HPD Perspectives Magazine Summer/Fall 2019

NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY | 49 Lung Force Cardiopulmonary Sciences Students Participate in Lung Force Expo A LOOK BACK The 1919 tuberculosis epidemic led to the founding of the American Lung Association (ALA). At the time, the infection was so widespread that new hospitals were constructed specifically for the purpose of treating tuberculosis patients. One common treatment was to deliberately collapse the affected lung segment or lobe and fill the space with glass beads. These beads could be seen on chest radiographs of the time, and much later in patients who survived the treatment but did not return to the doctor to have the beads removed. Pulmonary medicine has progressed significantly since then. However, the need to conduct research into the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of lung disease continues. Included in this process is the dissemination of research findings. A LOOK FORWARD Among the community outreach programs offered by the ALA is the annual Lung Force Expo. The Cardio- pulmonary Sciences Department participated in the most recent symposium’s planning and execution. I served on the planning committee and presented two educational offerings—a presentation on patient education and an interactive case-study exercise that included a rapid-response panel. Cardiopulmonary sciences students George Bell, Josef Macugoski, and John Samame participated in the exercise by reviewing the critical-care case studies distributed to conference attendees. After developing a patient plan within the allotted time, the rapid- response panel of experts critiqued the care plans. The expert panel included Sunil Kumar, M.D., a Broward Health critical care physician; Andre Moses, Pharm.D., a clinical pharmacist at Baptist Health South Florida; Sue Piligian, A.R.N.P., an emergency department nurse at Memorial Healthcare, and me. Symposiums often consist of noninteractive, PowerPoint-enhanced, verbal presentations where communication only travels in one direction. The case-study exercise allowed attendees to be engaged with the presenters and to contribute to learning, rather than being passive recipients. o Randy De Kler is a registered respiratory therapist in the Department of Cardiopulmonary Sciences—Palm Beach. BY RANDY DE KLER, M.S., RRT