Atul Grover, M.D., Ph.D., associate director of the Associ a tion of American Medical Colleges' Center for Workforce Studies, will speak at the WSU School of Medicine Friday, March 9. His topic will be Meeting Physician Workforce Needs for 2020 in a Changing Health-care System.

Dr. Grover has more than a decade of experience in health care working as a co n sultant and as chief medical officer for the National Center for Health Workforce Analysis. He is a board-certified internist and a practicing hospitalist with a Ph.D. in health and public policy. He completed a three-year fellowship in health services research at the Johns Hopkins Unive r sity Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Dr. Grover will speak from noon to 1 p.m., in Room 2268, Scott Hall. For more information, please contact David R. Pieper, Ph.D., at (313) 577-1453.

 

Robert M. Mentzer, Jr., M.D., dean of the Wayne State University School of Medicine, has named Jan A. Bertsch, a DaimlerChrysler executive, chair of the School of Medicine's Board of Visitors.

The Board of Visitors is comprised of community leaders and alumni who support the mission of the School of Medicine, provide advocacy and counsel, and link the school with key constituencies and resources.

Ms. Bertsch is vice president and chief information officer for Chrysler Group and Mercedes-Benz Sales in North America. She is responsible for all Chrysler and Mercedes-Benz IT management in North America. Prior to joining DaimlerChrysler in 2001, she spent 22 years with Ford Motor Co. and the Visteon Corp.

She received her bachelor's degree in finance from Wayne State University and her master's degree in business administration from Eastern Michigan University.

Ms. Bertsch resides in Willis, Michigan.

 

Ananda Prasad, M.D., Ph.D., WSU distinguished professor of medicine, was recently named the 2007 recipient of the American College of Physicians Award for Outstanding Work in Science as Related to Medicine.

Scientists of any country and in any field, whether nonclinical, clinical, biochemical, biological, physical or social, are eligible for this award. A major cons deration in being given this award, is the outstanding contribution the candidate makes in the field of medicine. The ACP Board of Regents established the award in 1958, and Dr. Prasad is the first person from Michigan to be granted the award.

During the past 40 years, Dr. Prasad has made great strides researching the mineral zinc, as well as contributing significantly to the field of hematology and sickle cell disease. A faculty member who joined the school in 1963 as director of hematology, Dr. Prasad was first introduced to zinc after finishing his training in hematology at the University of Minnesota.

One of his former professors received an invitation from the Shah of Iran to establish a medical curriculum at the University of Shiraz Medical School and invited Dr. Prasad to accompany him. Two weeks after his arrival, a 21-year-old man who looked like an 8-year-old boy came to Dr. Prasad. The patient lacked secondary male characteristics, was considered mentally lethargic and ate clay. Dr. Prasad diagnosed the man's condition as extreme anemia, but couldn't understand how such a condition came about because most males do not develop anemia without bleeding.

This condition was so prevalent in Iran that it was considered an epidemic. Dr. Prasad studied the condition and hypothesized that because plants do not grow without enough zinc, perhaps people do not either. In the developed world, zinc can be found in a wide variety of food sources, such as fresh fish, red meat, oysters and dairy products. In developing countries, diets primarily consist of breads and grains, which contain phytate, a substance which binds zinc and iron and prevents both minerals from being absorbed.

Zinc can be found everywhere in air, food and water so it was thought everyone received the necessary amount, which is why it was considered improbable any human being could become zinc deficient. Trace elements occur in the body, but nonetheless are important for biological reasons. Examples of trace elements include chromium, cobalt, copper, fluoride, iodine, iron, manganese, molybdenum, selenium and zinc.

In 1961, Dr. Prasad was published in The American Journal of Medicine , in which he suggested, for the first time, that deficiency of zinc may occur in humans, accounting for growth retardation in the Iranian dwarfs. The paper was later republished as a Nutrition Classic, meaning it contained an original observation which had a great impact on the nutrition of humans. In his next paper, which was based on the studies done in similar dwarfs from Egypt, Dr. Prasad established these dwarfs were zinc deficient. This paper was published in The Journal of Laboratory and Clinical Medicine in 1963 and later was republished in 1990 as a landmark article in the same journal. After the publication of these papers, Dr. Prasad started administering zinc through clinical trials, and his subjects began growing taller and developing male characteristics.

Since then, Dr. Prasad has continually studied zinc. In 1975, he suggested the National Research Council set the Recommended Daily Allowance for zinc to 15 milligrams per day.

Dr. Prasad, a member of the Karmanos Cancer Institute, currently serves as a consultant to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which is dedicated to four primary areas: global health, education, public libraries and assistance for vulnerable children and families in Washington State.

The ACP will present the award to Dr. Prasad on Thursday, April 19, during the Internal Medicine 2007 conference in San Diego.

 

 

The doctoral program at the Wayne State University College of Nursing has been ranked No. 5 in the nation according to the new Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index, a ratings system produced by the New York-based, for-profit firm Academic Analytics and financed in part by the State University of New York at Stony Brook. The rankings were published in the Jan. 12 edition of The Chronicle of Higher Education.

 

In doing so, the WSU College of Nursing placed higher than many higher profile nursing programs, including those at Duke University, the University of Washington and Johns Hopkins University. No other Michigan college or university made the Top 10.

Academic Analytics examined the output of faculty members at nearly 7,300 doctoral programs across the country, comparing the number of book and journal articles published, journal citations, awards, honors and grants received. The company's first-year index was based on data gathered from 2005.

The Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index is being viewed as a potential alternative to the traditional rankings compiled and published by U.S. News & World Report, which have been the gold standard for evaluating graduate programs for decades.

Unlike the U.S. News & World Report rankings, which are based primarily on reputation, this new system is based on hard data regarding faculty productivity, notes Dr. Barbara K. Redman, dean of the WSU College of Nursing. Because this ranking produces a different hierarchy of schools, its results and methodology are certain to be controversial. However, we view this as a validation of the emphasis we have placed on our doctoral program in recent years. We are, needless to say, delighted at the outcome.

The College of Nursing's master's program is ranked No. 28 in U.S. News & World Report; there is no corresponding ranking for doctoral programs.

The Top 10 nursing doctoral programs in America, according to the Index, are:

1. University of Alabama at Birmingham
2. Emory University
3. University of Pennsylvania
4. New York University
5. Wayne State University
6. Duke University
7. University of Rochester
8. University of Wisconsin at Madison
9. University of Kentucky
10. University of Illinois at Chicago

 

A new Wayne State University task force is developing a strategy for managing and mitigating pandemic influenza on campus in case an outbreak occurs.

President Irvin D. Reid called for creation of The Pandemic Preparedness Task Force last October because public health experts are warning that the avian influenza H5N1 virus could mutate, or change and spread easily among people.

A deadly worldwide outbreak, or pandemic, could occur if the virus changes so it can easily be passed between humans. This virus would then spread through coughing, sneezing, and people touching their eyes, noses or mouths after touching contaminated surfaces such as doorknobs.

Because avian influenza viruses do not commonly infect humans, people have little or no immune protection against them, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Unlike normal seasonal influenza, which causes only mild respiratory symptoms in most people, the disease caused by H5N1 is often deadly; of the 258 known human cases in Asia, Africa, Europe and the Near East, 59 percent, or 154 were fatal, according to the World Health Organization. Most cases have occurred in previously healthy children and young adults. WHO reports that symptoms vary and may include high fever, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, chest pain and bleeding from the nose and gums. Viral pneumonia and multiorgan failure are common.

The likelihood of a massive outbreak makes planning vital, Reid wrote in his charge to the task force. Pandemic influenza would have a profound impact on university campuses; it is reasonable to expect students, faculty and staff would have high rates of infection.

WHO states that the severity of disease and the number of deaths caused by a pandemic virus vary greatly, and cannot be known before the emergence of the virus. During past pandemics caused by other viruses, attack rates reached 25 percent to 35 percent of the total population.

The H5N1 virus that has caused human illness and death in Asia is resistant to amantadine and rimantadine, two antiviral medications commonly used for influenza. Two other antiviral medications, oseltamavir and zanamavir, may work to treat influenza caused by H5N1 virus, but additional studies still need to be done to demonstrate their effectiveness.

Reid said Wayne State's task force will prepare in several ways for a possible pandemic. The task force will:

• educate the university community about the dangers of avian influenza and the best practices for disease prevention;
  
  
• reate infection control strategies and identify a system to monitor campus outbreaks;
  
  
• develop continuity plans to ensure that essential campus operations are not severely disrupted if the university must close;
  
  
• write a communication plan to ensure that the campus community is receiving timely, clear and coordinated messages; and
  
  
• plan for the possibility that state and local officials may request that educational institutions such as Wayne State serve as emergency quarantine facilities or vaccination sites during the pandemic.

Andrea Roumell Dickson, executive vice president and chief of staff, and Suzanne White, chair, Department of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine, co-chair of the 16-member task force, which includes faculty and staff members from throughout the university.

Subgroups have been formed and are writing portions of the comprehensive plan for managing an outbreak. In March, the subgroups will submit drafts to the task force. By next May, the comprehensive plan is to be completed and relevant information for the campus community will be posted at fluinfo.wayne.edu, which is under development.

-- From Life@Wayne

 

All faculty and staff members are encouraged to be on campus Monday, Feb. 12, through Wednesday, Feb. 14, to welcome the team that will evaluate Wayne State University for reaccreditation.

Ten NCA reviewers from The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools will visit campus to interview faculty, staff, students and community members and look for evidence that Wayne State meets the association's five criteria for reaccreditation.

The NCA is one of the six regional agencies that accredit United States colleges and universities at the institutional level. Accreditation provides assurance to the public and to prospective students that an institution meets the NCA's standards of quality.

The NCA has accredited Wayne State since 1915. Accreditation reviews are conducted every 10 years. Wayne State's last review was in 1997.

The five criteria for reaccreditation are below:

• Mission and Integrity

• Preparing for the Future

• Student Learning and Effective Teaching

• Acquisition, Discovery and Application of Knowledge

• Engagement and Service

A Self-Study Report for the evaluation team addresses how Wayne State meets the five criteria. Faculty and staff members are to review the report at www.ncareport.wayne.edu or the Executive Summary at http://www.ncareport.wayne.edu/summary.php.

In preparation for February's site visit, units also should make sure their Web site links are working and that references to personnel are current. The site team will follow a schedule, so faculty and staff members will know where and when they need to be available, says Paula Wood, dean, College of Education, and co-chair, NCA Reaccreditation Self-Study team.

"The NCA reviews an institution in its entirety, says President Irvin D. Reid. Each office and each function will be examined for effectiveness, so it is important for all employees to be available during the visit. Preparation for the site visit should include reviewing the Self-Study Report at www.ncareport.wayne.edu."

In fall 2004, Reid and Provost Nancy Barrett appointed Wood and Sandra Yee, dean, University Library System, as co-chairs of the NCA Reaccreditation Self-Study team. Hilary Ratner, associate provost and dean of the Graduate School and International Programs, was appointed to the reaccreditation team as liaison for the Office of the Provost. Wood and Yee established a broad-based steering committee of 40 members who began meeting in January 2005 to conduct the self-study and prepare for the February site visit.

The Steering Committee met monthly, except during summer, from January 2005 through June 2006. Subcommittees were organized around the NCA's five criteria. Committee members are listed in the Self-Study Report and the Executive Summary.

-- From Life@Wayne

 

WSU School of Medicine and the International Association for Organ Donation will present the fourth annual World Summit on Organ Donation April 19 and 20, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, in Dearborn, Mich. WSU School of Medicine Dean Robert M. Mentzer, Jr., will serve as keynote speaker.

The summit will bring together top minds in the the world community of organ donation and transplantation to address the major challenges the field faces, with a particular concentration on the lack of organs worldwide and the issues that stem from the shortage.

As the waitlist for those in need of organ donation grows, so too must the donor registry to accommodate the need. Countries are becoming more creative with ways of dealing with this problem, employing such means as donor-matching donor websites.

For more information on the event, please visit www.iaod.org/events.