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News Items:
Interim
Dean of the School of Public
Health Announced: Saint Louis University has named Homer
Schmitz, Ph.D., interim dean of the School of Public Health,
effective July 1.
Dr. Schmitz is a professor of health
management and policy in the School of Public Health and has been a
member of the Saint Louis University faculty for 27 years.
"Dr. Schmitz is an experienced
administrator and talented fiscal manager who understands the needs
of the School of Public Health and has well-established linkages to
the local health care community," said Joe Weixlmann, Ph.D.,
Saint Louis University provost. "I am confident that he will do
an excellent job serving the school over the next year."
Click
for full story.
Program Receives Accreditation:
 The Master of
Health Administration (MHA) program in the School of Public Health
has received full accreditation from the Accrediting Commission on
Education for Health Services Administration. The program's
accreditation will continue through spring 2011. This accreditation
extends to its joint degree programs with the schools of law,
business and allied health professions. For more information,
contact Richard Kurz, Ph.D., at (314) 977-8111 or kurzrs@slu.edu.
Schedule
Updates (Fall Schedule 2004 and April Update of Master Calendar) -
Click Here
Congratulations
to Christina Mushi-Brunt on being chosen as a fellow for the 2004
ASPH/CDC/PRC Minority Fellowship Program!
Her
fellowship position entitled, "Social and Environmental Factors
Associated with Child Overweight Among African-American
Preadolescent Girls", will be housed in the Saint Louis
University Prevention Research Center.
Center
Changes Name to Institute for Bio-Security
Name
change designed to better describe our work and be easier to
remember:
 Out
with the old and in with the new! The group formerly known as the
Centers for the Study of Bioterrorism & Emerging Infections has
changed names. The group will now be known as the Institute for
Bio-Security at Saint Louis University School of Public Health.
According the Institute Director Greg Evans, the name change, which
officially took place on June 1, will not only be easier to
remember, but also is broad enough to encompass the many areas with
which the group is involved. Bio-Security covers both naturally
occurring outbreaks that threaten the general population (e.g.,
Infectious Diseases), and man-made terror outbreaks like biological,
radiological, or chemical terror attacks. Logos and letterheads will
be changing during the summer, and you will begin to see references
to IBS rather than the former CSB&EI.
 Drug
cards offer savings, but Medicare patients may need help with the
system.
Article From MD Consult
By Doug Kaufman
ST. LOUIS (MD Consult) - Medicare
patients can save money by using the government-sponsored discount
drug cards, but understanding all the options may be a challenge.
"The prescription drug plan is
complex and has a lot of problems," said Dr. Tim McBride, a
professor in St. Louis University's school of public health.
"One of the things that's confusing for seniors is, I've seen
poll results that suggest a good percentage of them don't even
realize that the plan has been passed."
The prescription drugs card program,
intended to help Medicare recipients until the new drug plan takes
effect in 2006, has "some good aspects to it and some
problematic aspects," Dr. McBride said.
Full article published on the MD
Consult Core Website.
Standing on the Stage of
Terror—a Bioterrorism Media Conference Update
Saint Louis University’s Center for the Study of
Bioterrorism and Health Communication Research Laboratory is hosting
“Standing on the Stage of Terror”, a one-day workshop on dealing
with the media during a chemical, radiological, or bioterrorism
crisis. It will be held on June 17, 2004 at the Renaissance St.
Louis Hotel Airport in St. Louis, Missouri. Attendance at this
workshop is limited to 150 invited attendees nationally.
This workshop will focus on the most
beneficial methods for utilizing mass media during a catastrophic
chemical, radiological, or bioterrorism crisis. It promises to be a
high-profile event that will bring together media experts with
public health officials, who must work hand-in-hand with the media
during a crisis.
Morning sessions will identify
strategies for effective public communication in the event of a
biological, chemical, or radiological terrorism attack including:
- Introducing current knowledge
about public information needs in a terrorist emergency.
- Previewing pre-event message
strategies under development to enhance communication with the
public during a terrorist crisis.
- Identifying reliable information
sources for use in a terrorist event.
- Presenting news, television, and
radio reporters’ perspectives on what they expect during an
interview.
The afternoon session will focus on
strategies to enhance on-camera presentations including:
- Presenting valuable on-camera
basics that will help you feel comfortable in front of the
camera, eliminate self-consciousness, and make you feel like a
“pro”.
- Identifying the physical and
emotional elements that will improve your ability to display
confidence, credibility, and compassion to the viewer.
- Providing an opportunity to hone
in on your TV interview skills through on-camera
mock-interviews.
Key presenters include Julius Hunter,
SLU Vice President for Community Relations and former
anchor/reporter at KMOV, St. Louis, MO and Nancy Stafford,
television actress, professional speaker, author, TV host, and media
consultant.
Upcoming
Events: Updated for 2004/2005
Click
for all current events and calendar information.
New
Senior Research Assistant in Environmental Epidemiology:
Please welcome Taijuana Marcia Hendrix, MPH, a new Senior Research
Assistant in Environmental Epidemiology. She will be working with
Drs. Richard Kurz and David Sterling on their "Controlling
Asthma in St. Louis" project. Marcia has a B.A. in psychology
and her MPH in epidemiology and she was previously employed as a
project coordinator at Washington University School of Medicine.
New
Post-doctoral Fellow in the HCRL: Ajlina
Karamehic, PhD, is a post-doctoral
fellow in the Health Communication Research
Lab under Dr. Matt Kreuter. She will be participating
in research for various
projects in the lab. She
was recently a graduate student in the Department of Communication
at the University of Kentucky, as well as a senior research assistant
on a HIDA-funded anti marijuana campaign. Please help make
Ajlina feel welcome.
Recent News:
J oin
us for the SPH Pre-Commencement Ceremony -
Friday, May 14 - School of Public
Health 11:30 a.m. - St. Francis Xavier College Church 3628 Lindell
Blvd. Reception immediately following on U.S. Bank Plaza, corner of
Grand & Lindell boulevards.
Celebrate! Congratulations to all
Saint Louis University Class of 2004 graduates. The University will
hold its 2004 commencement ceremony at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 15, at
Savvis Center. We welcome all graduates, friends and families to
attend.
Red
Cross Measles Fundraiser an Outstanding Success:
With your help, the student organizations were able to raise over
$400 for the Red Cross Measles Initiative from the sale
of candy grams and baked goods last Friday. This translates to potentially
saving the lives of over 400 African children from measles, the
number one cause of preventable deaths in Africa. Fox 2
covered the fundraiser on the nightly news Friday. To all of those
who helped make this success possible, we appreciate your help.
Komen
Kiosk Project in the News: Matt Kreuter,
PhD, appeared on the KSDK-channel 5 noon news last Thursday,
February 5, to discuss the Komen Kiosk Project.
Currently, one kiosk is at John C. Murphy Health Center and three
additional kiosks are scheduled to be completed and out in the field
by the end of February.
SSM
Institutes Smoke-Free Campus: Pat Lindsey
was quoted in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
and on Good Housekeeping's website about SSM's decision to institute a smoke-free
campus in all the system's hospitals. This unique decision
makes SSM the first organization not only to prohibit smoking in
their healthcare buildings (hospitals, doctors' offices, nursing
homes, etc) but also prohibit smoking in the outdoor area directly
surrounding these facilities.
Heartland
Centers Offer Medical Interpreter Training: The Heartland
Centers for Public Health & Community Capacity Development is
planning with the KDHE, Office of Local and Rural Health, six medical
interpreter training sessions throughout the year. The “Bridging
the Gap” curriculum requires that each student take a pre
and post test to determine their skill level. The training entails
40 hours of intensive, interactive learning. Twenty-five bilingual
participants will attend each training.
MPH
Student Publishes Editorials about the Uninsured in Missouri:
Chris Gorrell recently had three different
editorials published on the uninsured population in Missouri. The
latest editorial, “Working to insure all Missourians,” was published
in the Kansas City Star (2/10/2004) and outlines Missouri's recent
federal grant award aimed at reducing the state's uninsured population.
His other editorials were published in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
(1/24/2004) and the St. Louis Business Journal (1/16/2004). Chris
is a student in the MPH program, concentrating in health policy.
Bioterrorism
Center Director Responds to Latest Senate Mail Threat:
Center for the Study of Bioterrorism & Emerging Infections
Director, Dr. Greg Evans, was quoted in the 2/4/04
edition of the New York Times in connection with the recent
Ricin discovery in Senator Frist's mailroom. The
title of the article is “Ricin Poses Postal Risk, But Different
from Germs”. One of Evans' quotes from the article is “For
a terrorist to send a substance like ricin in the mail is such an
ineffective way to use it.” Also, Dr. Evans' interview with the
Associated Press landed in many top newspapers and websites, including
ABCNews.com, New York Newsday , Atlanta Constitution.
Faculty
Member and Former Student Publish About Women and Lupus: Dorsey
R, Andresen EM, Moore T. Health-related quality of life and support
group attendance for women with systematic lupus erythematosus.
J Clin Rheumatol 2004;19(1):6-9. Rashida Dorsey is a former MPH
student, now a PhD student at University of Pittsburgh.
Graduate Students Could Receive $5,000 Award: This
is a reminder that proposals for the Meatless Monday Health Scholars
grant program are due March 1. Ten $5,000 awards are available to
graduate students currently enrolled in ASPH member schools. Details
about the program and the RFPs can be found at: www.jhsph.edu/environment/MM.
More News:
Waiver
of $40 Fee: If you're one of the first 150 applicants
to the School of Public Health for the fall 2004 term the $40
application fee will be waived provided your application includes:
1) The name of a SLU professor, student or alum who referred you
to the School of Public Health, 2) transcripts reflecting a GPA
of 3.00 or better from your undergraduate or previous graduate
work, and 3) receipt of your application before March 1, 2004.
Click here for applications
downloads.
SPH
Adds New Concentration: Effective immediately, a new concentration:
the Master of Public Health (MPH) in Health Policy. Contact sphinfo@slu.edu
for details on how to apply to this exciting new concentration!
Click here for additional
details.
MHA
Program Completes Self-Study for Accreditation: The
Department of Health Management and Policy has completed its Self-Study
for accreditation review by the Accrediting Commission on Education
for Health Services Administration (ACEHSA). Site visitors will
be on campus November 5, 6, and 7, 2003, to complete the assessment
process. A
link is provided to Volume I of the Self-Study and the Department
encourages everyone to review it. Comments to Dr. Richard Kurz,
Chair of the Department, are welcome at kurzrs@slu.edu.
Additional
Critical Documents:
Please
note, you will need Acrobat Reader to review many of our online
publications. Click
here if you do not have it.
|
SPH
Alum Accepts Position at the CDC: Adam G. Skelton (Ph.D. - Health
Services Research, M.P.H. - Epidemiology) has accepted a new position
as Principle Scientist with the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) National Electronic Disease Surveillance System
(NEDSS) program. This position, officially with Computer Sciences
Corporation (CSC), the prime contractor on the development of NEDSS,
focuses on structuring and facilitating the relationship and alignment
between State and Local Health Departments' surveillance and program
support needs and the NEDSS software development process. Dr. Skelton
maintains homes in Atlanta, GA and Bainbridge Island, WA.