The New Year always brings opportunities for new beginnings. Today (January 18th), we are launching Cougar Conversations, a monthly event that will bring students, faculty and staff together over the noon hour to talk, visit, eat and get to know each other better. This will occur on the third Wednesday of every month from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. in the Active Learning Classroom on the first floor of our building. We will provide fruit, cookies and drinks, folks can feel free to bring their lunch, and we will have tables with different conversation topics, and other tables with no specific topic where people can sit and discuss whatever they would like to. The purpose of this activity is for all of us to build community together, and to help promote well being. I hope that you will join us!
- Steve Spann
At our college, respect is one of our four foundational values. It is woven into the fabric of all our pursuits at Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine.
We find common ground through mutual respect. We navigate hard and uncomfortable conversations by being respectful in our approach to delicate topics.
As we challenge ourselves this new year, to leverage new oppportunites and new beginnings, let us endeavor to make a daily commitment to fostering respectful relationships and living a values-centered life.
How do you relate to our RISE values? To be featured in next month’s edition of The Pulse, please email uhcomcom@central.uh.edu.
Congratulations to Adebosola Karunwi, MS2 and Dr. Kimberly Pilkinton who were accepted to present “Health Care is More than Care: Preparing the Next Generation to Improve Health Disparities” at the 2023 Association of Professors in Gynecology and Obstetrics Faculty Development Seminar in Phoenix, AZ. Here they were allowed to share a piece of our innovative curriculum and highlight our medical school.
Over 12 students are going to the Latino Medical Student Association Regional Conference.
Iliana Oberkircher is attending as the chapter president, Rolando Alvarado is presenting a poster on A Circular RNA vaccine for COVID-19, Kaylah Perez is presenting a poster on Copper Chelators Express Brain Penetrance and Serum Bioavailability for Use Against Neurodegenerative Disease and Valerie DeLeon is presenting a poster on A Rare Variant of the Superior Cerebellar and Anterior Inferior Cerebellar Arteries Observed During Cadaveric Dissection.
Taking next steps in medical school! Our third year students are finishing up the exam portion of their Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship (LIC) before they move on to the advanced clerkship phase.
Diana Grair, M.D., Family Physician joined the UH Health Family Care Center on January 2, 2023 as the new Chief Medical Officer. She is also joining as faculty in the Clinical Sciences Department. Please welcome Dr. Grair!
Michelle A. Carroll Turpin, Ph.D. presents a self-directed learning workshop on effective strategies for teaching. The event will be hosted in TBL 2100 on the second floor on Wednesday, January 25 from noon to 1 p.m. All faculty are invited.
Please mark your calendars! We will be holding two faculty curriculum retreats this spring term. Please save these dates/times on your calendar: Tuesday, February 14th, noon - 5 p.m. and Tuesday, April 18th, noon - 5 p.m..
Ben King, Ph.D., M.P.H. has been selected to serve on a Science Advisory Board (SAB) at the EPA for a Hexavalent Chromium Review Panel. The EPA SAB, its standing committees and ad hoc panels engage in a variety of advisory activities of significant importance to the EPA. His contribution to future agency efforts is much needed and appreciated.
We are joyful and excited to see our team continue to grow. Let us join together to extend a warm and hearty welcome to the newest members of the college.
The Fertitta Family College of Medicine Staff Council is proud to present the first Professional Development Lunch and Learn. The inaugural talk titled Wellness, Mental Health, and Stress Relief at Work is presented by the Director of UH Wellness, Reuben Parrish. Parrish is passionate and committed in assisting the university in helping improve the lives of students, staff and faculty.
In addition to Parrish’s talk, Court Stein, Wellness Administrator at UH Human Resources, will present the many wellness benefits offered to UH staff to improve their mental and physical health.
This event is open to all College of Medicine staff. Click here to register to attend.
In December, our Community Engagement Team hosted a Community Open House for Third Ward and East End Community Working Group partners. With close to 100 guests in attendance, it’s clear the Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine is of interest to our community.
¡Vive Tu Vida! Get Up! Get Moving! is a physical activity and wellness event for the Hispanic community in the East End. The Latino Medical Student Association joined our Community Health team to give information about at-home COVID tests and demonstrate physical activities. Approximately 1,000 people attended the family event at Mason Park.
UH Health Family Care Center & Community Health participated in Operation Love at Blackshear Elementary. The ‘Operation Love’ project grew out of a love for the children and families of Third Ward. It is a project of the Tre Missional community in partnership with community businesses and other ministries in the greater Houston area.
The CQI process provides a comprehensive view of performance of the College of Medicine medical education program, tracking 26 LCME elements and standards in five areas for monitoring and improvement. These elements and standards will be informed by the needs of key stakeholders including faculty, staff, students, committees, leadership and LCME survey visit monitoring requirements. The process and plan focus on data and outcome measures that will be shared via online reports and performance dashboards. Stayed tuned for our next newsletter for more information on LCME accreditation.
Cougar Cudos is a Staff Council program that allows staff to recognize other staff members for exceptional service to the University of Houston.
Previous College of Medicine winners include Linda Hulett, Operations Administrator. Congratulations to both Linda & David for being nominated!
Want to give kudos to your colleagues? Click here to nominate someone for a Cougar Cudos.
UH Health Family Care Center is now accepting Traditional Medicaid and Medicare, along with most major insurances including the UH BCBS Health Select Plan. Covid testing is available for faculty and staff, insurance or self-pay accepted. Students can utilize the student health center. For appointments, call 832-UHCARES or visit our website: uh.edu/familycarecenter.
Do you have something you’d like to share college wide? Email uhcomcom@central.uh.edu with details for consideration in next month’s edition of The Pulse.
