Registration still open for the Heartland Interprofessional Education Conference
Registration is still open for the 2019 Heartland Interprofessional Education Conference, “Come Together to Work Together.” The conference, which is a collaborative effort between Creighton University and UNMC, will be held Aug. 1-2 at UNMC.
Featured speakers at the conference include:
- Barbara Brandt, Ph.D., director of the National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education at the University of Minnesota;
- Amy Blue, Ph.D., associate vice president, interprofessional education at the University of Florida; and
- Alan Dow, M.D., assistant vice president, health sciences for interprofessional education and collaborative care at Virginia Commonwealth University.
Continuing education credits are available for conference attendees.
Registration is $150 for general admission and $50 for students. Registration has been extended through July 29. Register here.
Dr. Cowan to be inducted into Aksarben Court of Honor
Ken Cowan, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center and the Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer for the past 20 years, will be one of four Nebraskans to be inducted into the Aksarben Court of Honor this year.
Dr. Cowan, who is the sixth director of the Eppley Institute since its founding in 1961, is being recognized in the professions category. During his career, he has spearheaded the ascent of UNMC/Nebraska Medicine into an international leader in cancer care and research. In 2018, Dr. Cowan announced his intentions to step down as cancer center director, but after his replacement is on board, he plans to remain as a full-time faculty member and will continue to see patients.
“Aksarben’s Court of Honor recognition provides an opportunity to shine a light on exceptional volunteer efforts within our communities,” said Beth Wilson, Women’s Ball Committee chairman. “This year’s inductees represent some of the heartland’s masterpieces as each has spent years working tirelessly toward the betterment of our region.”
Dr. Bertoni speaks on value of exercise for Parkinson’s management
John Bertoni, M.D., Ph.D., professor in the UNMC Department of Neurological Sciences and director of the Parkinson’s disease program at Nebraska Medicine, was the guest speaker via Zoom for the Delay the Disease Training Conference for Parkinson’s Nebraska on July 18 in Grand Island. He presented on the role of exercise in Parkinson’s disease management and conducted a lively question-and-answer session.
Exercise provides evidence-based benefits for the management of symptoms and can delay the progression of Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s Nebraska has identified a lack of Parkinson’s exercise classes in rural communities and is committed to making the benefits of exercise available across the state. As a result of the Delay the Disease training, 21 new Parkinson’s exercise classes will begin in Nebraska by Oct. 1. More than 15 of these classes will serve in rural and underserved communities.
For the past nine years, Parkinson’s Nebraska has conducted the UNMC Skate-a-thon for Parkinson’s, a 24-hour skating event to raise awareness for Parkinson’s disease as well as funding for Parkinson’s research at UNMC.
Registration now open for Structural Biology and Molecular Biophysics Workshop
Registration now is open for the Eighth Annual Structural Biology and Molecular Biophysics Workshop, which will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Aug. 15 at the UNMC Center for Drug Discovery & Lozier Center for Pharmacy Sciences on the UNMC Omaha campus.
Participants will learn about state-of-the-art advances in structural biology and molecular biophysics.
Scheduled presentations include:
- Madeline Shea, Ph.D., University of Iowa: “Disease-Causing Mutations Inhibit Ca2+-Mediated Conformational Switching of Calmodulin on the NaV1.2 IQ Motif”
- George Makhatadze, Ph.D., Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: “Life Under Extreme Conditions: How Do Proteins Adapt to High Hydrostatic Pressure?”
- Edwin Pozharski, Ph.D., University of Maryland School of Medicine: “Structural Studies of Binary Toxin from C.difficile”
- Mark Herzik, Ph.D., University of California San Diego: “Imaging smaller and smaller macromolecules to higher and higher resolution using conventional cryo-EM”
- Ashok Deniz, Ph.D., Scripps Research Institute: “Biophysics of Protein Disorder, Single Molecules to Mesoscales”
Registration is free and includes continental breakfast, lunch and refreshments at the poster session. The workshop also is accepting poster applications. Participants can register their poster during the registration process.
CENTRIC receives Hearst Foundation grant
The Hearst Foundations in Nebraska is awarding a $150,000 grant to UNMC’s Center for Patient, Family and Community Engagement in Chronic Care Management (CENTRIC). CENTRIC, a center in the College of Nursing, promotes multidisciplinary teams to implement strategies that will promote self-management to maintain or improve patient’s health and prevent a decline in health in individuals with multiple concurrent chronic conditions.
The Hearst Foundation Inc., along with the William Hearst Foundation, has awarded more than 20,000 grants. In 2018, the Hearst Foundations made 324 grants totaling more than $45 million. Hearst is the parent company of Omaha television station KETV.