The fourth of our RISE values is equity. I think about equity as an equal opportunity for everyone to live a flourishing life. There are many inequities in our society. Addressing health inequities in the population is an important part of the mission of the UH Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine. There are major health inequities in the population of our great city. When we look at life expectancy by zip code, there is a 19.3-year gap in life expectancy between the “healthiest” and the “unhealthiest” zip codes. Health inequities or disparities result from adverse social determinants, also called non-medical drivers, of health; we now believe that these are responsible for 80% of the preventable death and disease in our country. Social and economic factors are felt to be responsible for 40% of the preventable adverse health outcomes; environmental factors for 10%, and health behaviors for 30%. Many of these adverse social determinants of health are themselves the result of inequities. The value of health care (defined as the ratio between care outcomes and costs) in our country is the lowest among all wealthy countries, and a major contributing factor to this is health inequity. The U.S. ranks lowest among all wealthy nations in health equity. Our College of Medicine can develop innovative ways to improve health equity in our city, our country, and around the world.
- Steve Spann
Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA), with support of Aaron Lara, held a Medical Spanish Simulation earlier this month that was attended by their fellow students and also College of Medicine faculty. Through these simulations, LMSA seeks to narrow the health care gap caused by language barriers. It’s divided into three levels based upon the students’ language proficiency and is a peer mentorship system which helps students connect and develop leadership skills. LMSA plans to expand into the community by promoting health education in Houston Hispanic communities.
The Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) was recently interviewed by ABC13 News. The news station came to the Fertitta Family College of Medicine and spent the day sitting in various lectures, visiting with students and learning more about the mission and importance of LMSA. View the news clip here.
Jamie Everett, M.D. joined as Clinical Associate Professor of Pathology for Biomedical Sciences and is a practicing pathologist. She will be educating students in the field of pathology throughout our curriculum and as a course director in our Organ System courses. Everett will play a central role in our educational mission by overseeing the Diagnostic Teaching Laboratory, where she will impart essential pathological techniques and skills to our students.
Jonas Garcia, M.D. joined as Adjunct Clinical Professor for Internal Medicine and will be on clinical staff at the UH Health Family Care Center. He will be involved in the clinical practice of medicine at the Family Care Center and will provide cardiovascular medical care to the patients of Harris County correctional facility.
Terence Ma, Ph.D., M.B.A. joined as Assistant Dean for Assessment and Quality Improvement for Biomedical Sciences. He is responsible for developing, maintaining and managing plans for continuous quality improvement for medical student education, as well as monitoring and maintaining materials for accreditation with LCME and SACS.
Pooja Patel, M.D., M.P.H., M.M.S., FACOG joined as Associate Professor for Clinical Sciences and is responsible for the delivery of obstetrical and gynecological services at the Family Care Center. She will be training medical students in obstetrical and gynecological care.
Patrizia Perazzo, Ph.D. joined as a Post-Doctoral Fellow in Behavioral and Social Sciences. She provides mental health treatment in both Spanish and English at the Family Care Center. Her work focuses on treating children, adolescents and their families who present with a wide range of mental health conditions.
Lu Wang, Ph.D. joined as Assistant Professor for Health Systems and Population Health Sciences and the Humana Integrated Health System Sciences Institute. She is a joint hire between the College of Medicine and the Department of Biomedical Engineering and has a Ph.D. in computer science and another Ph.D. in industrial engineering. Wang is interested in the implementation of human-centered artificial intelligence (AI).
Thomas Gest, Ph.D., Clinical Professor of Anatomy, is retiring from the Fertitta College of Medicine after more than three years of service with the Department of Biomedical Sciences. We wish Dr. Gest a pleasant and enjoyable retirement after his service to the college.
Jacqueline Levesque, A.Ed. recently attended the Association of American Medical Colleges Group on Resident Affairs Leadership Course in Washington, D.C. Levesque joined more than 40 graduate medical education leaders for the beginnings of an eight month certificate course where as an invited member of the core faculty, she will provide valuable insight and help propel the Fertitta Family College of Medicine to new heights.
We continue to grow our dynamic team of consummate professionals. Let us welcome the newest members to join our college:
HCC held its first student seminar for the academic year on Tuesday, September 23, 2023. College of Medicine first year students were joined by social work students from UH Downtown and junior nursing students from the Gessner College of Nursing, along with community health workers, for an introduction to HCC and interprofessional competencies. Using a community case study, small teams of students addressed the non-medical needs of a family, simulating their future experiences in households in Third Ward and East End. These teams will start working in the field in Spring 2024.
The Fertitta Family College of Medicine Volunteer Faculty Open House was this past Tuesday night. Dean Spann and the College of Medicine hosted more than a hundred of our esteemed volunteer faculty. The event served as a thank you to our current volunteer faculty, as well as a recruitment tool to engage potential new faculty for the college. Thank you to everyone that was able to attend.
The UH Health Family Care Center had the opportunity to attend Blackshear Elementary's Back to School Bash. Bill Elder, Ph.D. and David Curtis, Ph.D. spoke to attendees about the clinic's behavioral health services and Kathryn Horn, M.D. worked with College of Medicine students to provide hearing, vision, and blood pressure screenings.
Jonas Garcia, M.D., has joined the Family Care Center and will also be providing cardiovascular medical care to the patients of the Harris County correctional facility. He will be involved in the clinical practice of medicine by continuing the follow-up medical care of his long-time patients. In addition to the FCC, Garcia has joined the College of Medicine as an adjunct clinical professor of internal medicine and is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine.
Pooja Patel, M.D., MPH, MMS, FACOG, has joined the Family Care Center and is responsible for the delivery of obstetrics and gynecological services. In addition to the FCC, Patel has joined the College of Medicine as an associate professor and is a board-certified obstetrician gynecologist. She is also responsible for training medical students in obstetrical and gynecological care at the Fertitta Family College of Medicine.
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.
