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Texas College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine |
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TxCOEM Times
Winter 2020 NEWSLETTER
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A WORD FROM THE PRESIDENT |
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Dear TXCOEM Members,
Happy Holidays! What a year this has been! I hope this letter finds you well and healthy. I hope you are also encouraged by the advancements and availability of the COVID-19 vaccines; this certainly is a turning point in the pandemic! The holiday season is special for so many reasons. It is also a time for reflection and gratitude. As I reflect on this year, I am so amazed at the work of our healthcare community and collaboration across this great state of Texas, our Nation, and the globe! Many of you have worked diligently to care for Texans through the pandemic, and have kept Texas working. Thank you for your hard work, your creativity and perseverance. I am confident that you have made an impact and improved the health of our communities through your daily work. Make sure to take time to reflect on this year - the good and the bad, what you would take forward into 2021, and what you let go of and make a list of all that you have to be thankful for. The exercise will bless you.
I also want to share that our leadership team and board has been hard at work to improve the support that TXCOEM provides to its members. We are laying the foundation for new collaborations, enhanced offerings, and improved value. Know that each person on our team is dedicated to this work and I look forward to sharing updates in our next newsletter. Look for additional information in the new year regarding CME opportunities.
We hope you have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Sincerely,
Annamaria Macaluso Davidson, MD, MBA, CMQ
President, TxCOEM
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2020-2021 TxCOEM Board of Directors |
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TXCOEM Officers, 2020-2021
Annamaria Macaluso Davidson, MD, MBA, CMQ - President
Email: Annamaria.Davidson@memorialhermann.org
Michael Paston, MD, MPH, MS - President Elect
Email: Michael.paston@cns.doe.gov
Yogesh Reddy, MD, MPH, MHA - Secretary-Treasurer
Email: Yogesh.reddy@shell.com
Michelle R. McDaniel, BS, CHES - Executive Director/Secretary
Email: Michelle.R.McDaniel@uth.tmc.edu
(713-500-9447 - WFH/please leave voicemail)
TXCOEM Board of Directors
Cynthia K. Ball, DO
Board member and Program Committe Chair
Cynthia.Ball@uthct.edu
Faiyaz A. Bhojani, MD, FACP, DrPH, FACOEM
Board Member and Nomination Committee Chair
faiyaz.bhojani@shell.com
William "Brett" Perkison, MD, MPH, FACOEM
Board Member and Membership Committee Chair
william.b.perkison@uth.tmc.edu
Tufail Shaikh, MD, MPH, MS, FACOEM
Immediate Past President
tufail.shaikh@sbcglobal.net
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I. Secretary-Treasurer position for 2021-2022 |
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This is a 4-year commitment moving to President-Elect, then President, and then a board member. The past president's board member term in office will be one (1) year unless they are elected the following year as an at-large member.
Key responsibilities of the Secretary-Treasurer are:
- Keeps track of all expenses and manages the bank account
- Disbursements and write checks
- Records and distributes minutes of all meetings
- Coordinates and prepares newsletters for members
- Participates in various committees
Should you be interested, please provide a note of interest, 1-2 paragraphs about yourself and why you are interested to TxCOEM@uth.tmc.edu
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II. Committee Opportunities |
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a. Membership Committee: responsible for increasing TxCOEM membership through innovative programs outreach and demonstrating organization value to prospective members and current members. Chair: Dr. William "Brett" Perkison; 2 seats available.
b. Nomination Committee: responsible for recruiting and selection of incoming secretary/treasurer, board members and nominates prestigious honors like the annual Dr. Marcus Key award. Chair: Dr. Faiyaz Bhojani; 2 seats available.
c. Program Committee: responsible for planning and oversight of educational activities like webinars and conferences, also ensuring alignment with ACOEM and TxCOEM values, and CME/MOC requirements. Chair: Dr. Cynthia Ball; Co-chair, President-Elect; 1 seat available.
Should you be interested, please provide a note of interest, 1-2 paragraphs about yourself and why you are interested to TxCOEM@uth.tmc.edu
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As both an ACOEM and TxCOEM member, delegates are required by ACOEM. With more TxCOEM members comes more representation at ACOEM's House of Delegates meetings. To be discussed during the annual business meeting in May 2021.
If members have any new resolutions, we ask you email resolutions in writing before the business meeting, allowing members to review and vote during the meeting, guaranteeing our meeting is efficient and productive.
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In Memoriam:
Dr. Marcus Key
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Dr. Marcus Key, the first director of NIOSH, passed away October 31, 2020 in Irvington, Virginia.
During World War II, Key served in the U.S. Army Air Forces. He received a Master of Industrial Health degree in 1954 and entered the U.S. Public Health Service, where he specialized in occupational medicine. After serving as the Assistant Surgeon General and as director of the Bureau of Occupational Safety and Health, Dr. Key was appointed as director of NIOSH in 1971 and remained in the role until 1975. As director, Dr. Key issued recommendations for exposure limits for vinyl chloride. Occupational health issues addressed during his term included coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, liver cancer, asbestosis, and mesothelioma. Dr. Marcus was 96 years old. He will be greatly missed by our Occupational Medicine Colleagues.
Dr. Key was a past president of ACGIH and of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. He later became a professor of Occupational Medicine at the University of Texas (UTHealth) School of Public Health and was the first director of the NIOSH Educational Research Center at the University of Texas at Houston (now UTHealth at Houston).
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TXCOEM bank balance as of November 2020: $20,133.92 |
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UTHealth at Houston
OEM Residents/SWCOEH Trainees
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Laura Bayne, MD, MBA, DipIBLM, PGY-3 occupational and environmental medicine resident physician and the 2020 chief resident, second year masters of public health student at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Public Health. Dr. Bayne was selected to the Alpha Iota Chapter of the Delta Omega Honorary Society in Public Health in November 2020 and also earned her international board certification in lifestyle medicine while a resident. She was selected to UTHealth Leads as one of three students from UTHealth School of Public Health to participate in a fellowship program designed to develop leaders in healthcare. Dr. Bayne is the resident representative on the residency advisory committee and the program evaluation committee. She plans to enter corporate medicine. |
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Rispba McCray-Garrison, MD, PGY-4 is a first-year resident in The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Public Health, occupational and environmental medicine residency program. Dr. McCray-Garrison earned her medical degree from the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) School of Medicine at Galveston. She completed her prerequisite clinical time prior to entering the occupational medicine residency at UTHealth at San Antonio School of Medicine. She earned a master of science in biochemistry, microbiology, and molecular biology prior to earning a MD. |
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David Rios, MD, PGY-3 occupational and environmental medicine resident physician and the 2021 chief resident, second year masters of public health student at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Public Health. Rios went to medical school at Loma Linda University in California, where he won an award in public health as part of team at a student run community clinic. He completed his prerequisite clinical time prior to entering the occupational medicine residency at Naval Medical Center, San Diego. Dr. Rios will be returning to San Diego after completing his residency to pursue a career in clinical and corporate occupational medicine.
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UTHealth at Tyler
OEM Residents
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Alexander Nguyen, DO, PGY-3 occupational and environmental medicine resident physician and the 2020-2021 chief resident, second year masters of public health student at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler (UTHSCT) School of Community and Rural Health. Dr. Nguyen worked extensively on the COVID-19 response at UTHSCT including implementing screening protocols and creating an automated online return to work post-exposure survey which was accepted in the AMA Health Systems Science Student and Resident Impact Challenge. He is currently working with the Southwest Ag Center to perform research on the dangerous work of the Vietnamese gulf coast commercial shrimp fishermen. On residency experiences, Dr. Nguyen states, “The residency program at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler gave me the opportunities to be involved in any and all of my interests. The flexibility of the program allowed for a more tailored experience, but broad range of expertise amongst the faculty guaranteed that there was always a mentor in your field of interest.” |
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Seena Rohani DO, MMS, PGY-3, UTHealth Tyler Occupational and Environmental Health Sciences. Seena Rohani went to medical school at UNTHSC in Fort Worth, TX and completed his prerequisite clinical time prior to entering the Occupational Medicine Residency at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas. Dr. Rohani has been involved in research focused on discovering innovative ways to allow for the extended use of N95 respirators during times of public emergency, like the COVID-19 pandemic. He is also interested in addiction medicine and plans to specialize in this field. |
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Ijeoma Doris Nwaigwe DO, PGY-2 is a first-year resident at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler (UTHSCT) occupational and environmental medicine residency program. She earned her doctor of osteopathic medicine degree from Nova Southeastern University, Florida. Prior to this, she earned a master of science in management from the Imperial College, London, and a bachelor of laws from the University of Nigeria. Since joining UTHSCT, Dr. Nwaigwe has served as a member of the medical staff peer review committee. She is also the voice of the residency program’s virtual tour which showcases our exceptional clinical and educational environment. |
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Tung Ho, DO, PGY-2 is a first-year resident in The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler (UTHSCT) occupational and environmental medicine residency program. He earned his doctor of osteopathic medicine degree at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine. Having lived on the East Coast for most of his life, Dr. Ho is now training at UTHSCT in hopes of broadening his horizons. He aims to develop his experience in an agricultural background to strengthen his clinical skills to treat and prevent work-related injuries. He is currently a member of the clinical research committee that is devising a curriculum to allow residents to obtain certification in clinical research. On his experience at UTHSCT, “The training provided at UTHSCT is robust as it is diverse. On top of caring for a high patient volume, I've been granted opportunities to take more active administrative roles for the hospital. Most importantly is the faculty, experts in their individual fields, whose support and guidance for our class cannot be emphasized enough.”
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TxCOEM at TexMed (virtual program)
Save the date for May 14-15, 2021!
This year, due to COVID-19 gathering and travel restrictions, the annual TxCOEM business meeting and symposium will again be hosted as a virtual program. Registration for TxCOEM members is free and will be announced as of early February 2021.
Occupational Medicine Journal Club
Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health at UTHealth (Houston) School of Public Health
This program is currently hosted in a virtual format for the spring of 2021, and occurs on the third Thursday of each month in the spring and fall semesters. Be part of the virtual network of occupational medicine physicians in Texas and beyond! Come together once a month and catch up on events in our pre-presentation break out sessions and then review a timely article presented by one of the UTHealth SPH trainees/students. CME determination of credit pending. Next Journal Club is Jan. 21st. Be on the look out for invitations or visit www.SWCOEH.org and scroll down to upcoming events (spring schedule under development).
Occupational Medicine Journal Club
UT Health at Tyler
This program is currently hosted in a virtual format for the spring of 2021, and occurs on the first Tuesday of each month. Join in for article presentations by residents, discussions, and networking with your peers across Texas and beyond! CME eligible. Invitations and calender reminders will be forwarded to you by email.
Ex4OSH 2021 International Conference, Houston, Texas, USA
Save the date for December 9-11, 2021!
Ex4OSH 2021 conference, a collaboration between the SWCOEH at UTHealth School of Public Health and CDC/NIOSH, will bring together an international and interdisciplinary audience of employers, workers, health and safety professionals, researchers, policymakers, and the academic community to address the need for an expanded focus for occupational safety and health (OSH). Strict COVID-19 precautionary measures will be in place to protect the health and safety of all conference attendees, facilitators, speakers and guests. The call for abstracts and conference registration information, including hotel, exhibitor, and sponsor opportunities, will be announced early Spring 2021. Learn more at: https://conta.cc/3p3NDTx
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TxCOEM communications to Michelle McDaniel, Executive Director,
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1200 Pressler St.,
RAS West, Suite 1038
Houston, TX 77030
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