SPH News Aug. 3, 2009
SPH News is a school-wide electronic newsletter distributed to SPH faculty and staff every other week during the school year. Please send news items to SPHNews@umn.edu.The SPH News will resume biweekly publication on Aug. 31.
From the Dean
Dear Colleagues,
This past weekend I had the opportunity to sit down at a table with public health leaders from around Minnesota to discuss health reform with Sen. Al Franken, who is a member of the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP). The HELP Committee, under the leadership of Sen. Edward Kennedy, has authored a Senate version of a health reform bill, “The Affordable Health Choices Act.” Sen. Franken was in town to meet with representatives of organizations with a stake in health reform. I was joined by SPH assistant professor Jean Abraham who is just back from a one-year appointment to the President’s Council of Economic Advisers. She played an integral role in advising members of the Obama Administration on the economic implications of health reform.
The discussion we had with Sen. Franken was lively and fruitful. He is deeply committed to ensuring that public health and prevention play a central role in whatever health reform package is ultimately passed. He is being well served by SPH alumna Lauren Gilchrist who is his D.C.-based health staffer and who recently completed an ASPH fellowship where she worked as a staff member to the HELP Committee.
Proponents of health reform have a tough road ahead dodging bullets from the opposition that is using scare tactics to derail the legislation. Developing messages around the importance of health reform and the ways it will broaden access (not only to the 48 million uninsured, but the rest of us whose health coverage is tied to our employment) will be critical in the coming weeks. I look forward to working with all of you to move this discussion forward and greatly welcome your thoughts on the issue. I am delighted we have so many faculty and staff members who are engaged in health reform on a variety of levels.
—John R. Finnegan, Jr., Ph.D.
Dean and Professor
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Media News
July media coverage featured the following SPH faculty and staff:
- Kirk Allison
- Kristin Anderson
- Lynn Blewett
- Wendy Hellerstedt
- Robert Kane
- Rosalie Kane
- Leslie Lytle
- Toben Nelson
- John Nyman
- Mike Osterholm
- Matt Simcik
- Jamie Stang
- Mary Story
- Traci Toomey
Coverage was featured in local media as well as in Journal Times, asbestos.com, The Plain Dealer, Duluth News Tribune, Ethiopian Review, The Canadian Press, Associate Press, Los Angeles Times, Reuters, Medpage Today, GenomeWeb Daily News, Seattle Post Intelligencer, Boston Herald, Atlanta Journal, New York Times, London’s Daily Mail, Bloomberg News, W.A. Today, New Zealand’s Scoop, South China Morning Post, Sydney Morning Herald, and USA Today. Visit SPH in the News to read more about SPH faculty in the news.
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Faculty News
Kathleen Call, Michael Davern, Donna McAlpine, Timothy Beebe, and graduate assistant Titilope Cole-Adeniyi recently worked, in conjunction with the Cultural Wellness Center and the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS), on a report that describes barriers to health care services among enrollees in Minnesota’s public health care programs. The 2008 study, funded by DHS, focused on disparities in service use and access among six race/ethnic groups.
Jon Christianson, Ira Moscovice, and Robert Town presented papers at the Conference on Global Healthcare Reform Experiences at Renmin University of China in Beijing in July. Their topics were Paying for Quality: Understanding and Assessing Pay-for-Performance Initiatives, the Implications of Health Reform for Rural Providers and Consumers, and Provider Incentives in Health Reform, respectively.
Craig Hedberg has been selected as the new Public Health Practice (PHP) major chair. In his role as chair, Hedberg will maintain and enhance PHP programs, as well as lead partnerships with University colleagues and community partners.
Patricia McGovern was accepted into the Academic Leadership Program offered by the Committee on Institutional Cooperation for all Big-10 Universities for 2009-2010. Four to five fellows from the University of Minnesota are selected each year for this intensive experience, which develops the leadership and managerial skills of faculty who have demonstrated exceptional ability and academic promise from nominations submitted by deans and chancellors.
James Neaton has received the Academy of Excellence in Health Research Award from the University of Minnesota Academic Health Center. Those selected for excellence in research have contributed to the quality of the University through sustained, nationally and internationally recognized health-related research in their field. The award is the highest recognition of research among faculty of the University of Minnesota Academic Health Center.
Debra Olson has received the Academy for Excellence in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Award.The Academy for Excellence is the highest recognition of teaching and learning among faculty of the University of Minnesota Academic Health Center. Those selected have contributed to developing a culture of learning by demonstrating a commitment to teaching and student learning through innovation, creativity, and dissemination of scholarly works.
William Riley has been elected as the vice chair of the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB). PHAB is developing a national voluntary accreditation program for state, local, territorial, and tribal public health departments. The goal of the accreditation program is to improve and protect the health of every community by advancing the quality and performance of public health departments.
Deborah Swackhamer has been named president elect of the National Institutes of Water Resources (NIWR) based in Washington, D.C. Swackhamer will oversee a network of 54 water resources centers located in land grant institutions across the country, as well as the agency’s efforts to coordinate and promote the training and research activities of water quality professionals and researchers in the United States and around the world.
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School News
The SPH Master of Healthcare Administration (M.H.A.) degree is now available online and can be completed in 25 months, requiring only seven days of on-campus attendance. The M.H.A. program has been ranked second nationally among similar programs by U.S. News and World Report.
• Read more
The SPH has launched two new post-baccalaureate certificates in executive healthcare studies. The certificates include: Management Fundamentals in Healthcare Organizations Certificate; and Leading Integrated Health Systems: Organizational Design, Strategy, Finance, and Management Certificate.
• More information
The SPH Web integration is moving forward with plans to go live in the fall with a new SPH website. The project is a dean’s initiative intended to strengthen SPH Web communications and services, eliminate duplicative efforts, and save money through significant reduction in printed materials.
• See mockups of the new design and leave comments
Public Health Moments in July included Jamie Stang commenting on a new study that found Minnesota tied for the lowest childhood obesity rate in the nation, and Mark Pereira discussing a study linking depression to diabetes in pregnant mothers.
• More Public Health Moments
The new Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Care Consumer Confidence Index, developed in conjunction with researchers at the State Health Access Data Assistance Center (SHADAC), was released on June 18. The Index provides an indicator of the health access concerns of the American people.
University of Minnesota: Simulations and Exercises for Educational Effectiveness (U-SEEE) is accepting proposals for a pilot research program until Sept. 8.
• Read more about the program online
Alma Sparrow, former director of the SPH’s public health nursing program, passed away June 12 in Montemorelos, Mexico.
• Read her obituary
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is sponsoring a public service announcement contest. Create a video PSA about the flu and be eligible to Win $2500. Learn how to enter your PSA at the HHS website.
Idealist.org is developing content for the Public Service Graduate Education Resource Center. Faculty in schools of public health nation-wide are encouraged to complete a survey asking what makes a successful candidate for public health graduate programs by Aug. 14.
• Take the six question survey online
The Global Health and Innovation Conference presented by Unite for Sight is accepting abstracts for presentation. The conference is for anyone interested or involved in international health and development, social entrepreneurship, public health, eye care, medicine, nonprofits, philanthropy, microfinance, human rights, anthropology, health policy, advocacy, public service, environmental health, and education.
• Submit an abstract online
There will be no EpiCH Shuttle service during the summer. Service resumes Tuesday, Sept. 8. The mail runs to ECRC, Mayo, and HSRC will continue at their regular times.
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SPH Events
Pollution Prevention and Energy Efficiency Solutions presentations will be held on Aug. 21 from 9 a.m. to noon at McNamara Alumni Center, Ski-U-Mah Room. Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP) student interns will present the results of their summer projects. RSVP to mspeck002@umn.edu or 612-624-1300 by Aug. 7, 2009.
“All in the Family: Fetal Effects of Maternal Overweight and Obesity,” presented by the National Children’s Study Speakers’ Series, will be held on Sept. 9 from 3-4 p.m., at the Wilder Center in St. Paul. This event is free and open to all but seating is limited. Please RSVP to Laurie Ukestad at ukest001@umn.edu.
The Deborah E. Powell Center will present its 6th Annual Women’s Health Research Conference on Monday, Sept. 21 at the McNamara Alumni Center. This year’s theme is “A Focus on Women’s Mental Health and Neurosciences.” Poster abstracts will be accepted on any topics regarding women’s health or gender specific research across the lifespan. The deadline for award consideration is Wednesday, July 15 and Monday, Aug. 3 to be recognized in the program.
• Submit an abstract
The 26th Annual American Association for the History of Nursing Conference will be held Sept. 24-27 at The Saint Paul Hotel. The conference offers an opportunity to exchange knowledge about the profession of nursing, and its impact across time, populations, and geography. Keynote speaker Steven Berlin Johnson is the best-selling author of six books on the intersection of science, technology, and personal experience. Participants are asked to register online.
• Register for the conference
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Student News
Follow nine SPH students as they practice public health around the world. The 2009 Notes from the Field blog is up and running.
• Subscribe to e-mail updates
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CPHEO News
8-Hour Emergency Response Refresher
Tuesday, August 11
• Additional Information
NIOSH-Approved Spirometry Refresher Training
Tuesday, Aug. 25
• Additional Information
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Other Events
For more events, go to the SPH Online Calendar
Subscribe to SPH calendar updates by e-mail
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Events on the AHC Web Site
Events on the SPH Web Site
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Last modified on Monday Aug 03, 2009