College of Medicine and
Health Affairs Newsletter
November 2018
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Dear Students, Faculty and Staff,
As I reflect upon the many activities and initiatives this fall, I am gratified by all that has been accomplished in the College of Medicine. Through the hard work of our exceptional faculty, students, and staff, we continue to transform and contemporize the content and delivery of our educational program, while tackling important faculty issues like compensation, faculty to student ratios, and faculty development needs. Proposed academic space renovations will begin the modernization of our southern corridor and anatomy facilities. The Health Affairs agenda continues to prioritize the strengthening of our clinical and educational partnerships, including research, workforce development, legislative, and educational collaboration.
The analysis and recommendations of our yearlong LCME self-study process have informed the development of our College of Medicine strategic plan. The continuous quality improvement synergy born by alignment of the self-study and the strategic planning processes, is key to our mission-driven focus.
All of these initiatives: education, research, and service, while happening each day, are shaping the future of the College of Medicine. Academic year 2018-2019 is poised to be the College of Medicine's most transformational and exciting year to date! And, it is unquestionably the unrelenting and committed work of the faculty, staff, and students that make this happen.
To our College of Medicine community, I want to extend my personal wish to all for a Thanksgiving holiday filled with gratitude, comfort, and thanks.
Warmly,
Elisabeth H. Young, M.D., F.A.C.P.
Vice President for Health Affairs
Dean, College of Medicine
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The Class of 2022 celebrated at the White Coat ceremony which occurred on September 17 at NEOMED's NEW Ballroom. One hundred forty-five College of Medicine students received their White Coats and 50 NEOMED faculty participated in the ceremony. Highlights from the ceremony are included here.
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Dr. Titus Sheers and Dr. William Chilian lead the faculty processional.
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M1 Student Anne (Sophie) Shabab gets coated by M2 students Nathan Nahhas and Michelle Pfeffer.
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Newly coated students recite the Oath of Professional Commitment.
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The Class of 2022 following the ceremony.
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Dean's Leadership Award Winner Announced at White Coat
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Dr. John Boltri, Professor and Chair of Family and Community Medicine, is the recipient of the 2018 Dean's Leadership Award. Each year at the White Coat Ceremony, the Dean’s Leadership Award is given to an individual of character and integrity who demonstrates outstanding and respected leadership and is known for their selfless support of students and faculty. This individual leads by example and exemplifies the values of the College of Medicine: integrity, curiosity, and compassion.
Dr. Boltri has been teaching and practicing family medicine for over 30 years and serves as medical director and a preceptor of the SOAR (Student Outreach to the Area Residents) free clinic. He is an advocate for students, faculty and has a passion for community service. At right Dr.Boltri and his wife Shelley are pictured. Congratulations to Dr. Boltri!
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2018 College of Medicine Student Coaters
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While the White Coat ceremony celebrates a milestone in the lives of new M1 students, there are a group of M2 students who got to share in the festivities. M2 students are nominated by their peers to serve as student coaters during the White Coat ceremony. The students with the highest number of nominations are then vetted through the office of students affairs and traditionally exhibit the qualities of ethical leadership, academic success, community/campus involvement, and truly stand out as role models to their peers. Pictured left to right with Dr. Young and Dr. Gershen are this year's M2 student coaters:
Andrew Whipkey, Stephen Grossi, Eesha Zaheer, Michelle Pfeffer, Nathan Nahhas and, Saeed Khoncarly
.
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Dr. Eugene Mowad named Vice Dean
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Congratulations to Dr. Eugene Mowad who was recently appointed Vice Dean of the College of Medicine. Dr. Mowad has oversight of COM academic programming, accreditation and serves as the COM lead in the absence of the Dean.
Dr. Mowad has served as Sr. Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs since beginning at NEOMED in 2014. He is a clinical professor of pediatrics and a pediatric hospitalist at Akron Children's Hospital. He has been recognized for his teaching and service and is a member of the Master Teacher's Guild.
Prior to his arrival at NEOMED, he served as a residency program director and as the Director of Medical Education at Northside Hospital and Akron Children's Hospital.
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Anita Pokorny, M.Ed. joins the College of Medicine
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The College of Medicine is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Anita Pokorny, M.Ed., as the Assistant Dean of Students. In this position, she will bring her experience, energy, and skill to lead the College of Medicine’s efforts in designing an office that will serve the needs of medical students in the areas of student advocacy, engagement, success, and career planning.
She comes to COM with 35 years of experience in the student affairs arena, with 29 years of experience in medical education. She is also a nationally recognized expert in medical student affairs and currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Group on Student Affairs for the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).
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LCME Update- Shared Learning Environment
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The LCME requires that NEOMED have an affiliation agreement with each clinical affiliate used regularly for required clinical experiences. The affiliation agreement spells out what the responsibilities are for both NEOMED and the clinical site.
As part of the agreement, NEOMED and the clinical site must also agree to share responsibility for creating and maintaining an appropriate learning environment. Operationally, this means that the faculty (teachers) and students (learners) have certain responsibilities to one another. Excerpted
here are the responsibilities of teachers and learners
from Exhibit A: Teacher-Learner Expectations from the AAMC Uniform Clinical Agreement.
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My name is Dr. Ryan Palmer and I am the new Associate Dean for Medical Education. You can learn a bit more about me by referring to the following
PULSE article
and
video
but, in brief, I am absolutely thrilled to be a part of the NEOMED community! One of my focuses is to increase opportunities to communicate with students, with this new Curriculum section of the newsletter being one way to do so. I also have an open meeting with students on the second Tuesday of each month in the COM Dean’s Office, and I am always happy to meet individually in person, on the phone or via email. Students are my top priority, and I look forward to meeting all of you.
As students continue with fall coursework, I want to emphasize the importance of wellness and help-seeking. It is always good to identify and get out in front of academic challenges. The following resources are available to students:
- The Learning Center is in the Office of Student Affairs: Students can access the Learning Center by contacting Craig Theissen at [email protected]) or 330.325.6758. Personal help-seeking is a core competency of being a physician, and there are services at NEOMED to assist physicians in training.
- Students can access the campus counseling center by calling 330-325-6757 or by email at [email protected]. Proactively seeking help for any reason is a sign of strength and we are here to support your success!
I wish you all the best as you wrap up the fall semester!
A Welcome to M1 Students from the USMLE
The United States Licensing Examination (USMLE) has a message for all new M1 students as they start their medical school career. A letter from the presidents of the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) and the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) can be accessed
here
.
Curriculum Guiding Principles
The College of Medicine has recently updated its Curriculum Guiding Principles. The guiding principles embrace the NEOMED College of Medicine mission, vision, and values, and provide a dynamic, integrated, and comprehensive curriculum that assists 21st-century learners in becoming patient-centered and community-focused physician leaders. Read more about them on our
website
.
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College Strategic Plan Update
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After months of market research, focus groups and discussions with students, faculty and staff, the College of Medicine has finalized its goals for the strategic plan:
- Prepare Clinician Leaders to Shape the Future of Medicine
- Encourage Vitality and Engagement of our Students
- Strengthen Vitality and Engagement of our Faculty and Staff
- Foster Excellence in Collaborative and Innovative Research and Scholarship
- Cultivate Pride in and Strengthen the College of Medicine's Identity
- Enhance Economic Stability and Sustainability of the College of Medicine
There will be an opportunity for the community to provide input and help shape and refine the document in the near future. More details on this process will be forthcoming from the Strategic Planning Committee.
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Health Affairs Highlights
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From the Office of Student Health and Wellness
Did you stop at The Center for Student Wellness and Counseling Services (CSWCS) “Don’t Duck Out on
Your Wellbeing” booth at the 2018 Welcome Back Picnic? If you didn’t you’ll want to be sure you stop
by the CSWCS team’s next exciting event. You can expect to find a variety of stress management items that can be fun but improve how you cope. The CSWCS goal is to advance and promote health and wellbeing by providing an environment that promotes healthy lifestyles.
The team consists of Jennifer Dougall, PhD, Patricia Goetz, MD, Stephanie Orwick M.Ed., LPCC-S, and Dana Whittlesey, BSM/HR. They are here Monday-Friday from 8-5 PM and by appointment. Each month the team focuses on a key issue or topic related to health and or wellness.
The lineup this year is extensive, so stop by and see what they have to offer! We just hosted an event called an "App a Day..." on Friday, October 19, 2018 and passed out a variety of apples from local orchards. Students who stopped by the tables outside
Watanakunakorn Auditorium
during this time were treated to an apple cooking demonstration by Executive Chef Xavier Smith.
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Students stop by the Center for Health and Wellness table at the Welcome picnic that took place on August 28, 2018.
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Staff from the Office of Student Health and Wellness: Jennifer Dougall, Ph.D., Stephanie Orwick, M.Ed., and Dana Whittlesey
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Northeast Ohio Medical University College of Medicine | 330.325.6311 | Website:
NEOMED COM
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