PROMOTING GLOBAL HEALTH, ONE PERSON AT A TIME Joint MSPAS MPH Program

S P R I N G 2 0 1 1

I N S I D E T H I S

I S S U E :

PA Foundation

Scholars Fuchs and

Warburton

2

Interview with

Kyla Simpson ‘09

2

Preceptor Survey

Results

3

Touro University-

California’s New

Look

3

Meet the Faculty:

Robin Wempe and

Garland Brinkley

4

Meet the Class of

2013

4

Upcoming Conferences

4

P R O M OT I N G G L O B A L H E A L T H , O N E P E R S O N A T A T I M E

V O L U M E I V , I S S U E I I

With a first-time pass rate of 97%, the Class of

2010 is the fourth Touro University-California

Joint Program class in a row to beat the na-

tional average for first-time PANCE pass rates,

which was 94% in 2010.

The PANCE is the Physician Assistant Na-

tional Certifying Examination. Successful com-

pletion of the PANCE is a requirement to prac-

tice clinically as a PA in the United States, al-

though individual states may apply further

criteria before granting a license.

After passing the PANCE, PAs become

NCCPA-certified, which entitles them to use

the PA-C designation until the expiration of

their first cycle (approximately two years). To

maintain NCCPA certification and retain the

right to use the PA-C designation, they must

continually update their medical education

and pass a recertification test every six years.

2010s: 97% PANCE Pass Rate

Joint MSPAS / MPH Program

School of Health

Sciences

Program Directors :

Joint MSPAS/MPH Program :

Grace Landel, MEd, PA-C

[email protected]

707-638-5878

Public Health Program :

Assefaw Tekeste Ghebrekidan,

MD, DrPH

[email protected]

707-638-5834

http://www.tu.edu/

departments.php?id=42

Admissions :

Melanie Lim

[email protected]

Touro University History Touro University is one

of more than 25 division

campuses within Touro

College, a Jewish spon-

sored not-for-profit edu-

cational system princi-

pally located in New York. Touro University is composed of two cam-

puses - the main campus located in Vallejo,

California and the branch campus in Hender-

son, Nevada. Touro College was founded by

Dr. Bernard Lander in 1970, and now educates

over 18,000 students. The current President

and CEO is Alan Kadish, MD (pictured above).

Dr. Kadish received his MD degree from the

Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva

University and his postdoctoral medical train-

ing at the Brigham & Women's Hospital and at

the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Lander served as associate director of for-

mer New York City Mayor Fiorello LaGuar-

dia's Committee on Unity, a precursor to the

city's Commission on Human Rights, where he

promoted key fair employment legislation and

attacked discriminatory quotas in higher edu-

cation. An ordained rabbi, he earned a doctor-

ate in sociology from Columbia University.

Touro College derives its name from Judah

and Isaac Touro, leaders of colonial America,

who provided major endowments for univer-

sities, the first free library on this continent,

community health facilities in the United

States, and pioneering settlements in Israel.

This generosity was exercised to better the

lives of all people through the encouragement

of education and charitable and vocational

enterprise without regard for creed or color.

Credit: wwww.touro.edu and www.tu.edu

P A G E 2

V O L U M E I V , I S S U E I I

Manuela (Nellie) Gallegos, ’07 At what age did you decide to go into medicine,

and when did you decide to become a PA?

When I was around 7 years old, my grandfather

noticed I was fascinated by the local healers, who

were incorporating native herbs and home reme-

dies in their patient care. He planted the seed in

my mind when he said, when I grew up, I, too,

could provide care to the sick. My grandfather

was a very positive influence on me even at a

very young age. He always encouraged me to

follow my dreams.

How did you decide to work where you are

now, and move to Silver City?

Once I graduated, I wanted to work for a Feder-

ally Qualified Community Health Center that

was approved by the National Health Service

Corp (NHSC), Loan Repayment Program. The

NHSC repaid my student loans in exchange for

my working in a rural community. In 2010, the

initial award was increased to $60,000 for a two-

year commitment, and up to $170,000 for five

years. I would encourage all PA students to look

into and consider this option, especially those

with student loans over $100K. NHSC opportu-

nities are available in all the 50 states.

What specialties did you consider, why, and

how did you decide on Family Practice?

Once I graduated, my first choice for specialty

was Family Practice, because I wanted to be ex-

posed and practice my medical knowledge and

skills that I was trained for in the Physician As-

sistant program. During my first three years, it

has been extremely beneficial and rewarding

working in Family Practice, and I am very grate-

ful for the experience.

What would you say now to Nellie Gallegos,

PA-S, if you traveled back to September 2004?

Knowing what I know now, I would have said to

her in 2004 to do her very best learning and ab-

sorbing as much of the information presented in

the various classes of the PA program. In the

clinical rotations you are assigned to, to take ad-

vantage of the preceptors' experience - ask ques-

tions of anything you are not sure of or you do

not understand - as well as utilizing all the re-

sources available. If you ever become over-

whelmed, do not give up - keep working hard,

because if you are persistent you will succeed -

organize a study group, if necessary.

Read the entire interview on our website:

www.tu.edu/

The New College of Education and Health Sciences The Colleges of Health Sci-

ences and of Education have

just completed a merger, and

are now the College of Edu-

cation and Health Sciences

(CEHS)..

Within this new college will

be two schools: the Graduate

School of Education (GSE),

and the School of Health

Sciences, which includes the

MPH and Joint Programs.

Dr. Jim O’Connor, who served as the Interim Program

Director for the Joint Program last year, is the dean of

the newly combined college. He is a former Physician

Assistant, and had served as the Dean of the College

of Education since 2007.

Dr. Michael Clearfield served as In-

terim Dean for the College of Health

Sciences for four years, concurrent

with serving as the Dean of the Col-

lege of Osteopathic Medicine (COM).

He will now focus on COM’s ambi-

tious plans, which include developing

a post doctoral program by 2013.

The CEHS will be home to the planned School of

Nursing, which is slated to open its doors in Fall 2012.

A retreat was held in early January for CEHS faculty

and staff, where integration of the three groups was

discussed. Discussions were both lively and fruitful;

the Joint Program is pleased to have access to the ex-

pertise of their new colleagues.

Le’Anna St.John, Pamela Bowler, and Denise Fisher discuss the integration of the colleges at the January 4, 2011 retreat. Photo: Diyosa Carter

Dean O’Connor Photo: Diyosa Carter

What makes my

job extremely

gratifying is

that I feel very

fortunate to be

able to consult

and guide

patients on the

road to good

health.

P A G E 3

In April of 2010, the first preceptor survey was

sent out to 151 preceptors; the reply rate was

40%. These were current and immediate-past

preceptors of Joint Program students on PA rota-

tions; the preceptors for the public health rota-

tions were not included.

The survey asked preceptors to both rank the

students and to make suggestions for future di-

dactic changes.

Thirty-three (56%) of the preceptors who pre-

cept students from other programs stated that

Joint Program students were better prepared

Joy Dugan’s article

J O I N T M S P A S / M P H P R O G R A M

On May 5, 98 local high school students

came to Lander Hall to experience ten

different health occupations, under a

grant from the California Office of

Statewide Health Planning and Devel-

opment. Tracey DelNero PA-C and

Robin Wempe PA-C showed the

students how to properly wrap a

sprain, and what a poorly-wrapped

sprain felt like—prompting an “ohh” of

recognition from many student athletes.

Jessica Smith, MPH, ran the students

through an outbreak of gastroenteritis

and had them perform calculations to

figure out the underlying cause. A

number of Joint Program students from

the classes of 2010 and 2012 volun-

teered their perspectives on the path to

a health care career, including Planning

Committee member Rick Nolley PA-C,

MPH (Class of 2010) pictured below.

The 98 students were surveyed before

and after the event, and their intent to

enter a health-

care career

went from 52%

to 69% - a 33%

increase.

JP Students in the News

Class of 2012 White Coat Ceremony The Class of 2012 White Coat Ceremony

was held December 19, 2010 at Gaia Napa

Valley. The keynote speaker was Patrick

Killeen, PA-C, President of the American

Academy of Physician Assistants.

Photos: Diyosa Carter

JOINT MSPAS / MPH MISSION

Through the integration of the Physician Assistant and Public Health disciplines, the mission of the Joint MSPAS/MPH Program is to: 1) train quality PAs to work with underserved populations, 2) recruit applicants from these communities or individuals with a demonstrated interest in serving these communities, and 3) increase access to care for underserved populations

Meet the Public Health Director:

Assefaw Tekeste Ghebrekidan, MD, DrPH Alumni Survey Results The Joint Program now has 186 alumni! This year’s

Graduate Survey had a response rate of 32%:

In keeping with our mission of recruiting from under-

served populations:

73% of incoming students either self-reported being

educationally or economically disadvantaged and/

or were from Health Professional Shortage Areas/

Medically Underserved Areas or Populations

29% are medically Under-Represented Minorities

(URMs)

59% (27) are from California

53% (24) speak a language other than English: 16 speak

Spanish (three of these speak yet another language),

and one speaks five languages

59% are female, and 41% are male

The average age is 28 (range: 22-50)

There are 11 University of California graduates, and 10

California State University graduates

Society for Emergency Medicine Physician Assistants, March 13-17, Fort Lauderdale, FL

Association of Family Practice Physician Assistants, March 24-26, Charleston SC

American Academy of Physician Assistants, May 30-June 5, Las Vegas, NV

Physician Assistants in Orthopaedic Surgery, August 15-19, Chicago IL

Joint MSPAS/MPH Program

College of Education and Health Sciences

Touro University-California

1310 Club Drive, Mare Island

Vallejo, CA 94592

Phone: 707-638-5809

Fax: 707-638-5955

Editor: Julie Charles, MBA

UPCOMING CONFERENCES

Dr. Assefaw Tekeste Ghebrekidan was

born in Eritrea and earned his medical

degree at Haile Selassie I University in

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He returned to

Eritrea in 1972 to practice medicine at

Massawa General Hospital and was a

key architect in rebuilding the national

health care system after the country's

liberation in 1991. Eritrea’s health sys-

tem has become a model of operational efficiency and effec-

tiveness for other developing countries.

In 1994, he returned to academia as the Dean of the Faculty

of Health Sciences at the University of Asmara, and in 1999

became a Research Fellow in the School of Public Health at

University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Ghebrekidan earned

a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) degree for his study of

corruption and its effect on health care in sub-Saharan Af-

rica. He has served as Program Director and Associate Pro-

fessor at Touro’s Public Health Program since 2002.

Credit: www.igh.org (cached); Photo: Diyosa Carter