Medical Education Center Update
A Teacher's Eye View of Our New Classrooms from Senior Vice Dean Gail Morrison, M'71, FEL'76
A decade ago we devised a new concept for medical education. This fall, I, along with other faculty members and our students, had the pleasure to use for the first time high-tech classrooms designed specifically to fit this vision.
The reaction? Overwhelming enthusiasm.
In the eight redesigned rooms, students gather in groups of six or seven in front of large screens controlled by computer keyboards. With a list of symptoms, the students call up EKG graphs, tissue samples, and 3D videos of organs; in a few more clicks, they gain access to the Internet and the latest journal articles.
During the classes I taught, students freely tossed out questions and discussed hypotheses. I was free to move from group to group, and join in the conversation to offer guidance. It was fantastic to see how much this new environment energized the way students learn - and instructors teach.
Neal Rubinstein, M'73, GR'75, who teaches anatomy, biology and physiology, recently described for me an advantage I heard time and again last semester: "Learning in small groups makes students think; they're not just absorbing what someone else tells them." Small-group settings also allow students to teach each other - a true indication of competence and confidence.
Words fail to convey the truly revolutionary feel of these new classrooms, so I invite all of you attending Medical Alumni Weekend May 11-13 to join me for a demonstration to see for yourself. I guarantee you will be amazed.
In the next few years, we hope to double the number of high-tech classrooms as part of a renovation that will transform Stemmler Hall and Johnson Pavilion. The new center will include a reinvented library, student lounges, small group study areas, and a conference area for large lectures and CME courses – all changes that will allow us to continue fulfilling our mission of advancing medical education.
In the months ahead, you will hear more about the Medical Education Center and the need for alumni support. The excitement surrounding the new classrooms is just the beginning.
Coming to Penn this February
Ivor Royston, M.D., San Diego Academic Physician, Entrepreneur, and Venture Capitalist to Speak as the 2012 Mitchell J. Blutt, M.D., Visiting Professor
As early as the age of 14, Ivor Royston announced his intention to work to cure cancer. That quest drove him to study medicine and begin his career as an oncologist at the newly opened University of California, San Diego Cancer Center. One notable example of his forward thinking is that he was one of the first oncologists to use monoclonal antibodies to treat cancer patients. Eventually becoming a leader in academic medicine, Dr. Royston was the founding president and CEO (1990-2000) of the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center in San Diego. In 1997, he was appointed by President Clinton to a six-year term on the National Cancer Advisory Board.
Following his passion, he continually and exponentially increased his impact, leading to significant contributions in founding the biotech industry in San Diego, one of the top biotech hubs in the nation.
Dr. Royston, PAR'13, will speak at Penn as the Mitchell J. Blutt, M.D., Visiting Professor on Thursday, February 9, 2012. His talk, "Fostering Medical Innovation: Reflections from an Academic Physician, Entrepreneur, and Venture Capitalist," is expected to cover the ways that, when rooted in a focused passion, various ingredients such as intellectual rigor and curiosity, financial acumen, and a physical and collegial environment conducive to collaboration combine to tremendously increase the impact of a single person.
"There are three types of people in the world," according to Dr. Royston. "Those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who ask: 'What happened?' Life is much more fulfilling if you are of the first type." It certainly appears that he walks his talk.
Today Dr. Royston is a founding managing partner of Forward Ventures, a venture capital firm that invests in companies poised to achieve breakthrough medical treatments. In addition, he is also passionate about theatre and is a trustee of the La Jolla Playhouse, one of the top regional non-profit theatres and, as a producer of the Broadway musical Jersey Boys, he won a 2006 Tony Award.
"Dr. Royston is exactly the kind of speaker I envisioned when we created this visiting professorship," said Penn alumnus and Trustee Mitchell J. Blutt, M.D., C'78, M'82, WG'87. Dr Blutt established the Mitchell J. Blutt, M.D. Visiting Professorship in Entrepreneurism and Medicine in 2006. One of the first physicians to play a prominent role on Wall Street, he is founder and CEO of Consonance Capital, a healthcare investment firm based in New York City. He is also an accomplished singer-songwriter.
Notably, Dr. Royston is not the only successful entrepreneur in his family. His son, Aaron Royston, MS3, WG'13, co-created a business and related phone app, both named Sportaneous, allowing people in New York and San Diego to find pick-up athletic games in their areas. For his work, Aaron received a "Champions of Change" award from the White House. Dr. Royston and his wife Colette are pleased that their son is taking advantage of Penn's rich heritage of innovation as a student in the Wharton School as well as the Perelman School of Medicine.
All are welcome to attend Dr. Royston's 1 pm lecture and 2:30 pm reception at the Translational Research Building Rubenstein Auditorium & Commons, 3400 Civic Center Boulevard. To register, click here.
Helping Children Orphaned by AIDS Calls This Penn Medicine Family to Action
Caring for the orphans of the AIDS pandemic is one of the greatest challenges facing sub-Saharan Africa today. South Africa alone, with a total population of 50 million, is home to nearly 4 million orphans, about 20% of the nation's children.
One Penn Medicine family is rallying support for thousands of South African children and their communities through Nurturing Orphans of AIDS for Humanity (NOAH).
Duncan Mackay, MS2, began his involvement by fundraising for NOAH as a high school student. His family was from South Africa, where he had lived until the age of 7, and he was largely motivated by the desire to support his uncle Dr. Greg Ash, who co-founded NOAH in 2000. That small-scale participation changed when Duncan returned to South Africa as a college junior to spend two and a half months studying NOAH's effectiveness firsthand.
"It was tough seeing villages where there was no assistance," he said. "Once you see the difference you can make – how can you stop?"
Duncan saw families where one grandmother or aunt or uncle cared for 10 children, in a one-room hut with a mud floor, and not enough to eat. And he saw that the approach taken by NOAH created real change.
Building on the strongly held South African concept of ubuntu, or "caring for one another," NOAH supports the extended family networks and community alliances already looking after orphaned children. NOAH's priorities are to provide food, security, home visits, referrals for medical services, bereavement counseling, and other assistance.
Because many NOAH volunteers are women who live in the community, the organization knows who is in need and can intervene effectively. Over time, some NOAH networks, or ARKs, have become self-sustaining. NOAH would like to see as many communities as possible become self-reliant.
Duncan's research showed that children in communities assisted through NOAH greatly improved in physical, educational, and developmental health. "It was amazing to see these kids laughing and playing," he said. "That's what our help and donations are going toward."
Duncan's research has helped NOAH secure additional funding. To do more, he and his mother Susan Mackay, who is Dr. Ash's sister, co-founded Friends of NOAH in 2010 to raise funds for NOAH in the U.S. Duncan has helped the organization with infrastructure and is pleased that since gaining 501c3 status this summer they have already funded an ARK, which cares for about 400 children, and are working hard to meet their first year goal of funding a second ARK by August.
On Dec. 15, AIDS researchers and the Ultrasounds, Penn Medicine's a cappella group, joined the Mackays to raise awareness for the issue. Beatrice Hahn, MD, described current insights into the origin and spread of AIDS. Bette Korber, PhD, spoke on recent progress in developing a vaccine. The Ultrasounds honored South Africa's world famous a cappella tradition, performing "Siyahamba", a South African hymn.
Dr. Korber, a board member of Friends of NOAH, and Duncan described their experiences with NOAH. "I didn't want to just thank the volunteers who participate in AIDS research," said Dr. Korber. "I wanted to do something for them. When they die, they often leave behind lovely, vital children in a bind that makes them as vulnerable as you can get. That's how I got involved with NOAH."
So far, NOAH has helped 30,000 orphans in South Africa.
To learn more visit:
http://www.noahorphans.org To see the presentations by Drs. Hahn and Korber, and a presentation by Duncan on NOAH, click here.
See below for the Ultrasounds performance!
Save the Date
From the New Dean to Gabrielle Giffords' Neurosurgeon to Tomorrow's Medical Classroom: Medical Alumni Weekend 2012 offers something for everyone!
Looking for new ways to connect with your medical school friends? Then start planning for Medical Alumni Weekend May 11- 13, 2012!
Start your day with a delicious breakfast hosted by new Dean J. Larry Jameson. Let members of the Class of 1962 take you back in time as they reflect on the highlights of their 50 years in medicine. Hear Michael Lemole, M'95, discuss his experience treating U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords in the wake of last year's terrible tragedy in Arizona. Then step into the classroom of the future and see for yourself how current Perelman medical students excel using the latest technology. Whether you've been a doctor for 50 years or 5 minutes, we know this will be an exciting and new experience for you. Click here to view the schedule, and add Medical Alumni Weekend to your Google Calendar with the button below.
During the classes I taught, students freely tossed out questions and discussed hypotheses. I was free to move from group to group, and join in the conversation to offer guidance. It was fantastic to see how much this new environment energized the way students learn - and instructors teach.
Dr. Royston, PAR'13, will speak at Penn as the Mitchell J. Blutt, M.D., Visiting Professor on Thursday, February 9, 2012. His talk, "Fostering Medical Innovation: Reflections from an Academic Physician, Entrepreneur, and Venture Capitalist," is expected to cover the ways that, when rooted in a focused passion, various ingredients such as intellectual rigor and curiosity, financial acumen, and a physical and collegial environment conducive to collaboration combine to tremendously increase the impact of a single person.
Duncan saw families where one grandmother or aunt or uncle cared for 10 children, in a one-room hut with a mud floor, and not enough to eat. And he saw that the approach taken by NOAH created real change.
Duncan's research has helped NOAH secure additional funding. To do more, he and his mother Susan Mackay, who is Dr. Ash's sister, co-founded Friends of NOAH in 2010 to raise funds for NOAH in the U.S. Duncan has helped the organization with infrastructure and is pleased that since gaining 501c3 status this summer they have already funded an ARK, which cares for about 400 children, and are working hard to meet their first year goal of funding a second ARK by August.
