North Dakota Medicine Holiday 2007

Holiday 2007VOLUME 32, NUMBER 5www.ndmedicine.org

Dean of Deans

Athlete as Physician

Timing Is Everything

An Ancient Path to Better Living

School without Walls

Dean of Deans

Athlete as Physician

Timing is Everything

An Ancient Path to Better Living

School without Walls

Workforce PipelineWorkforce Pipeline

2 NORTH DAKOTA MEDICINE Holiday 2007

PEOPLE OFTEN ASK ME, LIKE OTHERmedical school deans around thecountry, where I get my energy. With

the responsibility ofmanaging limitedbudgets, jugglingresources to meetprogram needs andmaintainingrelationships withkey investors of theschool, a deansometimes needs togive himself a reasonwhy he became adean in the firstplace! A quickanswer for me is inthe photograph onthis page – well,actually there arenine reasons! It’s thestudents. What I, and

every other faculty member at the UNDSchool of Medicine and HealthSciences do each day, affects themedical and allied health students andtheir future. And we’re proud of that!

A school without wallsOur medical school classes consist of62 students for each of the four yearclasses and that often confuses people,because they think that only a fewstudents train here. It’s exciting to tellthem about our “real” numbers, whichinclude students in physical therapy(142), occupational therapy (148),physician assistant (60), athletic training(43), clinical laboratory science (270),cytotechnology (4), anatomy and cellbiology (12), biochemistry andmolecular biology (15), microbiologyand immunology (11), andpharmacology, physiology andtherapeutics (13). Faculty membersalso teach over 1,500 undergraduatestudents who will become nurses,dieticians, teachers and forensicscientists.

And we do more. The school is avirtual education center, with programsdesigned for elementary schoolchildren to senior citizens, and some

program or another located in nearlyevery community in the state.

Be sure to read the WorkforcePipeline (page 4) article featuring theCenter for Rural Health. The program isintroducing students across NorthDakota to careers in healthcare, andknowing that our state, like manyothers, will experience a healthcareshortage in the future, it’s importantthat we provide early education aboutthese opportunities.

Each summer the campus hosts theSummer Institute Program forAmerican Indian students. This hasbeen a successful program at UND for25 years, with a purpose of providing a6-week enrichment study in scienceand math courses for 7 through12th

graders. The school also focuses on

research that is relevant to the citizensof our state and region. This issue ofNorth Dakota Medicine features a studybeing done at the school on tai chi(page 16), and the positive effects it hason college age students to seniorcitizens. The evidence is solid that taichi is beneficial in cardio-respiratoryfunction, balance and flexibility ~ allimportant elements to an agingpopulation.

Thank you for your help!I want to thank all of you who

have contributed to the UND School ofMedicine and Health Sciences this pastyear. The center section of themagazine contains a listing of thedonors for the fiscal year 2006-2007.The number of alumni and friends whohave invested in us continues to riseand we are very grateful andappreciative for this support. It is thislevel of commitment that provides theschool the ability to grow and moveforward. A financial investment todayIS an investment in the future. Thankyou!

H. David Wilson, M.D.Vice President for Health Affairs &Dean

Pictured clockwise from top left: ChrisTriske, M.S. ’06, Clinical LaboratoryScience; Jeremy Gawryluk, Ph.D. ’08,Pharmacology, Physiology andTherapeutics; Aneel Damle, M.D. ’10,Medicine; Leah Marti, B.S. ’07,Athletic Training; Mandy Caspers,D.P.T. ’07, Physical Therapy; SaraMayer, M.D. ’10, Medicine; KelseyHoffman, M.D. ’10, Medicine;H. David Wilson, M.D., Dean;Lei Ding, Ph.D. ’07, Biochemistry andMolecular Biology; Sarah Wehmhoefer,B.S. ’07, Cytotechnology

DEAN’S LETTER

NORTH DAKOTA MEDICINE Holiday 2007 3

48

1012

1814

For address corrections:ND Medicine Address Correction UND School of Medicine and Health SciencesOffice of Administration and Finance Attn: Kitty Monley501 North Columbia Rd. Stop 9037,Grand Forks, ND 58202-9037 e-mail: [email protected] phone: 701-777-2431

NORTH DAKOTA MEDICINE and past issues of THE REVIEW are available at www.ndmedicine.org

FEATURESThe Workforce Pipeline 4

The Center for Rural Health works with groups throughout the state to get people of all ages interested in health careers

Dean of Deans 8UND School of Medicine and Health Sciences Dean H. DavidWilson, M.D., is chair of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Council of Deans

Athlete As Physician 10Students apply valuable skills honed in the athletic arena to their pursuit of excellence in medicine

Timing is Everything 12Out of adversity, opportunity arises for INMED & INBRE

An Ancient Path to Better Living 14An ancient Chinese practice of martial arts is helping seniorsfind balance in their lives

School Without Walls 18Distance learning gives working professionals the opportunityto attain advanced degrees without leaving home

DEPARTMENTSAlumni Profile 16Guest Author 21Student Profile 22News Briefs 24Alumni Notes 27In Memoriam 29Planning Ahead 30Parting Shots 31

NORTH DAKOTA MEDICINE

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AND HEALTH SCIENCES

CHARLES E. KUPCHELLA, President,University of North Dakota

H. DAVID WILSON, Vice President for Health Affairs Dean, School of Medicine and Health Sciences

WRITERS Brenda Haugen, Patrick Miller, Pamela Knudson, Amanda Scurry

CONTRIBUTORS Blanche Abdallah, Wendy Opsahl,Mary Wakefield

GRAPHIC DESIGN Laura Cory, John Lee, Victoria SwiftPHOTOGRAPHY Rich Greenhouse, Chuck Kimmerle,

Mike Smith, Wanda Weber COVER ART Rich Greenhouse

www.ndmedicine.org

DESIGN Eric WalterCONTENT Wendy Opsahl

NORTH DAKOTA MEDICINE (ISSN 0888-1456; USPS 077-680) is published five times a year (April, July,

September, December, February) by the University of NorthDakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Room 1000, 501 N. Columbia Road Stop 9037, Grand Forks, ND58202-9037. Periodical postage paid at Grand Forks, ND.

Printed at Fine Print Inc., Grand Forks, ND.

All articles published in NORTH DAKOTA MEDICINE,excluding photographs and copy concerning patients, can bereproduced without prior permission from theeditor.

Want more NORTH DAKOTA MEDICINE?Look for this symbol, and check out our WEB EXCLUSIVES site:www.ndmedicine.org


HAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU grow up? The Center for Rural Health at the UND School of Medicine and Health Sciences

is working with a variety of organizations throughout thestate that all want to make that answer be something inhealth care.

Workforce shortages are a challenge for the health caresystem nationwide with projected physician shortagesbetween 85,000 and 96,000 by 2020 according to theFederal Council on Graduate Medical Education.

“These shortages can negatively affect health care

quality and access to health care services,” said MaryAmundson, M.A. ’95, assistant professor at the Center forRural Health. “Shortages can increase stress on availableproviders and contribute to higher health care costs byincreasing the use of overtime pay and expensive temporarypersonnel.”

A year ago, the Center for Rural Health, in partnershipwith the Dakota Medical Foundation and others, held aHealth Care Workforce Summit in Bismarck to examinehealth care workforce issues in North Dakota. The purposeof the summit was to share what is currently being done to

W

The WorkforcePIPELINE

The Center for Rural Healthworks with groups throughout the state to get people of all agesinterested in health careers

Lois Mathiason of First Care Health Centerin Park River, ND, shares the “InspectorWell Ness and the Care of Many MedicalCareers” program with fifth-graders.


feed the state’s health care workforcepipeline, to explore current andemerging challenges associated with thesupply and demand of health careworkforce in the state, and to begin todevelop an action plan to address thesechallenges. Among the summitparticipants were state legislators,representatives from state government,statewide organizations, economicdevelopment commissions, health careemployers, educators, and health careproviders.

The PipelineStaff at the Center for Rural Health usethe idea of a workforce pipeline toexplain that getting people interested inhealth careers starts at a very young ageand must continue through several stepsfrom small children through retainingcurrent employees.

“Each step of the pipeline offersopportunities to target specific strategiesfrom workforce training to retention,”explained Patricia Moulton, Ph.D. (’02,‘99, ’97), assistant professor at the Centerfor Rural Health.

During December’s summit,participants identified goals and keyissues within each step, barriers toachieving the goals, elements needingchange, and action steps.

Students in grades K-12Summit attendees indicated a need toincrease student exposure tohealth care professionsthrough education andbusiness partnerships. Anexample is to provide morestudents with age-appropriateexperiences in health carefacilities including tours,presentations, and relatedactivities to introduce students tohealth care professions.

For the past two years, the NorthDakota Medicare Rural HospitalFlexibility (Flex) Program at the Centerfor Rural Health has funded several suchendeavors throughout the state. The“Fostering Opportunities in Rural HealthOccupations: Rural Hospitals and

Educators Working Together to CreateLocal Opportunities for Children andYouth” program funds communitypartnerships to expose children to healthoccupations with the intent to increasetheir awareness, interest andunderstanding of health careers.

One of these programs in ParkRiver, ND, made huge strides ineducating the community’s fifth-gradersabout health careers. First Care HealthCenter in Park River partnered with thePark River School to do a five-weekprogram they called “Inspector WellNess and the Care of the Many MedicalCareers.”

Each week, two medicalprofessionals would visit the fifth-gradeclassrooms to discuss their health careerand provide a hands-one activity relatingto their chosen field. Students heardfrom physician assistants and nursepractitioners, paramedics, laboratory andimaging technicians, physical therapists,nurses and dietitians. During thesevisits, the students got to view real x-rays, try on a cast, had their bloodpressure monitored and took a ride in anambulance, among other activities. Onthe fifth week, students visited the healthcenter to see the equipment and meeteven more health professionals.

“Introducing students to a variety ofcareers when they are young is veryimportant,” said Ruth Jelinek, who

headed the project for FirstCare Health Center. “Most ofthe students didn’t knowwhat these medical careerswere.”

The students weretested on their knowledgeof health careers beforeand after the program.

Before the five-week program, onlya few students correctly matched healthcareers with a description of that career.However, when they were tested afterthe program, there was markedimprovement.

“We were extremely pleased withthe results,” said Jelinek. “We arelooking forward to doing this again inthe spring.”

Our purpose is tomeasurably

improve health and accessto healthcare services.


Students in Higher EducationSummit attendees acknowledged a needto engage community/educationprograms to educate undergraduatestudents about health care programs.

MeritCare Health System and theUND medical school’s internalmedicine residency program has beenworking with Moorhead’s ConcordiaCollege for a number of years toprovide their pre-med students with areal-life picture of what health careersare like.

The Concordia cooperativeeducation class gives students credit forobserving physicians and volunteeringat hospitals and nursing homes. Duringthe semester, eight students spend a halfa day a week in the internal medicineresidency clinic. They spend anadditional 35 hours a semester with“mentoring physicians” either jobshadowing or conversing about medicalcareers. Each semester the entire classalso visits the UND medical school fora day and participates in its Patient-Centered Learning curriculum.

“They observe how care isdelivered and visit with residents onwhat it is like to go through medicalschool and residency,” explained JulieBlehm, M.D. ’81, an internist andgeriatrics specialist at MeritCare HealthSystem and associate dean for theSoutheast Campus of the UND School

of Medicine and Health Sciences. “They get realistic impressions of

what medicine is.”

Higher Education ProgramsParticipants at the summit discusseddesigning rural interdisciplinaryeducation programs for all health caredisciplines and increase the number ofrural training programs statewide. Theyalso suggested an assessment of currentprograms and the potential forestablishing other programs andcollaborations along with furtherdevelopment of a rural curriculum(including interdisciplinary programs).

In recent years, the Dakota MedicalFoundation based in Fargo has beensupporting efforts to increase healthcare training in the state, especially inrural areas. The foundation hascontributed hundreds of thousands toinstitutions of higher educationthroughout the state to support theirefforts to make their programs moreaccessible to rural residents and tomake health career students moreinterested in careers in the rural areas.These projects range from increasing thenumber of seats in nursing programs,establishing distance educationprograms in rural areas and providescholarships to health professionstudents who intend to remain in thearea.

Most recently, the foundationcontacted with the Center for RuralHealth to convene the regionaleducational institutions that producenurses in December to develop a long-term strategy to address the nursingshortage.

“Our purpose is to measurablyimprove health and access to health careservices,” said J. Pat Traynor, ’91, J.D.,president of the Dakota MedicalFoundation. “We know that a key toachieving this goal is to have enoughqualified health care professionalsworking where they are needed themost. We are pleased to be able to helpthe state’s quality institutions of highereducation produce those health careprofessionals.”

Each step of the NorthDakota Health Care

Workforce Pipeline offersopportunities to recruit,

train and retain health careworkers for the state.

WEB EXCLUSIVE: For moreon the health care workforcesummit and workgroups visit:www.ndmedicine.org


Employer Recruitment and Retention: Recruitment and Retention of health careproviders is the most immediate sectionof the pipeline. With fewer and fewermedical students choosing familymedicine and other primary care fields,it is especially difficult for small ruralcommunities to find physicians.

One North Dakota community,Cando, recently had success in recruitinga physician by involving the entirecommunity and his entire family.Robert Hamilton, M.D., is currently athird-year physician-resident at the UNDmedical school’s Minot Center forFamily Medicine. He was firstintroduced to the community by Candophysician Greg Culver, M.D., whoprecepts at the Minot program. Culverconvinced Hamilton to spend his one-month rural rotation in Cando, whichstarted a series of regular visits betweenthe people of Cando and the Hamiltons.

The Hamiltons were welcomed notonly by the hospital CEO and staff, butthe whole community reached out tothem including hospital board members,

real estate agents, patients and othercommunity members. While in Cando,community members treated theHamiltons to the best the communityhas to offer including trail rides, trapshooting and beautiful Devils Lake. Theresult was a successful bid for Hamiltonstart his practice in Cando next fall.

Next StepsTo continue the work begun at thesummit, the State Office of Rural Healthprogram at the Center for Rural Health isfunding a statewide Health CareWorkforce Committee that includesindividuals representing state boards,state associations, medical facilities(urban, rural and VeteransAdministration), long-term care, healthand human services, academic andeconomic development. Thesecommittee members each selected a stepin the pipeline to work on throughconference calls to replicate effortscurrently underway and to pursuenewly identified strategies.

- Amanda Scurry

Julie Blehm advises Katrina Enderle, asenior pre-med student from ConcordiaCollege in Moorehead, MN, whoshadows residents at the clinic.

DEAN DEANS


THIS FALL, UND SCHOOL OFMedicine and Health Sciences Dean H.David Wilson, M.D., took over thereigns as chair of the Association ofAmerican Medical Colleges (AAMC)Council of Deans.

The first North Dakota dean to holdsuch a high office in the AAMC, Wilsonpresides over the meetings of

the council consisting of 126 medicalschool deans of schools that aremembers of the AAMC, chairs thecouncil’s governing body called theAdministrative Board, and representsthe deans on both the AAMC ExecutiveCouncil and its 10-member executivecommittee.

“I feel gratified that my colleagueschose me to represent this extremelytalented group,” said Wilson. “It is anhonor for me, the medical school, theuniversity and the state.”

UND President Charles Kupchellaagrees.

“This is a terrific honor for DeanWilson and for the University of NorthDakota,” he said. “To be named ‘Deanof Deans’ by the deans is clearly nosmall matter. It surely shows that he ishighly respected as a leading figure inAmerican medical education. We’relucky to have him.”

The AAMC Council of Deansrepresents the deans from all 126 U.S.and 17 Canadian accredited medicalschools. The group identifies issuesaffecting academic medicine includingpolicies guiding the AAMC in itsservice and advocacy functions;programs for the advancement ofinstitutional management; and supportfor the deans’ leadership role in guidingindividual schools toward excellence inmedical education, research and patientcare.

“The AAMC Council of Deans isinstrumental in guiding the association’sefforts toward excellence in medicaleducation, research and patient care,”said Darrell Kirch, M.D., AAMCpresident. “He is a wise and experiencedleader, and we at the AAMC, as well ashis colleagues across the country, lookforward to David Wilson’s leadership aschair this year.”

Making a differenceWilson said there are a number ofthings he would like to see the counciladdress this year including health carereform.

“There are 45 million Americanswithout health insurance,” heexplained. “The AAMC is a player inlooking at the health care system andhow it should be paid for anddelivered.”

With the establishment of more andmore osteopathic schools openingacross the county, Wilson would likethe council to take a closer look at therelationship between osteopathicdoctors and medical doctors.

H. David Wilson at theCouncil of DeansAdministrative Boardmeeting in September.

Phot

o by

Ric

h G

reen

hous

e


“We need to better understand thesimilarities, the differences and get abetter understanding of what oneanother does,” he said. He would alsolike to see the two groups look atsetting joint standards to ensure thequality remains high at both types ofschools including looking at thepossibility of both types of schoolsbeing accredited by the same body.

A national presenceThis is not Wilson’s first service innational medical associations. He waselected to the AAMC Executive Councilin 2004 and served as chair of theAAMC Section on Community-BasedDeans from 2002-2004.

Wilson was elected to the 12-member Council of DeansAdministrative Board by his peers 2004.He was appointed and served as chair-elect of the board last year.

“Dr. Wilson has also served withparticular distinction as liaison from theCouncil of Deans Administrative Boardto the steering committee of theAAMC’s Group on Student Affairs,” saidJoseph Keyes, senior vice president andgeneral counsel of the AAMC. “Heplayed an active role in the developmentof that group’s assessment of studentacademic performance and professionalattributes called the Medical StudentPerformance Evaluation. Thisassessment, previously known as the‘dean’s letter,’ is a key factor inresidency program directors’ selectionof applicants for their programs.”

From 2001 to 2004 Wilson was anelected member of the AmericanMedical Association’s Council onMedical Education and served as amember of the Liaison Committee onMedical Education, the 17-membercommittee that is recognized by theU.S. Department of Education toaccredit all U.S. and Canadian medicalschools.

“I really enjoy serving on thesecommittees,” said Wilson. “They are afun learning experience. I get to hearwhat is going on in other schools andpick up ideas for North Dakota. It alsogives me the opportunity to talk aboutNorth Dakota and to spread the wordabout what a great medical school wehave here.”

Wilson grew up in Johnston City, IL.He graduated from Wabash College inCrawfordsville, IN, before going on tomedical school at St. Louis UniversitySchool of Medicine. He spent 22 yearsat the University of Kentucky College ofMedicine in Lexington and was servingas full professor and associate dean foracademic affairs when he left to jointhe staff at North Dakota in 1995.

The AAMC is a nonprofitassociation representing all 126accredited U.S. and 17 accreditedCanadian medical schools; nearly 400major teaching hospitals and including98 affiliated health systems and 68Department of Veterans Affairs medicalcenters; and 94 academic and scientificsocieties. Through these institutions andorganizations, the AAMC represents109,000 faculty members, 67,000medical students, and 104,000 residentphysicians.

Other schools represented on the2007-2008 administrative board of theCouncil of Deans include� Northeastern Ohio Universities� University of West Virginia� Emory University School of

Medicine � University of Utah� Pennsylvania State University� Stanford University� University of Maryland� Washington University of St. Louis� University of Missouri-Kansas City� Vanderbilt University� University of Pennsylvania

-Amanda Scurry

I feel gratified that mycolleagues chose me torepresent this extremely

talented group...it is an honor for me,

the medical school, theuniversity and the state.


ATHLETE as Physician:

SOME OF THE SAME ATTRIBUTESthat propel a successful athlete arepresent and necessary in the making ofa good physician.

A commitment to “teamwork andcommunication skills” are among thequalities an athlete brings to theprofession of medicine, says MichaelGreenwood, first-year medical student

and president of the MD Class of 2011. Over the years, he’s played sports

“with a couple hundred people,” hesays, noting that athletic competitiondraws “a broad range of people whocome together for a specific goal.”

“Leadership skills, both on and offthe field,” are critical to achievingsuccess, he notes. “You have topersevere through the bad times, takecontrol and get things going in thedirection you want them to go.”

Recently named the North CentralConference (NCC) Male Student Athleteof the Year, Greenwood hasdistinguished himself as an exceptionalleader and outstanding athlete, whoplayed UND varsity football in thedefensive role of free safety. His teamwon three conference championshipsand his class of teammates won moregames than any other in UND’s history.

Greenwood, son of John (B.S. ’71,J.D. ’75) and Susan Greenwood (B.S.’74) of Jamestown, ND, also has beenselected to receive a 2007 NationalCollegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)Postgraduate Scholarship. He was oneof only 29 male students, in fall sports,to receive the scholarship which isawarded to outstanding student-athleteswho excel academically andathletically.

“I’ve known Mike for many years,and this scholarship award is well-deserved,” said Roger Thomas, NCCcommissioner and former UND footballcoach, Grand Forks. “Mike has proventhat he is among the top scholar-athletes in the country and in the NCC.I know this award will be put to gooduse, as he pursues his education tobecome a physician.”

Greenwood played varsity footballfor the UND Fighting Sioux, underCoach Dale Lennon.

Michael Greenwood played forthe UND football team that wonthree North Central Conferencechampionships and placed secondin the nation in 2003.

Outstanding athletes bring qualities of leadership, self-disciplineand time management to the study and practice of medicine


Competitive sports “changed mycharacter in ways that make me a goodmedical student and, I hope, will makeme a good physician,” says Jane Ostlie,fourth-year medical student fromNorthwood, ND, who played for theconference-winning basketball team atWheaton (IL) College.

She credits sports with instilling adrive for excellence and discipline sheuses daily to meet the rigorousdemands of medical school.

“It sounds like a cliché, but to dowell, you need to expect to do well.We learned that in sports, that commitment to excellence (and) tosuccess.”

Ostlie, who plans a career infamily medicine, sees exercise as anessential component of preventativehealth care. Her stance as “a bigproponent of exercise, I exercise everyday” makes her more credible topatients, she asserts. “It’s hard torecommend to patients that they needto exercise if you’re not exercising.”

Ostlie is the daughter of Laurie(B.S.P.T. ‘78) and Jonathan Berg, M.D.,clinical assistant professor of familiyand community medicine, Northwood. Dawn Mattern, M.D. ’97, Minot, ND,one of only two sports medicinefellowship-trained physicians in NorthDakota, sees patients with sports-relatedinjuries and non-operative conditions inher practice at Trinity Health.

She played on a North DakotaState University women’s basketballteam that won two nationalchampionships in Division II.

“I can relate to my patients who

are athletes a litte more,” she says.“I’ve been through just about anythingyou can think of... and I believe it’simportant to focus on what we can doto prevent injury.”

The six-foot-tall, gifted athlete whogrew up in Mohall and Minot says time management is essential to her ability“to stay on top of things,” she says.Her busy lifestyle is packed with “a fullday of clinic followed by games” in theevening.

“If I don’t get my stuff done,I’m in trouble.”

- Pamela D. Knudson

”“To do well, you need to

expect to do well.

We learned that in sports.

Jane Ostlie, fourth-year medicalstudent, is “a big proponent ofexercise” who encourages patientsto adopt a physically activelifestyle. As an undergraduatestudent, she played with aconference-winning basketballteam at Wheaton (IL) College.


Timing is Everything

TI MING, AS THEY SAY, IS EVERYTHING.When the Indians Into Medicine(INMED) program at the UND Schoolof Medicine and Health Scienceslearned in the summer of 2006 thatCongress would cut its budget bynearly half, program director GeneDeLorme, J.D. ‘89 (B.S. ‘86), had noidea that the bad news would open thedoor to a new and mutually beneficialpartnership.

A few months after the cuts wereannounced, the National Institutes ofHealth (NIH) made a change thatenabled the North Dakota IDeANetwork of Biomedical ResearchExcellence (INBRE) to lend directfinancial assistance to INMED. It notonly helped save one of INMED’s mostimportant programs, but it also createdan opportunity for American Indianstudents in the biomedical researchfield.

“It was fortuitous timing, to say theleast,” DeLorme said. “The decision tostop funding Title VII programs createda void in funding for our programs. Theconnection with INBRE doesn’t addressall of that by any means, but yet it is avaluable part of what we are doing.”

Although INMED and INBRE areboth programs within UND’s medicalschool, until the NIH National Centerfor Research Resources (NCRR) – whichadministers INBRE – amended one ofits objectives, the two had little incommon. INMED helped AmericanIndian students develop careers in thehealth care field and INBRE assisted indeveloping biomedical researchersthrough undergraduate institutions andtribal colleges.

In October 2006, that changedwhen the NCRR issued an amendmentallowing INBRE programs to re-budgetfunds to engage in outreach activities atthe kindergarten through senior highlevels (K-12).

“Over the years, we had requestsfrom INBRE directors who wanted touse their resources to reach studentsearlier than the community college orundergraduate levels,” said Fred Taylor,director of the NCRR’s InstitutionalDevelopment Awards (IdeA) program.“We wanted to provide opportunities tomake young people aware of careeropportunities in biomedical research.”

The change allowed INBRE to helpfund INMED’s annual Summer Institute,

INMED SummerInstitute students fromthe Lower Brule SiouxTribe

Out of

Adversity,

Opportunity

Arises for

INMED & INBRE


a six-week academic enrichmentsession held at UND for 90 AmericanIndian students from seventh to twelfthgrade. Students are recruited from 100middle and high schools on 24reservations in five states.

“When we find the students thatare really working hard on theireducational pursuits, we encouragethose kids to apply to this program,”DeLorme said.

For 25 years, the Summer Institutehas provided students with anopportunity to develop successfulcareers in health care through dailyclasses. They also experience life on acollege campus, listen to successfulAmerican Indian health professionals,learn more about health careers,participate in educational field trips,attend a powwow and meet otherAmerican Indian students from acrossthe United States.

“This program is probably one ofthe most challenging and yet rewardingcomponents of INMED,” DeLorme said.“It takes a lot of staffing and peoplehours to go into the tribal communities,describe the program, encouragestudents and get them involved.Recruiting is a very time- and effort-intensive activity”

Funding assistance from INBRE,combined with INMED’S support fromthe Indian Health Service enabledINMED to maintain the SummerInstitute Program at historical participantlevels. Financial contributions from theUND president’s office and medicalschool’s dean’s office enabled INMEDto continue other college-level summerprograms this year.

Since 1973, INMED has helpedtrain and educate approximately a fifthof all American Indian physicians in thecountry who are enrolled members ofU.S. federally recognized tribes. Theprogram also assists tribal communitiesby developing health care professionals

in other fields, such as nursing, alliedhealth and administration.

However, one component lackinghas bee n in recruiting, training anddeveloping American Indian studentsfor careers in biomedical research. Thecollaboration between INMED andINBRE will help meet that need.

“The Indian Health Service hasalways had an interest in doing healthresearch and looking at the cause ofdisease, but it’s not had the resources,”DeLorme said. “The tie-in with theINBRE program is not to change thefocus, but to expand it.

“We want individuals who will gointo basic science research to assist inthe provision of health care,” he said.“We’re looking at it from the perspectiveof studying disease, studying remediesand developing methodologies.”

Don Sens, Ph.D., professor ofsurgery and North Dakota INBREdirector, envisions a navigator programemerging from the INMED-INBREpartnership.

“We’ll teach high school studentsthe value of science using NativeAmericans as mentors,” he explained.“When they come out of tribal collegesand go into the undergraduateinstitutions, there will be a NativeAmerican mentor they already know.We’ll navigate the person through thesystem.”

Negative developments seldomhave positive outcomes, but in thiscase, the dark cloud had a silver lining.

“The success potential for INBRE isenhanced by tying in with INMEDbecause of its reputation and thesupport from the tribal communities forits mission,” DeLorme said.

“We’ve explained the emphasis ofthe INBRE program to theserepresentatives and they’re supportive.I think it’s a win-win for both.”

- Patrick C. Miller

”

“The Indian Health Servicehas always had an interest

in doing health research andlooking at the

cause of disease, but it’s not had the

resources.

Gene DeLorme, director, Indians intoMedicine (INMED) Program


UND RESEARCHERS ARE EXAMININGa way to help college students lowerblood pressure, the elderly remainindependent longer, and possibly helpprevent workplace accidents. What isthis miracle? The Chinese martial art oftai chi.

The ancient practice is designed toexercise mind, body and spirit. Withslow, circular, fluid movements, tai chilooks almost like a dance. But asparticipants move through the variousstances, they gently work muscles andbuild concentration. According toChinese philosophy, participants improvetheir flow of chi, the vital life energythat maintains health and calms themind. While that may sound very other-worldly, UND researchers are findingresults that back up these claims.

Beverly Johnson, D.S.C. (M.S. ‘90,B.S.P.T. ‘76), director of clinicaleducation in the physical therapydepartment, became interested in taichi about 10 years ago. One of herstudents said she felt practicing tai chigave her a competitive edge as atriathlete. Johnson was intrigued andtook part in a class led by the student.

“Walking out of that class that day, Ireally felt energized,” Johnson said.

Since then, Johnson and otherUND researchers have conducted taichi studies. One looked at older folkswhile a second focused on college-agestudents. In both studies, significantresults were found.

The first study, conducted in 2000,involved 15 community-dwelling eldersages 62 to 91. “They loved it,” Johnson

Lloyd Blackwell III (center) and hiswife, Patricia, have conducted tai chiclasses on campus for years. Medicalresearchers are looking at how thisancient practice can yield healthbenefits ranging from lower bloodpressure to improved balance andfocus.

An Ancient Path toBetter Living


Tai chi can improvebalance and posture,meaning fewer falls.

By reducing injuriesfrom falls, seniors may

be able to remainindependent longer.

said. “Compliance was excellent.”At first, some of the participants

needed to use chairs to maintain theirbalance during classes.

“By the end, none of them wereusing any support,” Johnson said.

Tai chi is found to improve balanceand posture, which means fewer falls.By cutting down on falls and resulting

injuries, seniors may beable to remain independentlonger.

In addition to betterbalance, researchers alsodiscovered improvementsin breathing and flexibilityand a significant decreasein blood pressure amongparticipants. With theseimprovements, somepeople may be able to putoff the need for medicationfor these issues, Johnsonsaid.

Similar results werefound in the study ofstudents. “This can be foranyone of any age,”Johnson said.

Those taking tai chiclasses in the 2000 studywere compared with acontrol group that justcontinued with theirnormal activities. After the

study was done, members of thecontrol group were offered theopportunity to take tai chi classes, too.Not only did they want to give theexercises a try, some of the researchersjoined in as well.

More and more such studies arebeing conducted around the country. A growing body of evidence supportswhat has been found by researchers atUND: Tai chi is beneficial to cardio-respiratory function, flexibility andbalance control, and aids the immunesystem. It also helps alleviate pain,such as that caused by arthritis.

Some studies have gone further,looking at the benefits to people withheart disease. Those recovering fromheart attacks or other cardiac issuesusually are prescribed some sort of

aerobic fitness training as part of theirnew ongoing routine. Tai chi fits thebill. Although considered just amoderate-intensity exercise, it givesparticipants a workout.

“It does become physically taxing,”Johnson said.

Johnson is so impressed with theresults of studies detailing the benefitsof tai chi — and with her own initialexperience — that she continues to usethe movements herself. With her hectictravel schedule, Johnson uses tai chi torelieve stress, reduce blood pressureand alleviate back pain.

Tai chi classes are more readilyfound on the West Coast, and it is notunusual for classes to be offered therein long-term care facilities. Locally,classes are held from time to time atAltru, on the UND campus or throughcommunity education. Instructionalvideos are available, but nothing beatsworking with a real expert who canmake sure beginners, in particular, aredoing the movements correctly. Peoplemust be meticulous about themovements in order to achieve fullbenefits, Johnson said.

Insurers also are interested. About30 percent of people ages 65 and olderliving in the community fall each year.In institutions such as nursing homes,the percentage is even higher. Thoughless than 10 percent of these falls resultin a fracture, 20 percent of falls requiremedical attention. A study examiningthe economic impact of offering tai chiclasses in nursing homes found suchinstitutions save more than $1,200 perparticipant per year by preventing fallsand related injuries.

Falls, slips and trips also are majorsources of injuries in the workplace,Johnson said. UND plans to beginworking on a prevention partnershipwith Blue Cross/Blue Shield in early2007. Among the issues they will studyare the benefits of offering tai chi in theworkplace and improving balance inpeople before they turn 40.

- Brenda HaugenOffice of University Relations

University of North Dakota

The Mandarin term TaiChi Chuan literally

translates as ‘supremeultimate boxing,’ or

‘boundless fist’.

Phot

o by

Chu

ck K

imm

erle


A Community in

WHERE IN ASHLEY, ND, CAN YOUFIND seniors in high school hangingout with senior citizens? Thecommunity fitness center, that’s where.Thanks to the hard work of UNDphysical therapy graduate Jeremy St.Aubin (’98, ’99), the people of Ashleyare enjoying a more active, healthierlife.

St. Aubin left his hometown ofTowner, ND, to attend the mortuaryscience program at Minot StateUniversity, but transferred to UND aftertwo years to study physical therapy,earning both a bachelor’s and master’sdegree with the program.

After graduation, he worked inDevils Lake and Grand Forks beforemoving with his wife, Lisa (Hauschulz)

(B.S.N. ‘00), to Ashley in 2000 andstarting work at Ashley Medical Center.

Two years ago, the superintendentof Ashley schools approached St. Aubinabout a summer program for kids toprepare them for upcoming sportsseasons. The problem was that theworkout facilities consisted of a fewweight benches in a six-foot by 10-footfurnace room at the school.

“Our goal was to be able to openup the school,” said Les Dale, Ashley’ssuperintendent. “We wanted to make itmore of a community place. Someplace all community members can use,not just students.”

With the help of the school, AshleyMedical Center applied for andreceived a Blue Cross Blue Shield of

Jeremy St. Aubin (in red) works withathletes to improve their fitness.

ALUMNI PROFILE


MotionNorth Dakota Rural Health Grant,administered by the UND medicalschool’s Center for Rural Health, toupgrade the facilities. In addition,community members donatedequipment and communityorganizations and businesses pitched infunds.

Ashley community members cannow utilize two, 20-foot by 30-footworkout facilities that includecardiovascular and weight-trainingequipment suitable for a wide range ofabilities.

“We went from 1956 to 2006 in ayear,” St. Aubin said to explain thetransformation.

“Jeremy is so helpful and veryambitious,” said Dale. “He really gotthe whole program running, purchasedthe equipment and was instrumental ingetting programs started.”

Open from 6 a.m to 10 p.m. thefacility hosts about 100 people everyday including business people early inthe morning, six ladies over the age of65 who are regulars at about 9 a.m.,school kids during physical educationclasses and physical therapy patientsduring the day, and high school athletesin the afternoon.

There is no fee to use the fitnesscenter. It is maintained throughdonations, grant funds, memorialsdesignated to the fitness center andother private funding.

“There are now community peoplehere at the school every day rather thanjust for the occasional basketballgame,” said Dale.

The fitness center serves as asource on inspiration. The brightlypainted walls display motivationalsayings and the school’s trophies andcollege and university pennants,reminding kids of what they haveaccomplished and what they canaccomplish.

“There is virtually no vandalism,”

said St. Aubin. “The kids have reallybought into it.”

More than FitnessThe popularity of the fitness center hasextended beyond its walls. With thehelp of federal Medicare Rural HospitalFlexibility grants distributed by theCenter for Rural Health, the healthmessage has spread throughout thecommunity. The community hasestablished a basketball league inwhich anyone can play, referee orparticipate in other ways. There is acommunity tennis league and softballopen and, on July 4 each year,community members participate in askills challenge.

“There are now more things for thecommunity to do,” said St. Aubin. “Thewhole town is in support of theseefforts.”

Over the summer, St. Aubin holdsa sports acceleration program for theathletes at the fitness center. Manyattribute that program and the newfitness center with the recent success ofthe school’s teams in sports.

But, St. Aubin isn’t resting on hislaurels. He continues to search outfunding for his new ideas.

“Next, I’d like to set up a walkingand exercise path with benches alongthe way,” St. Aubin explains. “On eachbench would be described twoexercises: one easy, one more difficult,that people can stop and do duringtheir walk. The path would also havevarying lengths so you could walk foras little or much as you want to.”

“It’s everybody’s responsibility totry to make their community better,”said St. Aubin. “You’re living in it.Just like you need to maintain yourhouse, you need to maintain yourcommunity.”

-Amanda Scurry

It’s everybody’s responsibilityto try to make theircommunity better... Just like you need tomaintain your house, you need to maintainyour community.


Jenny Marsden, MPT ‘00, fits herstudies around her family andprofessional responsibilities. Shownhere with her three-year-old son,Owen, she’s working toward a Masterof Physician Assistant Studies degree.

TECHNOLOGY, CONSUMER DEMANDand faculty flexibility are comingtogether to provide people everywheregreater educational opportunities toprepare for professional advancementor an occupational shift.

Gone are the days when, to earn acollege degree, students had littlechoice but to leave home, come tocampus and attend classes for severalyears. Today, that classroom isanywhere a computer can operate andthe class meeting time is anytime astudent is online — for many, who areemployed and have families, that oftenmeans nights and weekends.

Distance learning brings theuniversity to students, who can access

and complete courses of study (that fitinto their busy lifestyles) without eversetting foot on campus.

Distance: Not new to North Dakota With its vast open spaces, NorthDakota has a history of grappling withand overcoming distance as a barrier toeducation. For the past 30 years, forexample, through the LaboratoryEducation for North Dakota (LEND)program, the UND medical school hasprovided continuing education andtraining for laboratory personnelworking in health care facilitiesthroughout the state and region.

“We make education available to fittheir lives,” says Ruth Paur, Ph.D. ’07

School without WallsTaking the university to the student through new distance technology

Phot

o by

Chu

ck K

imm

erle


(Education), MSMT ‘93, director of theclinical laboratory science program,Grand Forks.

“Part of our mission is to facilitateeducation in rural areas,” she says.“Our goal is to bring the sameeducational opportunities to currentand potential laboratory healthprofessionals isolated by geography ortime-commitment constraints.”

The shortage of clinical laboratoryscience professionals, estimated at 17 to22 percent, is “listed at the crisis levelnationally,” she notes, and stimulatesthe growth of distance education.

“Six years ago when wetransitioned our master’s degree online,we had 12 students; now we have 70,”says Janna Schill, MSCLS ’04, BSCLS’01, instructor in pathology, GrandForks. “Our undergraduate programenrolls 150 students who are alsoemployees at Mayo Clinic in Rochester,MN.”

Distance education is very cost-effective in the training of “obviouslytalented people” in the health carefield, Paur says. “We can repackage thecurriculum and structure it differently tocustomize it” according to individualneeds.

Internet delivers“The way we deliver our curriculum isin an asynchronous online format.Each student can access the lectures,discussion boards and assignments ontheir own schedule 24 hours a day,seven days a week.”

Often students study in bursts,“jackrabbit learning,” covering a lot ofmaterial and listening to teachers’lectures during late-night and weekendhours.

Students make a significant timecommitment to pursue an education viadistance learning, Schill maintains.And “they need to have intrinsicmotivation to be successful but, formany, this is their only opportunity tocontinue their education.”

Seeking more patient contactThe motivation for Jenny Marsden,MPT ’00, a student in the Physician

Assistant (PA) program who is workingwith preceptor Wesley Borowski, M.D.‘91, Fergus Falls, MN, was that she“wanted to do more.”

“I loved being a physical therapistand an advocate for patients,” she says,but “I wanted to get in on surgery, to bemore hands-on and more involved inpre- and post-operative care – thatreally interested me.”

“I like the idea of having an effecton (patients’) overall treatment.”

Since she didn’t consider herselfvery computer-savvy, Marsden admitsto feeling a bit of trepidation aboutenrolling in a distance educationprogram. But now “it’s almost better”than being in a classroom, she says,“because you can replay (parts of alecture) if you miss something.”

The PA program is “very good, veryintense,” she says. “There’s a lot ofmaterial, and it’s a very fast-paced,demanding program” which requiresself-discipline and excellent timemanagement.

Distance learning “is challengingbut if you can work through your ownmethods, it’ll get done. You have to bemore disciplined; you have a lot moreto balance.”

Even though she’s not in aclassroom regularly with other students,she says “the advantage of being able tostay where you are (living) outweighsthe disadvantage of not seeing peopleface-to-face.”

Marsden may not have been able topursue her dream of becoming aphysician assistant, if UND didn’t offerthis type of program, she speculates. “Iwouldn’t have picked up and movedmy family. I don’t think I could havepursued it.”

Earning the DPT from a distance The goal of the Department of PhysicalTherapy was “to help UND bachelor’sand master’s degree-holders to reachthe Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)level,” says David Relling, Ph.D. ’03(Pharmacology, Physiology andTherapeutics), BSPT ’91, associateprofessor of physical therapy, GrandForks. This conforms with the Vision

”

The advantage of being ableto stay where you are

outweighs thedisadvantage of seeing

people face-to-face.

“


2020 Statement, adopted by theAmerican Physical Therapy Association,advocating the DPT for entry into theprofession.

The 35 students pursuing the DPTon-line comprise the second, and final,group scheduled to complete the

program since it was initiatedin 2004, he says. ByDecember, a total of 85students from throughout theUnited States will havecompleted the onlineprogram.

Distance learning “helpsstudents acquire newknowledge and skills in thepractice of physical therapy,”Relling says, and “makesthem aware of the resourcesthat are available in the PTdepartment, the HEF libraryand from their peers acrossthe country.”

The PT faculty promotesevidence-based learning, byencouraging students “toincorporate the use ofscientific literature, clinicalexpertise and patient values

to optimally evaluate and treat”patients’ conditions, he says.

“You kind of fall into a routine…(and) tend to do what is the mostefficient,” says John Andrew, MPT ’98,McMinnville, OR. “I have reliedheavily on books for information andgotten out of the habit of using medicalsearch engines to find the most recentinformation in my field.

“The DPT program has gotten meback in the habit of checking thecurrent research instead of always justperforming the same protocol that hasworked for years.”

Although initially “skeptical” aboutdistance learning, Andrew is “extremelyimpressed with the quality andorganization of the online courses,” he

says. The faculty is “amazing as theyrespond to all my inquiries quickly –usually within the same day or 24hours. It’s like having the physicaltherapy department in my living roomeven though I live in Oregon!”

Like many others, Andrew says “Idon’t think I could have completed thisdegree any other way… The programdoes take discipline and a timecommitment, but anything worthhaving does.”

Occupational Therapy The master’s degree, now required forentry into the occupational therapyfield, may be earned completely onlineby students who hold a bachelor’sdegree in occupational therapy,according to Jan Stube, Ph.D. ‘00,associate professor of occupationaltherapy, Grand Forks. The t-MOT(Transitional Master of OccupationalTherapy) degree, launched in 2004,enrolls about 20 students who residethroughout the country.

Learning in the “virtual realm takessome adjustment,” she says, but oncestudents do, they say it’s “equallyrewarding” as traditional methods.

“Most say that one of the best partsis discussion with classmates (ondiscussion boards) and the attention,one-on-one, they receive from advisorsand faculty members.”

“The faculty and staff of theoccupational therapy department madethe transition back to student veryeasy,” says Beryl Olson, MOT ‘06,BSOT ‘96, supervisor of physicalmedicine at Avera Sacred HeartHospital in Yankton, SD. “I wasimpressed at how timely all theinformation was. I was able to takewhat I was learning in every class andimmediately apply it to my currentjob duties.”

- Pamela D. Knudson

For more information on distance learningprograms, contact:Clinical laboratory sciencehttp://pathology.med.und.nodak.edu/cls/ 701-777-2634

Occupational therapyhttp://www.med.und.nodak.edu/depts/ot/ 701-777-2209

Physician assistant studieshttp://www.med.und.nodak.edu/physicianassistant/701-777-2344


AS THE TEMPERATURES ACROSSNorth Dakota cool down, across thenation, concerns about health care areheating up. While solutions tochallenges facing health care depend onone’s vantage point, consumers, payers,providers and policymakers tend toshare the same set of concerns;variability in care quality, challenges inholding down health care costs, andmaintaining affordable access to healthinsurance. Rather than pursuingsolutions to these thorny problems fromthe perspective of just one stakeholdergroup, the Commonwealth Fund hasconvened 18 individuals representing allof the sectors, to propose strategies thatcould produce a high performancehealth system. These strategies aredesigned to influence activity at thebedside, in the board room, and in thenation’s capitol.

The focus of our dialogue pivots offof four goals: achieve high quality safecare, access to care, efficient and highvalue care, and build in capacity forsystems to improve. The latter involvesboth organizational and workforcecapacity for innovation. As part of thiseffort, information has been compiledon what is done well in and across thenation and where and whatimprovements need to occur. Whatbecomes readily apparent is that someplaces are doing very well on measuresof these four goals while others are not.

While there is ample opportunity forus to learn from other states, we can alsotake some pride in the fact that on manymeasures, North Dakota does quite well.In fact, our state is in the top quartile onthe Commonwealth Fund’s StatePerformance Scorecard.

Recognizing that there is much to belearned from rural America that can helpto reframe health care, I invited theCommonwealth Fund representatives toNorth Dakota earlier this year. Theyheard firsthand from some of our payersand providers about how we achievehigh marks on a number of importantmeasures. For example, North Dakotahas a higher than average proportion ofprimary care providers. Research isclear that states and nations with moreprimary care tend to do better managingchronic illness, holding down spendingand using fewer hospital beds.

We also see homegrown virtualnetworks built across health care sectors,clinicians and communities. Suchnetworks harness efficiencies andcooperation that can support quality,access, efficiency and certainlyinnovation.

Through the scorecard we can alsosee the gaps that need to be bridged inNorth Dakota. To do so, we can look toand learn from the states and othercountries that do better than we do onsome measures.

In the meantime, the important workof the Commonwealth Fund is finding itsway into briefings on Capitol Hill,articles in the health trade press,speeches at national meetings, andinforming health proposals ofpresidential candidates. The Fund’swork will continue to be informed bywhat was learned not only in places likeDenver and Los Angeles, but also bywhat was learned in North Dakota.Efforts will continue around the complexbut essential business of improvinghealth and health care, because whetherit’s North Dakota, or across the nation,doing less than the best isn’t quite goodenough.

GUEST AUTHOR

Commonwealth Foundation

State Scorecard

Mary Wakefield, Ph.D., R.N.,director, Center for Rural Health, is amember of the Commission onCreating a High Performing HealthSystem.

by Mary Wakefield Ph.D., R.N.

WEB EXCLUSIVE:For more information on theCommonwealth’s site visit toNorth Dakota visitwww.ndmedicine.org


Graduate student Chris Jurgensapplies his lifelong interest inresearch to finding bettertreatments for epilepsy.

STUDENT PROFILE

Understanding Epilepsy

CHRIS JURGENS HAS ALWAYS BEENinterested in how things work. As aboy, he asked his parents, “’Why do wehave wind?’

“And I made them answer it,” hesays.

The graduate student, earning hisPh.D. degree in pharmacology,physiology and therapeutics, credits hisparents, Richard Jurgens, chief operatorat Grand Forks’ water treatment plant,and Sharon Jurgens, a teacher, with


fostering that sense of inquiry. Born and raised in Grand Forks,

Jurgens’ wide-ranging interests propelledhim to take classes at UND while still ahigh school student. By the time hegraduated from Red River High Schoolin 2001, he’d earned enough credits toenroll as a sophomore at UND where hemajored in communication and musicwith a minor in math.

For a time he considered medicalschool but, after a brief stint volunteeringat a local clinic, he decided he “wasn’tcut out for patient contact.” Heanswered an ad for lab assistants, postedby Van Doze, Ph.D., associate professorof pharmacology, physiology andtherapeutics.

“I thought I’d be washing dishes,”he recalls, but found in Doze a giftedmentor who would guide him into therealm of serious scientific investigation.

“I was able to do experiments,” hesays, “ and was drawn to the assortmentof “toys,” high-tech equipment that fillsDoze’s “very hands-on lab.” Science“came alive” for him in that lab.

“I’m a ‘big-picture’ person,” Jurgenssays. “I like to figure out mechanismsand how we can use (this knowledge) tohelp people. I’m interested in how wecan use the small things I’m able tostudy to improve patient care at-large.”

Searching for more effective drugtreatmentsHis research is focused on epilepsy andthe role of norepinephrine in controllingseizure activity. A naturally occurringantiepileptic compound in the brain,norepinephrine doesn’t interfere, andactually enhances, learning andmemory.

“If we could find out how it works– the mechanisms underlying itsantiepileptic properties – then we maybe able to develop new drugs that aremore effective and cause fewer or noadverse side effects,” Doze says.

Jurgens, who’s received numerousawards and recognition at UND, mostrecently has been selected to attend theNational Graduate Student ResearchFestival, an annual two-day event at theNational Institutes of Health (NIH) in

Bethesda, MD. The event introduces250 advanced graduate students in thesciences to the NIH Intramural ResearchProgram with the aim of recruiting themto do postdoctoral training at NIH.

“Competition to participate isintense,” Doze says. “In 2006, 964applications were received” for theFestival during which students presentposters, attend plenary sessions, tour theNIH and interview with investigatorsinterested in hiring postdoctoral fellows.

Jurgens is “one of our topstudents,” Doze says. “He’s conductingresearch of significant impact;(foundations) wouldn’t fundthese research projects ifthey didn’t show potential.”

For his part, Jurgenssays working with Doze hasbeen “a very positiveexperience.

“He’s shown me a lotof things, and also how towork on my own —working with the equipmentand figuring it out — andhow to set up experiments.It makes me a very versatileperson.

“He’s fostered learningin many different ways(including) encouraging meto write grants… He’s veryenthusiastic about researchand very enthusiastic aboutproviding researchopportunities for students.”

And “the departmenthas been supportive of me,”he adds, “not only inmoney but also motivation,being recognized for doingthings well.”

Whether he eventually moves onto the NIH or another academicinstitution after completing the Ph.D.degree next year, Jurgens sees himself“always having an epilepsy focus,” hesays. “It may not be all that I do, butit will be a part.”

- Pamela D. Knudson

I’m interested in how

we can use the small

things I’m able to

study to improve

patient care.

Some of the awards and honorsChris Jurgens has received:

- Epilepsy Foundation Pre-doctoral Training Fellowship, 2006

- Doctoral Dissertation Assistantship award (from North Dakota Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR)), 2006

- Outstanding Graduate Student Presentation award (from North Dakota Academy of Science), 2007

- Outstanding Graduate Student Poster award (UND medical school’s Frank Low Research Day), 2007

- National Institute of Health (NIH) National Graduate Student Research Festival (selected toattend annual event at NIH in Bethesda, MD), October 2007

- Scientific papers (first author) published in Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics and Molecular Pharmacology, flagship journals for the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics


NEWS BRIEFS

The Center for Rural Health has received a $1.6 millionfederal grant to help small, rural hospitals implementelectronic medical records systems.

The grant will be used to form a regional healthinformation technology (HIT) network. The Center for RuralHealth is partnering with the North Region Health Alliance,a 20-member health cooperative representing primarily ruralhospitals in eastern North Dakota and northwesternMinnesota to form the network.

The overall project goal is to implement electronicmedical records that are usable by all the participating

facilities. During the18-month project, thegroup will implementelectronic medicalrecords beginningwith one small, ruralhospital. Using what

is learned from that implementation electronic medicalrecords will be added to two more rural hospitals.

Electronic medical records are a digital form of medicalrecord and an efficient tool for transferring informationbetween health care providers, decreasing medical errorsand improving accuracy and security of medical records.

“We expect to see electronic medical records providingnew opportunities to improve patient care and clinical staffproductivity,” explained Marlene Miller, the project’s co-director at the Center for Rural Health,

A federally supported study of Critical Access Hospitals(CAHs) found that only 20 percent of CAHs nationally hadsome form of electronic medical records. In North Dakota,while 68 percent of CAHs budget for HIT, only 16 percenthave a formal HIT plan and only 11 percent used electronicmedical records.

“It is vital that we broaden the use of high-techinformation systems to improve the quality and efficiency ofhealth care,” said North Dakota Senator Kent Conrad. “AndNorth Dakota is leading the way with the development ofthe HIT network. This is an investment that will save bothmoney and lives.”

Mohr Appointed to CommissionThomas Mohr, Ph.D. ‘86, professorand chairman of the Department ofPhysical Therapy at the UND Schoolof Medicine and Health Sciences,has been appointed as acommissioner on the panel thataccredits physical therapy programsnationwide. Mohr will serve a four-year term on the Commission onAccreditation in Physical Therapy

Education (CAPTE) Central Panel. He was appointed to thesix-member group by the board of directors of the AmericanPhysical Therapy Association.

Mohr has taught physical therapy at UND since 1978and has served as department chair since1993.

Two Fargo physicians will assumethe duties of Bruce Pitts, M.D.,who has announced his resignationas associate dean and director ofgraduate medical education at theUND School of Medicine andHealth Sciences’ SoutheastCampus, based in Fargo. Pitts is leaving his part-timeposition with the school to take onthe full-time role of executive vicepresident for clinical services atMeritCare Health System, where hehas served as a senior executivesince 1997.

Julie Blehm, M.D. ‘81, aninternist and geriatrics specialist,has been appointed associate deanfor the Southeast Campus of theUND School of Medicine andHealth Sciences. She will continueher practice with MeritCare Health

System in Fargo. A 1981 graduate of the UND medicalschool, she is board-certified in internal medicine andgeriatrics. An associate professor of internal medicine, shedirects the school’s internal medicine residency outpatientclinic in Fargo.

David Theige, M.D. ‘85, a hospitalist with MeritCareMedical Group, will assume the role of assistant dean forgraduate medical education at the UND medical school,overseeing residency programs in family medicine, internalmedicine, psychiatry and general surgery and a one-yeartransitional program. He will continue to practice atMeritCare Health System in Fargo.

Center for Rural Health Receives $1.6Million for Health Information Technology

Blehm

Thiege

Fargo Physicians Accept New Roles onMedical School’s Southeast Campus


NEWS BRIEFS

Mary Amundson, M.A. ‘95, assistantprofessor at the Center for RuralHealth, has just completed servingan appointed four-year term on theNational Advisory Committee onInterdisciplinary, Community-BasedLinkages. This committee providesadvice and recommendations on abroad range of issues dealing withprograms and activities associated

with Title VII programs. Included in these Health ResourcesServices Administration programs are Area Health EducationCenters, Health Education Training Centers, GeriatricEducation Centers, Geriatric Academic Career Awards,Quentin N. Burdick Program, Chiropractic DemonstrationProjects, and Podiatric Residency Training in Primary CareProgram.

Elizabeth Burns, M.D., M.A.,professor of family and communitymedicine at the School of Medicineand Health Sciences, has beenappointed to a second term on thenational commission which accreditsphysician assistant programsthroughout the United States.

In January, she begins a three-yearterm on the Accreditation Review

Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc.(ARC-PA), and has been elected secretary for the ARC-PA, aposition on the executive committee. She was nominatedby the American Medical Association to serve on the ARC-PA.

Burns also recently received the Distinguished AlumniAward from Marygrove College in Detroit, MI. The awardrecognizes graduates’ outstanding contributions inprofessional, educational or artistic endeavors; communityservice; political action, social justice or volunteer activities,or to Marygrove College. Burns graduated magna cumlaude with a Bachelor of Science degree from Marygrove in1972.

Burns, who joined the UND medical school in 2002, isdirector of the National Center of Excellence in Women’sHealth Region VIII Demonstration Project. She is also themedical director of UND’s physician assistant programthrough which students earn the Master of PhysicianAssistant Studies degree.

Richard Vari, Ph.D., has beennamed interim director of the Officeof Continuing Medical Education andOutreach at the University of NorthDakota (UND) School of Medicineand Health Sciences, effective Oct. 1.He continues in his current position,associate dean for medical educationat the school.

Vari replaces Wayne Bruce,Ph.D., who recently resigned. Bruce served the UNDmedical school since 1975 when he was appointed directorof the clinical laboratory science program.

Vari joined the UND medical school in 1993 as amember of the physiology faculty. He has beeninstrumental in designing and implementing the patient-centered learning curriculum at the school.

The value of the patient-centered learning (PCL)approach used at theSchool of Medicine andHealth Sciences inpromoting humanism andprofessionalism hasreceived recognition at anational level recently.Rosanne McBride, Ph.D.,and Charles Christianson,M.D., Sc.M., of theDepartment of Family and

Community Medicine presented a poster entitled, “A case-focused patient centered curriculum: generating criticalsubstrates for learning humanistic values at student, facultyand institutional levels,” at the Arnold Gold Foundationsymposium “How are we teaching humanism in medicineand what is working?” in Chicago in September 2007. The Arnold Gold Foundation is a leading force supportinghumanism in medical education.

McBride and Christianson, along with Richard Vari,Ph.D., Linda Olson, Ed.D., and H. David Wilson, M.D.,also published a paper in the November issue of AcademicMedicine exploring the role of the PCL process inpromoting institutional change to support the values ofprofessionalism.

Amundson Completes National CommitteeWork

Burns to Serve on National PA AccreditationCommission

Vari Named Interim Director of ContinuingMedical Education and Outreach

Doctors Make Patient-centered LearningFocus of Presentation and Article

McBride (right) with medicalstudent Michael Greenwood in aPCL classroom

WEB EXCLUSIVE:To read their paper, visit www.ndmedicine.org


A UND neuroscientist has received agrant totaling nearly $700,000 fromthe National Institutes of Health(NIH) to study Alzheimer’s disease.

Colin Combs, Ph.D., associateprofessor of pharmacology,physiology and therapeutics,received an RO1 award from theNational Institute on Aging, adivision of NIH, to study a particular

mechanism in the brain which could play a role in theprogression of Alzheimer’s disease.

The four-year grant allows Combs to continue research,using mice, aimed at identifying a target for a specificmechanism he’s developed that shows potential to stop orslow the inflammatory changes in the brain which arebelieved to be involved in Alzheimer’s disease.

Combs, who joined the UND medical school in 2000,has been studying the underlying causes of Alzheimer’s andother neurodegenerative diseases for about 18 years. He is amember of an initial group of researchers in the Center ofBiomedical Research Excellence (COBRE), funded through afive-year, $10.3 million grant from the NIH beginning in2002. The five-year renewal of the COBRE grant, fundedwith $10.1 million from NIH, was announced by the UNDmedical school last month.

Jonathan Geiger,Ph.D., professorand chair of pharmacology,physiology and therapeutics at theUND of Medicine and HealthSciences, has received funding fromJohns Hopkins University medicalschool and the National Institutes ofHealth (NIH) for studies related tothe dementia that afflicts patientsinfected with human

immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The studies, analyzing newmethods and mechanisms that may be targeted to help treatHIV-dementia, will be conducted in collaboration with Dr.Norman Haughey, principal investigator on the two grantsand assistant professor of neurology at Johns HopkinsUniversity School of Medicine in Baltimore, MD.

The five-year grants, totaling $2,325,000 from theNational Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and theNational Institute of Mental Health, will fund studies aimedat deepening scientists’ understanding of the mechanismswhich lead to dementia in HIV/AIDS patients. Designated asRO1 grants, they are among the most highly ranked grantsawarded by the NIH.

“Due to the increased effectiveness of treatments thathave been developed for HIV, patients with this disease areliving longer and the incidence of HIV-dementia has

decreased,” said Geiger, a co-investigator onthese grants.

“However, because people living withHIV/AIDS are living longer, and are exposedto a number of other disorders and theingestion of various drugs of abuse includingalcohol, the prevalence of HIV-dementia isincreasing,” he said. “This underscores theimportance of studying this form of dementiawhich is the most common form found inpersons under 40 years of age.” “It’simportant to identify new therapeuticinterventions designed to improve, or preventfurther decline in, brain function becausecurrent treatments have had limited success,”he added.

“Our goal is to investigate underlyingmechanisms in HIV-dementia and to identifyeffective interventions against theneurological complications experienced byHIV-infected individuals,” Geiger said.

The NIH grant projects are titled:“Dysfunctions of Sphingolipid and SterolMetabolism in HIV-Dementia” and“Interaction of Alcohol with HIV Proteins.”

Neuroscientist’s Research Nets $700,000 forStudy Related to Alzheimer’s Disease

UND Researchers to Study HIV-Dementia,in Collaboration with Johns HopkinsUniversity Medical School

(left to right) Dr. Frank Cerra, senior vice president, University of MinnesotaAcademic Health Center; Kristin Juliar, director, Montana Office of Rural Health;and Brad Gibbens, associate director, University of North Dakota Center for Rural Health, were keynote speakers at the first Upper Midwest Rural Health Policy Summit held in Crookston, MN, on August 17. The summit focused on the future of rural health care policy and drew more than 140 participants.

Rural Health Policy Summit


ALUMNI NOTES

Vijay Korimilli, M.D. ’07, hospitalist, joined MeritCareHospital in Fargo, ND. He earned a medical degree fromJSS Medical College, India, and a master’s degree from theUniversity of South Florida, Tampa. He completed hisresidency in internal medicine at the UND Fargo campus.

Lynelle Noisy Hawk, M.D. ’07, has established her medicalpractice at the Indian Health Service (IHS) Hospital in FortYates, ND. A member of Oglala/Hunkpapa Lakota Nation,she has a special interest in diabetes care and women’s andchildren’s health.

Originally from the Pine Ridge (SD) Indian Reservation,she completed her first two years of medical education atUND and went on to earn her medical degree from theUniversity of South Dakota School of Medicine. Shecompleted her residency in family medicine at the UNDBismarck campus. Throughout medical school, she wasenrolled in the Indians Into Medicine (INMED) Program.She is a member of the Association of American IndianPhysicians.

Eram Shahira, M.D. ’07, hospitalist, joined MeritCareHospital in Fargo, ND. She earned a medical degree fromOsmania Medical College, India. She completed herresidency in internal medicine at the UND Fargo campus.

David Kuylen, M.D. ‘04, emergency medicine, joined St.Joseph’s Hospital and Health Center in Dickinson, ND. Hecompleted his residency at Synergy Medical EducationAlliance in Saginaw, MI.

James Schmidt, M.D. ’04, joined Trinity Medical Group’shospitalist program in Minot, ND. He’s certified in cardiac,trauma, neonatal and pediatric life support. He earned hismedical degree from UND and completed his familymedicine residency at the UND Center for Family Medicinein Minot.

Elena Rodgers-Rieger, M.D. ’03, pathology, joinedMeritCare Broadway in Fargo, ND. She completed herresidency at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.

D.J. Hatlestad, M.D. ’02, emergency medicine, joinedMedcenter One in Bismarck. He completed his residencyat the University of Missouri, Kansas City.

’00s

Researchers in the Department ofClinical Neuroscience at the UNDSchool of Medicine and HealthSciences and the NeuropsychiatricResearch Institute (NRI) in Fargohave received a grant from theNational Institutes of Health (NIH) toadvance the understanding of eatingdisorders among healthprofessionals.

Drs. Stephen Wonderlich andJames Mitchell, who each hold the title of Chester FritzDistinguished Professor of Clinical Neuroscience at UND,have received $110,000 from the National Institute ofMental Health for a project aimed at furthering the scientific

understanding of eating disorderdiagnoses. Ross Crosby, Ph.D.,clinical professor of clinicalneuroscience at the UND medicalschool and director of biomedicalstatistics and methodology at NRI,will also serve as a consultingstatistician on the project.

With grant support, they plan toconvene a series of meetings of agroup of leading researchers in the

field to clarify "the next generation of eating disordersdiagnosis," Wonderlich said. The group will conductscientific studies to improve the classification of symptomsand characteristics of eating disorders by professionals whotreat these very serious mental health and medicaldisorders.

NIH Funds Project to Improve Diagnosis ofEating Disorders

Mitchell

Wonderlich


ALUMNI NOTES

Kenneth Watts, M.D. ‘02, has joined the medical staff at St.Mary’s Regional Medical Center in Enid, OK. He is alicensed general surgeon and has been a general surgeryresident at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston since2002. He received his bachelor’s degree in pharmacy fromSouthwestern Oklahoma State University.

From 1996 to 1998, Watts practiced medicine atUSPHS W.W. Hastings Indian Hospital in Tahlequah as aclinical pharmacist.

Monica Mayer, M.D. ‘95, New Town, ND, presented a talk,“Medical Aspects of Lewis and Clark,” about medicinal usesof plants and herbs, at a heart health workshop in Octoberat United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck.

“Women – The Heartbeat of Our Nations” was aimedat raising awareness about heart diseases and stroke. Theevent was sponsored by the American Heart Association,Dakota Medical Foundation and the college’s Land GrantExtension Program.

Mayer, a graduate of the UND family medicineprogram in Minot, practices family medicine at TrinityCommunity Clinic in New Town.

Byron Busch, M.D. ’88, internal medicine, joinedCentraCare Health Plaza in St. Cloud, MN. He receivedhis medical degree from the University of North DakotaSchool of Medicine and completed residency at MarshfieldClinic, Marshfield, WI. He was in private practice 16 yearsin Billings, MT.

Patty Fahy, M.D. ‘84, recently received national praise forher focus on improving physician careers, recruiting morewomen into the field and enhancing workplace satisfaction.She was featured in Business 2.0 Magazine and honored as“Health Care Manager of the Year” by The Denver BusinessJournal.

Fahy is the associate medical director of HR at KaiserPermanente Colorado and speaks nationally on the topic ofphysician leadership.

James Dehen, Jr., M.D. ’83, was inaugurated as president ofthe Minnesota Medical Association in September. TheMMA is a professional organization representing about10,000 physicians, fellows, residents and medical studentsin Minnesota. As president, he will serve as thespokesperson for the association and participate in settingpolicy.

Dehen is board certified in general surgery and hasbeen in private practice at Brainerd Medical Center sinceJuly 1988. At St. Joseph’s Medical Center he has served aschief of surgery, chief of staff and a member of the hospitalboard of directors.

Mark Odland, M.D. ‘78, was recently elected board chairfor the MMIC Group in Minneapolis, MN. He is assistantchief of surgery and interim chair of the department ofsurgery and director of transplant services at HennepinCounty Medical Center, and surgical director of renaltransplant services at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, both ofMinneapolis. Odland, who served as board vice chair for anumber of years, joined the board in 1996.

Janet Gilsdorf, M.D. (B.S. Med. ‘68) wrote a book abouther experience with breast cancer entitled Inside/Outside:A Physician’s Journey with Breast Cancer. This memoir of aphysician with cancer tells the unforgettable story of when adoctor becomes a patient.

Gilsdorf is professor of pediatrics and communicablediseases and professor of epidemiology at the University ofMichigan. She is also director of pediatric infectiousdiseases, Mott Children’s Hospital; director of the cell andmolecular biology in pediatrics training program; anddirector of the Haemophilus influenzae research laboratory.WEB EXCLUSIVE: To read an exerpt from Dr. Gilsdorf’s book or to order a copy, visit www.ndmedicine.org

Lucille Fostvedt, M.D. (B.S. Med. ’38), was presented withthe American Cancer Society’s highest honor, the St.George National Medal of Honor, in November. Theaward is given to volunteers who have made a significantcontribution to the society over an extended period of time.Fostvedt, the first female physician in Palm Springs, CA, rancancer support groups out of her home for 25 years.

’60s

’30s

’70s

’90s

’80s


IN MEMORIAM

Lionel DeMontigny, M.D. (B.S. Med. ’59), a retired USAssistant Surgeon General who spent 22 years servingNative Americans and Alaska Natives as a commissionedOfficer of the United States Public Health Service, died onSeptember 2, 2007 in Warfordsburg, PA. He was 72.

Dr. DeMontigny, who attained the rank of rear admiralin the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, was anAmerican Indian of the Chippewa-Cree tribe and one of thefirst American Indian physicians to serve in the IndianHealth Service as a commissioned officer.

He received many awards for his work in elevating thehealth status of the American Indian and Alaska Native butnone he treasured more than his 2006 recognition by UNDand the "Indians into Medicine Program" for his lifetime ofeffort to encourage American Indians to enter medicine andto serve in areas where they could bring "Healing to FellowFirst Americans."

He attended UND and the University of Wisconsin forhis pre-med and medical degrees. In 1962, he joined theCommissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service andsoon after completed a residency in preventive medicine atthe University of Oklahoma where he also earned theadditional degree, Master of Public Health.

His service took him to a variety of reservationsthroughout the West and subsequently to the headquartersof the Indian Health Service in Rockville, MD, where heserved in a variety of leadership posts.

After his retirement from the Corps in 1984, he servedas public health director of the Monongalia County inMorgantown, WV. He later settled on a farm in WestVirginia where, in addition to his continued work with theAssociation of American Indian Physicians and the "Indiansinto Medicine Program," he taught at the University of WestVirginia.

He is survived by his wife Shirley Favilla DeMontigny;a son, Alexander DeMontigny, NY; three daughters,Suzanne Tucker of Beltsville, MD, Cynthia Whitehorn ofTulsa, OK, and Cheri Orellana of Independence, WV; threebrothers, Armond DeMontigny of Helena, MT, CharlesDeMontigny of Kent, WA, and William DeMontigny ofBelcourt, ND; four stepchildren, Jacqueline McQuen ofWashington, DC, John Favilla of Canton, OH, DennisFavilla of Adamstown, MD, and Terry Favilla of Lititz, PA;as well as five grandchildren and eleven step-grandchildren.

Donations in his name may be made to:INMED --University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health SciencesRoom 2101501 North Columbus Rd Stop 9037Grand Forks, ND 58202-9037

John Kerr, M.D. (B.S. Med. ’46), a Mesa, AZ, pediatricianwho cared for thousands of youngsters, their children andgrandchildren, and helped create organizations that wouldnurture thousands more, died on May 20, 2007. He was84.

Dr. Kerr opened Mesa Pediatrics in 1954 and begantreating kids at Sunshine Acres Children’s Home when itopened the following year. For the next 50 years, he caredfor the Sunshine Acres kids free of charge, then took on thechildren at the East Valley Child Crisis Center when itopened in 1981.

Much of Dr. Kerr’s community service came alongsidehis wife of 59 years, Betty Kerr, who was the crisis center’sfounding board president. The Kerrs were named Mesa’sman and woman of the year in 1967, the only time acouple has been so honored.

During his years as one of the first pediatricians intown, Kerr saw the need for mental health treatment andalternative schools for troubled children.

He went on to help found the community’s primarysocial service agencies, including PREHAB, the MARCCenter and the East Valley Behavioral Health Association.He also served on the governing board of the Mesa UnifiedSchool District for a decade.

After retiring in 2003, Dr. Kerr continued to providefree medical care to the crisis center, Sunshine Acres, St.Vincent de Paul in Phoenix and a Mesa clinic.

Among his many awards and accolades, Dr. Kerr’sfamily said he was most proud of John K. Kerr ElementarySchool in Mesa. He visited the school regularly, attendingband performances, field days and other special events. Heasked that the school band play at his funeral.

In addition to his wife, Dr. Kerr is survived by fourchildren, six grandchildren and two greatgrandsons.

Leslie Lundsten, M.D. (B.S. Med. ’43), Bemidji, MN, diedAug. 21, 2007.

He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at UND in 1942.After completing two years of medical education at UND,he went on to earn the Doctor of Medicine degree from theUniversity of Chicago Health Science Center. He practicedinternal medicine.

“ ”


PLANNING AHEAD

Dr. Eva Gilbertson and Blanche in Seattle, 2006.

Visit us online at www.med.und.edu/alumni today to see how YOU can help!

For more information, contact:Blanche E. AbdallahDirector of Advancement & Alumni Relations

School of Medicine & Health Sciences501 North Columbia Road Stop 9037Grand Forks, ND [email protected]

EVA GILBERTSON, M.D. (BS MED ‘39) IS USED TO GOING FIRST.Raised on a farm near Maddock, ND, she was the only woman inher medical class at UND, the first female to complete theradiology residency program at Mayo Clinic, and upon hergraduation – the first female radiologist in the state of Washington.

Dr. Gilbertson takes this journey of firsts in stride, recalling adouble major at UND, with home economics as a back-up tomedicine – just in case they wouldn’t let a woman into theprogram! Well, she did get in, “and from then on,” she laughs,“I’ve left the cooking to someone else.”

She completed her medical degree at Temple University, andboth her residency and fellowship at Mayo Clinic’s radiologyprogram.

With gifts and a pledge in excess of $5 million she establishedan endowed chair at her Alma Mater in August that will providethe first step for a Department of Geriatrics, a much needed service to this rural state with a higher than national average ofaging population. The Eva L. Gilbertson, M.D., Distinguished

Health care delivery is different for older people. Their needs are different, and if the aging population is growing

and medicine doesn’t react – who will be there to serve this public?

Chair of Geriatrics will support education and research ingeriatrics. Well aware of the special medical needs of the elderly,Dr. Gilbertson’s intent is for the endowment to fund a nationallyrecognized, board certified geriatrician who will train and mentorstudents, conduct research relevant to this population base andprovide medical services to citizens in the region. The title“distinguished chair” is the highest academic position a facultymember can hold.

Though retiring years ago from a long and successful private practice in Seattle, WA, Dr. Eva Gilbertson is still astute in thefield of radiology. She remains abreast of new techniques andprocedures, reading professional journals and followingadvancements in radiological education.

A Woman of Firsts

Editor’s Note: Dr. Gilberson passed away suddenly,November 16, 2007, after this publication had gone topress. The faculty and staff at the UNDSMHS would liketo express our deep sympathy to Eva’s family and manyfriends.


PARTING SHOTS

UND Occupational Therapy students from the Casper, WY, campus showoff their UND pride at the Wyoming Occupational Therapy Associationannual meeting in September. (Left to right) assistant professor AnneHaskins, OTR/L, Kelsey Hewitt, Whitney Schilling, Joe Troudt, TristaAaberg, assistant professor/professional coordinator Breann Lamborn andSarah Cooper.

Fifth-grader Kathryn Peterson, daughter of Mark andRhonda Peterson, Grand Forks, was the winner of the 2007North Dakota Tar Wars Poster Contest. She and her familytraveled to Washington, D.C. for a recognition ceremony,and her poster was featured on a Grand Forks billboard.Tar Wars is a tobacco-free education program for kids fromthe American Academy of Family Physicians and DoctorsOught to Care.

Altru Health System anesthesiologist and UND clinicalinstructor of surgery, Michael Schuster, M.D.,demonstrates management of a difficult airway duringthe 3rd Annual Rural Surgery Symposium held inSeptember in Grand Forks.

The annual Malpractice Bowl tradition continues between UND lawand medical students. The medical women lost with a score of 6 to34, while the medical men won 14 to 6.

ND Tar Wars Poster Contest Winner

University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health SciencesThe Nation’s Leader in Rural Health - Serving North Dakota Since 1905501 North Columbia Road Stop 9037 ● Grand Forks ND ● 58202-9037 www.med.und.edu

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Periodical POSTAGE PAID

Occupational Therapy students and faculty volunteered to support the Alzheimer's Association Memory Walk inSeptember. The OT team won the trophy for the most participants. The Memory Walk raised more than $14,000 tocontribute to better Alzheimer's advocacy, education, and support programs for those affected by Alzheimer's diseaseand related disorders.

Documents

North Dakota Medicine Holiday 2007