Basic HTML Version
10
COM Outlook . Summer 2012
COM
mun i ca t i ons
...student awards continued from page 9
service volunteers in chronological order of service hours
provided:
Carisa Lippmann
,
Erik Adair
,
Jeremiah Robi-
son
,
Charles Cevallos
,
Jennifer Wellington
,
Kiyomi Goto
,
Eric Chung
,
Joseph Geffen
,
Lena Virasch
, and
Eric Pitts
.
Espinal, Young Receive Morris Public
Health Scholarships
OMS-I Tania
Espinal
and
OMS-
III Emily Young,
M.A.T.
, were the
recipients of two
public health schol-
arships bestowed
to NSU-COM stu-
dents thanks to the
generosity of Marie
Morris―the widow
of Morton Morris,
D.O., J.D., FAOAO,
who served as
executive dean for professional affairs at the NSU Health
Professions Division prior to his death in May 2008.
Young received the Judy Morris, M.D., Scholarship
in Public Health, which is accompanied by a $500 cash
award. To be eligible for the scholarship, nominees must
be NSU-COM students or have already achieved their D.O.
degree, showcase high academic achievement, be currently
enrolled in the college’s Master of Public Health Program,
and demonstrate financial need.
Espinal was awarded the Morton Morris, D.O., J.D.,
Scholarship in Public Health, which is accompanied by a
$1,000 cash allocation. Eligibility criteria are similar to the
aforementioned scholarship. (
Pictured in the above photo are
Cyril Blavo, D.O., M.P.H. and T.M., and Tania Espinal.)
AHEC Update
Federal Funding
In terms of federal funding, the Area Health Education Centers
(AHEC) Program submitted its Federal Competing Renewal Ap-
plication to the Health Resources and Services Administration
and is expected to receive approximately $1 million to support
its activities throughout its 19-county South and Central Florida
service area for the upcoming funding year.
Tobacco Training and Cessation
In regard to state funding for its Tobacco Training and Ces-
sation Program, it is projected that the AHEC Program will
receive $2.5 million for the renewal of its Florida Department
of Health contract to continue to bring tobacco prevention
education and tobacco cessation services to every county
within its service region. In 2012, over 400 intensive six-week
tobacco cessation groups have been provided in numerous
communities throughout the region. In addition, the AHEC
Program has continued to work with state and regional health
professional organizations to conduct training programs for
health providers throughout Florida on effective skills to treat
tobacco dependency in the clinical setting.
Tobacco Curriculum
The AHEC Program also is continuing to work with about 20
faculty members from the College of Osteopathic Medicine
and the Center for Psychological Studies on the development
of the AHEC Tobacco Curriculum Immersion Initiative. The
comprehensive and seamless curriculum consists of a series
of didactic seminars on tobacco dependence and treatment,
practicums in providing tobacco prevention education to
schoolchildren, and case conferences in the preclinical years.
The clinical years will include refresher courses, provided
through distance learning, and specially designed training
experiences that involve working with smoking patients dur-
ing the students AHEC rotations in federally qualified health
centers and other rural sites.
State-Funded Rural/Underserved
Training Program
Over the past year, the AHEC Program has established con-
tractual affiliations with multiple residency programs to train
their residents in community-based primary care sites such
as federally qualified community health centers. The training
program also played a key role in supporting the implementa-
tion of two major health fairs in the rural communities of Belle
Glade and Clewiston. Over 200 faculty members and students
fromNSU’s Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, Dental Medicine,
Pharmacy, Optometry, Nursing, Health Care Sciences, and
Medical Sciences participated in this rural training/outreach
effort. These health fairs provided a broad range of health
services to approximately 1,500 residents from the medically
underserved Glades region of South Florida.