NewsLink, Dec. 4, 2020
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Coronavirus & Flu Information

Pandemic positives? Share for end-of-year video!

2020 was challenging, but it wasn’t all bad! Please share something positive from 2020 by video – this could be professional or personal, such as how you've adapted to the pandemic in the workplace, what you have learned about yourself or your colleagues, or milestones such as a new baby, house or pet. Your videos may be featured in BCM's end-of-year video. Please follow the tips below, then submit the video using this form by Dec. 18.

• Film yourself using a webcam, mobile phone or tablet. Videos should be no longer than 10 seconds.
  
• Film horizontally. When possible, film in a bright, quiet space with no background noise or echo.
• No patients or patient information may be visible.
• See more tips on filming.

Study on impact of COVID

Participants are sought for a study to understand the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on health and well-being, led by Dr. Hoda Badr, associate professor of medicine - epidemiology and population sciences. To participate, complete this online survey. The 30-minute, confidential survey includes questions on protection measures and how the pandemic has affected your daily life, health behaviors and mental health.

Awards and Recognitions

Lingappan receives two NIH grants

Dr. Krithika Lingappan, associate professor of pediatrics – neonatology, received a four-year NIH R01 grant for her project "Leveraging multiomics and advanced mouse models to delineate mechanisms underlying sex‐specific differences in recovery and repair after neonatal hyperoxia exposure in the developing lung." She also received a two-year R21 grant for her project "Sex as biological variable in Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia: Role of the Notch pathway."

Mani elected to AAAS

Dr. Shailaja Mani, associate professor of molecular and cellular biology, recently was elected as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in the Section on Agriculture, Food and Renewable Resources. She was one of 489 new members recognized for their contributions to science and technology during the AAAS Annual Meeting.

Tcharmtchi named to critical care credentials committee

Dr. M. Hossein Tcharmtchi, associate professor of pediatrics – critical care, was appointed to serve as a member of the American College of Critical Care Medicine Credentials Committee. He will serve a two-year term starting in January 2021 on the committee, which is charged with reviewing and analyzing ACCM fellowship applications.

Zuniga-Sanchez honored as underrepresented scientist

Dr. Elizabeth Zuniga-Sanchez, assistant professor of ophthalmology, is the inaugural recipient of the Genentech Career Development Award for Underrepresented Minority Emerging Vision Scientists from the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology. The two-year, $100,000 grant supports novel and innovative research projects. Zuniga-Sanchez's work focuses on identifying key factors that guide wiring of photoreceptors to their respective synaptic targets, information that is critical for developing new forms of therapies to treat patients with retinal diseases. She will work with ARVO mentors to guide her research project. Zuniga-Sanchez is the daughter of Mexican immigrants who worked as farm laborers, and is an advocate for advancing underrepresented students in science.

Grant supports IDD Research Center

The Eunice Kennedy Shriver Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center at Baylor has received a grant from the NIH. The $6.4 million five-year competitive grant was awarded to center director, Dr. Huda Zoghbi, professor at Baylor, director of the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator; and co-directors Dr. David Nelson and Dr. Rodney Samaco, both with Baylor and the NRI.

Events

School of Health Professions commencement

The School of Health Professions virtual commencement ceremony is Saturday, Dec. 5. The event will include 39 graduates from the Physician Assistant Program, 16 from the Doctor of Nursing Practice Program – Nurse Anesthesia, and 22 from the Orthotic and Prosthetics Program. Tune in to the virtual event. Congratulations to all our graduates!

Upcoming autism study events

• The SPARK for Autism study at Baylor and Texas Children’s will host two upcoming webinars. On Dec. 5, 10 – 11:30 p.m., learn about the process of developing and implementing behavior contacts, a useful tool to help improve behaviors for children with autism. On Dec. 11, noon – 1 p.m., Dr. Eric Storch, professor and vice chair of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, will discuss anxiety, treatment and coping strategies during COVID-19. Register here for Dec. 5 and here for Dec. 11 to receive Zoom info.
  
• The SPARK team will join Sensory Friendly Day at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, Dec. 7, to offer information on their autism study. Learn more.

Lunch webinars on space health

The Translational Research Institute for Space Health, part of the Center for Space Medicine, will host a lunch webinar series Dec. 7 – 11 on topics including deep-space health dangers and the institute's boundary-challenging research and technologies. Learn more and register.

Center for Medical Ethics & Health Policy events

• Join Bioethics Grand Rounds on Dec. 9, at 5 p.m., for a presentation on "Health Disparities in Pain Management Care and Research," by Dr. Ezekiel Fink, medical director of pain management at Houston Methodist. Access via Zoom; to register dial 713-798-9666 and enter event ID 974 3701 7486.
  
• Dr. Amy McGuire, director of the Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy, will speak at NODE.Health Digital Medicine Conference, Dec. 10, 2:15 – 3 p.m., on the role of digital ethics. The conference will feature five days of virtual content from leading experts highlighting evidence, innovation and COVID-related information. To attend at a 30% discount, email Clarice Jacobson.

College News

Share your holiday spirit!

Snap a photo of your office, lab or clinic ready for the holidays and email to Anna Kiappes by Friday, Dec. 18, by 2 p.m. Working from home? Send in a photo of your decorated home office! Please include names and departments. Photos will be shared on Baylor's social media accounts the week of Dec. 21. Follow Baylor on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to see the photos!

Urgent care by telehealth

Baylor Medicine's new service, Telehealth 24/7, is ready to handle urgent healthcare needs! Board-certified emergency medicine physicians are available for issues such as allergies, cold and flu, COVID-19, pink eye, skin rash, urinary tract infections and more. Visit the Telehealth 24/7 healthcare page for more information and instructions on logging in and starting a visit from your desktop, laptop or mobile device.

LCME monthly newsletter

The School of Medicine's December LCME Newsletter features recent subcommittee work and an overview of Element 12.1 – Financial Aid/Debt Management Counseling/Student Educational Debt, Element 12.2 – Tuition Refund Policy. Read the December issue.

HR news: Use or lose FSA funds

If you participate in a healthcare or dependent care Flexible Spending Account plan, you must use your funds by Dec. 31. Learn more.

IT news: MFA via text

If you have recently purchased a new mobile phone or upgraded your current phone, you will need to re-enroll in Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). Using the new SMS texting capability is a great way to do this! You can use the SMS functionality to receive a token to connect via VPN, then you can re-enroll your new device in MFA. To learn more about MFA via SMS texting, please visit the how-to setup guide, and to learn more about enrolling your new device in MFA, please visit the MFA Guide. Both of these guides can be found on the IT Service Portal.

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.

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