Systems Biology:
Method Automates Capture of Cell Image Data
Medical Education
HMS Hospitals Hone Plans for Deeper Cuts in Resident Hours
Clinical Research:
Earliest Cancer Trials May Offer Lower Risk But Lower Benefit
Ambulatory Care:
Postmarketing Study Answers Questions on Statin Safety
Sodium Channel Modulates Calcium-Based T Cell Activation
Drug Ads Need Plainer Language to Explain Risks
Proceedings of the HMS Faculty Council
HMS Appoints Connors as Board of Fellows Chair
Lynn Eckhert Takes Over as AAMC Chair
Dean's Community Service Awards
Broad and Novartis Announce Joint Program to Decode Genetics of Type 2 Diabetes
Center for Large-scale SNP Analysis Backed at Broad Institute
Judge Baker Appoints New President, Opens New Facility
Richmond Award Honors Antismoking Activists
NIH Roadmap Supports Training in Genetics and Complex Diseases
Lefkopoulou Lecturer Describes Approach to Incomplete Data in Longitudinal Studies
Children's Wins $2.5m in Health Surveillance Grants
Cultural Misunderstandings Can Be Opportunities for Learning
Medical Simulator Goes to the Head of the Class
Proceedings of the HMS Faculty Council
HMS dean for medical education Malcolm Cox reported at the Oct. 20 meeting of the Faculty Council about the status of the ongoing medical education reform process. Cox outlined the six HMS general competencies based on those originally formulated by the ACGME and indicated that the new curriculum would be organized around these competencies. They are understanding patient care; medical knowledge and clinical science; practice-based learning and improvement; interpersonal and communication skills; professionalism (including responsibilities, moral reasoning, clinical ethics, self-awareness, and self-assessment); and cultural, social, and community context of health care.
HMS Faculty Council Members 2004-2005Listed below are the members of the 2004-2005 HMS Faculty Council.
Joseph Martin, Chairperson, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine
*Docket Committee members are indicated by an asterisk. Members of the faculty are encouraged to contact any of them, or any Faculty Council member, to comment on future agenda items or to share issues or concerns that might benefit from Faculty Council consideration. |
Five design groups will move the process forward. Joseph Martin, dean of the Faculty of Medicine, reminded the council that the proposed reforms are just that, proposals, and he urged council members to provide not only their own opinions but also input from their respective constituencies, which would be invaluable as the reform process goes forward. Martin told the council that the current educational reform process aims to totally revamp medical education at HMS.
Admissions Committee
Robert Mayer, newly appointed faculty associate dean for admissions, reported on the changes in the structure of the admissions committee. For the first time, the admissions process will be governed by an executive committee, chaired by Mayer. Four subcommittees report to the main admissions committee, also chaired by Mayer. The executive committee consists of the faculty associate and assistant deans for admissions (respectively, Mayer and Darrell Smith) and the subcommittee chairs: Lois Slovik, Harold Burstein (a new appointment), David Slovik, and Smith. In addition, Joanne McEvoy, recently promoted to director of admissions, also serves on the executive committee.Nineteen faculty members have rotated off the subcommittees and are being replaced with 18 new faculty members. Two "veterans" have moved to the main admissions committee. In total, 61 faculty members serve on the admissions committee (main and subcommittees). In addition, three to five students serve on each of the subcommittees and main committee.
Additional staffing changes include the associate dean for admissions and student services, Terri Orr, stepping down at year's end. Mohan Boodram, previously director of admissions and financial aid, has been promoted to associate dean of students. A search is under way for a new assistant director of admissions.
Acknowledging concerns expressed by some on the faculty regarding undergraduate science backgrounds of some of the applicants, Mayer agreed that not all undergraduate schools have access to the sophisticated laboratories that are available at large research universities. He said that the committee did not wish to disenfranchise outstanding applicants from liberal arts colleges, nor does it wish to "diminish the value" of the nonscience major in the application process.
Report from the Ombuds Office
Linda Wilcox, ombudsperson, summarized the data collected by her office during the 2003-2004 academic year. The office hears concerns from individuals and helps them with options to address their concerns.In this time period, there were 674 callers who brought up 729 issues. The issues fell into six categories, of which just over half (53 percent) were related to career management. This was followed by research issues (18 percent), prevention (11 percent), discrimination (9 percent), and sexual harassment (6 percent). Inquiries were spread among faculty, staff, and trainees, with staff approximately three times more likely to contact the office.
Wilcox observed that throughout the University, considerable reorganization is or has been taking place. She said that this inevitably creates tension and some morale problems. Management will need to continue to think creatively about addressing these concerns.
HMS Appoints Connors as Board of Fellows Chair
John M. Connors Jr., a founding partner and chairman of Boston-based advertising agency Hill, Holliday, Connors, Cosmopulos, has joined HMS as chair of the Board of Fellows.
The Board of Fellows is the highest volunteer organization at HMS. Its members provide advice and counsel to the dean and senior faculty, as well as financial support to the School. They aid the School with a variety of projects.
Connors is chairman of the board of directors of both Partners HealthCare System and Brigham and Women's Hospital. He serves as chairman of the board of directors of Dana-Farber/Partners CancerCare and as chairman of the board of trustees for Boston College. He also is a trustee of Brandeis University.
"The Medical School is extremely fortunate to be gaining Jack's counsel and leadership," said Joseph Martin, dean of the Faculty of Medicine. "His experience, particularly his service with hospitals and heath care organizations, will help advance the teaching, research, and patient care mission of the School."
Connors succeeds Charles Sanders, chairman of LipoScience. (Photo courtesy of John Connors)
Lynn Eckhert Takes Over as AAMC Chair
The Association of American Medical Colleges named Lynn Eckhert, director of academic programs for Harvard Medical International, the association's new chair.An academic pediatrician, Eckhert joined HMI after serving on the faculty of the University of Massachusetts Medical School for more than two decades. There, she served as chair and professor of family and community medicine and vice chancellor/dean for international public health programs. She was also an adjunct professor at the UMass School of Public Health.
With the AAMC, Eckhert is the current chair of the Review Committee for the Fogarty International Center program, which provides international clinical research training experience for U.S. graduate students in the health professions. She is an active member of the AAMC Executive Council and is former chair of the association's Council of Academic Societies.
Eckhert succeeds Donald Wilson, dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Thomas Priselac, president and CEO of Cedars-Sinai Health System, was named AAMC chair-elect and will succeed Eckhert as chair next year.
Dean's Community Service Awards
At the Dean's Community Service Awards on Nov. 4, nine members of the Harvard Medical community were honored for their outreach work with area organizations. The awards, given as part of the 12th annual Ebert Community Service Day, were presented to Alice Rothchild and the Jewish American Medical Project; Frederick Mandell (on left) and the Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Outreach Foundation; Bruce Kalow and New Day; Frances Kim and the Everett City Hall Dental Clinic; Suzette Oyeku (on right) and the Community Sickle Cell Support Group; Onyinye Iweala and Linking the Youth of Nigeria Through Exchange; Joel Sawady and La Asociacion Campesina para el Desarrollo Humano; Dierdre Garry and the Boston Home; and Brianna Wadler and Horizons for Homeless Children. The Community Service Awards, begun by HMS dean Joseph Martin in 1999, recognize faculty, trainees, staff, and students who have made outstanding personal efforts in serving the local, national, or international community. Each awardee's community service program receives $1,000. This year, the first lifetime award for community service was given to Frederick Mandell. (Photo by Liza Green, HMS Media Services)
Broad and Novartis Announce Joint Program to Decode Genetics of Type 2 Diabetes
Center for Large-scale SNP Analysis Backed at Broad InstituteThe Broad Institute has received funding for the first national center for high-throughput genotyping dedicated solely to large-scale analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). The National Institutes of Health's National Center for Research Resources has awarded $14 million over five years to create this high-capacity resource so that U.S. researchers can quickly and cost-effectively carry out large-scale studies of genetic variations to advance disease gene identification. The new center will offer tools to aid in the selection, discovery, and analysis of SNPs by providing access to flexible and accurate genotyping and sequencing. The first genotyping studies will be performed in early 2005; researchers interested in access to the center or applying for subsidized genotyping can contact the Broad Institute. When fully operational, the center will be able to process from 200 million to billions of genotypes per year. |
"It is wonderful that Novartis is sharing its vision and expertise in how diabetes alters the body Š and, as a private company, is willing to work in the public domain," said Eric Lander, founding director of the Broad Institute and HMS professor of systems biology.
Novartis opened its new global research headquarters in Cambridge in part to forge this kind of world-class alliance, according to Mark Fishman, president of Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research. "This initiative is a breakthrough in collaborative style, using complementary talents from different institutions to advance knowledge for all to the advantage of patients worldwide," he said.
The principal investigators of the project are David Altshuler, HMS associate professor of genetics at Massachusetts General Hospital and director of Broad's Program in Medical and Population Genetics, and Tom Hughes of the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research. Coprincipal investigators at Broad include Joel Hirschhorn, HMS assistant professor of genetics (pediatrics) at Children's Hospital Boston, and Mark Daly, a Whitehead/Pfizer computational biology fellow at the Whitehead Institute.
Judge Baker Appoints New President, Opens New Facility
Judge Baker Children's Center recently celebrated both the opening of its newly renovated building and the appointment of John Weisz (on right) as president of the center. The facility, at 53 Parker Hill Ave. in Mission Hill, provides expanded room for JBCC's Manville School, a therapeutic day school program; special education services for children age 5 to 15; and increased space for programs like the Media Center and the Child-at-Risk Hotline. "This impressive new facility, combined with the skills and dedication of the remarkable staff, position us for a major leadership role in the community and the nation," Weisz said. Above, Kevin Lee Hepner, vice president for administration and finance at JBCC, explores the building site with Weisz. (Photo by Manson Kennedy)
Richmond Award Honors Antismoking Activists
The Julius B. Richmond Award, the highest honor given by HSPH, was conferred on five antismoking advocates on Oct. 28. Three state attorneys general, an advocate for children who successfully fought tobacco companies, and a scientist who established the link between passive smoking and lung cancer in nonsmokers received the honor. They were recognized for carrying forth the vision of former U.S. Surgeon General and current Harvard professor Julius B. Richmond, who promoted and achieved high standards of public health for vulnerable populations. Among the honorees are former Mississippi attorney general Mike Moore, Washington attorney general Christine Gregoire, former Massachusetts attorney general Scott Harshbarger, Matthew Meyers of the National Center for Tobacco Free Kids, and Dimitrios Trichopoulos, the Vincent L. Gregory professor of cancer prevention at HSPH.
NIH Roadmap Supports Training in Genetics and Complex Diseasess
HSPH is seeking promising predoctoral students and postdoctoral researchers to apply for a new training program focusing on gene-environment interactions and complex diseases.Interdisciplinary Training in Genetics and Complex Diseasess at HSPH has received $2.2 million over the next five years as part of the National Institutes of Health Roadmap for Medical Research. Successful applicants will be called "HSPH Roadmap Fellows" and will be given a stipend and tuition support. The program aims to recruit nine promising predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees each year.
"The goal of our training program is to develop a cadre of scientists who will participate at the intersection of molecular and cellular biology, genetic epidemiology, and biostatistics to become leaders in integrative and team approaches to understanding Genetics and Complex Diseasess in the public health arena," said Marianne Wessling-Resnick, professor of nutritional biochemistry in the Department of Genetics and Complex Diseasess and the program's director. Gökhan Hotamisligil, chair of the department, will serve as codirector.
Predoctoral students will be primarily chosen from applicants admitted through the PhD Program in Biological Sciences in Public Health, based at HSPH and offered through the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
More information about the program is available at www.hsph.harvard.edu/roadmap.
Lefkopoulou Lecturer Describes Approach to Incomplete Data in Longitudinal Studies
Geert Molenberghs, a professor of biostatistics at Limburgs Universitair Centrum in Belgium, was this year's winner of the Myrto Lefkopoulou Distinguished Lecturer award, presented by the HSPH Department of Biostatistics.In his Sept. 30 talk, "Handling Incomplete Data in Longitudinal Studies," Molenberghs discussed the relative strengths and weaknesses of likelihood-based methods developed within the framework of missing data being missing at random (MAR). He noted that likelihood-based MAR analyses stand on a stronger theoretical foundation than some commonly used methods to handle incomplete longitudinal clinical trial data such as complete case analyses and methods based on last observation carried forward, which require restrictive assumptions. Given the availability of flexible software for analyzing longitudinal sequences of unequal length, implementation of MAR analyses is not any longer limited by computational considerations.
The assumption that missing data is, indeed, missing at random is relatively weak, however. The possibility of missing data being missing not at random (MNAR) is difficult to rule out. While specific models for the MNAR setting have been developed, Molenberghs noted that these are themselves problematic. Nevertheless, rather than ignoring MNAR analyses or blindly shifting to them, researchers can best apply them within sensitivity analyses, to assess whether the MAR-based conclusions are sufficiently well founded.
The annual Lefkopoulou award was initiated in 1993 in memory of Myrto Lefkopoulou, a beloved student and faculty member in the Department of Biostatistics who died of cancer in 1992 at the age of 34.
Children's Wins $2.5m in Health Surveillance Grants
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has given the Children's Hospital Boston Informatics Program (CHIP) two grants totaling $2.5 million as part of a first-ever CDC initiative to sponsor innovative research in public health. Children's will use the grants to pilot two computer-based health surveillance programs.Under the first grant, CHIP will test a scheme for improving control of influenza outbreaks in two populations, employees at a U.S. company and hospital patients in Canada. Kenneth Mandl, HMS assistant professor of pediatrics at Children's, will lead the project.
In the second grant, Aneel Advani, staff scientist and investigator at CHIP, will direct a collaboration among Children's, the NASA Ames Research Center, and public health departments in Massachusetts and Georgia. They will work to develop an automated call center for conducting large-scale epidemiologic investigations during an outbreak of an infectious disease.