No. 348, September 2002
Editor: Gregory Vercellotti,
M.D., verce001@umn.edu
Editorial Assistant: Allison
Campbell, aac@umn.edu
Introducing
the class of 2006
"It's a
special bond you're going to establish, even with people you only see a few
times," Brother Lee MacNamee told the incoming Class of 2006. "Their faith in
you is about half the reason they get well." MacNamee, 76, who has undergone
treatments for an array of ills since the 1960s, knows well the power of faith
and trust. During orientation Aug. 15, MacNamee and Jon Hallberg, M.D., talked
about their friendship, as well as other patient-physician relationships,
changes in health care treatments and health systems, and choosing to make
family a priority.
Here is a statistical snapshot of the
Class of 2006 and a look at the trends in Medical School admissions.
From
a wired world to a wireless one
Wireless
access to University's network is now available for medical students. With a
wireless card in a laptop computer and a University Internet ID, students can
browse the Internet, check their e-mail, or get the latest information for
classes from any of the second floor classrooms in Moos Tower, Weaver-Densford.
or the Phillips-Wangensteen Building. Also included in the wireless access area
are the second floor of the Biomedical Library and the public spaces in the
Java Cafe, Outside Inn, CHIP, and Sostanza. This wireless network is brought to
students by the joint efforts of the Medical School, the Academic Health
Center, and the University's Office of Information Technology. For more
information, contact Stuart Speedie at speed002@umn.edu
Introducing
the new dean for rural health
"I grew
up in rural Wisconsin and practiced in rural Minnesota; that is where my heart
is," says Ray Christensen, M.D., the assistant dean for rural health. First to
fill this new position, the long-time Moose Lake family physician has for
decades systematically promoted better health care in rural areas by helping to
found Arrowhead EMS and other services. He also is a past president of the
Minnesota Medical Association and of the Minnesota Academy of Family
Physicians, served eight years as medical advisor to the Minnesota Department
of Health, is involved in state and national quality boards, and is a delegate
to the American Academy of Family Physicians and an AMA alternate. But after 30
years of practice, he wanted to find another way to benefit the communities he
loves. "What attracted me was the opportunity to work with the students and the
opportunity to be involved in the rural programs," says Dr. Christensen, whose
appointment is split between the Twin Cities and Duluth medical programs. He
sees more room for education in rural Minnesota and will be collaborating with
Wally Swentko of RPAP as well as the Rural Health School to promote those
opportunities. "Hopefully, we can work together to make practice of medicine in
rural Minnesota attractive and something highly desired," says Dr. Christensen.
To contact Dr. Christensen, call (218) 726-7572 or send him an e-mail at rchriste@d.umn.edu
An
INTREPIDE scholar
Rondi
Bloomberg, an M.D./M.P.H. student will work on mother-infant transmission of
malaria in France and perhaps Senegal with Prof. Jacques Lebras, director of
the French National Reference Center for Malaria and Prof. Philippe Deloron,
through the International Training Research and Exchange Program in Infectious
Disease Epidemiology (INTREPIDE). She is among the first five AHC students
chosen for INTREPIDE, a joint program between the University of Minnesota
School of Public Health and the University of Paris French Institute of
Tropical Medicine and Epidemiology.
Editor's
note: Is Anyone Listening?
The
class of 2006 matriculated on Aug. 15. The members of this diverse, bright, and
enthusiastic group of students are like stem cells. They will differentiate
over the coming years in our curriculum to become tomorrow's primary care,
specialist, and subspecialist physicians. On the horizon, along with the urgent
threat of rising health care costs, the numbers and types of physicians we
educate must be addressed. Articles in the August 2002 issue of Academic
Medicine examine the future of primary care medicine in the United States
as well as the future of specialists. Especially provocative is Richard
Cooper's lead article, "There's a shortage of specialists: Is anyone
listening?" As the economy expands, the population grows, and once-rare
treatments become routine, the demand for specialty will continue to rise. And
we're not ready, says Dr. Cooper. Within the AHC and our communities we serve,
we need an immediate dialogue to address these future challenges. Is anybody
listening? We are; now let's start talking.
Mark
your calendars:
Sept.
12 -- M.D./Ph.D. Program student lecture series -- an annual lecture series, organized by the students---commences with
"The Mechanics and Biology of Muscle Injury," presented by Richard Lieber,
Ph.D., Department of Orthopaedics, UC-San Diego, 4:15 p.m., Moos Tower 2-620
Oct.
5 -- White Coat ceremony includes
Medical School Dean Deborah Powell leading students in the oath, a keynote by
Siobhan Cleary, host of television's "Health Diary," a historical perspective
from Mildred Hanson, M.D., and a cultural perspective from Abdirahman Mohamed,
Minnesota's first Somali doctor. Join students, parents, and faculty, 1 to 3
p.m., in Northrop Auditorium; a reception follows the ceremony.
Oct.
7 -- Rural Physician Associate Program luncheon, launching new students into the program, will be held at the Gateway
Alumni Center, Johnson Great Room, starting at noon.
Oct. 23 -- On Doctoring series begins by
looking at the need for sleep, chronobiology and circadian rhythms. Also on the
agenda is a discussion of the new ACGME rules on residents' hours. The series
continues on performance-enhancing drugs Jan. 15 and adolescent medicine March
12.
Nov. 22 -- Mentoring breakfast, hosted by the Minnesota Medical Foundation.
Jan. 7 -- ACGME Executive Director David Leach, M.D., gives a public
address on accreditation, competencies, professionalism, and related topics
during a campus visit.