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Caduceus
Newsletter: Summer 2008.04 – August
2008 Dr.
Stan Eisen, Director Home
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Caduceus
Newsletter Archives: |
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Table of Contents: |
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1. Beginning with
the 2009 application year, the |
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Hello, Beginning with the 2009 application year, the James
H. Quillen College of Medicine of AMCAS Letters is a centralized service that enables
medical schools to receive all letters of recommendation/evaluation
electronically via the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS),
and enables applicants to have their authors send all letters of
recommendation/evaluation to be considered by schools participating in this
service to AMCAS rather than to each school. Advisors can forward letters or
evaluation/recommendation to AMCAS in one of the following ways: - VirtualEvals (VE): VE is available to members
of the National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions
(NAAHP). If you are a VE user, make note of the requesting student’s
AAMC ID and AMCAS Letter ID included in the AMCAS letter request form and
upload your letter(s) to VE. - AMCAS Letter Writer Application: This
application enables letter writers to upload documents securely to AMCAS
rather than send letters via the mail. If you are interested in this
option, and can upload a PDF version of your letter, make note of the requesting
applicant’s AAMC ID and AMCAS Letter ID included in the AMCAS letter request
form and go to (URL anticipated to be available in late fall). - Interfolio: AMCAS can receive letters sent to
Interfolio if the student requesting this letter is an Interfolio user or
your institution/organization uses Interfolio to deliver letters of
evaluation/recommendation. - Mail your letter: If you select this option,
please attach form (provided to you by the applicant) to your letter(s) and
mail to: o AMCAS,
attn: Please let me know if you have any questions. Sincerely, Stephanie Cole,
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2. VMCAS ( |
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KEY UPDATES 1)
VMCAS 2)
VMSAR 3)
General Announcements 1) The
VMCAS Web Application for 2009 Matriculation Is Now Available! The VMCAS
Web Application for 2009 matriculation is now available at www.aavmc.org.
Applicants can now create an account to receive their VMCAS ID. After
creating an account, students can register their evaluators for the online
evaluation process. Once an evaluator is registered, the evaluator will
automatically receive an email with details on how to access the eLOR system. If you are interested in viewing the application for informational purposes, please contact me for instructions on how to create a special account. Please send your request to me at vmcas@aavmc.org. The
application deadline this year is noon eastern daylight time on Thursday,
October 2nd, 2008. The VMCAS
website contains complete details about the application process to colleges
of veterinary medicine: ·
Application instructions ·
Application Tips ·
Sample application ·
Details on each member college, including
prerequisites ·
College Comparison Chart ·
Instructions for the easy-to-use online
letters of evaluation system (e-LOR) As a
reminder, please be sure to direct any questions or concerns you receive regarding
the application process to the VMCAS toll-free Student and Advisor Hotline at
1 877 862 2740 or to vmcas@aavmc.org. 2) VMSAR
2008 Additionally, in this
year’s edition, you will find a section highlighting application and
enrollment statistics. Applications by Residency, Age Distribution,
Gender Distribution, and Ethnicity Distribution are just a few of the tables
included in this section of the VMSAR. For more information and
purchasing instructions on the VMSAR please visit: http://www.aavmc.org/vmcas/VMSAR_publications.htm.
3) General
Announcements
Advisor
Portal Lookout for
information coming soon on the advisor portal that will be launched this
year. This portal will allow advisors to track the status of their
applicants. Best Regards, Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) 202 682 0750 xt 21 202 682 1122 (fax) |
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3. An invitation to the 4th Annual
Naturopathic Medical Student Association Conference: Celebrating Collaboration in Healthcare,
Sunday, August 17, 2008, in |
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4. An
example of research in alternative medicine, appearing in the July issue
of Mayo Clinic Proceedings. (Thanks to
Barbara Huntington, PHP Director at SDSU, for sending me this.) |
Lowering Blood Cholesterol With Fish Oil And Red Yeast Rice Instead Of Statins— A great deal of scientific evidence shows that cholesterol-reducing
medications known as statins can help prevent coronary artery disease.
Although the safety of these medications has been well documented, as many as
40 percent of patients who receive a prescription for statins take the drug
for less than one year. |
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5. If
you are applying to veterinary school, here are some updates regarding
policies pertaining to evaluations |
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Electronic Evaluations: |
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6. ====
AAMC STAT ====, News from the Association of American Medical Colleges,
July 21, 2008 edition. |
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== AAMC commends Congress for overriding Medicare veto == Testing groups express concern about amendments
to == AAMC, associations comment on dual-use oversight framework == AAAS seeks nominees for scientific freedom award == Nominations open for biomedical ethics award == On the move ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ AAMC commends Congress for overriding Medicare veto Last week, Congress overrode President Bush's veto of the "Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008," thereby securing 18 months of AAMC-supported Medicare physician payment relief. The new law averts immediate reductions in Medicare physician payments by extending, through Dec. 31, the 0.5 percent payment increase that expired this month and by establishing a 1.1 percent increase for next year. In a statement applauding members of Congress for their action, AAMC President and CEO Darrell G. Kirch, M.D., said, "We hope legislators realize that temporarily adjusting physician payments, without attending to broader issues, could have a devastating effect on the millions of Medicare patients who count on the nation's 100,000 teaching physicians for routine care, as well as services unavailable elsewhere in their communities." Information: Go to http://www.aamc.org/newsroom/pressrel/2008/080717.htm ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Testing groups express concern about amendments to The AAMC joined seven standardized testing organizations in a joint letter to Congress expressing concern about proposed legislation to amend the "American Disabilities Act" ( definition of "disability," which the U.S. Supreme Court has narrowed through a variety of court decisions
since the 1990 introduction of the testing organizations note that the proposed amendments would have unintended and negative consequences on groups that rely on standardized tests, on higher education, and on the public. The letter notes that a change in the qualifications for special testing accommodations "raise three main areas of concern: score comparability, fairness, and issues of public health and welfare." The ADA Amendments Act was passed by the House of Representatives; similar legislation is under discussion in the Senate. Information: Go to http://www.aamc.org/advocacy/library/educ/corres/2008/071408.pdf
and http://www.aamc.org/advocacy/library/educ/corres/2008/071408s.pdf ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ AAMC, associations comment on dual-use oversight framework The AAMC and five other higher education and science associations have submitted written comments to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on a proposed framework for oversight of "dual-use" biological research--research that could be misused to harm society. The oversight framework is a product of the National Science Advisory Board on Biosecurity, which last year submitted the draft document to HHS and the Bush administration for review. The associations' comment letter urges the administration not to develop regulation or guidance until several aspects of the framework, including provisions affecting university obligations under an oversight system, can be better defined. The letter recommends continued communication with the scientific community, as well as public education on the issue to help develop better consensus on what constitutes dual-use research and the precautions needed to minimize risk of misuse. The proposed framework remains under review by HHS, with input from other agencies, including the White House Homeland Security Council. The comment letter, led by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, was endorsed by the AAMC, the Association of American Universities, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Council on Governmental Relations, and the National Association of Colleges. Information: Go to http://www.aamc.org/advocacy/library/research/corres/2008/071508.pdf ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ AAAS seeks nominees for scientific freedom award Individuals and associations that have been frontrunners in ensuring the continuation of scientific freedom are eligible to be nominated for the Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Award. Given by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the award is bestowed upon those who act to protect the welfare of the public, participate in the formulation and/or discussion of public policy, inform the public of the impact of scientific and technological innovations, and defend the rights of scientific researchers and engineers. The recipient will be honored at the AAAS annual meeting in are due Sept. 1. Information: Go to http://www.aaas.org/aboutaaas/awards/freedom/index.shtml ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Nominations open for biomedical ethics award Nominations are currently being accepted for the Patricia Price Browne Prize in Biomedical Ethics. The award was created in 2003 as a tribute to Browne, who dedicated much of her life to improving the health care of women and children and upholding ethical standards. Ideal candidates should be committed to improving biomedical ethics through service and/or contribution and serve as a role model or thought leader for addressing and improving these issues in health care. The bi-annual award of $10,000 is funded by the Patricia Price Browne Distinguished Chair and the Children's Medical Research Institute and is administered by the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine. Nominations are due Oct. 1. Information: Go to http://pediatrics.ouhsc.edu/ppb ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ On the move Keith A. Joiner, M.D., M.P.H., has stepped down as dean of the University of return to his faculty position as professor of medicine, public health, and cell biology and anatomy. He will also direct the state-wide Health Research Steve Goldschmid, M.D., has been appointed interim dean of the University of Arizona College of Medicine campus in department of medicine. William F. Bina III, M.D., M.P.H., has been appointed interim dean of the department of community medicine. Martin L. Dalton, Jr., M.D., dean of the medical school since 2005, retired on July 1. Kenneth P. Kates has been named associate vice president and chief executive officer of University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, effective Sept. 15, pending approval by the board of regents. He is currently a health care consultant. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Academic Medicine Online "Educators' need to turn nearly every dimension of medical education into a competency is an ill-advised leap that transforms a complex educational mission into a bottom-line venture," writes Delese Wear, Ph.D., of competency movement in medical education. Dr. Wear argues that more humanistic educational models, like some of those highlighted in this month's issue of Academic Medicine, have more potential to develop knowledgeable, empathic physicians than do models that focus too heavily on competency measures. |
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7. Applicants
to |
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8. An
interesting glimpse at health care in other countries. |
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From a contributor to the
HLTHPROF listserv: NPR did a series on health care in other countries and I recently found it on the web. It would a fairly quick way for students to see a piece of the international health care scene. The link is below. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=91972152 |
Dr. Stan Eisen,
650
E-mail: seisen@cbu.edu
http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/
Caduceus Newsletter Archives: http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/Caduceus.html