January News

SOM Strategic Planning

2005 was a year of changes for the SOM, with significant growth in the number of students and faculty. We are starting 2006 with a new SOM strategic plan. The plan has been submitted to Dr. Kohler and will be a part of the OHSU strategic plan. The SOM strategic plan reflects the efforts of five committees (Education, Clinical Services, Research, Administrative Structure/Growth and Development, and Community Relations) working both individually and in tandem, and manifests the work accomplished at last October's Strategic Planning Retreat.

We are already implementing projects leading toward accomplishing the plan's five Strategic Goals:

• Regionalize medical education in Oregon


• Expand educational scope longitudinally and trans-professionally


• Enhance diversity for SOM medical and graduate students, residents and faculty


• Develop sustainable funding models for research cores


• Formulate new government and public relations strategies that result in enhanced funding to the SOM

1. Provide programs furthering human health care, with emphasis on improving health and access to care for all Oregonians.


2. Educate tomorrow's physicians, scientists and other health professionals and prepare them for a lifetime of learning, leadership, discovery and service.


3. Develop new medical knowledge and technologies through basic, clinical and applied research translating discoveries into effective health care and quality delivery.

2006 Benson-Kendall Lecture

Jordan J. Cohen, M.D., President of the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC), will offer the 2006 Benson-Kendall lecture on Tuesday, February 7, 2006, 12:00 noon, in the OHSU Old Library Auditorium.

Fourth Annual Western Regional International Health Conference

"Health, Human Rights & Economics: The Value of Human Life" will examine the influence of economics and human rights on global health, and explore cooperative partnerships for productive solutions to global health problems. Content areas include Disasters and Development; Women's and Children's Health; Disease, Inequity and Human Rights; Environmental Health; Dynamics of Policy and Poverty; and Immigrant, Refugee and Displacement Health. OHSU's Global Health Alliance is hosting the Conference on February 17 - 19, 2006, at OHSU. Continuing nursing and medical education credit will be offered. Registration can be accessed online at www.ohsu.edu/som/gha/conference.htm.

Portland Monthly's "Best Doctors"

Once again, SOM faculty was very well represented in Portland Monthly magazine's listing of the Portland area's best doctors. Among those noted were many of our department chairs. Warmest congratulations to Dr. Jeff Kirsch (anesthesiology), also recognized as one of the top 5 doctors in Portland; Dr. Dennis Bourdette (neurology); Dr. Kim Burchiel (neurosurgery); Dr. Joanna Cain (OB/GYN); Dr. John Hunter (surgery); Dr. George Keepers (psychiatry); Dr. John Saultz (family medicine); Dr. Stacy Nicholson (pediatric hematology/oncology); Dr. David Wilson (ophthalmology); Dr. Mark Richardson (pediatric otolaryngology); and Dr. Jung Yoo (orthopedics). Dr. Jeff Kirsch (anesthesiology), Dr. Jim Reuler (VAMC internist), and Dr. Jack McAnulty (former OHSU cardiologist) were recognized as the top 5 doctors as rated by their peers. The School of Medicine is proud of the recognition provided to these academic leaders and many others who practice, previously practiced or were trained at OHSU. Our providers are clearly held in high esteem by the larger community of Portland providers.

SOM Titles

There has been some confusion regarding the prescribed titles within the SOM. Our tradition and policy establish SOM titles as Institute Director, Department Chair, Division Head, and Section Chief. The 2006 orientation program for new SOM Chairs/Heads was held this month.

High Praise for GME

Donald E. Girard, M.D., Director of Graduate Medical Education, has received notice of continued accreditation and high praise for GME from the Institutional Review Committee (IRC) of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. The IRC noted " . . . the vigorous and well-supported effort to improve the quality and effectiveness of institutional oversight of GME" and commended OHSU GME on the best practices it reported, especially "The Competent Physician," a web-based education tool. The next IRC site visit will be in fall 2010.

Scholars in Medical Spanish

Scholars in Medical Spanish is a three-level course providing a fast-paced approach to Spanish language for physicians. The course's objective is to provide enough medical terminology for the physician to conduct a patient interview without needing an interpreter. This fall five first-year medical students received certification as medical interpreters: Darin Jurgensmeier, Jenny Semadeni Malcolm, Jesse Madden, Amara Sheppard, and Benjamin Wetzel.

Faculty Awards & Appointments

• David J. Wilson, M.D., has been named Chair, Department of Ophthalmology, associate director of the Casey Eye Institute, and the Theil Petti chair in Ophthalmology. Dr. Wilson will have overall responsibility for the Department of Ophthalmology and will provide the institutional leadership and the clinical and academic expertise to continue building a program of national prominence. Dr. Wilson has been recognized nationally for his accomplishments in eye pathology and retina and vitreous disease. Dr. Wilson is renowned in ophthalmologic research and has published widely, particularly in the areas of the pathology of the eye, clinicopathologic correction of ocular disease, macular degeneration and surgery, and ocular oncology. As chair of ophthalmology, Dr. Wilson will limit his practice to ocular oncology.


• Andrew N. Nemecek, M.D., has joined the Department of Neurological Surgery, Spine Service. Dr. Nemecek specializes in spinal surgery and will be an integral member of Oregon's first state-of-the-art, multidisciplinary Spine Center in the Center for Health and Healing. Dr. Nemecek will continue clinical research into cerebrospinal trauma and outcomes of degenerative spine disease.


• Cynthia Morris, Ph.D., has been appointed as ORPRN's new Research Director. ORPRN, established in 2002 with support from the Oregon Opportunity and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, joins rural clinicians and academic researchers together to conduct primary care practice-based research. ORPRN is one of only six rural primary care research networks in the U.S. Dr. Morris, an epidemiologist, is currently Professor and Vice Chair of Medical Informatics and Clinical Epidemiology, with joint appointments in the Departments of Medicine and Public Health and Preventive Medicine. She also serves as Assistant Dean of Admissions in the School of Medicine.


• Linda Ganzini, M.D., M.P.H., professor of psychiatry and head of geriatric psychiatry, has received the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine's 2005 Research Award, presented annually to one outstanding researcher in the field of psychosomatic medicine. Dr. Ganzini is director of the Geriatric Psychiatry Fellowship Program and is senior scholar for the Center for Ethics in Health Care. She is director of the Interprofessional Fellowship Program in Palliative Care and a staff psychiatrist for the Consult-Liaison Psychiatry Service and Outpatient Mental Health at the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center.


• Donald Trunkey, M.D., professor and past chairman of the Department of Surgery, has received the highest honor awarded by the American College of Surgeons (ACS): the 2005 Distinguished Service Award. The award recognizes Dr. Trunkey's dedicated service as a fellow of the College, his service on ACS committees, his unselfish dedication to the surgical profession, and his distinctive service to the surgical community through membership and participation in numerous surgical and trauma societies on the local, state and regional level.