the 22-county region of South/Central Texas, will be the chief training site for the residency program. "The demand on emergency rooms in the region is increasing rapidly and is twice the national growth rate," said Bruce Adams, M.D., director of the Center for Emergency Medicine. "Establishing an emergency medicine residency program will dramatically improve the quality and accessibility of emergency and acute health care for the South Texas region." The first 10 residents will begin the rigorous three-year program in July. Ten new residents will begin the program each year until the residency reaches its final complement of 30 doctors.
UT Medicine, Minute Clinic partnership to increase health care access
MinuteClinic, the retail health care division of CVS Caremark, and UT Health Physicians, the academic medical practice of the Long School of Medicine, have entered into a clinical affiliation to enhance access to high-quality, affordable health care services in the region. MinuteClinic walk-in medical clinics are open seven days a week inside select CVS/pharmacy stores. The clinics are staffed by nurse practitioners and physician assistants who provide treatment for common family illnesses and administer wellness and prevention services, including health condition monitoring. Under the agreement, UT Medicine physicians will serve as medical directors for MinuteClinic locations in San Antonio. UT Medicine will accept patients who need a level of care that is not provided at MinuteClinic.
Expo gives teens hands-on experience in health, science careers
High school and college students throughout South Texas were introduced to a wide range of health-related and biomedical professions at the 10th annual Health Professions Fair & Science Expo. Nearly 1,100 students from schools throughout South Texas learned from Health Science Center students and faculty how to intubate mannekins, immobilize patients (as would paramedics) and start intravenous (IV) lines. "I thought it was a great way to expose a lot of students at once to everything the Health Science Center offers," said Irene Chapa, Ph.D., director of the Office of Recruitment and Science Outreach. "And it was a great opportunity for our Health Science Center students to really put their knowledge into practice by teaching."
School of Medicine alumni make giving back to students a family affair
As a medical student at the UT Health Science Center San Antonio, Pamela (Blum) Camosy, M.D., class of 1980, had a prodigious enthusiasm and desire to help and heal.
"The university gave me the opportunity to work in clinical settings with patients. That experience really inspired me and helped me grow in my profession," she said.
Today, Dr. Camosy works as a private practice family physician and also serves as an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the Health Science Center. She also serves as a member of the Long School of Medicine Alumni Association Board of Directors and mentors students who volunteer at the SAMMinistries free medical clinic.
Dr. Camosy said she is proud her daughter, Caroline, has also chosen to pursue a career in the medical field. Caroline is a third-year medical student at the Health Science Center. "I feel it’s important to help students by giving back to the university that gave me so much and is now preparing my own daughter for her career path as a physician."
Likewise, Patrick Nguyen, M.D., FACS, class of 2004, cites mentorship from faculty, residents and senior students as instrumental to his formation as a student and career path as a surgeon. He practices as an assistant clinical professor of general surgery and teaches students and residents at the Health Science Center. Grateful for the education and guidance he received as a student at the university, Dr. Nguyen also volunteers his time mentoring students.
Both graduates are dedicated to the Alumni Association in a variety of ways, including supporting the Student Education Enhancement Fund (SEEF).
Launched in 2009 by the Alumni Association, the SEEF supports student-related educational causes, including tutoring services, summer research projects, community-service-learning initiatives, medical mission trips, new equipment for the H-E-B Clinical Skills Center and enhancements to the Long School of Medicine Alumni Association Student Lounge.
"I certainly do not want lack of money to prevent a medical student from taking part in worthwhile projects," Dr. Camosy said. "From time to time I have the chance to talk to medical students who have received SEEF monies. They describe to me life-changing experiences that have given them a better understanding of the human condition and of their own emerging role as a healer."
Dr. Nguyen agrees. "When I was a student, I took advantage of the student lounge because it was a place to study and build camaraderie, although at the time it was outdated and it was next to the dean’s office, albeit not a prime location for a medical student to relax!" Dr. Nguyen said jokingly, with a smile. "It is great that the Alumni Association helped with the recent relocation and renovations of the new student lounge. I feel like giving back is a small way I can help to enhance the educational experience for students."
Giving to the SEEF helps foster the important tradition within the Long School of Medicine of seasoned alumni who are willing and eager to assist the younger generation.
"One could look at it as a family mentality," Dr. Camosy said. "Family members turn to each other when they have a need, or a story to share or an event to celebrate. I enjoy being part of the lives of the younger generation of healers. It gives me a sort of youthful energy by osmosis. I wish more alumni could experience this."
Alumni support student success
More than 210 School of Medicine alumni have made gifts to the Student Education Enhancement Fund (SEEF) totaling more than $310,000. Their generosity has been far-reaching and has provided funding for the following:
- Two medical mission trips to India and two trips to Ethiopia;
- Grants to support more than a dozen community-service-learning projects for students;
- Sponsorship of the poster session and reception at the 2012 and 2013 Community Service Learning Conferences;
- Grants supporting six student research projects;
- Equipment for the H-E-B Clinical Skills Center, including new instruments for arthrocentesis training, ultrasound paracentesis and thoracentisis training packages; an ultrasound compatible LP trainer; a breast-exam trainer; and a chest-tube trainer;
- 700 hours of tutoring services and First Aid Study Guides for the USMLE (United States Medical Licensing Examination) Step 1 Exam for the Class of 2015; and
- Renovations to the Long School of Medicine Alumni Association Student Lounge as well as the addition of a freezer, Keurig coffee maker, pool table, ping-pong table, foosball table and installation of three microwave ovens.
For more information and to donate to the SEEF, contact the Long School of Medicine Alumni Relations Office at 210-567-4400 or e-mail perrymand@uthscsa.edu.
Appointments and awards
Adelita Cantu, Ph.D., RN, assistant professor of family and community health systems, has been honored as Nurse of the Year by the National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN). She was selected because of her leadership in developing the Healthy Choices for Kids program and Healthy Choices for Seniors as part of her community service learning work, and for her leadership in the NAHN and its local chapter.
Lily T. Garcia, D.D.S., M.S., FACP, professor and director of the Division of Advanced Education and External Affairs in the Department of Comprehensive Dentistry, is the recipient of the 2012 Hispanic Dental Association Women’s Leadership Award. "To receive recognition from my colleagues, who represent my cultural heritage and have experienced similar challenges to achieve excellence in our profession, is so special to me," she said. Dr. Garcia is the immediate past president of the American College of Prosthodontists and was the first Hispanic female to serve in the presidency.
M. Danet Lapiz-Bluhm, Ph.D., RN, assistant professor of family and community health systems, received the Nurse Research Excellence Award from the Philippine Nurses Association of America. Previously engaged in preclinical research on the effects of stress, Dr. Lapiz-Bluhm currently conducts translational research on the neurobiological biomarkers of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Jan Evans Patterson, M.D., M.S., associate dean for quality and lifelong learning in the Long School of Medicine, professor of medicine and pathology, and director of the Center for Patient Safety and Health Policy, was appointed to the Subspecialty Board on Infectious Disease of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM). ABIM’s subspecialty boards and test committees are composed of experts in both academic medicine and practice, all of whom must be ABIM certified in their particular subspecialty.
Kathleen Stevens, RN, Ed.D., ANEF, FAAN, professor of health restoration and care systems management and director of the Academic Center for Evidence-Based Practice, was inducted into the International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame at the 23rd International Nursing Research Congress in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Dr. Stevens is known internationally for her work in improving patient safety and the quality of patient care through evidence-based practice.
Dodge named Dental School dean
William W. Dodge, D.D.S., was named dean of the Dental School effective April 1, 2013.
Dr. Dodge holds the rank of professor with tenure in the Department of Comprehensive Dentistry. He joined the Health Science Center in 1978 after five years as a successful general dentist in San Antonio and two years as a captain in the U.S. Army Dental Corps. During his tenure, he served as vice dean of the Dental School since 2004 and associate dean for patient care from 1996 through 2003.
Dr. Dodge served as dean ad interim since June 2012 while former Dean Kenneth L. Kalkwarf, D.D.S., M.S., was president ad interim throughout President William L. Henrich’s, M.D., MACP, medical leave. Dr. Kalkwarf, who held the dental deanship for 24 years, has been appointed as special assistant to the president and plans to retire this summer.
"Dr. Dodge is highly regarded nationwide by his colleagues in academic dentistry for his expertise in matters of accreditation of dental programs, competency assessment, evidence-based clinical education and financing of dental education," Dr. Henrich said. "His goal, shared by me and the faculty, is that the school be regarded as the finest dental school in our country. I have complete confidence that
Dr. Dodge will lead the school in an exemplary manner in the years to come."
Dr. Dodge and his wife, Jill, have two sons, Rhett and Ryan.
The Dental Dean Search Committee, which was led by Eileen Breslin, Ph.D., RN, dean of the School of Nursing, identified many outstanding candidates for this role before selecting Dr. Dodge as the Dental School’s fifth dean.
Four faculty receive national award
Four faculty members have been named recipients of the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression (NARSAD) Young Investigator Grant. They are:
- Jing Liu, Ph.D., instructor in the Department of Pharmacology, is seeking to validate a hypothesis that adiponectin, a hormone from fat tissue with anti-diabetic properties, plays a role in dentritic remodeling in a chronic social defeat mouse model of depression. Dendrites, the "tree branches" of a neuron, constantly expand and contract, remodeling the connections between neurons. Dr. Liu found that social defeat induces dentritic retraction in the brain area associated with depression and that this is accompanied by reductions in circulating adiponectin levels, which leads to increased susceptibility to stress-induced depression-like behavior.
- Ruth Madelaine Paredes, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Psychiatry, is studying the function of neuregulin-1, a strong candidate gene for schizophrenia and psychosis. Her research will provide insight into the gene’s regulation of the immune response and its role in schizophrenia disease formation.
- Milena Girotti, Ph.D., instructor in the Department of Pharmacology, is using rat models in an effort to unveil a causal link between interleukin 6 (an immune protein) and symptoms of mood disorders. Interleukin 6 levels are elevated in patients with major depression, but it is not known whether the protein is involved in inducing or aggravating the symptoms. One goal of the research is to suggest more effective interventions.
- David Roberts, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry, developed an easy-to-remember daily strategy that schizophrenia patients can apply in real-world circumstances. He predicts that by practicing this strategy on tablet computers, patients will improve in their speed, accuracy and general ability to interpret others’ thoughts and feelings, and also believes this daily training will lead to patients’ brain circuits becoming more efficient at social cognition, which will be measured with brain imaging.
Employees honored at Presidential Awards
Faculty and staff members who exemplify exceptional leadership in their fields were recognized at the 2013 Presidential Awards ceremony. The Health Science Center’s highest honor, the Presidential Distinguished Scholar award, was presented to Kenneth M. Hargreaves, D.D.S., Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Endodontics in the Dental School, and professor of pharmacology, physiology and surgery in the Long School of Medicine. The award winners are:
Presidential Distinguished Scholar
Kenneth M. Hargreaves, D.D.S., Ph.D., Endodontics and Pharmacology,
Physiology and Surgery
Junior Research Scholar
Manjeet K. Rao, Ph.D., Cellular and Structural Biology
Teaching Excellence Award
Gregory Anstead, M.D., Ph.D., Infectious Diseases
Lily Dong, Ph.D., Cellular and Structural Biology
Alexandra Loffredo, M.D., Family and Community Medicine
Ridley O. Ross, D.D.S., Comprehensive Dentistry
Alan Sakaguchi, Ph.D., Cellular and Structural Biology
Mark Soucy, Ph.D., RN, APRN, Family and Community Health Systems
and Psychiatry
Clinical Excellence Award
M. Rosina Finley, M.D., CMD, Family and Community Medicine
Deborah Jo Levine, M.D., Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
Randal Robinson, M.D., Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility
Employee Excellence Award
Rosanne Fohn, Communications
Gloria A. Matthews, Endocrinology
Richard M. Ongkiko, Office of the Dental Dean
Rebecca Smith, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Susan Stappenbeck, M.Ed., M.P.H., Institute for Integration of Medicine & Science
Click here to view a video about our Presidential Awards.
Click here to read more about our award winners.
Tipping the scales: reversing the obesity epidemic among Latino children
$2.1 million from Robert Wood Johnson Foundation supports Salud America!
Obesity is deadly and growing in the United States. Heart disease, stroke, Type 2 diabetes and cancer are just some of the diseases linked to obesity. By 2030 the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) predicts that 42 percent of Americans will be obese.
Children, especially Hispanic children who are part of the largest U.S. minority group, are quickly falling victim to this deadly trend. Hispanic children aged 2 to 19 are more likely to be obese or overweight than white or black children. The CDC indicates that 50 percent of severe obesity in adults is a consequence of obesity during childhood.
Thanks to a $2.1 million grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), the UT Health Science Center San Antonio is leading national efforts to prevent childhood obesity in Hispanic children and to influence policy and create environmental solutions to the problem.
Their gift is supporting Salud America! The RWJF Research Network to Prevent Obesity Among Latino Children. The program is headquartered at the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) within the School of Medicine at the UT Health Science Center.
Amelie Ramirez, Dr.P.H., is director of Salud America! and founding director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research.
"We are so grateful to the generosity of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation," Dr. Ramirez said. "With their support, Salud America! will continue to be the catalyst for reversing a deadly disease afflicting our nation’s and our future’s most precious resource - our children."
Grant expands program, focuses on advocacy
Launched in 2007, Salud America! built a network of researchers, academics, policymakers and community leaders across the United States to address and reverse the obesity epidemic among Hispanic children and adolescents. In addition, a network of multimedia experts produced online resources to raise awareness of the latest research on Latino childhood obesity and educate Hispanic community leaders, parents and youth about the importance of healthy nutrition and physical activity. These are communicated through a variety of e-communications, blogs and social media.
The new RWJF grant will allow Salud America! to expand this 2,000-member national network and focus on developing an innovative system to support, inform and empower researchers, policymakers and the public to advocate for policy changes that will help reverse the obesity epidemic.
Success stories encourage action
Shari Barkin, M.D., a professor of pediatrics at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., is among the 20 Salud America! grantees who conducted research focused on Latino childhood obesity. Her study focused on 132 Hispanic families with children aged 3 to 5 in Nashville’s Davidson County. Some families were introduced to their community recreation center for routine physical activity, while others had the same access but were not brought inside and educated about using the facility for fitness and well-being.
"What we found was that exposure to and routine use of recreation centers by Latinos led to sustained use for physical activity one year later by both parents and their young children," Dr. Barkin said. "Activity habits set in early childhood can profoundly influence lifelong paths for health. Our goal is to encourage policymakers to create programs that encourage Latino families to walk through the door and learn how to use their community recreation centers. It’s not just about building or refurbishing recreation facilities. Healthy lifestyle programs targeted at children as young as preschool age have enormous potential to prevent obesity."
Dr. Barkin and her team shared their results with the Metro Parks and Recreation Board of Nashville, Tenn., the Mayor’s Council on Child Wellness, and key community and policymaking partners.
Juan Carlos Mondragon, 32, and his family participated in Dr. Barkin’s study from 2009 to 2011. He and his wife, Irma, and their two children, Leah, 7, and Shayla, 4, were given free access to and educated about their neighborhood recreation facility.
"Going to the center helped us exercise together, as a family," Mondragon said. "And we learned about eating healthier too. I know it’s going to help us in the long run so we don’t become overweight. There should be more programs like this one. And I hope to see more sidewalks, better parks and more bicycle paths in our neighborhood in the future, especially for our children."
Local study involves churches
In San Antonio, Meizi He, M.D., Ph.D., an associate professor of health and kinesiology at The University of Texas at San Antonio, conducted Salud America!research at nine churches on the city’s West Side. She and her team conducted interviews with Latino church leaders and church-attending children aged 10 to 17 and their parents. Researchers learned that church leaders and families were aware of the obesity epidemic and its dangerous health consequences. They identified the need to connect health education with a spiritual dimension through clergy role models; health sermons; Sunday school and Bible-study sessions; after-school and summer camp physical-activity programs; and healthy-cooking classes.
"We found that gathering the ideas and insights of Latino church leaders and congregation members on the issue of childhood obesity is the first step in developing effective faith-based, obesity-prevention strategies, as well as future policy and environmental changes that will help improve the health of Latino children," Dr. He said. She and her team shared their findings with the City of San Antonio Metropolitan Health District and other community stakeholders to encourage support. Their research has garnered additional funding from the San Antonio Life Sciences Institute and the Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio to develop and implement the faith-based, obesity prevention program, "Building a Healthy Temple," in the predominantly Hispanic communities throughout the city.
Advocating for change
Dr. Ramirez said Salud America!, fueled by these research success stories, will unite a team of research experts, Internet news curators and multimedia content producers to produce a continuous stream of evidence-based information, news and training that researchers, policymakers and the public can use to advocate for changes toward reversing the obesity epidemic. The information will be provided in easily accessible formats such as an online advocacy support platform (with advocacy and policy news, templates, resources, role models and ways to get involved), e-communications, blogs, and social and mass media.
"We believe this platform will empower individuals and groups to advocate directly for evidence-based governmental and corporate policies addressing Latino childhood obesity," Dr. Ramirez said. "We’re excited to continue our work. We hope everyone will join our effort because ensuring a healthy future for America will depend largely on reversing the obesity epidemic in the Latino population."
Salud America! translates to Health America!
Building on its successful research, Salud America! is now turning its attention to a first-of-its-kind effort to deliver and interpret scientific evidence to empower Latinos to advocate for healthy policies. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) focuses on six policy priorities that evidence suggests will have the greatest and longest-lasting impact on children.
To see the RWJF’s six policy priorities, visit rwjf.org/en/about-rwjf/program-areas/childhood-obesity/strategy.html.
Visit the IHPR online at ihpr.uthscsa.edu or follow its blog at saludtoday.com/blog.
For more information about Salud America!, visit salud-america.org.
Cliff Despress, in the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) in the Long School of Medicine at the UT Health Science Center, contributed to this story.