Swine Influenza: The number of confirmed and probable cases of Swine Influenza A (H1N1) continues to rise in the United States and in West Virginia. It is important to know what precautions to take to help prevent you from getting the H1N1 virus and from spreading it to others. For information on the FDA’s approved Swine Flu Vaccine and the WVU’s swine flu precautions click on the links. 

Click on the following links for more information.

( CDC Update | Respiratory Etiquette | Cover Cough )

WVU is now part of a Statewide effort that unites cancer doctors, hospitals and patients called the Clinical Trials Network. Participating hospitals are: Wheeling Hospital; United Hospital Center, Clarksburg; Charleston Area Medical Center (CAMC), Charleston; and City Hospital, Martinsburg. For more information on this new network, click on this link.

The West Virginia Healthy Start/HAPI (Helping Appalachian Parents and Infants) project is teaming with Hamstead, Williams and Shook to make sure that every child has a car safety seat. The project is called Buckle Your Baby for Life. Donations are used to buy safety seats for distribution to families in the eight-county area the HAPI Project covers who cannot afford to purchase them. (To donate online go here .) For more information on this project, click on this link.

The Department of Community Medicine’s Alcohol Education Project is helping educate college students on the dangers of binge drinking. The group meets on High Street on Thursdays armed with information and monitoring tools such as blood alcohol strips to help college students become more aware of how dangerous binge drinking can be. For more information on this project, click on this link.

The organization also has a "drunk bus" that is set up at the local high schools and on WVU’s campus to help show the students what can happen if they drive impaired. For more information on the DUI bus click on this link.

The Epilepsy Foundation held a conference at WVU last month to educate patients and caregivers about epilepsy. For more information on the conference, click on this link.

Students in West Virginia University’s Health Sciences and Technology Academy (HSTA) are the latest to benefit from new federal funding under the Recovery Act. For information on how HSTA is benefiting, click on this link.

WVU Urgent Care, open for a little over two years, recently celebrated seeing its 35,000th patient. Urgent Care has exceeded expectations of patient volumes For more information on WVU Urgent Care, click on this link.

Last month, WVU provided several health reports to the West Virginia community. To learn more on "Minorities and Stroke" and "Swine Flu Basics", click on the links.

Medical Students are collecting the recycling bins in the HSC on Fridays. Contact Jeff Richmond at jrichmo4@mix.wvu.edu for more information.

COMING

Jennifer Knight, M.D., has joined the Morgantown Campus of the School of Medicine, Department of Surgery, as an assistant professor. Dr. Knight specializes in trauma surgery.

Matthew Loos, M.D., has joined the Morgantown Campus of the School of Medicine, Department of Surgery, as an assistant professor. Dr. Loos specializes in hand surgery.

Carmen Burrell, M.D., has joined the Morgantown Campus of the School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, as an assistant professor. Dr. Burrell will be working at WVU Urgent Care.

Mary Ann Zakutney, M.D., has joined the Morgantown Campus of the School of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine, as an assistant professor.

Mouwafak Al-Rawi, M.D., has joined the Morgantown Campus of the School of Medicine, Department of Otolaryngology, as an assistant professor.

GOING

Nitin Malik, M.D., is leaving the Morgantown Campus, Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry.

Melanie McMurry, M.D., and Mario Serafini, D.O., are leaving the Morgantown Campus, Department of Anesthesiology.

Janet Graeber, M.D., and Hanan Tosson, M.D. are leaving the Morgantown Campus, Department of Pediatrics.

Angela Kovach M.D., is leaving the Morgantown Campus, Department of Medicine.

Justin Petri, M.D., Class of 2005, was recently named director of Telepsychiatry Services at the WVU Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry. He will practice at WVU’s Chestnut Ridge Center and will be treating adult patients in Parkersburg and Martinsburg on an outpatient basis via videoconference. For more information on the use of telepsychiatry, click on this link.

To view the latest issue of the WVU Alumni Association's magazine, click on this link.

Tricia Lewis, a Ph.D. candidate, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Cell Biology, is focusing her research on the hazards of a common herbicide, propanil, used widely in rice fields. Tricia presented her research to policymakers and legislators on Capitol Hill last month. For more information on the study, click on this link.

Congratulations to the M.D. Degree class of 2010’s newest members elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha honorary: Simon Amsdell, Ryan Carr, Megan Cecchini, Derek Clark, Christopher Estel, Greg Hale, Jennifer Koay, and Ashley Rawson.

There will be a HSC Rural Health Fair on Tuesday, November 17th, 12:30-4:30 pm in the Learning Center.

The M.D. Degree class of 2013 recently chose class officers. To see who they are, click on the link.

In 1999 the Department of Human Performance and Applied Exercise Science established a PhD degree program in the Division of Exercise Physiology.

That in 1996 the Betty Puskar Breast Care Center first opened its doors in the Health Sciences Center building. The breast care center carries out Betty Puskar’s vision of bringing breast cancer treatment close to home for many West Virginians.

Can you guess who these two faculty members are?

(Click Images to enlarge)

The answers will appear in next
month’s issue.

Last month’s faculty members were
Cynthia Graves, M.D. and Laurie Gutmann, M.D.

$17 million grant enables WVU Health Sciences to assist colleges in West Virginia

Many choose medical careers because of the ability to help others. Knowing that your day’s work resulted in benefit to others is rewarding in many ways.

Helping others can be accomplished through supporting the School of Medicine. Educating the health care professionals of tomorrow is vital. Those who have “been there, done that” know that the School of Medicine’s mission is an important one.

A special way of helping involves including a gift provision in your will or revocable trust. The appropriate wording is “to the West Virginia University Foundation for the benefit of the School of Medicine.” Scholarships, faculty support, program support or research funding are beneficial gift choices.

This and other support options are available, and the Development Office (304-293-3980) can assist you to make it work.

Jame Abraham, M.D., professor, Department of Medicine, will be installed as the first Bonnie Wells Wilson Distinguished Professor and Eminent Scholar in Breast Cancer Research at West Virginia University this month. For more information click on this link. Dr. Abraham, has also co-edited the third edition of the Bethesda Handbook of Clinical Oncology, a bestselling oncology text used by cancer physicians around the world. For more information on this book, click on this link.

Julian Bailes, M.D., professor, Department of Neurosurgery, is hopeful that the National Football League will soon implement several changes that would protect its players from head trauma. Dr. Bailes is featured in this month's issue of GQ magazine in a story titled: “This Is Your Brain on Football.” For more information, click on this link.

Norman Ferrari, M.D., professor, Department of Pediatrics, is receiving the Parker J. Palmer Courage to Lead Award for 2010 that honors designated institutional officials who have demonstrated excellence in overseeing residency programs at their sponsoring institutions.

Laurie Gutmann, M.D., and Maggie Jaynes, M.D., professors, Department of Neurology, are the co-directors of the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Clinic in Morgantown. Both doctors help at an MDA Summer Camp for children with Muscular Dystrophy. For more information on the MDA clinic, click on this link.

Robert Johnstone, M.D., professor, Department of Anesthesiology, came across a motorcycle accident on his way home from work that changed his life. The accident and an account of it, titled: “Driving Thoughts,” was published in the current issue of JAMA (the Journal of the American Medical Association). For more information on the article, click on this link.

George Kelley, D.A., professor, Department of Community Medicine, is working on new research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under the Recovery Act that looks at more than 50 years’ worth of studies for evidence about the affect on cholesterol levels of combining exercise and a prudent diet. For more information on this study, click on this link.

John C. Linton, Ph.D., professor, Departmentof Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry, Charleston Campus, recently received the Alfred M. Wellner Distinguished Career Psychologist Award from the National Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology. For more information on Dr. Linton’s award, click on this link.

Alvin Moss, M.D., professor, Department of Medicine, is helping educate doctors and patients on end of life laws for the state of West Virginia. For more information, click on this link.

Mohamad W. Salkini, M.D., is the newest member of West Virginia University’s Department of Urology. Dr. Salkini specializes in minimally invasive urologic surgery including endourology, laparoscopic urology and robotic urologic surgery. For more information on Dr. Salkini, click on this link.

Jamie Miller, M.D., assistant professor, Department of Ophthalmology, will be seeing patients with both medical and surgical diseases of the retina. Dr. Miller specializes in the treatment of retinal detachment repair, macular hole repair and diabetic retinopathy. For more information on Dr. Miller, click on this link.

Jason McChesney, M.D., assistant professor, Department of Otolaryngology, is a laryngologist who specializes in treating patients with voice and swallowing problems. For more information on Dr. McChesney, click on this link.

Jeri Whitten, residency coordinator, Department of Pediatrics, Charleston Campus, is one of five recipients of the first GME Program Coordinator Excellence Award. This award was created this year to honor and recognize the very crucial role that program coordinators play in the success of a residency program.

James M. O'Donnell, Ph.D., professor, Departments of Behavioral Medicine & Psychiatry and Neurobiology & Anatomy has been appointed to lead a newly organized study section within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that will review grant applications from scientists across the country. For more information on this appointment, click on this link.

Lan Guo, Ph.D., assistant professor, Department of Community Medicine, was recently awarded $1 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. WVU researchers are setting out to improve the five-year survival rate in patients with recurring lung cancer. For more information on this study, click on this link.

Maxim Sokolov, Ph.D., assistant professor, Departments of Ophthalmology and Biochemistry, is studying the role of proteins scientists call “molecular chaperones” that help newly synthesized proteins mature properly. Dr. Sokolov was recently awarded $1.6 million over five years for this study. For more information, click on this link.