School of Health and Human Services Blog

Yesterday, August 25, 2011, Vilayphone A. Sisouphanthong of the MPH Cohort #1 submitted the first capstone project in the program. His project entitled "Modeling of PM2.5 and Health Effects in Seven California Counties" was approved and signed by Dr. Piane. This means that Vil is our first official graduate. Vil plans to re-enlist in the US Army as an officer working in Public Health. Congratulations Vil! We are very proud of your accomplishments.

Catie Chung RN PhD(c) became a doctoral candidate early August. Catie is working on her PhD in nursing at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Her dissertation study is entitled, "Job stress, mentoring, psychological empowerment, and job satisfaction among nursing faculty". Catie is on track to finish her degree this year.

Provost Heveron announced yesterday that the MS Health Informatics degree program, led by Linda Macomber, was approved by WASC for full online delivery. This brings to four the number of SHHS degree programs approved for online delivery. The others are the RN to BSN, BS Allied Health, and BS Clinical Laboratory Science. Congratulations to Linda and to all those who assisted in preparing the application!

Ms. Marie La Fargue, MPH and Mr. Robert Clegg, MPH PhD (c) have been selected to serve as Program Outreach Coordinators for the Costa Mesa and Fresno campuses respectively. Marie and Robert will be responsible for building relationships in these two communities in anticipation of implementing programs later this year in public health, healthcare administration, health informatics, clinical lab science, and possible clinical affairs. Marie and Robert will be working with related programs leads and department chairs to identify local adjunct faculty, acquire internship contracts and participate in student recruitment initiatives. A warm welcome to Marie and Robert!

McHugh, M. (2011). Chapter 4: Computer System Basics. In: Saba & McCormick (Eds.) Essentials of Computers for Nurses (5th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill. McHugh, M. (2010). Descriptive Statistics, Part I: Level of Measurement. Journal of Specialists in Pediatric Nursing. Virtual Issue, March, 2010. McHugh, M. (2010). Descriptive Statistics, Part II: Most Commonly Used Descriptive Statistics. Journal of Specialists in Pediatric Nursing. Virtual Issue, March, 2010. McHugh, M. (2010). Calculation and Utility of a One-Way Chi-Square in Nursing Practice. Journal of Specialists in Pediatric Nursing. Virtual Issue, March, 2010. McHugh, M. (2010). Clinical Statistics for Primary Care Practitioners: Part I—Incidence, Prevalence, and the Odds Ratio. Journal of Specialists in Pediatric Nursing. Virtual Issue, March, 2010. McHugh, M. (2010). Scientific Inquiry Clinical Statistics for Primary Care Practitioners: Part II—Absolute Risk Reduction, Relative...

Mellonie Brown, M.E.T., CMD, R.T.(T.) has joined the Department of Health Sciences as Clinical Assistant Professor and Program Director of the Bachelor of Science in Radiation Therapy Program. Her office is located at the Costa Mesa Campus which is also the main campus for the Radiation Therapy Program. Mellonie comes to us from the Brown Cancer Center in Louisville, Kentucky where she has been the Senior Medical Dosimetrist and Program Director for the Radiation Therapy School since 2000. Her experience and leadership will guide and ensure the success of our Radiation Therapy Program. Mellonie obtained a B.S. in Biology from Due West, South Carolina and followed up with a B.S. in Radiation Therapy from the Medical University of South Carolina. She continued on to earn a Master of Educational Technology from Boise State University and is registered in Radiation Therapy (AART) and certified in Medical Dosimetry (MDCB) as well. Mellonie is now focusing on getting the RTT pro...

SHHS is pleased to announce that on Monday, August 15, 2011, Daniel Wills joined the school as the new Assistant to the Faculty. Daniel has been the Center Assistant for the Technology and Health Sciences Center for the past year. In addition to his time at NU, Daniel worked as a Bookseller at Grossmont Community College Bookstore and has also interned with The Scripps Research Institute. He is working toward his bachelor’s degree in English and enjoys snowboarding, reading and writing. Daniel’s primary job functions will be: supporting the faculty, serving as the point of contact for internal/external inquiries, processing student eForms, coordinating meeting logistics and supporting SHHS outreach efforts. Please join me in welcoming Daniel to the School of Health and Human Services!

The application for the White House Internship Program's spring 2012 session has been posted. Please take the time to think of five future young leaders you believe would serve as great White House Interns, and personally encourage them to apply. Consider contacting your alma mater and encouraging career services to promote the internship. Below is more information that might be helpful to prospective White House Interns: Visit the White House Internship website: http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/internships/ Apply to the White House Internship program: http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/internships/apply/ Learn more about the selection process: http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/internships/selection/ Send this flyer today to interested applicants, or contacts who may know interested applicants. A White House Internship provides a unique opportunity to gain valuable professional experience and build leadership skills. This hands-on program is designed to mentor and cult...

Patric Schiltz and adjunct faculty member Senthamil Selvan are coauthors on a study investigating diagnostic criteria for assessing efficacy of a novel vaccine approach for metastatic melanoma: Features Associated with Survival in Metastatic Melanoma Patients Treated with Patient-Specific Dendritic Cell Vaccines. Dillman RO, Fogel GB, Cornforth AN, Selvan SR, Schiltz PM, Depriest C. Cancer Biother Radiopharm. 2011 Aug 3. [Epub ahead of print]

Linking Millennium Cohort prospective data to individual-level exposure data is critical for understanding and quantifying any long-term health outcomes potentially associated with unique military occupational exposures. This paper was just published in Military Medicine. Smith TC. Linking Exposures and Health Outcomes to a Large Population-Based Longitudinal Study: The Millennium Cohort Study. Military Medicine; 2011 July;176,7:56-63.

National Quality Forum Report on Patient Outcomes Published: Pelletier a Member of the Mental Health Steering Committee The results or outcomes of an episode of healthcare are inherently important because they reflect the reason consumers seek healthcare, as well as the result healthcare providers are trying to achieve. Outcome measures also provide an integrative assessment of quality reflective of multiple care processes across the continuum of care. To date NQF has endorsed more than 200 outcome measures in a variety of topic areas. As greater focus is placed on evaluating the outcome of episodes of care, additional measures of patient outcomes are needed to fill gaps in the current portfolio. This report presents the results of the evaluation of 83 patient outcome measures considered under NQF’s Consensus Development Process. Thirty-five measures and three measure pairs are recommended for endorsement as voluntary consensus standards suitable for public reporting and quality im...

The first cohort of Masters of Public Health students completed their internships. Fourteen students completed their professional practicum with local public health agencies and organizations. The following agencies provided internship opportunities for students: Vista Community Clinic, Health Literacy San Diego, Community Health Improvement Partners, Help, Inc, Voices For Action , Biocept, Incorporated , American Lung Association, American Liver Foundation Coast & Hawaii , Environmental Health Project SDSU, UCSD Health Services Research Center, DHHSA-Public health Center.

Ann Kelly was chosen to assist with writing NCLEX-RN questions. Please read the Press Release from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing.

This is the report of a recent pilot study by Dr. Ellen Kaye Gehrke and colleagues: A Study of the Effectiveness of Therapeutic Riding in Children with Autism Spectral Disorder (ASD) as Measured by Changes in the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) Using Heart Rate Variability As The Analysis Factor.

Congratulations to Linda Takvorian who traveled to Washington, D.C. this past June to meet with staff from California’s Senate and House of Representatives on legislative issues.

Mickie Schuerger, Los Angeles Nursing and 10 Cohort 4 Nursing Students participated in an Emergency Preparedness Drill at Providence/Little Company of Mary, San Pedro’s. NU students were well received by their staff and invited National University BSN students to return to assist them with their next drill.

Please remember to register for the AICR Annual Reserach Conference 2011 on Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and Cancer. More information about the conference can be found at: http:// preventcancer.aicr.org/site/MessageViewer?dlv_id=28321&em_id=16821.0

Master of Healthcare Administration’s adjunct professor Gwenmarie Hilleary, MHA, FACHE recently published “Aqua WOW: Creating Healthy Choices at Medication Pass Times” in Annals of Long- Term Care: Clinical Care and Aging. 2011;19(7):33-36. She lists her affiliation with National University in the author’s bibliography at the end of the article along with her co-author Rebecca Ferrini, MD, MPH, CMD of medical director, Edgemoor DPSNF Hospital, Santee, CA. http:// www.annalsoflongtermcare.com/article/aqua-wow-creating-healthy-choices-medication-pass-times

CALL FOR PAPERS - DEADLINE EXTENDED UNTIL AUGUST 15th, 2011 Special issue of the Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública / Pan American Journal of Public Health (PAJPH) on Health and human security in border communities. The Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública / Pan American Journal of Public Health, published by the Pan American Health Organization, announces an open call for original papers, brief communications, and reviews for its next special issue, which will cover topics related to health and human security. Deadline to present manuscripts: August 15th, 2011. http:// bit.ly/PAJPH-human-security http:// new.paho.org/blogs/rpsp