Pediatric News
Updates from the Department of Pediatrics
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In This Issue
Medical Student Grants Program; Dr. McCulloh Named Distinguished Scientist;
Division Infographics: Child Health Policy & Emergency Medicine; Educational Support Grant; Anti-Racism Event;
Five Questions; Clothing Drive Update; Service Anniversaries; Upcoming Events
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Medical Student Grants Program Available |
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The Department of Pediatrics is excited to support medical students involved with pediatric research. UNMC medical students who are involved in pediatric research activities may apply for financial support to present at local, regional, national or international meetings. Eligible expenses include conference registration, transportation expenses, lodging and meals (reimbursed at per diem rate).
Students who have original work in basic science, clinical, translational, quality improvement or educational research accepted for presentation at local, regional, national or international meetings can apply for funding through the Department of Pediatrics.
Requirements:
- Requests for funding must be made 30 days prior to requested travel departure date.
- A brief letter of support from your faculty mentor must be submitted with your application.
- The scholarly work must be mentored/supervised by a faculty member of the Department of Pediatrics.
- The student must exhaust other sources of funding with their mentor prior to applying (i.e. faculty mentor funds, College of Medicine).
- The scholarly work must have been conducted, and the presentation must occur, while the student is enrolled at UNMC.
- The student must be the primary presenter at the conference.
- Only one student involved in the conference submission can receive support. (If two students co-author an accepted abstract, only one student can receive an award.)
- Only one award will be offered per student per academic year.
The maximum award is $1,000, and the award amount received will be based on merit. If expenses exceed the maximum award allowance, students are responsible for securing funding for their remaining expenses. If you have questions about applying for the Department of Pediatrics Medical Student Research Travel Grant, please contact Dani Wilson-Baxter.
The UNMC College of Medicine also has limited funding available (up to $1,500) to support extramural student presentations. Application form can be accessed here. Please email Kari Nelson for more details. |
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Dr. Russell McCulloh
Named Distinguished Scientist by UNMC
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Russell McCulloh, MD, chair of the Division of Hospital Medicine, was among 12 UNMC faculty members named a Distinguished Scientist by UNMC. Dr. McCulloh and the other honorees will be recognized during a virtual awards ceremony on Feb. 24 at 4:30 p.m. The Distinguished Scientist Award, which is sponsored by the chancellor, recognizes researchers who have been among the most productive scientists at UNMC during the past five years.
Congratulations to Dr. McCulloh!
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The Child Health Division includes CityMatCH, a national membership organization of city and county health departments' maternal and child health (MCH) programs and leaders representing urban communities in the United States. CityMatCH's mission is to strengthen public health leaders and organizations to promote equity and improve the health of urban women, families and communities. CityMatCH is grounded in the philosophy that all children and families deserve to be healthy and achieve their optimal growth and development in the physical, intellectual, social, emotional and spiritual aspects of their lives. The responsibility for assuring this is shared by each individual and their family, the community and government at the federal, state and local levels. Children and families in urban areas have unique needs and deserve special attention. These needs must be effectively addressed in order for all children, and ultimately our society, to achieve full potential. Local public health agencies are a critical component of the collaborative effort that is needed to improve the health of children and families in urban areas.
In addition to CityMatCH, our division includes three faculty members who conduct educational activities and research related to promoting health and advancing equity for children, families and public health agencies.
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“I have truly, truly enjoyed being on the CityMatCH Board and sharing this space with everyone. I’m incredibly grateful and honored for this opportunity. I have great respect and admiration for each and every one at CityMatCH and on the board. The maternal, child and adolescent health population is truly privileged to have such dedicated and passionate people tirelessly serve them across the U.S.”
CityMatCH Retiring Board Member
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The Pediatric Emergency Medicine division is a large group of physicians, APPs, RNs, paramedics and CNAs trained to treat pediatric emergencies. A staff of excellent social workers, case managers, interpreters, respiratory therapists, radiology technicians, phlebotomists, receptionists and many more make our complex department function. We serve a large catchment area, receiving patients from across Nebraska and several neighboring states. We are the only solely pediatric American College of Surgeons verified site for trauma in the region.
As we look to the future, we are growing our division and focusing on becoming a national leader in pediatric emergency medicine through expanded research efforts, multi-institutional collaboration and the creation of our own fellowship training program. Our goal is to provide state-of-the-art care now while developing the treatment strategies of tomorrow.
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Testimonials:
“The experience was phenomenal. From the time we walked in the door, my grandson was in the midst of a bad asthma attack, and the the entire staff was wonderful. I wish we had your doctors back in Boston. Everybody was remarkable.”
– Grandparent of patient
“I brought my daughter in with a fever and headache. Your provider did an amazing job with her. She took the time to to talk to us and made us feel at ease. You have a great staff!”
– Mother of patient
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You Can Now Apply
for an Educational Support Grants
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Grants are awarded to faculty to support the implementation of innovative educational programs. Grants are for one year and are awarded based on the benefit to medical students, the faculty member, and the College of Medicine.
The 2022 application period is January 17 - February 14.
Please visit the website to get more information and access the online application.
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Upcoming Opportunities:
Anti-Racism Community Events
The Nebraska Conference on Health Equity is a call to action on health equity in Nebraska. This conference will explore the ways that community connections and connectedness build healthier communities in Nebraska. The theme also allows us to better explore concepts that are intrinsically intertwined with connectedness such as racial injustice, mental health, health care policy and access, and so much more. Presenters will review local, regional, and national disparity data, share important tools and community resources, and provide strategies to improve awareness and outcomes. Participants will have the opportunity to learn about and strategize with experts to improve health outcomes for underserved communities in Nebraska. Register here.
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UNMC Black History Month Events
Click here to see a PDF with a schedule of Black History Month events scheduled throughout February. |
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This month we feature Gordon Still, MD, assistant professor, Division of Pediatric Pulmonology, and Joel White, PA, MHA, Academic Division Administrator.
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Dr. Gordon Still
What brought you to your given specialty/role?
I had exposure to the pediatric realm when I was young, with parents who both worked with children, so, after starting my medical career, the decision to choose pediatrics was fairly easy. The path towards my current sub-specialty was the result of a series of influential mentors.
What’s your favorite place in the world?
Right now, my favorite place is being with family and watching our new baby learn how to interact with the world. There’s nothing that brings me more joy than getting her to smile.
What are you a fan of or very interested in?
I enjoy travel, cultural experiences and trying new things, especially food. While planning is half the fun of travel, the other half is usually improvised.
Is there any medicine-based book, music or TV series or movie that you admire and would recommend to others? Or anything outside of the medical world that you recommend?
Book: Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
TV series: Scrubs
Movie: The Sea Inside
What was the most important lesson taught to you during your medical training?
Having self-confidence is the key to success, but equally important is having the courage to admit when you need help.
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What brought you to your given specialty/role?
I was drawn into healthcare administration because I enjoy the business side of medicine. I also believe a special level of insight, understanding and balance with regard to complex health issues is only available from medically educated leaders who have dedicated their careers to research and patient care. I was drawn to pediatrics, particularly, because of my very positive work experience I had as a Children’s employee in the late ‘90s.
What’s your favorite place in the world?
I love the mountains and winter sports. The Snowy Range Mountains in Wyoming offer some of the best snowmobiling, cross country skiing and snowshoeing around. It is an awesome way to see the mountains without a crowd!
What are you a fan of or very interested in?
I am very interested in woodworking and building projects. I did construction through school and enjoy working with my hands and meticulously finishing a project. I am currently finishing off my basement, and I’ll admit I do not watch sports on TV ever!
Is there any medicine-based book, music or TV series or movie that you admire and would recommend to others?
When I hear a student complain about their program difficulty, I recommend Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson story. It’s an incredible book about the determination and hard work of an inner city young man and the support of a parent (his mother). Because of his mother’s encouragement and his hard work, he became one of the world’s best pediatric neurosurgeons, saving countless lives. The story was also turned into a movie.
What was the most important lesson taught to you during your medical training?
The best individuals I worked with had a real compassion for their patients. They taught me to look beyond the illness being treated and to take a holistic approach as to why things are occurring repeatedly. When you take the time to consider everything a person is going through, you can sometimes break repetitive cycles of illness and really improve their quality of life.
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Winter Clothing Drive Update |
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Let it never be said that neither the Department of Pediatrics nor the Child Health Research Institute are stinting in their generosity. In addition to bringing in a few dozen coats, members of the department utilized the option to donate money to our winter clothing drive to the tune of about $1,000. Amazing. Jackie Ostronic will be using the donated funds to order requested items for our community partners, including more coats, feminine hygiene supplies, gloves and mittens, etc.
In one of our appeals for donations, we said that if we reached 50 coats by the end of the 2021, we would put together a basket of sundry items and gift it to a random member of the department. True to our word, we cobbled something together and chose a winner. Congratulations, Patti Jones! May you enjoy this truly random assemblage of prizes in good faith and good cheer. We will deliver your basket to you soon.
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Staff Milestones:
Recent Service Anniversaries
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Congratulations to those celebrating recent work anniversaries. We wish you all the best for continued success! |
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Upcoming Events:
CityMatCH 2022 Conference
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CityMatCH has begun planning the 2022 conference, which will be held Sept. 21-23, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. Abstracts will be accepted for submission beginning Feb. 1, 2022. More information will be added to the website as it becomes available: https://www.citymatch.org/conference/
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The Child Health Research Institute will be convening a Pediatric Academic Workshop with the theme “From Bench to Bedside to Bench” on Feb. 22. Speakers provide guidance on how to convert research ideas into reality, how to better connect clinical and bench science to impact patient care and how to benefit from mentorship from senior investigators to develop your own career path. Panel discussions are scheduled on the topics of Successful Collaboration Between Basic & Clinical Science and From Bench to Bedside to Market.
To complement the Pediatric Academic Workshop, Chester Koh, professor of Urology, Pediatrics and OB/GYN at Baylor College of Medicine and Balakrishna Haridas - director, BioInnovation Master’s of Engineering Program at Texas A&M University, will present on the Southwest National Pediatric Device Innovation Consortium (SWPDC). SWPDC is a an entity that provides assistance to developers of pediatric medical devices in the form of seed funding, consulting assistance, engineering and design assistance and other services.
Attendees can register to attend the complete workshop events or just the talk by Drs. Koh and Haridas. Please visit the Pediatric Academic Workshop webpage for complete agenda information and to access the registration links.
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University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics
982155 Nebraska Medicine
Omaha, NE 68198-2155
402-955-3933
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