NewsLink, Feb. 12, 2021
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Coronavirus Information

Weekend vaccination success!

More than 2,500 COVID-19 vaccines were administered last weekend alone through Baylor College of Medicine's vaccine clinic on the 12th floor of Baylor Clinic and through a collaboration of Baylor and St. Luke's Health at the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center on the McNair Campus. More will be vaccinated this weekend. These 'Super Saturday' vaccine clinics involve staff from across Baylor and St. Luke's, including physicians, nurses, medical assistants, front desk personnel and others. As vaccination efforts continue, here are a couple of important reminders:

• There is interest from Baylor employees on vaccine availability for their family members; however, at this time Baylor College of Medicine is vaccinating only employees and our patients who meet 1A and 1B criteria from the state of Texas. If you are an employee with a family member who meets that criteria and is an established Baylor Medicine patient, they may request a vaccination appointment through My Chart.
  
• If you have received your first vaccine dose, you will receive your second dose from the same vaccine manufacturer and from the same provider of the first.

Awards and Recognitions

Heslop to deliver honorary lecture

Dr. Helen Heslop, director of the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy and interim director of the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, will give the Mortimer M. Bortin Lecture at the virtual Transplantation and Cellular Therapy Meetings today, Feb. 12. She will discuss T cell immunotherapy via native and chimeric receptors. In addition, she was named a 2021 Fellow of the American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (ASTCT). She earned the designation for serving as the society's president from 2008-2009 and in recognition of service and dedication to the specialty of transplantation and cellular therapy.

Rosen honored by dermatology academy

Dr. Ted Rosen, professor and vice chair of dermatology, has received the 2021 Presidential Citation Award from the American Academy of Dermatology. The prestigious award recognizes his commitment and service to the field of dermatology and to the Academy. Read more about Rosen in this Growing Up Baylor feature on Baylor's Momentum blog.

Thompson appointed to breast surgery task force

Dr. Alastair Thompson, professor of surgery and chief of the section of breast surgery, was elected for a three-year period as the co-chair of the Breast Oncology Local Disease (BOLD) Task Force of the National Cancer Institute Breast Cancer Steering Committee. BOLD was established to provide input prior to review by the steering committee into concepts for studies of localized breast cancer treated with surgery or radiation therapy.

Center for Professionalism honored

The Center for Professionalism has received the 2020 Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society Professionalism Award. This one-time award of $10,000 recognizes faculty, programs and institutions with the best practices in medical professionalism education. The center, under the leadership of director Dr. Ellen Friedman, professor of otolaryngology, supports Baylor's commitment to professionalism through its speaker series, recognition and award program, mini grants and more.

TRISH renewal announced

The Translational Research Institute for Space Health received a six-year extension of its funding from NASA. Valued up to $135 million, the award runs through fiscal year 2028. TRISH, led by the Center for Space Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, heads a national program in cutting-edge research delivering disruptive solutions to mitigate biomedical risks for human space exploration. Dr. Dorit Donoviel is the institute director, and Dr. Jeffrey Sutton is chair of the institute's board of directors.

BSLMC named 'Top Teaching Hospital'

Baylor St. Luke's was listed among the 2020 Top Hospitals by the Leapfrog Group, earning recognition as the Top Teaching Hospital. The Leapfrog Group is an independent national watchdog organization of employers and others focused on healthcare safety and quality. Congratulations to Baylor faculty and staff who helped earn this recognition for our partner hospital.

Events

Black History Month

Visit the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion website for a list of events during Black History Month. In addition, follow Baylor's science blog, From the Labs, throughout the month as it features Q&As with some of Baylor's inspiring Black scientists.

DocTalk on emotional intelligence

DocTalk continues Tuesday, Feb. 16, noon – 1 p.m., with Dr. Ellen Friedman, director of the Center for Professionalism, giving a talk on emotional intelligence. DocTalk is a series of lunchtime talks on a variety of healthcare topics; BCM BeWell points available. Attend by Zoom (Passcode: 966433).

Encore presentation: Moral resilience in a pandemic

The Center for Professionalism is offering an encore presentation of "Cultivating Compassion with Wisdom: The Continuum of Moral Distress to Moral Resilience in a Pandemic," by Dr. Tessy Thomas of Geisinger Medical Center, Feb. 16, 5 – 6 p.m. by Zoom (Passcode: 096639). This was presented earlier this month at Medicine Grand Rounds.

QI training session

Faculty and staff interested in quality improvement are invited to attend "Using Statistical Process Control Charts for Healthcare Improvement," Tuesday, Feb. 23, 4 – 5:30 p.m., presented by Dr. Molly Horstman, assistant professor of medicine - health services research. The Zoom training session is offered by the Institute for Continuing and Professional Development in Quality Improvement and Patient Safety. Learn more and register.

Patient safety volunteers needed

Physicians and advanced practice providers are invited to participate in the interprofessional Patient Safety IPE event Feb. 25 via Zoom. Volunteers will serve as facilitators for small groups of medical, nursing and pharmacy students to work through a near-miss patient safety case. For more information, please see Faculty Opportunities online.

Call for submissions: Health equity summit

Baylor's Center of Excellence in Health Equity, Research and Training, part of the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, will host its fourth annual research summit this May and currently is accepting conference session and abstract proposals. Session proposals should be connected to the conference theme "Strengthening Our Commitment to Racial and Social Justice to Improve Public Health"; abstract submissions should highlight innovative research in health equity or disparities. Email Ayesha Young at HealthEquity@bcm.edu for questions about the event or calls for proposals.

College News

'Winter is coming'

College leadership is monitoring the weather forecast for early next week for the possibilty of snow, sleet or freezing precipitation. Be sure to pay attention to messages about the status of the College on the Intranet and through the Emergency Notification System, if necessary.

Hamstra to lead radiation oncology

Dr. Daniel Hamstra will join Baylor College of Medicine later this year as professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology. He will serve as the radiation oncology lead at the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center and Radiation Oncology Service Line Chief for St. Luke's Health – Texas Division. Hamstra specializes in prostate cancer and tumors of the brain and spine with a particular focus on understanding patients' experience both during and after treatment.

LCME mock site visit

In preparation for Baylor College of Medicine fall 2021 LCME site visit (Sept. 26-29), consultants will be virtually visiting Baylor from Feb. 28 - March 2 to conduct a mock site visit. This visit is meant to mirror the actual site visit as closely as possible and to prepare students, residents, staff and faculty for what to expect during the fall site visit. Find more information online about the mock, including the schedule.

Disclose outside financial interests by March 31

The College's annual disclosure of outside financial interests will open Monday, Feb. 15, and close March 31. Complete the process online by disclosing all your 2020 outside financial interests, confirming or updating previously entered 2020 outside interests, and attesting that your disclosure is complete and accurate. Resources can be found on the Compliance DOI Intranet page. New this year, Texas Children's Hospital-based personnel can complete one form in the DOI Tool. Questions? Email compliance@bcm.edu.

BeWell news: New resources

BeWell is introducing a buddy program to enhance social wellness and assist participants with reaching their goals. In addition, BCM BeWell is now offering one-on-one consultations where participants can ask questions, discuss personal wellness plans and more. Learn more about these and other resources available through BCM BeWell in 2021. Questions? Email wellness@bcm.edu.

IT news: Skype for Business discontinuing

Microsoft is retiring Skype for Business instant messaging and presence application at the end of July. It's being replaced by Microsoft Teams, which can do everything Skype does and more, and is available to use now. For additional information on how to use Teams, please visit the IT Portal on the Microsoft Teams page. Training sessions will be announced soon.

Faculty in the News

Baylor experts weigh in on the latest pandemic developments. Check out this and Baylor's other news media mentions in this week's Faculty in the News, and follow BCMHouston_News on Twitter to keep up with our experts in the media. Interested in science news? Read the latest in From the Labs.

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