Update
GSBS Student Earns National Research Award
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| Lisa Marie Moore |
LISA MARIE MOORE, a PhD candidate at GSBS in Newark, was awarded a three-year, Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award F31 Fellowship in the amount of $42,323 per year. The goal of her proposal will be to evaluate the tumor-forming potential of several unique neural progenitors that are responsive to platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF).
She has hypothesized that there are multiple PDGF-responsive "cells of origin" that contribute to glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) tumor formation. GBMs are aggressive and fatal brain cancers that are resistant to current treatment therapies. Ultimately, if she can identify and characterize the "cell of origin," then scientists will be better equipped to make drugs that will specifically target the cell that continues to give rise to the tumor.
Biomedical research wasn't Moore's first calling. The Queens native attended Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, where she received a bachelor's degree in business administration, with a concentration in information technology. She earned a master's degree in computer engineering from NJIT before beginning doctoral studies at UMDNJ five years ago.
Moore will work with Steven Levison, PhD, in the NJMS-UH Cancer Center, and with Peter Canoll, MD, PhD, from Columbia's Department of Neuropathology.
A PIONEER IN OSTEOPATHIC MANIPULATIVE MEDICINE
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| Charles Steiner, DO |
CHARLES STEINER, DO, A PIONEER in the field of osteopathic medicine, was a beloved physician in Maplewood, where he practiced for more than 68 years, affecting the lives of thousands of patients statewide. As a testimony to Steiner's profound impact, the New Jersey Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons named him the "2011 D.O. of the Year."
Steiner passed away last summer just before his 93rd birthday; and to honor his memory, members of the Steiner family, the Alumni Association of SOM and leaders in the osteopathic community have started a campaign to raise $2 million in his name to support a cause near and dear to his heart — the Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine Residency Program at SOM.
As the founding chair of the Department of Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine (OMM) at SOM, Steiner wanted to demonstrate the effectiveness of OMM and to validate its healing qualities through comprehensive research. He felt strongly that reliable and reproducible data were needed to substantiate its effectiveness.
Gifts to the campaign will establish a residency position for a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine interested in expanding his or her OMM knowledge. The training will allow the physician to treat patients using osteopathic manipulative medicine, to conduct research into the overall effectiveness of OMM and to participate in the education of current students at SOM.
Gifts to the endowment can be made at www.foundationofumdnj.org/make-a-gift/ or mailed to The Foundation of UMDNJ, 120 Albany Street, Tower II, Suite 850, New Brunswick, NJ 08901. For more information, contact Gail Forman, director of development, at (856) 282-4417 or gforman@njhf.org.
Kudos to Broadway House for Perfect Score
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NAMED ONE OF "America's Best Nursing Homes" " by U.S. News & World Report, The Broadway House for Continuing Care, an affiliate of UMDNJ, earned a perfect five-star rating. U.S. News rated and profiled more than 15,500 homes across the country, and fewer than one in eight of those facilities earned a perfect five-star rating in all four quarters of 2011.
The ratings are based on data from Nursing Home Compare, a consumer website run by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the government agency that sets and enforces standards for nursing homes.
UMDNJ Experts Battle New Jersey's Obesity Epidemic
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WITH NEARLY 25 PERCENT OF NEW JERSEY ADULTS classified as "obese" and chronic health conditions such as diabetes and hypertension dramatically on the rise, the role of the healthcare professional in leading obesity prevention, identification, and treatment has become increasingly vital.
In "New Jersey's Obesity Epidemic: The Role of the Health Care Professional," the latest event in UMDNJ's President's Lecture Series, University experts met these statistics head-on, analyzing the causes of obesity and its impact on New Jersey residents and also giving health care providers valuable prevention strategies that can be incorporated into their practices and into their patients' lifestyles. The event attracted an audience of more than 200.
Among the themes explored were:
- How personal biases towards their obese patients prevent some health professionals from effectively providing needed care;
- Why older communities and neighborhoods are more conducive to walking than newer neighborhoods;
- Why workplace wellness programs are often a win-win for employers and employees;
- What health professionals can do to make their practices more user friendly to their obese patients.
The distinguished panel of UMDNJ public health, medical and nutritional experts also discussed the social determinants of obesity, the sometimes overlooked environmental factors that can trigger excessive weight gain, and obesity prevention and intervention strategies that can be put in place in the workplace and by local communities.
SOM Grad Wins Federal Grant
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CLAUDIA CLARKE, SOM '12, was awarded the only National Health Service Corps (NHSC) grant in the state, and is one of only 77 medical students chosen nationally. Clarke, who hopes to complete a residency in internal medicine and pediatrics, will be eligible for a total award of $120,000 to help her repay educational loans of $210,000. Passionate about primary care, treating populations that are at risk, and working towards the elimination of health disparities, the NHSC grant recipient will work in a medically underserved area for at least two years once she completes her residency. At SOM, Clarke was the Founder and President of the Med-Peds Interest Group and an administrator of the Camden Saturday Health Clinic.
SOM PROFESSOR HONORED FOR SERVICE TO ABUSED CHILDREN
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| Martin A. Finkel, DO |
A FEDERAL AGENCY, a national organization and a statewide physicians' association have all recognized Martin A. Finkel, DO, the co-founder and medical director of the CARES (Child Abuse Research, Education and Service) Institute, honoring his 30 years of service devoted to child victims of abuse and neglect. A professor of pediatrics at SOM, Finkel is an internationally recognized authority on the medical evaluation and treatment of children who are alleged to have been abused.
At its National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect, the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF) presented its 2012 Commissioner's Award to Finkel for "making an exceptional contribution to the prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect." The ACYF is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The New Jersey Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons (NJAOPS) selected Finkel as the 2012 NJAOPS Physician of the Year during the organization's Anniversary Reception and Gala. And the Ray Helfer Society, a national honorary society of physicians who are leaders in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of child abuse and neglect, named Finkel as the recipient of its 2012 Ray Helfer Award, citing his "longstanding dedication to teaching, research and clinical care."
Founded in 1987, the CARES Institute at SOM sees nearly 2,500 patients annually, all drawn from the seven South Jersey counties. In addition, Finkel and other healthcare professionals from the institute have provided training throughout the world in protocols developed at CARES that help children and their families overcome the effects of abuse and violence.
IT'S A MATCH
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IT'S NOT OFTEN that people are happy to hear they are going to the hospital. But that news was exactly what nearly 400 fourth-year medical students at UMDNJ wanted to hear. On Match Day 2012, thousands of medical students across the country learned where they will spend their years of residency training.
The graduating medical students from NJMS, RWJMS, and SOM were extraordinarily successful in securing residency positions. Overall, 429 UMDNJ students, 99.1 percent of those who applied, succeeded in securing post-graduate positions, compared to the national average of 95 percent. UMDNJ's results include students from SOM who participated in the osteopathic match program and students who matched to residency programs related to their military service.
More than 135 of the University's students will remain in New Jersey for their residency training, including 93 who matched to UMDNJ programs. UMDNJ students also matched to such prestigious out-of-state programs as Yale University, Johns Hopkins, University of Pennsylvania and New York Presbyterian/Columbia University.
Nationally, more than 38,000 students from the U.S., Canada and other countries competed for just 26,772 residency positions.
Educating Nurses to Serve Children in Foster Care
THE FOUNDATION OF UMDNJ, an affiliate of New Jersey Health Foundation, received a $300,000 grant from the Rosanne H. Silbermann Foundation for the Child Health Program at the School of Nursing's François Xavier Bagnoud (FXB) Center. The grant will be used to develop a child welfare curriculum at SN that will address the health care and mental health needs of children in New Jersey's foster care system.
Children in foster care, otherwise known as "out of home placement," often experience physical, developmental, behavioral and mental health problems that require specialized nursing skills. "It is our great hope that the curriculum developed at UMDNJ's School of Nursing will attract qualified nurses to this important subspecialty. It is also our aspiration that this curriculum becomes the national standard in teaching and attracting nurses to this extremely important field," said M. Steven Silbermann, spokesperson for the Rosanne H. Silbermann Foundation. The non-profit charitable family foundation supports medical, educational and religious organizations.
This is the first nursing school to offer a subspecialty in child welfare nursing. This three-year grant allows the school to expand a one-day elective field practicum for students enrolled in the bachelor's degree program to four semesters, adding a preceptorship experience and student paper presentations, explains the school's dean Susan Salmond, EdD, RN. " We will also host a national symposium to share our work and promote discussion and action aimed at improving nursing care for these vulnerable children."
And the Winners Are …
(l-r) KENNETH MARKOWITZ, DDS, NJDS assistant professor, Oral Biology, with the winners (left to right): GRIGORIY EFROS, JONATHAN SNOW and BENJAMIN IMMERMAN
THREE NJDS STUDENTS WHO CONDUCTED RESEARCH last summer submitted their results in a competition held by the New York Academy of Dentistry (NYAD). They won and were invited to present their poster there in February. Second-year students Grigoriy Efros and Jonathan Snow and third-year student Benjamin Immerman presented "Analysis of Charged Silica Adhesion to Deep Dentin." The poster won a $4,000 prize, which will be used for research in the laboratory of Daniel Fine, DMD, NJDS professor and chair of the Department of Oral Biology and director of the Center for Oral Infectious Diseases, where the three conducted their winning investigation. Kenneth Markowitz, DDS, Oral Biology, and Marc Rosenblum, DMD, Restorative Dentistry, were the students' mentors.
AVOIDING UNNECESSARY HOSPITALIZATION
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TO HELP PATIENTS WITH multiple chronic conditions avoid re-hospitalization at UMDNJ's University Hospital, intensive case management will be provided under the new I CARE-4-Healthcare Transition Project, made possible by a $300,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's New Jersey Health Initiatives program. The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey will provide supplemental funding, and the program will be implemented in partnership with the Visiting Nurse Association Health Group based in Newark.
The I CARE-4-Healthcare Transition Project targets patients who do not have regular primary care physicians and have one or more of the following diseases: diabetes, cardiovascular disease (such as heart failure, uncontrolled hypertension and atrial fibrillation); respiratory disease (such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and pneumonia); HIV; and sickle cell disease.
According to Melissa Scollan-Koliopoulos, EdD, APRN-BC, CDE, BC-ADM, an NJMS assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, discharged patients often return to the hospital and go to the emergency room when they shouldn't, while other patients fail to go to the emergency room where they should be. Such patterns contribute to excessive healthcare costs and disparities in health outcomes.
She and David Bleich, MD, associate professor and chief of endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism, will serve as co-project directors with the overall goal of improving care for a healthy transition using a four-tiered approach that includes a certified home health aide/patient navigator, registered nurse, advanced practice nurse (APN) and physician team.
"Our goal is to extend the attention and care that patients receive from us beyond the four walls of the hospital, thereby improving patient outcomes," says Bleich. Other program goals include educating patients about medications and overall health and wellness. Participants also are linked to resources such as health insurance.
TOP PAPER BY NJMS RESIDENT
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KRISTIN COOK, MD, a surgical resident in the Department of Surgery at NJMS, won the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACS-COT) prize for Best Clinical Paper at its 90th annual meeting in March. The winning paper, entitled "The Association between Plasma G-CSF Level and Signs of Bone Marrow Failure Following Severe Trauma," competed against the submissions of residents and fellows from across the U.S., Canada and South America. This is the second time in the past six years that a surgery resident from NJMS has won this prestigious award.
— compiled by Carole Walker