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BULLETIN
Proceedings of the HMS Faculty CouncilAt the February 25 meeting of the Faculty Council, the School's policy on conflicts of interest and commitment (COI) and the recommendations of the subcommittees currently studying these policies were discussed by Margaret Dale, associate dean for faculty affairs and staff member in the policy review process; Barbara McNeil, the Ridley Watts professor, head of the Department of Health Care Policy, and chair of the clinical research subcommittee; and Christopher T. Walsh, the Hamilton Kuhn professor of biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology and chair of the basic science subcommittee. Conflict of Interest PoliciesThe School reviewed its COI policies in 1989 and developed a comprehensive policy that included a mandatory disclosure process and categorization of cases that could result in conflicts. These guidelines were amended in 1995 to reflect new National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation regulations. In 1998, Eugene Braunwald, the Hersey distinguished professor of theory and practice of physic, chaired a faculty review committee on the School's policy, but no changes were promulgated at that time. Most recently, in January 2003, HMS dean Joseph Martin appointed the two conflict of interest policy review subcommittees chaired by McNeil and Walsh. An advisory committee reviewed the current report and concurred with the recommendations to date, but details will not be released until the recommendations are complete following review at the May Faculty of Medicine meeting.HMS dean for medical education Malcolm Cox and Stan Finkelstein, senior lecturer in the Department of Health Care Policy, senior research scientist at MIT, and chair of the MD-MBA task force, detailed a proposed new MD-MBA joint degree program. It is a pioneering effort that represents the first time that the Medical and Business schools have worked together to develop a dual degree-granting program. MD-MBA Joint Degree ProgramTwo themes underpin the work of the MD-MBA task force (comprising representatives from both HMS and HBS, including both faculty and administrators) that developed the program: the need to permit those enrolled to become expert in specific new competencies (in this case, management) and the need for expanding the spectrum of management-related competencies for all medical students. It is the first of several dual-degree programs with other Harvard schools that are under discussion.The mission of the proposed MD-MBA program is to develop outstanding physician leaders, skilled in both medicine and management, to take positions of influence through which they contribute substantially to the health and well-being of individuals and society. An assumption made is that graduates of the program will go on to pursue postgraduate medical training. The plan calls for a five-year program in which the first three years will be at HMS. During this period, one management-related class or seminar will be required in each semester of years one through three, as well as a management internship in the summer between years one and two. The fourth year of the program will be at HBS, and the fifth will involve an integrated program. Courses will include Introduction to Health Care Policy, a longstanding class given by McNeil and colleagues, and Clinical Epidemiology/Introduction to Health Care Management, given since the 1990s by Finkelstein and Peter Slavin, senior lecturer in health care policy and president of Massachusetts General Hospital. For those with no prior management experience, a six-week course will be given during the summer following year one. In year two, two new classes or seminars in health care management will be developed. The course will be theme-based, changing monthly, with one likely topic being avoidance of medical errors. During year three, the Health Care Management seminar will continue throughout the year. It is envisioned that the topics will evolve to include those currently addressed in Patient-Doctor III. Year four will primarily involve the HBS curriculum; however, two to three months will be available for HMS core clerkships and electives. In year five, the curriculum will include both clinical electives and management and data analysis curricula. Department Heads RetreatThe main topic of the Fifth Annual Department Heads Retreat was medical education and the reforms currently under discussion. Martin told the council that a major focus is the education of third- and fourth-year medical students, and this involves framing a new relationship with the hospital leadership, the Dean's Office, and senior faculty who will work together to determine ways for faculty to be compensated for their teaching efforts. All parties acknowledged the need to develop a means to support a continuum of medical education that begins with the medical students and proceeds through graduate medical education and continuing medical education.
Deadline Extended for Dean's Community Service AwardsThe deadline for nominations for the fifth annual Dean's Community Service Awards has been extended to Friday, April 12. The awards recognize individuals who have made outstanding efforts to serve the local, national, or international community. Winning community service organizations will receive $1,000. Forms are available at www.mfdp.med.harvard.edu/outreach.
Projects in Epidemiology, Nutrition Take Prizes at HSPH Poster Day Phil Gona (above), research associate in the HSPH Department of Biostatistics, explains the poster, "An Observational Study of the Rate of Opportunistic Infection (OI) Events in HIV-infected Children Who Have Demonstrated Immunologic Reconstitution and Who Have Discontinued OI Prophylaxis," at the 18th Annual HSPH Poster Day on March 11. More than 60 posters by students, postdocs, and faculty were presented. Jessica Su of the Department of Epidemiology was the winner in the student category for her poster, "A Genome-wide Scan of the Age at Onset of Mania Yields Three Potential Susceptibility Loci." In the postdoc category, there was a tie between Matthias Schulze from the Departments of Nutrition and Epidemiology for the poster, "Consumption of Sugar-sweetened Soft Drinks Is Related to Greater Weight Gain and Increased Risk of Type 2 Diabetes in Women," and Iris Shai, from the same departments, for her poster, "Assessment of Liquid Parameters as Predictors of Coronary Heart Disease Among Women: Potential Implications for Clinical Guidelines." All three winners received $500 prizes. (Photo by Leah Gourley)
Rabkin Fellows AnnouncedThe Shapiro Institute for Education and Research is pleased to announce the 2004-2005 Rabkin Fellows in Medical Education. The new HMS faculty fellows include Jennifer Beach, instructor in medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, for general medicine; Lori Berkowitz, instructor in obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive biology at Massachusetts General Hospital, for obstetrics and gynecology; Jatin Dave, clinical fellow in medicine at BID, for gerontology; Diane Fingold, assistant professor of medicine at MGH, for medicine; Daniel Jones, associate professor of surgery at BID, for surgery; and David Ting, instructor in medicine at MGH, for medicine and pediatrics. The Rabkin fellowship was established in 1998 to provide faculty throughout HMS with dedicated time to develop the expertise and skills needed to launch or advance academic careers in medical education and academic administration. Charles Hatem, HMS professor of medicine at Mount Auburn Hospital; Beth Lown, HMS assistant professor of medicine at Mount Auburn; and Mitchell Rabkin, HMS professor of medicine at BID, serve as teachers and mentors for the program.
In Memoriam
Wayne Streilein, president of Schepens Eye Research Institute and the Charles L. Schepens professor of ophthalmology at HMS, died March 15. He was 68.
Streilein, also the vice chair of research in the HMS Department of Ophthalmology, earned an AB in chemistry from Gettysburg College in 1956 and an MD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in 1960. He pursued postdoctoral work in immunology and transplantation and became an associate professor in the Department of Medical Genetics at the University of Pennsylvania in 1966. In 1971, he became an associate professor of medicine, a professor of cell biology, and associate director of the Department of Cell Biology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, where he also became a professor of medicine in 1976. He served as the program director of the cancer immunology training program from 1975 to 1984. In 1984, Streilein became chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Miami School of Medicine. He held professorships in microbiology, immunology, medicine, and ophthalmology. He came to HMS in 1993 as professor and vice chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and the DeWalt and Marie H. Ankeny director of research at Schepens. Streilein was named president of Schepens in 1995. While at Schepens, Streilein expanded the scope of the institute and received international recognition for its research efforts. He led Schepens in a mission of public education to increase awareness of the causes, preventions, treatments, and latest research on blinding eye diseases. He was named the Charles L. Schepens professor of ophthalmology in 2000. He was a member of the HMS immunology graduate faculty and from 2000 to 2003 was program director of the molecular ophthalmology postdoctoral training grant. As a scientist and immunologist, Streilein is best known for his work in the area of immune privilege, focusing on the eye's ability to protect itself from the damaging effects of the body's normal inflammatory immune response. His research in this field aids in the development of treatments for a range of blinding diseases, including macular degeneration and glaucoma. Streilein was given a Proctor Award in 1996 in recognition of his achievements in research. In 2002, he was named honorary professor at the Institute of Ophthalmology at University College London. He leaves his wife, Joan; daughter, Laura Berend; sons, William and Robert; and 11 grandchildren. To honor Streilein's commitment to teaching, research, and leadership, the trustees and faculty of Schepens have established the Streilein Center for Ocular Immunology and Inflammation at Schepens. Contributions in his memory can be made to this new center. (Photo by Peter Mallen) |
