NewsLink, Nov. 13, 2020
Please submit items for the weekly NewsLink to Dana Benson.

Archive / BCM Family / BCM News on Twitter

Coronavirus & Flu Information

COVID-19 trial enrolling

A Baylor College of Medicine clinical trial testing the effectiveness of a tuberculosis vaccine against COVID-19 is now open to the general public. The study testing the BCG vaccine in healthcare workers began in May. The BCG vaccine has been proven to increase boost the immune response against other viruses. Anyone interested in participating should email Andrew Dinardo, Sharon Harrison and Zoe Spieler.

Awards and Recognitions

Keswani named chief of pediatric surgery

Dr. Sundeep Keswani, professor and chief of the division of pediatric surgery at Baylor College of Medicine, has been named chief of pediatric surgery in the Department of Surgery at Texas Children's Hospital. Keswani brings experience leading surgical and research teams and international professional organizations combined with his enthusiasm for innovative patient care.

Roth to participate in AMA initiative

Dr. Christine Roth, professor of pathology & immunology, was accepted to the 2020-21 Health Systems Science Scholars Program, an initiative of the American Medical Association Accelerating Change in Medical Education Consortium. Program participants will engage with peers and national experts in health systems science who will serve as mentors over a yearlong period.

Medical student Wong named to AMA position

Third-year medical student Christopher Wong was elected by the American Medical Association Medical Student Section to a delegate position in the AMA Physician House of Delegates, the AMA's primary policymaking body. Wong will work alongside more than 400 physicians to determine the AMA's national and state advocacy agenda on issues such as COVID-19 relief, expansion of health coverage and medical education. He will represent nearly 2,000 medical students from the region.

Grant supports TB program in Africa

The Global TB Program at Baylor and Texas Children's Hospital, headed by Dr. Anna Maria Mandalakas, recently received a five-year, $5 million grant from the CDC for its project "Closing TB Gaps for People Living with HIV: TB Guidance for Adaptable Patient-centered Services." TB GAPs will concentrate in five high-tuberculosis, high-HIV sub-Saharan African countries, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Tanzania and Uganda. World TB Day was commemorated earlier this week, a reminder of the impact of this disease. Learn more about the Baylor and Texas Children's TB program.

Events

Sale on BCM merch!

Get started on your holiday shopping (or just treat yourself!) with 30% off at the BCM Team Shop through Wednesday, Nov. 18. While you're browsing for gifts and merchandise, be sure to sign up for emails about future sales and special promotions.

CVRI Seminar Series

The CVRI Seminar Series continues on Wednesday, Nov. 18, at noon, with a talk on "A Deeply Conserved Gene Regulatory Network Organizes Vertebrate Hearth Rhythm," by Dr. Vasanth Vedantham of the University of California, San Francisco. Zoom ID: 99120766001; passcode: 597875, or for a calendar invitation with Zoom details, email cvri@bcm.edu.

Bioethics Grand Rounds: care for undocumented patients

Join Bioethics Grand Rounds Nov. 18, 5 p.m., with a presentation on "To All My Fellow Human Beings: Providing Care for Undocumented Patients," by Dr. Timothy Callaghan of Texas A&M University; and Mark Easterly, J.D., and Dr. Benjamin Saldana, of Houston Methodist. Access via Zoom; to register for CME credit, dial 713-798-9666 and enter event ID: 935 5891 17171. Jointly sponsored by Baylor's Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy.

College News

MFA token by text message

BCM now offers a new option for delivery of Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) tokens via text message (SMS) for signing into MFA-enabled applications and services. This is in addition to the existing options of the Google Authenticator app-based soft token or a physical hard token. The new option may be especially helpful for users who purchase a new phone – use your temporary token delivered via text message to sign in to apps and services, then register for a permanent MFA token. To learn more and sign up, visit our how-to setup guide, or visit the IT Service Portal and search for "SMS."

LCME monthly newsletter

The School of Medicine's November LCME Newsletter features recent subcommittee work and an overview of Element 12.3—Personal Counseling/Well-Being Programs, Element 12.4 — Student Access to Health Care Services and Element 12.8—Student Exposure Policies/Procedures. Read the November issue.

Faculty award nominations open

Nominations are open for the College's annual peer-reviewed faculty awards, including the Barbara and Corbin J. Robertson Jr. Presidential Award for Excellence in Education, the Clark Faculty Service Award, clinical excellence awards, and others, See the Office of Faculty Development website for the full list of awards and nomination deadlines.

Faculty in the News

Check out Baylor's news media mentions, including extensive COVID-19 coverage, 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.

Follow BCM