|
||||||||
|
BULLETIN
Mathis Elected to National Academy of Sciences
HMS faculty member Diane Mathis was among the 72 new members elected to the National Academy of Sciences in April in recognition of their original research. Diane Mathis Mathis coheads the section on immunology at the Joslin Diabetes Center. She is an immunologist whose research focuses on T cell differentiation and autoimmunity. In particular, she has been studying how autoimmune diseases like type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis are initiated and progress in genetically engineered mouse models. (Photo by Steve Gilbert)
Goodall Wins Award for Environmental Citizenship
"Jane Goodall is perhaps as well-known as anyone in the world today," said Eric Chivian, director of the HMS Center for Health and the Global Environment. Goodall, who first came to the world's attention more than 30 years ago for her ground-breaking studies of the chimpanzees of Gombe National Park in Tanzania--and who currently spends more than 300 days a year traveling the world to promote peace and environmental awareness--was the recipient of the center's 2003 Global Environmental Citizen Award. Chivian presented her with the dove-shaped award after a screening of a new IMAX film on her work at the New England Aquarium on April 28. Last year, Goodall was appointed a United Nations messenger for peace. A high school student in the audience asked her to describe how she came to be a leader in the peace and environmental rights movement. "It is a kind of responsibility that in cold blood I could never have accepted. It came gradually. It came so gradually that suddenly I found people were wanting to hear my opinion about things," she said. "It is a responsibility now because the world has gone really crazy." (Photo by Sarah Press)
New eCommons Goes LiveThe eCommons portal--which serves as the Harvard medical community's new research, education, and administrative intranet--goes live on May 16 at http://ecommons.med.harvard.edu. Completely rewritten and redesigned, the new eCommons incorporates suggestions from a beta test by more than 100 HMS faculty and staff. Unlike the old eCommons, the new eCommons will be updated with news and features regularly, including news from the departments if they choose to use this feature. The HMS IT department looks forward to user feedback.
Ebert Speaker Advocates Raising Value of Cultural DifferencesJane Delgado, president and CEO of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, spoke of her experience lobbying to improve the health of Hispanic people at the annual Robert E. Ebert lecture, on April 25. Delgado first gave the audience of prospective HMS minority students a rundown on the state of Hispanic health. While Hispanics have high rates of diabetes and depression, they have lower incidences of heart disease and cancer than whites or blacks, she said. Delgado identified language as a primary barrier to care, but added that many medical groups resist requiring translation services, even if they offset medical errors.
Jane Delgado (right) signs a book for incoming dental student J'nelle Leslie. (Photo by Steve Gilbert) "In the future, medicine will be tailored to the individual," she said. "Race and ethnicity is a step closer to getting to the individual." She described the challenge of bridging cultures and said that most people and organizations are in a state of "cultural blindness." She urged medicine to move even beyond competency to cultural proficiency. "Proficiency is when you hold culture in high esteem," she said. The Ebert lecture, sponsored by the Office of Recruitment and Multicultural Affairs and the Multicultural Alliance at HMS, was part of Alliance revisitation weekend, when minority applicants who have been accepted to HMS are invited back for another look at the School. This year, nearly 60 students came to meet with faculty members and current students and to see how the School fares in promoting diversity.
Center of Excellence in Minority Health Names First FellowsThe HMS Center of Excellence in Minority Health and Health Disparities, under the direction of the minority faculty development program in the Office for Diversity and Community Partnership, recently announced four recipients of its faculty fellowship program, which promotes and supports the careers of exceptional underrepresented minority junior faculty at HMS. The two-year, nondegree program provides specific funding to assist participants with their professional development as faculty researchers and clinician- teachers. The faculty fellows, the center's first, will expand the field of minority health, and, over time, improve the capacity of the health care system to address the needs of minority and disadvantaged populations.
Award winners are (l to r) Celeste Wilson, Elizabeth Garner, Selwyn Rogers, Jr., and Nawal Nour. (Photo by Amy Avitabile, Communications Assistant, Office for Diversity and Community Partnership) Recipients of the 2003-2005 faculty fellowships and their research are Elizabeth Garner, clinical fellow in obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive biology at Brigham and Women's Hospital, for "A Comparison Study of HPV Vaccine Awareness and Acceptability Among Young African-American, Latina, and South East Asian Immigrant Women"; Nawal Nour, instructor in obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive biology at BWH, for "African Women's Health Research"; Selwyn Rogers Jr., assistant professor of surgery at BWH, for "Influence of Race on Processes and Outcomes for Colorectal Cancer Care"; and Celeste Wilson, instructor in pediatrics at Children's Hospital, for "Parental Alcohol Screening in Pediatric Practices."
Students Display Dental Research
On April 24, HSDM Student Research Day showcased 31 posters and eight presentations on students' basic, translational, and epidemiological investigations. Nina Casaverde, HSDM Class of '03 (right), is studying whether bottled water usage among Cambridge preschool children affects the number of cavities they have and their overall dental health. "There is a high percentage of young children drinking bottled water, but there is no required labeling or level of fluoride in bottled water," she said. "Out of 11 bottled waters [we analyzed], only one had the recommended level of fluoride to prevent dental decay." Another student, Jean Gong, HSDM '03, surveyed dental patients in Shanghai, China, for their behaviors and attitudes related to dental care and found that the overwhelming emphasis is on treating problems once they arise rather than in preventing them. "People brush, but the majority haven't even heard of dental floss.... They're willing to take their children to an orthodontist, but not to a dentist. Even the people who make insurance policy put the emphasis on treatment, not prevention," she said. (Photo by Jeff Cleary)
HMS Appointments to Full ProfessorshipsThese faculty members were appointed to a full professorship in April. Mitzi Kuroda Arlene Sharpe
HMS Men's Health Guide Among Best Health Books of 2002Library Journal recently released its list of the best consumer health books published in 2002. In the men's health category, The Harvard Medical School Guide to Men's Health by Harvey Simon was named the best. Twenty-three titles made the journal's list. In the book, Simon, HMS associate professor of medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and founding editor of the Harvard Men's Health Watch newsletter, draws on knowledge learned from the long-running Harvard Alumni Study, the Physicians' Health Study, and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, among others.
Honors and AdvancesThe Fred Hutchison Cancer Research Center announced 16 graduate students from North America and Europe have received the 2003 Harold M. Weintraub Award. Among them is Kevin Wang, a third-year PhD student in neuroscience in the Division of Medical Sciences. Nominations were solicited internationally, and winners were selected on the basis of the quality, originality, and significance of their work. Mark Peppercorn, HMS professor of medicine and codirector of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, has received the Distinguished Clinician Award from the American Gastroenterology Association. The American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine has named Susan Block, HMS associate professor of psychiatry at Brigham and Women's Hospital, as the recipient of its Distinguished Service Award. Block, who also is chief of the Division of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, is being honored for her national leadership of faculty development and medical education in hospice and palliative medicine. The Carl J. Shapiro Institute for Education and Research has announced the 2003-2004 Rabkin Fellows in Medical Education. The fellowship was established to provide faculty with dedicated time to develop further the expertise and skills needed to launch or advance academic careers in medical education and academic administration. The new fellows are Phillip Boiselle, HMS assistant professor of radiology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; Thomas DiSalvo, HMS assistant professor of medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital; David Feinstein, HMS instructor in anesthesia at BID; David Roberts, HMS instructor in medicine at BID; Joyce Sackey, HMS assistant professor of medicine at BID; and George Topulos, HMS assistant professor of anesthesia at Brigham and Women's Hospital. Leon Eisenberg, the Maude and Lillian Presley professor emeritus of social medicine, has been named the recipient of the 2003 Award for Contributions to Public Policy by the Society for Research in Child Development. The American Society of Dermatopathology has invited A. Razzaque Ahmed, HSDM associate professor of oral medicine, infection, and immunity, to present the Hermann Pinkus Memorial Lecture at its annual meeting. Ahmed also recently received the William J. Gies Award for the best paper published in the Journal of Dental Research. His co-authors on the paper, which identifies the autoantigen in oral pemphigoid, are Kailash Bhol, HSDM instructor in oral medicine, infection, and immunity; Linda Goss, a student at the University of Massachusetts; and Suman Kumari, former HSDM senior research fellow, and José Colon, former HSDM research fellow, both in oral medicine and diagnostic sciences. Ahmed is donating the cash prizes from the awards to the HSDM New Building Fund. Tarayn Grizzard, HMS third-year student, and Christopher Palmer, HMS instructor in psychiatry and director of postgraduate and continuing education at McLean Hospital, were among those who recently received the American Medical Association Foundation Leadership Award. The annual award recognizes those who have demonstrated outstanding leadership in nonclinical or community service activities. |
