Category Archives: Medical School

Mark B. Taubman, M.D., URMC CEO and Dean of the School of Medicine and Dentistry, has decided not to seek reappointment upon completion of his terms as CEO and Dean. The 72-year-old URMC leader will hand over the reins on December 31, 2023 or later if a successor has not been identified, as announced by University of Rochester President Sarah Mangelsdorf at todays Board of Trustees meeting.

I have been honored to lead this great institution and am proud of the significant advances we have achieved, particularly over the past two years, Taubman said. With so many of the goals of our strategic plan either accomplished or well underway, the time feels right to begin succession planning to assure our Medical Center is structured for a strong and vibrant future.

Taubman racked up many firsts during his tenure. In 2015, he became the first to serve as both Dean of SMD and URMC CEO. He was the first to create and implement an integrated strategic plan for URMC that stretched across all three missions, re-invigorating the foundations for core patient care, research, and education activities, and significantly boosting commitments to diversity and inclusion efforts. He led a strong and successful faculty leadership recruitment focus, and assured a renewed emphasis on financial agility by establishing the Medical Centers first integrated financial model to recognize its interdependent missions and ensure support for the academic enterprise.

More recently, his steady and reassuring leadership was essential to the Universitys response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He also worked with Monroe County public and health officials to structure a coordinated community plan, and dedicated Medical Center resources to build tools and infrastructure to support screening, testing and eventually equitable distribution of vaccine within the Rochester community and surrounding regions.

Mark has been a visionary leader and a thoughtful, supportive colleague to me and to so many others across the institution, Mangelsdorf said. The fact that he is providing us with ample notice of his future plans so that we can thoughtfully organize and conduct a search for his successor is just another indication of his commitment to the ongoing work of the University and the Medical Center. I am not only grateful for Marks past service; Im also glad that we can count on his continued service for the next 15 months.

Taubman said that he will actively work to conclude many important initiatives currently underway. These include developing local solutions to our nations health care worker shortage, improving the Medical Centers financial performance and growing the research mission. He will also stay focused on finalizing expansion and modernization plans for Strongs Emergency Department and inpatient areas, opening the first phases of UR Medicines Orthopaedics and Physical Performance Center, and lay plans for the future growth of the UR Medicine health system.

A board-certified cardiologist, Taubman came to the Medical Center as chief of the Cardiology Unit and Paul N. Yu Professor in Cardiology in February 2003. He became chair of the Department of Medicine and Charles E. Dewey Professor of Medicine in May 2007, and served in that role until being named as dean. He briefly served as acting CEO in 2010 while former CEO Bradford Berk, M.D. recovered from an injury.

Taubman graduated from the New York University School of Medicine and completed his residency and cardiology fellowship training at the Brigham & Womens Hospital. He held academic appointments at Harvard Medical school, Childrens Hospital Boston, and Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. Prior to being recruited to the University of Rochester, he was director of cardiovascular research at Mt. Sinai.

Go here to see the original:
Taubman to Conclude CEO and Dean Terms In December 2023 - URMC

Buckhannon, W.Va. Dr. Kimberly Becher has been promoted to Chief Medical Officer at Community Care of West Virginia (CCWV), joining the leadership team with more than a decade of experience in the medical industry.

Becher joined CCWV in 2014 as a family physician at Community Cares health center location in Clay.

Kimberly has an extensive background in the medical field and has shown immense passion for her community and issues that face our rural patients, announced Patricia Collett, chief operations officer of Community Care of West Virginia. I am confident that she will make an excellent and vital addition to our leadership team.

Becher has held several leadership positions at the university, state, and national level. As a medical student, she was a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) Commission on Governmental Advocacy. She was selected as a resident spokesperson for the AAFPs 2012 visit to the White House. She served as a resident on the board of directors of the AAFP from 2013 to 2014 and as the New Physician Delegate to the AAFP Congress of Delegates in 2018.

I have dedicated my career to bettering the health and lives of West Virginians and I am excited to take my responsibility to the next level so that we can continue to grow and deliver services that best serve our patients and their whole health needs, said Becher.

Becher acquired her undergraduate degree in biology from Denison University in Granville, Ohio, in 2002. She received her medical degree from Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine in 2011 where she also completed her family medicine residency and served as one of the departments chief residents. Between her undergraduate studies and medical school, Dr. Becher carried out breast and colon cancer research at the University of Cincinnati.

As we continue to grow and expand our services, Dr. Becher has the vision and expertise to lead us into this next phase as our new chief medical officer, stated Collett.

Becher grew up in West Virginia and is an active member of her community. She has served as a volunteer physician at the Marshall Medical Outreach homeless clinic and as a volunteer at the Health Sciences and Technology Academy of West Virginia University summer camp. She also served on the Mountaineer Food Banks board of directors from 2018 to 2021 and continues to be on the Clay Senior and Community Services board.

View post:
Becher promoted to Chief Medical Officer at Community Care of West Virginia - My Buckhannon

As members of YUs undergraduate faculty, we believe it is our duty to speak up when the well-being of our students is put in jeopardy. We are also deeply invested in ensuring that our university is regarded highly in the broader academic world and in promoting its public standing. It is clear that the actions of the YU administration against the Pride Alliance are causing great harm to our LGBTQ+ students and community members. It is also our sincere belief that these actions have the potential to harm the entire undergraduate student body, by damaging YUs status as a premier institution of higher education, having recently risen in The US News and World Reports rankings.

Some members of our community may be hesitant to wade into this issue because they believe it does not directly involve them. We especially worry that our undergraduate students are not fully aware of the damage being done to YUs reputation as a university. Students should know that this threat to YUs reputation is real. Faculty and administrators from many of YUs own graduate programs as well as its affiliated medical school and hospital have already spoken out against YUs measures. In addition to the letter signed by over eighty members of the undergraduate faculty, faculty from the Cardozo School of Law, Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Wurzweiler School of Social Work as well as Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Hospital have written open letters of protest, as have Cardozos Board of Overseers. The Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies posted a statement on their website, and students at Cardozo and Ferkauf staged a walkout on September 21. As of this writing, more than 1700 alumni and community members have signed a heartfelt letter of protest. Even more recently, the Wilf family, whose name adorns our Washington Heights campus, stated that they strongly disagree with YUs decision. Moreover, there has been widespread coverage of this issue, especially the Universitys decision to cancel all clubs, in mainstream publications such as The Wall Street Journal, CNN, The New York Times, Reuters, NPR, Politico, the New York Post and more.

Through their public litigation, the University risks undermining our reputation in the wider world. We are concerned that this unfortunate development has the potential to limit students' career paths and graduate school admissions prospects, including law school, medical school and other professional schools. It also threatens harm to the universitys own fundraising efforts to support important programming. Faculty may struggle to keep, renew or obtain the federal grants that support their research and especially their labs, which, in turn, are essential to both students graduate admissions and internships in industry. Competitive academic programs throughout the country value equality and non-discrimination toward LGBTQ+ students, and may judge YU undergraduate programs that publicly challenge these core principles. Future employers may be similarly reluctant to hire students from a university that discriminates and does not recognize its LGBTQ+ students equality.

This damage to YUs reputation is in addition to the harm that is being done to our LGBTQ+ students right now. Our university of which we are all a part is implicitly telling these students that they are not of equal value to other students who are allowed to form and join clubs based on their identities. Our colleagues at Ferkauf, Wurzweiler, and Einstein have written in depth about the potential harm these legal actions can cause our LGBTQ+ students and their allies in terms of mental health and ability to thrive. In addition, the universitys actions adversely influence their ability to learn in our classes and take advantage of all YU has to offer. We invite you to read the YU Pride Alliances overview of the case to better understand what they are asking for.

We hope that our students will not only show compassion to their classmates but also stand up for their own interests and future prospects by speaking out against these legal actions. While the Pride Alliance has granted YU the legal stay requested so that other student clubs can resume, there is still time for the University to choose a path of unity. The University can withdraw its appeal or reach another resolution and prevent Yeshiva University vs Pride from becoming shorthand across the United States for legal discrimination against LGBTQ+ students. As we enter the new year, now is the time to put aside differences and come together in what we know to be our shared values. As the Revel faculty put it in their recent statement, it is our imperative as members of this university to recognize the dignity and respect with which we should all treat our fellow human beings.

With best wishes to all for a sweet new year,

Tamar Avnet, Professor of Marketing, Sy Syms School of Business

James Camara, Clinical Associate Professor of Chemistry, Yeshiva College

Anna Lisa Cohen, Professor of Psychology, Yeshiva College

Gabriel Cwilich, Professor of Physics, Yeshiva College

Lauren Fitzgerald, Professor of English, Yeshiva College

Jeffrey Freedman, Professor of History, Yeshiva College & Stern College

Sumanta Goswami, Associate Professor of Biology, Yeshiva College

Jenny Isaacs, Associate Professor of Psychology, Yeshiva College

David Lavinksy, Associate Professor of English, Yeshiva College

Rachel Mesch, Professor of English, Yeshiva College

Jess Olson, Associate Professor of Jewish History, Yeshiva College & Stern College

Raji Viswanathan, Professor of Chemistry, Yeshiva College

For more articles like this,join us on WhatsApp.

Link:
A Plea for Campus Unity in the New Year - The Commentator - The Commentator

The Accelerate Precision Health program will award $46 million total in funding, or $11.5 million per institution, over the next five years to four Historically Black Medical Colleges (HBMCs) to support the scientific research they are doing to address significant gaps in genomics research.

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) program will seek to advance genomics research by investing in genomics programs at Charles Drew University College of Medicine in Los Angeles; Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, D.C.; Meharry Medical College in Nashville; and Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta.

Through the partnership, the HBMCs will expand research opportunities for undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral students; support the creation of a new Master of Science program in Genetic Counseling; support recruitment of anchor faculty in genomics; and fund state-of-the-art tools for data handling, storage, and analysis, among other elements.

Its important to underscore that for Black Americans, there is a large gap between representation and need in genomics research, and the time is now to support the intersection of genomics and health differences research that will advance science. Research shows that expanding representation leads to innovative discoveries, said CZIs Senior Science Advisor Hannah Valantine, in a statement. Actively engaging HBMCs and the communities they serve in genomics research is a necessary approach to harness new perspectives that will fuel creative interdisciplinary research, unleash innovations that have yet to be conceived, and accelerate precision health equity.

Morehouse School of Medicine is thrilled to partner with the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative on the Accelerate Precision Health program, said Morehouse School of Medicine President and CEO Valerie Montgomery Rice, M.D., in a statement. CZI support will allow MSM to expand our educational programs and our world-class genomics research enterprise simultaneously. Through this partnership, MSM will train more graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, hire additional research scientists, and establish an endowed faculty position funded by CZI. These measures will enhance Morehouse School of Medicines continued commitment to academic excellence, service, and innovation as we lead the creation and advancement of health equity.

This grant is part of a multi-year, $500 million investment CZI announced in December 2020 to support organizations leading the way to advance racial equity, diversity and inclusion efforts.

Read the rest here:
Program Will Fund Genomics Research at Historically Black Medical Colleges - Healthcare Innovation

As a new school year begins, Harvard-affiliated sleep health researchers have a message for parents and caregivers on teenage sleep: youre wrong.

A study by investigators from Brigham and Womens Hospital enlisted experts in adolescent sleep to identify myths. Researchers then surveyed parents and caregivers, finding that more than two-thirds believed in the top three most salient myths about sleep. These involved school start times, the safety of melatonin, and the effects of altered sleep patterns on the weekends. In their new paper, published in Sleep Health, the authors explore the prevalence of each myth and present counterevidence to clarify whats best for health.

Adolescents face myriad barriers when it comes to sleep, some of which are physiological and others behavioral, said corresponding author Rebecca Robbins, a researcher in the Brighams Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders and a Harvard Medical School instructor. Given these challenges, it is critical to reduce any modifiable barriers that stand in the way for young people when it comes to sleep. Our goal was to identify common adolescent sleep myths and inspire future public outreach and education efforts to promote evidence-based beliefs about sleep health.

Caregivers and adolescents commonly turn to the Internet and social media for guidance on topics such as sleep. Although these platforms can be sources of evidence-based information, there is the chance that misinformation can proliferate on these platforms.

The researchers surveyed 200 parents and caregivers about 10 sleep myths identified by experts. Some of the prevalent myths that Robbins and colleagues identified and deconstructed include:

Approximately 74 percent of parents/caregivers agreed with this myth. But, the researchers explain, varying sleep schedules on the weekend also known as social jetlag can worsen sleep and does not restore sleep deficits. The authors cite studies showing that varying sleep schedules on the weekend can lead to lower academic performance, risky behaviors such as excessive alcohol consumption, and increased mental health symptoms.

About 69 percent of parents/caregivers agreed with this myth. Robbins and colleagues cite numerous studies showing that delayed middle and high school start times resulted in significantly more sleep, with extended sleep in the morning and minimal impact on bedtimes.

Two-thirds of parents/caregivers believed this myth. While melatonin has become a common supplement for adults and adolescents, longer-term studies on its use are lacking, particularly when it comes to melatonins effects on puberty and development. The content of melatonin in supplements varies widely. The authors also raise concerns about teens taking melatonin without medical evaluation or supervision, and without using behavioral interventions to help address insomnia.

The authors note that their study explored sleep myths among a small sample of parents/caregivers, and future studies of a larger population of parents/caregivers may help to further clarify sleep beliefs. Future studies could also include adolescents themselves as well as experts from other countries and cultures.

Future research should aim to counter myths and promote evidence-based beliefs about adolescent sleep, said senior author Judith Owens, a Boston Childrens Hospital physician and a professor of neurology as Harvard Medical School.

Disclosures: Robbins has served as a consultant to Denihan Hospitality Group, SleepCycle AB, Rituals Cosmetics BV, Deep Inc., and Wave Sleep Inc. Co-author Lauren Hale received an honorarium from the National Sleep Foundation for her role as editor in chief of Sleep Health (between 2015 and 2020). Co-author Michael Grandner has received grants from Kemin Foods, Jazz Pharmaceuticals, and CereZ Technologies, and has received consulting funds from Fitbit, Natrol, Casper, Athleta, and Merck.

Funding: Funding for this work was provided by the NIH/National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Defense.

Sign up for daily emails to get the latest Harvardnews.

Read the rest here:
Parents are so wrong about teenage sleep and health - Harvard Gazette

The University of Arizona Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health and the University of Limerick School of Medicines Master of Science Public Health program in Ireland have entered into an International Memorandum of Agreement to enhance cooperation in research and academics.

The partnership will focus on areas of mutual interest through research collaboration, faculty, scholar and student exchanges, direct enrollment and study abroad programs.

In August 2021, Gabriela Valdez, PhD, director of global education and assistant professor in the Zuckerman College of Public Health, and Niamh Cummins, PhD, lecturer in the School of Medicine at the University of Limerick, began crafting an agreement. The strategic goal of the partnership is to advance public health education, research and practice to address the health needs of diverse populations in both countries.

We are pleased to partner with the University of Limerick, especially as we both see the benefits of applied public health education, said Iman Hakim, MD, PhD, dean of the Zuckerman College of Public Health. I want to thank Dr. Valdez and Dr. Cummins for all the work they did to bring our institutions together for the greater good of public health.

The initial collaboration will focus on exchanges of faculty and scholars for short- and long-term visits. The programs plan to collaborate on research, including developing formal research funding proposals.

Megan Bounds, a second-year graduate student in the Zuckerman College of Public Health, was the first student to participate in a research program at the University of Limerick this summer as part of the partnership. Bounds said she is passionate about incorporating public health into medicine and hopes to attend medical school in the future.

My time in Ireland was life-changing, Bounds said. I appreciated the University of Limericks help involving me in many opportunities on campus and around Ireland. They truly took an interest in and enhanced my experience abroad, taking into account my long-term interests and goals.

Those experiences included working at the University of Limerick hospital, meeting with graduate entry medical students and touring the universitys medical facility.

Overall, the Irish people were some of the most kind and welcoming people I have ever met, she added.

In alignment with the partnership, the School of Medicine at the University of Limerick now offers an annualFulbright Scholarship opportunityto a U.S. student, including graduates from the Zuckerman College of Public Health.The Fulbright scholarship will allow one student to complete a fully funded masters in public health at the University of Limerick, which offers a student-centered learning model with an emphasis on community and collaborative learning. The program aims to move from a traditional public health teaching model to a more applied approach to public health education.

The Fulbright scholarship covers the costs of tuition and a student stipend for a 12-month period. The deadline to apply isOct. 11. For more information, visit the Fulbright website. To apply, visit the University of Limerick website or emailmph@ul.ie.

More:
New International Partnership to Tackle Public Health Challenges - University of Arizona