For many Thanksgiving chefs, organizing a meal with one turkey let alone 44 is daunting. For Booker T. Washington Middle School for the Arts cafeteria manager Sheila Travers, whose kitchen serves hundreds of students, the job is "every day."

"Minus the kids, but it's like every day," said Travers, as she monitored the food remaining from the annual Thanksgiving meal for the needy organized by students from the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

More than 400 people dropped in Thursday, taking plates piled high with the holiday staples: in all, some 80 cans of corn, 100 cans of green beans, 200 packs of dinner rolls, 75 boxes of potatoes and nearly five gallons of gravy. Some also carried out leftovers, clothing or fresh produce donated by Hungry Harvest LLC, a CSA-like company that gives away one bag of produce for every bag it sells.

Turnout in the last few years has been on the larger side, said Travers, who has participated for more than 14 years and credited the economy for the crowds, not her cooking.

"We ate at the McDonald's this morning. We go back to McDonald's tonight," said Thuirmus L. Williams, 55, who said he has lived in a homeless shelter since 2003, when he suffered a stroke. "This is far better than that, and far more wholesome."

The annual "Project Feast" event, in its 25th year, costs about $6,000, and is funded through contributions from medical school alumni and the student government, said co-organizer Ya Zhou, 24, a second-year medical student.

This year, Zhou said roughly 100 volunteers a mix of community members, classmates and students and staff from other University of Maryland, Baltimore schools registered to participate, and about 50 others dropped by on the day to help distribute food, perform blood-pressure screenings and offer counseling.

"It's an information center with a meal," said Micah Tutein, 56, who accompanied Williams to the school, after hearing about the event through word of mouth.

Then he returned to the business at hand, going for a plate of coconut pie.

nsherman@baltsun.com

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At University of Maryland Thanksgiving dinner, 'it's an information center and a meal'

Photo by: Provided

Dr. Uretz Oliphant, former regional dean of the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Urbana-Champaign and head of the Department of Surgery, shares words of wisdom at the mentorship dinner.

Class officers

Medical students at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine in Springfield have been elected to leadership positions as officers, representatives and committee members for the 2014-15 school year including two from the area.

Bryan Kidd, son of Rick and Nancy Kidd of St. Joseph, was elected chair of the fourth-year class.

Rustin Meister, son of Ron and Diane Meister of Urbana, was elected class representative to the student general assembly.

4H helps Santa

On Nov. 17, 13 members of the Iroquois County 4-H Federation met at Big R in Watseka for a shopping spree to purchase gifts to donate to Toys for Tots.

The federation members enjoyed shopping for less fortunate children in the hopes of making their Christmas a little brighter. They filled up two shopping carts with an assortment of toys for boys and girls of all ages.

Afterward, they went to Monical's Pizza for dinner and an informal meeting.

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Neighbors: Recognizing accomplishments throughout our communities

AUSTIN, TEXAS (PRWEB) November 25, 2014

Montefiore Medical Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and Rockpointe are pleased to announce a new online Continuing Medical Education (CME) activity titled, Hyponatremia: Detection and Management in the Hospital Setting.

Hyponatremia is a common electrolyte disorder associated with significant morbidity and mortality. This condition often goes undiagnosed and untreated due to patients being asymptomatic or presents as a complication of a serious medical illness that requires dedicated medical attention. Hospital-based clinicians who commonly encounter patients with hyponatremia are strongly encouraged to participate in this online CME activity at: http://www.rockpointe.com/Einstein/Montefiore/Hyponatremia

Dr. Ladan Golestaneh, Associate Professor of Medicine (Adult Nephrology) from Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Medical Center will present this program. After attending this online activity participating physicians should be able to demonstrate the ability to: identify hospitalized patients with hyponatremia that require improvement in serum sodium levels; evaluate when and how various therapeutic options should be utilized in the treatment of hyponatremia; analyze the pathophysiology of hyponatremia development in the workup and treatment of the disorder; and recognize the limitations of some diagnostic tests in the setting of renal failure and proceed with the appropriate management of hyponatremia in the setting of renal failure. Physicians may earn up to 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s).

For more information about this online CME activity and to register, please visit online: http://www.rockpointe.com/Einstein/Montefiore/Hyponatremia

About Rockpointe Founded in 1995, Rockpointe Corporation is a science-based medical education company whose clinical specialists, educators, and producers are dedicated to the design and implementation of integrated, certified educational initiatives that are engaging and clinically relevant to health care professionals. Working in collaboration with industry thought leaders, professional societies, and government agencies, Rockpointes scientists, physicians, editors, managers, and medical education specialists are passionate about designing and delivering programs in which medical science and clinical need converge.

Rockpointe utilizes a consistent approach to CME planning, beginning with a complete assessment and clinical practice gap analysis, designed to clearly define educational need. This process leads to the development of a comprehensive and flexible education plan, which rapidly responds to changes in science and the marketplace.

Each program culminates with a thorough outcomes analysis using multiple criteria and measurement techniques. The outcomes process is designed to accurately assess changes in participant knowledge, competence, and performance, with an ultimate aim of improving patient care and quality-of-life. All outcomes findings are shared with program sponsors and supporters, and recommendations are made regarding improvements for future activities.

Contact us today to learn more about how you can achieve the greatest response and educational success from your CME/CE programming.

About Montefiore Medical Center As the academic medical center and University Hospital for Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center is nationally recognized for clinical excellencebreaking new ground in research, training the next generation of healthcare leaders, and delivering science-driven, patient-centered care, with one of the largest Residency Programs in the USA.

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An Online CME Activity: Hyponatremia: Detection and Management in the Hospital Setting

Harrogate, Tennessee (PRWEB) November 24, 2014

November 24, 2014 Ray E. Stowers, D.O., founding dean of Lincoln Memorial University-DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine(LMU-DCOM) will retire from that post effective January 1, 2015.

Dr. Ray Stowers has served LMU as a dynamic leader, passionate advocate, pioneering innovator and a great recruiter for the past decade, LMU President B. James Dawson said. He has enhanced our academic community one hundred fold, building strong and robust medical education programs, recruiting world class faculty, building innovative and state-of-the-art facilities and enhancing the reputation of Lincoln Memorial University. While his presence will be missed on campus, his legacy will live here for generations to come.

Stowers, an American Osteopathic Association (AOA) board-certified family physician, joined LMU in 2005, and since then he has been helping to groom future generations of osteopathic physicians (DOs) as the vice president for health sciences and founding dean of LMU-DCOM. He also serves as a professor of family medicine.

Prior to joining LMU-DCOM, Stowers was an associate dean and associate professor of family medicine and director of the Division of Rural Health at the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences in Tulsa.

When I first arrived in Harrogate in 2005, I was initially unsure of what we would be able to accomplish, Stowers said. But under the leadership of Pete DeBusk and the LMU Board of Directors, and with the hard work and dedication of a committed faculty and staff, we have built a tremendous medical school. Our graduates are predominately in primary care fields, and are working to help the underserved in this region and beyond. It has been my distinct honor to serve as the founding dean of LMU-DCOM. I am thankful to have had this opportunity, and I look forward to staying in touch with the students, faculty, staff and alumni of LMU-DCOM and watching the great things that lie ahead.

Stowers advocacy for rural health care delivery can be traced back to his 25 years in practice in Medford, Oklahoma, where he founded the states first rural health clinics. He then served as director of the Oklahoma Rural Health Policy and Research Center.

On a national level, Stowers has advised Congress on health care issues through his appointments to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, better known as MedPAC, and the Physician Payment Review Commission. It was during his service to MedPAC that he first encountered LMU Board Chairman Autry O.V. Pete DeBusk. DeBusk recruited Stowers to act as a consultant to LMU while explored the possibility of founding a medical school on its rural campus and later convinced him to move to Tennessee to become the dean of the school.

I have had the privilege of knowing Doc for 15 years. His knowledge of the medical world is unchallenged, said DeBusk. I will always appreciate what he has done for LMU in establishing this fine medical school. He is a great friend.

A longstanding member of the AOA, Stowers has served on the Board of Trustees since 2000. He was named president-elect of the AOA in July 2011 and served as president from July 2012-July 2013. In addition, he has been involved with several other osteopathic professional organizations, including the Oklahoma Osteopathic Association, which honored him with the A.T. Still Award of Excellence in 2008; the Northwest Oklahoma District Osteopathic Association; and the Oklahoma Education Foundation for Osteopathic Medicine. In 2006, he was named Family Physician of the Year by the American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians. Furthermore, the Tennessee Osteopathic Medical Association honored Stowers as the recipient of the 2011 Paul Grayson Smith, Sr. Physician of the Year Award.

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Stowers to Retire as Dean of Lincoln Memorial University-DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine

HOUSTON -

Just five years ago, the University of Houston the university of the energy capital of the world did not have an undergraduate program in petroleum engineering.

Now that program is growing rapidly, and UH is ahead of the game with the nation's first subsea engineering master's program, aimed at feeding workers into cutting-edge fields as oil production moves farther out to sea.

Bridging such glaring gaps between the university and the city it serves is helping UH shed its longstanding reputation as a mediocre commuter school. With improved academic performance, expanded research endeavors and a rejuvenated campus, the 87-year-old university stands poised to realize the great potential that many agree it's always had.

The one-time "Cougar High" is set to lure two national research institutes, one of which would be built around the subsea program. UH has renewed a push to start a medical school, and it's prepared to launch a fundraising campaign that officials are confident will bring in billions.

"We really are at a tipping point," said President and Chancellor Renu Khator, the forceful leader credited with guiding UH through much of its transformation. "We've done a lot in seven years, but the potential, looking at where Houston is, for this university, is great."

UH is looking more and more like the top-tier school it wants to be. The university has lured 10 members of the prestigious national Academies of science and engineering since 2009, when it had just four. Incoming undergraduates are sharper than ever this year's class scored five points better on the SAT than last year. And those students are returning at a higher rate, a sign that the university's sluggish graduation rate could pick up.

Yet the recent progress has come at a cost. UH has become one of the state's most expensive public universities, and the school recently felt friction with some influential stakeholders, worried that in its drive for elite status, UH was forsaking the working-class students it has always served.

Despite these concerns, donations are flowing in faster than ever and private developments are rising around campus, evidence of a community literally buying into a new narrative.

When Matt Franchek, now director of UH's new subsea engineering program, interviewed at UH in 2002, a quote from a prospective colleague was telling: "This place is asleep."

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New energy fuels school's ambitions

WHEN Ateneo de Davao High School Batch 89 had their turn to host this year's grand alumni homecoming, the batch had one theme in mind: Ateneo Forever.

According to batch president Dr. Victor Espino, Ateneo Forever aims for a unifying theme for all Ateneans from all batches not just from Batch 89 to come and make the event also as their own.

The intensified promotions and marketing efforts of Ateneo Forever focused on reliving and recapturing school pride and nostalgia.

"This alumni homecoming is not just for us batch 89 but also it is for all alumni for them to join in the event," said Dr. Jeremiah Braganza, one of the prime-movers of the batch.

I was asked by Jeremiah, who was my neighbor in Juna, to help create their video collaterals during the run-up to the event and we had these video teasers of selected Ateneo de Davao alumni reminiscing their school memories, cherished values and how they define an ideal Atenean.

We handpicked movie actress Valerie "Bangs" Garcia of high school batch 2004, One Network Bank president Alex Buenaventura of high school batch 1969 and Davao City Tourism Operations Office OIC Lisette Marques of batch 1995.

The Ateneo Forever campaign was launched at the Black and Blue affair last October 22 at Marco Polo Eagles Bar and was attended by those from batch 89 and representatives from the different batches.

Several artworks from celebrated muralist Alfred Galvez who was their grade school batchmate (Ateneo de Davao Grade School '85) were displayed outside the bar. These depict the scenes of the old Ateneo with their wooden buildings and the Mercedes Benz buses.

According to Toto Mabaquiao who belongs to the fundraising committee, hosting an alumni homecoming is always a logistical nightmare as they have to equal or outdo previous hosts.

Last year, batch 88 held the homecoming at SMX Lanang.

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Durian Central: Ateneo Forever

A woman who changed lives while traveling around the world and a man who continues to make his mark in his hometown are this year's recipients of Lebanon School District's Distinguished Alumni Award.

Ruth Anne Brown Zimmerman of the Cedars' Class of 1947 and Dennis Shalters of the Class of 1962 were honored at Lebanon High School Friday along with 11 classroom volunteers, as the district wrapped up its American Education Week celebration with its annual Friends of Education luncheon.

Zimmerman, who lives near Denver, Co., and Shalters, who lives in Lebanon, where selected for the award by the Cedar Foundation Board of Directors.

A former Miss Greater Lebanon of 1947, Zimmerman, 85, is a 1951 graduate of Lebanon Valley College who attended on a full scholarship and earned pre-med degree. After two-years of post-graduate stuidies in New Jersey she earned accreditation as a registered medical technologist.

But it was Zimmerman's vocal talent and her strong Christian faith that shaped her life and early-career. She and her late husband, N. William Zimmerman, who was a renowned orchestral and choral conductor, served as educational Methodist missionaries teaching in Southeast Asia from 1954 to 1987. Zimmerman attended Westminster Choir College in Princeton and became an adjunct professor, as well as performing as a professional soprano in the Colorado Symphony Chorus for 19 years.

Zimmerman, who speaks fluent Chinese, was requested by Singapore's Ministry of Education to give demonstrations in the Orff-Kodaly Method of music instruction to the country's educators, who eventually adopted it as their elementary school music curriculum.

After her career as a missionary, Zimmerman put her medical skills to work at the University of Oklahoma for several years and then for 13 years at the Denver VA Hospital. In 2006, she was named the VA hospitals "Volunteer of the Year."

"I am humbled by this award, Zimmerman said. "And I'm so excited I don't think I will get any sleep tonight."

Zimmerman is the third member of the Class of 1947 to be honored as Distinguished Almni, Robert Bowman Sr. and George Feeman are the others.

"Weren't we something", she joked.

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Lebanon School District honors pair of distinguished alums

WALKING along Jacinto Street in Davao City, you would quickly notice the unusual number of Indian nationals walking around, hanging out in groups, filling the convenience store. All of them, young.

Whats up?

The Bureau of Immigration (BI)-Davao has confirmed that the number of Indian students have more than doubled this year.

In a data provided by BI-Davao student desk agent Ryan Bandigan, there are currently 687 Indian students enrolled in Davao City, more than double the number tallied last year at 334. Of this years total, 227 have filed for conversion from tourist visas to student visas, 398 have filed for extensions while 62 were granted the special study permit.

Bandigan said that there are some 700 to 800 tourist visas that are pending for student visa conversion.

Kasagarananisailakay enrolled sa Davao Medical School Foundation (DMSF) paramagstudyug medicine human ang lain kaydirinapud nag-enroll parasailang pre-med nga education (Most of the them have enrolled in DMSF to study medicine while others have also enrolled for their pre-med education here.) Bandigan said.

Why here?

Rajesh, a second year med student at the DMSF who requested that his full name be kept unpublished, told Sun.Star Davao in an interview that he chose to study in the Philippines, particularly in Davao City since the acceptance of students in the med schools in India have become stringent.

Students there have small opportunities to study medicine since the National Medical Admission Test (NMAT) cutoff there is 200 which is very high. There are also grade requirements there even for high school graduates. So if you dont have good grades after graduating high school, there is a slim chance of getting into med school, Rajesh said.

But the NMAT cutoff is not a measure of the quality of education as Rajesh said that while the NMAT cutoff in the Philippines is low, he said the education here is still very comprehensive.

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Indians in school

If you are looking to buy a new car it is only natural to test drive the models you are interested in. Youll quickly get a sense of quality, handling, comfort, and can back up your research with comparable data on cost, mileage, reliability, resale value and much more that is easily available online.

But the decision to go to business school is not so straightforward. You can visit the schools, meet with students and alumni, talk to recruiters, assess costs and check performance on the numerous media MBA rankings. But what about that test drive? How can you compare the classroom experience from one school to another? And for the would-be entrepreneur, how do you decide if business school is a better option than an incubator?

Zak Allal is an Algerian-born entrepreneur and doctor, who completed clinical rotations at Harvard Medical School and Oxford University Medical School. He is also a classically trained musician who includes performances at Carnegie Hall on his resume. This diverse background has contributed to a number of start-ups including 4 Dimension Therapeutics, which repurposes drugs for rare diseases, as well as international concert tours and a teaching fellowship at Singularity University, a Silicon Valley teaching organization founded and funded by the the likes of Google, IDEO, X Prize, Linkedin and the Kauffman Foundation.

Change Lives. Change Organizations. Change the World. But how do you know whether b-school or an incubator is a better fit for you?

To develop his entrepreneurial skills, Allal was faced with the choice of pursuing an MBA or securing a place in an incubator such as the Y Combinator in Mountain View. By way of a test drive he enrolled in Stanford Ignite, a certificate program taught in Palo Alto and locations around the world by prominent Stanford GSB faculty to help innovators to formulate, develop and commercialize their ideas.

What were your reasons to pursue the Stanford Ignite program?

I was frustrated when launching my first business because I didnt understand the subtle mechanics of running a startup. I had innovative ideas, the drive and ambition, the network and the theory of business, but what I lacked was the nuances of business. The Stanford Ignite program was the right place and answer to my needs. It provides the toolbox any non-business person needs to take their venture from an idea stage to a startup stage.

How do you feel the program helped you to crystallize your entrepreneurial ideas? When I applied to the Ignite program, I had already spent one year in Silicon Valley trying to launch a biotechnology startup. I had an abundance of ideas to solve global challenges that can impact a billion people in the next ten years. My issue was how to kick-start those ideas and run them in a sustainable way. The program gave me a good understanding on how a startup works on a practical level: I learned finance and economics, mostly through the Stanford case method, with analysis of cases like Dropbox, a Japanese food delivery chain, or the marketing strategy at Cialis. We had ideation and brainstorming workshops in a design lab, and all the tools to think about our startup ideas from different angles. We also had negotiation and feedback workshops where we learned how to negotiate investments, a salaries, how to give feedback to your employee etc.

The highlight of the program was the check-in sessions we had every week with the Program director: he made sure that we were on track and that we were aligned with reality. During every session he played devils advocate, so we had to be ready. This was the best part of the program for me because we jumped from theory and knowledge to concrete action plans.

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Business School Vs. Incubator: An Entrepreneurial Test Drive At Stanford To Find Which Works Best

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

18-Nov-2014

Contact: Ron Najman ron.najman@downstate.edu 718-270-2696 SUNY Downstate Medical Center

In an extensive, multi-institution study led by SUNY Downstate Medical Center, researchers have identified new evidence supporting the growing belief that Neanderthals were a distinct species separate from modern humans (Homo sapiens), and not a subspecies of modern humans.

The study looked at the entire nasal complex of Neanderthals and involved researchers with diverse academic backgrounds. Supported by funding from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health, the research also indicates that the Neanderthal nasal complex was not adaptively inferior to that of modern humans, and that the Neanderthals' extinction was likely due to competition from modern humans and not an inability of the Neanderthal nose to process a colder and drier climate.

Samuel Mrquez, PhD, associate professor and co-discipline director of gross anatomy in SUNY Downstate's Department of Cell Biology, and his team of specialists published their findings on the Neanderthal nasal complex in the November issue of The Anatomical Record, which is part of a special issue on The Vertebrate Nose: Evolution, Structure, and Function (now online).

They argue that studies of the Neanderthal nose, which have spanned over a century and a half, have been approaching this anatomical enigma from the wrong perspective. Previous work has compared Neanderthal nasal dimensions to modern human populations such as the Inuit and modern Europeans, whose nasal complexes are adapted to cold and temperate climates.

However, the current study joins a growing body of evidence that the upper respiratory tracts of this extinct group functioned via a different set of rules as a result of a separate evolutionary history and overall cranial bauplan (bodyplan), resulting in a mosaic of features not found among any population of Homo sapiens. Thus Dr. Mrquez and his team of paleoanthropologists, comparative anatomists, and an otolaryngologist have contributed to the understanding of two of the most controversial topics in paleoanthropology - were Neanderthals a different species from modern humans and which aspects of their cranial morphology evolved as adaptations to cold stress.

"The strategy was to have a comprehensive examination of the nasal region of diverse modern human population groups and then compare the data with the fossil evidence. We used traditional morphometrics, geometric morphometric methodology based on 3D coordinate data, and CT imaging," Dr. Mrquez explained.

Anthony S. Pagano, PhD, anatomy instructor at NYU Langone Medical Center, a co-author, traveled to many European museums carrying a microscribe digitizer, the instrument used to collect 3D coordinate data from the fossils studied in this work, as spatial information may be missed using traditional morphometric methods. "We interpreted our findings using the different strengths of the team members," Dr. Mrquez said, "so that we can have a 'feel' for where these Neanderthals may lie along the modern human spectrum."

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Were Neanderthals a sub-species of modern humans? New research says no