This is the April 18, 2010 edition of the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine\u27s newsletter - Watercooler.
Contents include:    Dr. Anne Cross to Present Lectures on Multiple Sclerosis USA Awarded $7.5 Million Grant To Lead Alabama\u27s Effort To Improve Health Care Through Electronic Medical Records USA Cardiology Granted Accreditation for Nuclear Stress Testing Walter Beckham Retirement Reception  The Mitochondrial Paradigm for Disease Susceptibility: Prehistoric Events Influencing Contemporary Disease Ris

Lyle, Lindsey

English

University of South Alabama Institutional Repository

1/19/23, 9:23 AM Med School Watercooler: 4/18/10 - 4/25/10https://medschoolwatercooler.blogspot.com/2010_04_18_archive.html 1/5F r i d a y ,  A p r i l  2 3 ,  2 0 1 0Posted by Med School Watercooler at 1:57 PM 1 comment:   Dr. Anne Cross to Present Lectures on Multiple SclerosisDr. Anne H. Cross, professor of neurology at WashingtonUniversity School of Medicine in St. Louis, Mo., willpresent a series of one-hour lectures to physicians,residents and students from April 28 to 29 as a part ofthe American Neurological Association John WhitakerVisiting Professorship.Her lecture series will elaborate on new findings in thetreatment and understanding of multiple sclerosis (MS).According to the CDC, MS is a disease of the centralnervous system that is characterized by the destructionof the myelin sheath surrounding neurons. MS is aprogressive and fluctuating disease that is three timesmore common in women than in men, and the cause of MS is unknown.The first lecture, titled “Close Horizons: New Treatments for MS,” will take placeon April 28 at 9 a.m. in the second floor conference room at the University ofSouth Alabama Medical Center.Dr. Cross’ second lecture, titled “B Cells and MS: Rationale for Depletion in MSPatients and Results of Trials,” will be at 11 a.m. on April 28 in the USADepartment of Neurology at Med Park 3.Her third lecture, titled “Pathogenesis of MS: An Update,” will be on April 29 at 8a.m. in the second floor conference room at the University of South AlabamaMedical Center.The goal of Dr. Cross’ current efforts is to understand the mechanisms involved inpathogenesis of inflammation and demyelination in the brain and spinal cord. Sheis currently studying antibodies to myelin constituents and B cells in experimentalautoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) and in MS; mechanisms of cytokineregulation in MS; and how to develop imaging techniques to identifydemyelination versus axonal loss in the CNS of animals and patients. She is alsoinvolved in a Phase II trial of B cell depletion in MS patients that are not optimallytreated with standard agents.Dr. Cross is originally from the Mobile region. She graduated summa cum laude in1976 with a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of South Alabama and cumlaude with medical degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in1980. For more than 17 years, Dr. Cross has performed important research andhas educated students and residents.USA Awarded $7.5 Million Grant To Lead Alabama'sEffort To Improve Health Care Through ElectronicSearch This BlogFeel free to email your ideas tolalyle@health.southalabama.eduGot news to share?►    2023 (10)►    2022 (249)►    2021 (269)►    2020 (191)►    2019 (245)►    2018 (236)►    2017 (231)►    2016 (206)►    2015 (205)►    2014 (241)►    2013 (232)►    2012 (245)►    2011 (262)▼    2010 (247)►    12/19 - 12/26 (5)►    12/12 - 12/19 (6)►    12/05 - 12/12 (5)►    11/28 - 12/05 (5)►    11/21 - 11/28 (4)►    11/14 - 11/21 (5)►    11/07 - 11/14 (5)►    10/31 - 11/07 (5)►    10/24 - 10/31 (6)►    10/17 - 10/24 (5)►    10/10 - 10/17 (6)►    10/03 - 10/10 (5)►    09/26 - 10/03 (4)►    09/19 - 09/26 (5)►    09/12 - 09/19 (7)►    09/05 - 09/12 (6)►    08/29 - 09/05 (6)►    08/22 - 08/29 (4)►    08/15 - 08/22 (4)Blog ArchiveMore Create Blog  Sign In1/19/23, 9:23 AM Med School Watercooler: 4/18/10 - 4/25/10https://medschoolwatercooler.blogspot.com/2010_04_18_archive.html 2/5Medical RecordsThe University of South Alabama has beenawarded a $7.5 million grant to lead Alabamain a nationwide effort to improve health carethrough electronic health record systems.The competitive grant awarded to the Centerfor Strategic Health Innovation in USA'sCollege of Medicine is one of the largest inthe University's history. It will help primarycare providers in Alabama transition toelectronic health record systems as part of anational initiative to improve health careefficiency and patient outcomes.USA is one of 60 nonprofit organizationsselected nationwide by the U.S. Departmentof Health and Human Services to receive theHealth Information Technology RegionalExtension Center award. The grant isadministered through the HHS's Office of the National Coordinator for HealthInformation Technology.Funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the four-yeargrant establishes the Alabama Regional Extension Center, or ALREC, a consortiumof partners led by USA that includes the Medical Association of the State ofAlabama, Alabama Medicaid Agency, University of Alabama at Birmingham,Auburn University, Alabama Primary Healthcare Association, Childersburg AreaRural Health Network, and the JHD Group.According to the grant's principal investigator, Dr. Dan Roach, ALREC aims toimprove the quality of health care in the state by providing primary carephysicians and other health care practitioners with community-based technicalassistance, guidance and information on best practices as the nation makes theswitch to an electronic health records system."This new Regional Extension Center at USA will help facilitate the process ofmoving health care providers away from the use of paper patient records toelectronic records, which enables physicians to have more rapid access to patientinformation and ultimately improve the quality of patient care," said Roach, whois also a physician and director of medical informatics in the Center for StrategicHealth Innovation.The grant is part of a $2 billion effort by the American Recovery andReinvestment Act of 2009 to achieve what the HHS describes as "widespread,meaningful use of health information technology." The Regional Extension Center,or REC, grants are part of an overall blueprint by HHS to move virtually all healthcare providers to an electronic age.Working to help the nation achieve this goal, ALREC will collaborate with otherRECs throughout the United States to provide outreach and support services to atleast 100,000 priority primary care providers over the next two years.The focus of the new centers is to familiarize physicians with the opportunity tomove from paper to digital records, assist physicians in the selection of theappropriate electronic health record for their practices, and provide the trainingand support for them to use that electronic health record in a way that directlybenefits patient care."The University of South Alabama has long been committed to improving thehealth of our citizens by educating physicians and health care professionals,conducting medical research and treating patients through our hospitals andphysician practice, so it is gratifying that USA is now able to play a lead role inthe national initiative toward better management of medical records, which willenhance health care and enable countless people to live longer, healthier lives,"said USA President Gordon Moulton.►    08/08 - 08/15 (5)►    08/01 - 08/08 (5)►    07/25 - 08/01 (6)►    07/18 - 07/25 (3)►    07/11 - 07/18 (6)►    07/04 - 07/11 (5)►    06/27 - 07/04 (4)►    06/20 - 06/27 (6)►    06/13 - 06/20 (5)►    06/06 - 06/13 (5)►    05/30 - 06/06 (2)►    05/23 - 05/30 (4)►    05/16 - 05/23 (2)►    05/09 - 05/16 (6)►    05/02 - 05/09 (5)►    04/25 - 05/02 (5)▼    04/18 - 04/25 (5)Dr. Anne Cross to Present Lectureson Multiple Scl...USA Awarded $7.5 Million Grant ToLead Alabama's E...USA Cardiology GrantedAccreditation for Nuclear S...Walter Beckham RetirementReception"The Mitochondrial Paradigm forDisease Susceptibi...►    04/04 - 04/11 (5)►    03/28 - 04/04 (4)►    03/21 - 03/28 (5)►    03/14 - 03/21 (6)►    03/07 - 03/14 (6)►    02/28 - 03/07 (9)►    02/21 - 02/28 (7)►    02/14 - 02/21 (12)►    01/31 - 02/07 (3)►    01/24 - 01/31 (3)►    01/10 - 01/17 (5)►    01/03 - 01/10 (5)►    2009 (88)1/19/23, 9:23 AM Med School Watercooler: 4/18/10 - 4/25/10https://medschoolwatercooler.blogspot.com/2010_04_18_archive.html 3/5Posted by Med School Watercooler at 1:48 PM No comments:   The new grant fits well with one of the Center for Strategic Health Innovation'sprincipal missions, which is to lead innovation and research into patient-centrichealth care technologies.Dr. Samuel Strada, dean of USA's College of Medicine, said the REC award signalsthe College of Medicine's growing influence both regionally and nationally."This award is wonderful recognition of the creative endeavors of our Center forStrategic Health Innovation to use emerging health technologies to improve thequality, cost, care, and access to health care within our state and beyond."The HHS announced the REC designations in two rounds this year, with 32awards announced in February and 28 this week. USA was among the secondgroup of grantees to receive the competitive federal award.For additional information about the Health Information Technology RegionalExtension Centers, visit http://HealthIT.hhs.gov/programs/REC/.Follow these links for stories about the grant:Mobile Press-Register --http://blog.al.com/live/2010/04/south_alabama_gets_stimulus_gr.htmlWALA-FOX 10 --http://www.fox10tv.com/dpp/news/usa-gets-grant-to-renew-medical-recordsPosted by Med School Watercooler at 1:47 PM No comments:   USA Cardiology Granted Accreditation for NuclearStress TestingThe University of South Alabama Heart Center was recently granted accreditationby the Intersocietal Commission for the Accreditation of Nuclear MedicineLaboratories (ICANL).The Heart Center at USA is one of a growing number of nuclear cardiologylaboratories in the United States to be recognized for its commitment to highquality patient care and its provision of quality diagnostic testing.“Throughout the country, nuclear stress testing remains the most commonlyemployed non invasive technique for the evaluation of chest pain to excludecoronary artery disease (CAD) or cholesterol blockage of the arteries to the heartmuscle,” said Dr. Clara Massey, professor of internal medicine and chief ofcardiology at the USA College of Medicine.Each year, approximately 5.5 million stress nuclear cardiology studies areperformed in the United States. During the testing procedure, the heart isevaluated at rest and during exercise using a small amount of radioisotope. Boththe pump function and the blood flow of the heart are assessed.“Image acquisition, processing and physician interpretation determine theaccuracy of any test and, therefore, the quality of the examination,” Dr. Masseysaid. “Being designated a nationally accredited ICANL lab means that everyaspect of nuclear stress testing at the USA Heart Center, from image acquisitionto physician interpretation, has been evaluated and has met the standardsrequired for optimal patient care.”Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, costingsociety over $83.7 billion each year in health services, medications and lost worktime due to disability. One American dies every 32 seconds of cardiovasculardisease. For more information on cardiovascular disease, visithttp://www.cdc.gov./1/19/23, 9:23 AM Med School Watercooler: 4/18/10 - 4/25/10https://medschoolwatercooler.blogspot.com/2010_04_18_archive.html 4/5Posted by Med School Watercooler at 1:46 PM 2 comments:   Walter Beckham Retirement ReceptionFollowing 33 years of service to the USA College of Medicine, Walter Beckham hasannounced his plans to retire. Please make plans to stop by on April 30th as wethank Walter for his numerous contributions to the medical school andcongratulate him on his upcoming retirement.Walter Beckham Retirement CelebrationMastin Building - 6th floor conference roomApril 30, 2010 from 2:30 - 5 p.m.If you have an interesting memory of Walter that you'd like to share, e-mailptaylor@usouthal.edu.T u e s d a y ,  A p r i l  2 0 ,  2 0 1 0"The Mitochondrial Paradigm for Disease Susceptibility:Prehistoric Events Influencing Contemporary DiseaseRisk"The next Distinguished Scientist Seminar will bepresented by Dr. Scott Ballinger on April 22, 2010, at4 p.m. in the Medical Sciences Building auditorium.His seminar is titled "The Mitochondrial Paradigm forDisease Susceptibility: Prehistoric Events InfluencingContemporary Disease Risk."Currently, Dr. Ballinger is associate professor ofpathology at the University of Alabama at BirminghamSchool of Medicine.Dr. Ballinger’s research focuses on environmentalcardiology, free radical biology, and mitochondrialfunction. There is growing evidence that many forms of disease can be initiatedby free radical mediated events or energetic deficits that can be related tocellular stress and damage. A cellular source and target of free radical productionand damage is the mitochondrion.Dr. Ballinger received B.S. and M.S. degrees from Texas A&M University, and aPh.D. in biochemistry from Emory University. He completed postdoctoral trainingin genetics and toxicology at the University of Vermont, initially as anenvironmental pathology fellow and later as a Department of Energy AlexanderHollaender Distinguished Fellow.For more information on Dr. Ballinger's research, visithttp://138.26.61.118/depts/MEB/SOMResearchFaculty/currentfacultydata.asp?s_lname=ballinger&s_keyword=&s_fname=scott&s_Department_Name=&s_ResearchTitle=&ID=sballinger . For additional information, contact Natalie Kent at 461-1548.1/19/23, 9:23 AM Med School Watercooler: 4/18/10 - 4/25/10https://medschoolwatercooler.blogspot.com/2010_04_18_archive.html 5/5Newer Posts Older PostsHomeSubscribe to: Posts (Atom)Posted by Med School Watercooler at 12:35 PM No comments: StatCounterSimple theme. Powered by Blogger.  

Medical School Watercooler Newsletter - April 18, 2010

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Medical School Watercooler Newsletter - April 18, 2010

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