The University of Toledo will mark the historic inauguration of the University’s 17th President Sharon L. Gaber on Friday, Sept. 25.

The inauguration ceremony at 3 p.m. in Savage Arena will celebrate the University in the theme of “Tradition, Collaboration and Transformation.”

A processional will begin at 2:30 p.m. from the Student Union — or the Fetterman Training Center if it rains — to Savage Arena for the ceremony, which will be followed by a reception. The event is free and open to the public.

Gaber began her tenure as UT’s 17^th president on July 1. A city and regional planning expert, she came to the UT presidency following six years as provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Arkansas.

Earlier Friday morning, Gaber will serve as a panelist during an academic symposium at 10 a.m. in Doermann Theater.

Titled “Creating a Social Compact Between the City of Toledo and The University of Toledo: From Knowledge to Action,” other panel participants are:

•  Dr. Michael Dear, professor emeritus of city and regional planning at the University of California at Berkeley;

•  Dr. Kenneth Reardon, professor and director of the graduate program in urban planning and community development at the University of Massachusetts in Boston;

•  Dr. Neil Reid, director of the UT Jack Ford Urban Affairs Center and professor of geography and planning; and

•  John Jones, associate vice president with ProMedical who leads its Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

Dr. Patrick Lawrence, UT professor and chair in the Department of Geography and Planning, will be the moderator.

Throughout the week students, faculty, staff and community members will have the opportunity to sign in the Student Union a welcome banner for the President that will be presented to her by Student Government at the inauguration ceremony.

For more information, visit utoledo.edu/inauguration.

Media Coverage
The Blade (Sept. 21, 2015)
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The Independent Collegian (Sept. 26, 2015)
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The Blade (Sept. 26, 2015)
WTOL 11, NBC 24, 13 ABC and FOX Toledo (Sept. 28, 2015)

UT Health is offering a new service to help women better cope with their menopause symptoms.

The Menopause Clinic — the first in the area — will be every Wednesday from 1-5 p.m. in the Ruppert Health Center on the Health Science Campus beginning Oct. 14.

Dr. Lance Talmage and Dr. Terry Gibbs

Dr. Lance Talmage, professor and interim chair of the UT Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, is partnering with Dr. Terry Gibbs, a ProMedica OB-GYN with a faculty appointment at UT. Gibbs is certified through the North American Menopausal Society.

“We will be consulting with women to determine the best approach to curbing their menopause symptoms,” Talmage said. “We will look at hormonal therapies as well as non-hormonal therapies, prescription drugs and herbal options.”

While many patients will be referred to the clinic, women also can make an appointment on their own. For instance, menopause is a side effect of some cancer treatments so Talmage expects to get referrals from oncologists.

Gibbs said menopause becomes a quality of life issue for many women as they could experience low energy, sleep troubles or sexual difficulties. Some women don’t know that drinking hot coffee, smoking or drinking alcohol can exacerbate the symptoms. In some cases, menopause can trigger anxiety or feelings of sadness and loss.

“We will talk a lot about the management of all the menopause symptoms and discuss hereditary cancers that become more prevalent in middle age,” Gibbs said. “There are so many things that women don’t consider. They think, ‘I am done with kids; I don’t need to see a gynecologist.’ However, there is more of a reason to see a gynecologist at age 50 than at age 20.”

Talmage and Gibbs said they are seeing a cultural change with baby boomers; they do not want to just accept these symptoms as a part of life.

“There is less of a willingness to say, ‘This is the way it is. I am older and I have to deal with it.’ Women these days want to ‘fix’ their menopausal symptoms,” Talmage said.

Appointments at the Menopause Clinic will be 45 minutes each and involve a consultation, a physical exam and possible bone test scans, depending on the age of the patient. All patients will receive written literature to take home.

“One of my objectives is to make sure that UT residents are trained in menopausal health care,” Gibbs said. “Most residents get very little training on this topic, but it is something that virtually all doctors will come across during their practice.”

Gibbs said menopause consultation is a gap in care that needs to be filled.

“I think there are so many things in this field that are coming to the market every day. It is fast changing. There is so much research going on right now.”

Patients can make appointments by calling 419-383-3787. Insurance is expected to cover most visits.

Media Coverage
13 ABC (Sept. 17, 2015)
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Suffering from a headache is one of the most common ailments for people in the United States, which is leading health care providers to strive to stay on top of the latest in headache medicine.

Headache education will be furthered at the inaugural North Central Headache Society (NCHS) Conference, “Advances in Headache Medicine,” on Saturday, Sept. 19 at the Hilton Garden in Perrysburg.

Dr. Gretchen Tietjen

“Headaches are the No. 1 reason for referrals to neurologists and it is one of the most common complaints in the emergency room,” said Dr. Gretchen Tietjen, University of Toledo professor and chair of neurology and director of the UT Medical Center Stroke Program.

Tietjen, the host of the conference, will be among 11 headache experts from five of the states composing the NCHS, Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Kentucky and New York. About 100 physicians are expected to attend to further their knowledge and better treat patients.

“More than 70 percent of Americans seek medical attention for headaches at some point in their lives, and nearly 5 percent of the population have a near daily headache. Headache disorders account for 9 percent of lost labor in the United States,” Tietjen said. “This is an important topic to address because physicians from all specialties will encounter patients who have disabling headache complaints.”

The treatment of headaches and migraines can include medications, injections, supplements, lifestyle changes and behavioral therapies. Emerging treatments including neuromodulation and monoclonal antibodies will be discussed at the conference.

“Neuromodulation therapies involve electrical or magnetic stimulation,” Tietjen said. “Some devices are portable and offer benefit when used 20 minutes per day. Others are implantable and activated via remote control. For many headache sufferers, these may provide great benefit.”

Tietjen said monoclonal antibodies are another promising treatment option under investigation. The antibodies target calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) or its receptor. CGRP is elevated during migraine attacks and believed to provoke throbbing headache.

While the latest technologies hold a promise of relief for headache sufferers, Tietjen said the use of stress-reduction techniques are still an important part of her recommendations.

“Deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation and guided imagery are all ways that headaches can be minimized,” she said. “When it comes to headache and migraine relief, all evidence-based option should be considered.”

For more information, go to http://utole.do/fx.

Men must be proactive when it comes to surviving prostate cancer because symptoms are not always present.

Routine prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening is recommended for appropriately selected men, according to Dr. Samay Jain, UT assistant professor and chief of the Division of Urologic Oncology.

“Prostate cancer is usually advanced when men start to experience symptoms such as weight loss, back pain, blood in the urine and the inability to go the bathroom,” Jain said. “The hope is to find the cancer before it ever gets to that stage so that we can talk about a treatment and cure.”

Dr. Samay Jain

Jain will discuss prostate cancer screening and treatment options at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 17 in the Eleanor N. Dana Cancer Center at The University of Toledo Medical Center.

The free, public lecture is part of the Tie One On Awareness Lecture Series hosted by the Dana Cancer Center.

“We are going to discuss prostate cancer screening and treatment, really focusing on who we should be screening and who is appropriate to be treated because not all men need treatment for prostate cancer,” Jain said.

Every year, there are about 225,000 new diagnoses of prostate cancer. It is the second most common cancer death in men next to lung cancer and leads to upward of 30,000 deaths a year.

Jain said any man between the ages of 55 and 69 should be screened every other year. Men outside of that age range should discuss it with their physicians.

PSA is a protein produced by cells of the prostate gland. The PSA test measures the level of PSA in a man’s blood.

“If you have a first-degree relative with prostate cancer that will increase your risk of being diagnosed with prostate cancer,” Jain said. “That seems to be the only real proven risk factor, other than age. As you age, your risk of developing prostate cancer increases.”

Jain said prostate cancer is curable with a decrease in deaths in the past 10 years because of screening and early treatment.

“There is no known way to prevent prostate cancer, although healthy living is going to be what is best for you,” Jain said. “Do what is right for your heart, do what is right for your lungs. Let us worry about the prostate.”

Even though men are sometimes sensitive when it comes to talking about their genitals, Jain said this is no excuse to avoid getting a routine screening.

“The reality is that the prostate is a part of your body just like your heart is a part of your body,” he said. “We have to open the door and break down some of the barriers to discussing these type of topics.”

The Tie One On Cancer Awareness Lecture Series continues this fall. Upcoming Thursday lectures will be:

• Oct. 15 — Dr. Iman Mohamed, UT professor and chief of the Division of Hematology and Oncology, will discuss lymphedema.
• Nov. 19 — Dr. James Willey, lung cancer expert and UT professor of medicine, will present information on lung cancer.

Each person who attends the lecture will be entered into a drawing for tickets to an upcoming sporting event or a gift certificate for spa services. To reserve a spot, email christopher.kosinski@utoledo.edu.

The University of Toledo continues its efforts to recruit medical students from northwest Ohio with 25 percent of this year’s class from the region.

Dr. Christopher Cooper

Of the 177 students who started classes at the UT College of Medicine and Life Sciences in August, 131 students are from Ohio with 48 of them from northwest Ohio and 26 from Lucas County. In 2014, 30 students were from northwest Ohio and 16 from Lucas County.

“We are purposely and steadily increasing the number of local students that we recruit and, ultimately, accept into our medical school,” said Dr. Christopher Cooper, executive vice president for clinical affairs and dean of the College of Medicine and Life Sciences. “This is as good of a class as we have ever had, and one-fourth of them are from this area. We have to create opportunities for kids in northwest Ohio, and I believe we are doing that.”

Dr. David Pearson

The number of local students attending UT for medical school started to increase five years ago, according to Dr. David Pearson, assistant dean for medical school admissions.

“Ultimately, we want these students to consider practicing medicine in northwest Ohio, which is more likely because they already have roots to this region,” Pearson said.

This effort has been aided by recruitment efforts that include the Better Together Scholarship offered through UT and ProMedica, Pearson said. This $25,000 award per year is for permanent residents in the region who demonstrate intent to return to the region after they complete their medical training.

Motivating young people to stay in the region for their medical school and residency training also could help address our projected physician shortage as increased numbers of those new doctors then choose to practice here to care for our families and friends, Cooper said.

In 2013, Amanda Zakeri started medical school at UT. She graduated from Ottawa Hills High School and went on to earn her undergraduate degree from George Washington University in D.C.

“My family is from here so I thought it would be good to return,” Zakeri said. “It is a very collaborative environment. Every student wants every student to succeed. I wanted to be in an environment where people wanted to help each other.”

Media Coverage
13 ABC (Sept. 2, 2015)

Dr. Deepa Mukundan is expecting to see an uptick in requests for the meningococcal vaccine because of a new law in Ohio that requires the shot for schoolchildren.

The requirement won’t go into effect until the 2016-17 school year, but The University of Toledo Rocket Pediatrics pediatrician who specializes in infectious diseases recommends not waiting until then because meningitis is a deadly disease that parents need to take seriously.

Dr. Deepa Mukundan

“By the time the patient is diagnosed, it is usually too late,” Mukundan said. “If the patient does recover, the lasting effects are devastating. The patient could have brain damage, hearing loss or limb loss.”

Gov. John Kasich signed the bill into law in July. Parents who object to vaccines can opt out.

“I don’t recommend opting out because early diagnosis is nearly impossible with this disease,” Mukundan said. “While bacterial meningitis, the most serious form, can affect young children, it mostly festers in college dormitories as students share drinks, food and affection. You can hardly imagine the angst of a family who loses a kid who just moved away to college.”

Mukundan said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the vaccination to all students at ages 11 or 12, with a booster at 16. The Ohio Department of Health is likely to follow the same guidelines in response to the new law.

Ohio Sen. Cliff Hite sponsored the bill after losing his niece to bacterial meningitis, and Mukundan worked with him to advocate for the bill’s passage.

“Meningitis can quickly strike young victims and result in multiple amputations or death within hours,” Hite said. “Sadly, my family learned that the best treatment for meningitis is often prevention.”

Mukundan explained bacterial meningitis leads to the inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord. It’s difficult to diagnose and sometimes patients don’t even seek treatment because the symptoms of headache, fever and nausea mimic the common cold and flu.

About 74 percent of children nationwide have received at least one dose of the meningococcal vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Ohio, the vaccination rates will likely be much lower because only 69 percent of children are completely immunized by age 3. Mukundan said this percentage needs to be higher.

“The benefits of the vaccine far outweigh the risks and most people do understand it if they are properly educated about this life-saving preventative measure,” she said.

Media Coverage
FOX Toledo, NBC 24 and WTOL 11 (Sept. 1, 2015)
13 ABC (Sept. 2, 2015)

Back to school can mean back to stress for some students, according to a psychiatrist at The University of Toledo Medical Center.

The school year — as opposed to summer vacation — is ripe for stress and anxiety, said Dr. Theodor Rais, director of the child and adolescent psychiatry division at UTMC.

Dr. Theodor Rais

Parents need to try to continually communicate with their students, even those in college, if they want to stay on top of mental health issues that might arise during the school year, Rais said.

Students in high school are more likely to be bullied or worried about getting good grades, he said, while college students, especially first-year students, are adjusting to a new environment and being away from home for the first time.

Rais, who said his office sees an uptick in patients September through May, recommends giving your student advance notice before a visit to check in, that way you aren’t surprising them. Incorporating food into the conversation is also a tactic that works with many young people. It’s hard to turn down a free meal, he said.

Listening to your student is most important. Just let them talk, Rais said. Too often parents try to inject their opinions before hearing what their child has to say.

Parents should be concerned if their students are suddenly getting involved in high-risk behaviors like drinking or drugs.

“You have to be in tune with your child,” Rais said. “The golden principle is that you need to talk to your child. Most of the problems happen when the channels of communication get interrupted.”

Changes in eating or sleeping patterns also should be taken seriously.

“If you see something that is wrong, do not take any chances,” Rais said. “Even if you have the least degree of suspicion, you need to take your child in for an assessment.”

College can be particularly stressful because of the “imposter syndrome,” Rais said. Students at Ivy League schools, for instance, might think that they don’t belong feeling like they are there by luck and won’t be able to make it academically and socially, he said.

“My best advice is preserving the communication, which is made easier these days with texting, Skype and email,” Rais said. “Even though your students are striving for independence, they still need a family.”

To schedule an interview, contact Brandi Barhite at 419.383.5376 or brandi.barhite@utoledo.edu.

Media Coverage
WTOL 11 and FOX Toledo (Sept. 1, 2015)
The Independent Collegian (Sept. 2, 2015)

The University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences is pleased to announce a program that will add 35 community health workers to the region to connect patients with resources to help them obtain the care they need.

UT, through its Area Health Education Center (AHEC) program, received $458,000 from the Medicaid Technical Assistance and Policy Program (MEDTAPP) Healthcare Access Initiative (HCA) to provide scholarship stipends to allow community members to receive the appropriate training to become a community health worker.

Kathy Vasquez

“Community health workers are entry-level health practitioners who serve as a liaison between individuals and health care providers,” said grant administrator Kathy Vasquez, director of the UT and Ohio Statewide Area Health Education Center programs and UT’s associate vice president for government relations. “Community health workers go by many titles that include care coordinator, navigator or advocate. No matter what they are called, though, they are vital employees who connect individuals and families to health insurance, health information, food, housing, and transportation, so that those things do not keep them from obtaining the care they need.”

The AHEC Partnership for Community Health Workers program is a collaboration among UT’s AHEC program, the Hospital Council of Northwest Ohio/Northwest Ohio Pathways HUB, Mercy College of Ohio, North Central State College and Care Coordination Systems.

HCA is funded by MEDTAPP through the Ohio Department of Medicaid and administered by the Ohio Colleges of Medicine Government Resource Center (GRC). The MEDTAPP HCA supports the development, training and retention of health care practitioners to serve Ohio’s Medicaid population using emerging health care delivery models and evidenced-based practices.

Scholarship stipends, with commitment to serve Ohio’s Medicaid population, are available and will cover the full cost of the program being conducted by North Central State College. Partial coverage (up to $3,000) for those attending the program through Mercy College of Ohio in Toledo is also available.

Mercy College started a class on Aug. 15. North Central State College will offer a class at the Mansfield campus in August and another class at the UT Health Science Campus in early 2016.

The certification program will include classroom, laboratory, and clinical components designed to prepare students for work in many health care settings, including an ambulatory care center, a senior outreach program and a pregnancy center.

Coursework in the program entails medical terminology, cultural diversity, basic life support and first aid and community health specific topics such as advocacy, referral processes, documentation and skills to complete home visits. Practical experiences in community health settings also are part of the program.

Graduates of the program will receive assistance finding a job upon successful completion of the program and certification by the Ohio Board of Nursing. Employers also could be eligible for funds to assist with the cost of creating new community health worker positions and employing workers to fill those positions.

The Northwest Ohio Pathways HUB partners with organizations that hire community health workers. The HUB is focused on finding people at risk for poor health and identifying and reducing barriers to care by addressing social issues and measuring the results.

“Through the Northwest Ohio Pathways HUB, nonprofit organizations that hire community health workers can secure sustainable sources of funding for their care coordination program focused on addressing the social determinants of health,” said Jan Ruma, director of the Northwest Ohio Pathways HUB and vice president of the Hospital Council of Northwest Ohio.

According to national employment data, community health jobs are supposed to increase 21.8 percent through 2020. Annual salaries vary greatly based on the type of employer but average approximately $37,000.

“Community health workers are expected to be in demand in our area in the coming months and years,” said Cheri Nutter, dean of Innovative and Transitional Education at Mercy. “This certification program is helping Ohio create employees for the growing Medicaid population, and Mercy is glad to be partnering with The University of Toledo.”

Media Contacts:
Brandi Barhite                                    Chris Demko                                           Cheryl Nutter
The University of Toledo                      Northwest Ohio Pathways HUB                 Mercy College of Ohio
419.383.5376                                    419.842.0800                                         419.251.1519
brandi.barhite@utoledo.edu                cdemko@hcno.org                                   cheryl.nutter@mercycollege.edu

UT Health cardiologist Dr. Christopher Cooper will be collecting tips, not giving them, when he works as a celebrity waiter on Monday, Aug. 24.

Women’s Basketball Coach Tricia Cullop talked to customers at last year’s Celebrity Wait Night at Loma Linda.

Dr. Cooper, executive vice president for clinical affairs and dean of the College of Medicine and Life Sciences, will be among the celebrity wait staff raising money for the college’s Mundt Cardiology Endowment Fund from 5:30-9 p.m. at Loma Linda, 10400 Airport Highway, Swanton.

The University of Toledo Medical Center and the Mundt family are hosting “From the Heart,” which is the fifth annual celebrity wait event.

“It is an event we have been doing for five years. It has been very popular from the first year on and we have been very successful,” said Al Mundt, whose family owns Loma Linda.

Mundt had a heart transplant in 1998 at the former Medical College of Ohio.

“My heart was giving out; it was working only 12 percent,” he said. “I have had this new heart for 17 years and it has been going very well.”

Established in 2008, the endowment supports new and innovative programs such as the Left Ventricle Assist Device that will one day make heart transplantation again available in Toledo.

“All the tips raised by the celebrity waiters will go toward the fund,” said Laura Robinson, senior major gifts officer. “Every year, we are fortunate enough to raise $30,000 to $40,000 for this incredibly worthy cause. In addition, the patrons truly enjoy seeing their doctors and other UT staff as waiters. ”

Wait staff will include UT Women’s Basketball Coach Tricia Cullop and UT’s Men’s Basketball Coach Tod Kowalczyk. UTMC cardiologists Dr. Mark Bonnell, Dr. Mark Burket, Dr. Jeffrey Hammersley, Dr. Samer Khouri, Dr. George Moukarbel and Dr. Thomas Schwann will serve as celebrity waiters as well.

The evening will feature a raffle with a grand prize of $5,000. Tickets, which are $10 each, can be purchased at either Loma Linda or Ventura restaurants, or through Robinson or Felicia Guerrero.

Cooper hopes that the community comes out for a good cause — and a good meal.

“I love the food at Loma Linda’s, and my favorite is shrimp tacos,” he said.

For more information about the event and raffle tickets, contact Robinson at 419.383.6645 or laura.robinson@utoledo.edu.

The University of Toledo Medical Center is the only hospital in town offering an innovative non-invasive radiosurgery treatment option using the latest technology for patients battling cancer.

Dr. Krishna Reddy

Dr. Krishna Reddy, a radiation oncologist at UTMC, will discuss this cutting-edge technology at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 20 in the Eleanor N. Dana Cancer Center.

The free, public lecture is part of the Tie One On Awareness Lecture Series hosted by the Dana Cancer Center.

Reddy will discuss the “Edge” radiosurgery system, which can destroy tumors — smaller than half a centimeter — with high doses of focused radiation beams.

The new system, unveiled one year ago, is one of only five medical centers in the world to have the advanced technology.

Reddy said the high-dose radiation can target difficult-to-reach tumors, such as those in the brain, with better precision with radiation treatments that are 15 minutes, compared to one hour for other types of radiation therapy.

“The goal is to deliver a radiation dose that is high enough to kill the cancer while limiting exposure to surrounding healthy organs,” he said. “At the lecture, we will talk about situations where patients can benefit from this treatment.

“This is definitely something we take a lot of pride in offering at UTMC,” he said.

Unfortunately, patients don’t always receive information about these options because doctors are just learning about the high-tech possibility, he said.

“We are excited to spread the word to doctors and those people who could benefit from it,” Reddy said.

The Tie One On Cancer Awareness Lecture Series continues this fall. Upcoming Thursday lectures will be:

• Sept 17 — Dr. Samay Jain, UT assistant professor and chief of the Division of Urologic Oncology, will discuss prostate cancer.
• Oct. 15 — Dr. Iman Mohamed, UT professor and chief of the Division of Hematology and Oncology, will discuss lymphedema.

Each person who attends the lecture will be entered into a drawing for tickets to an upcoming sporting event or a gift certificate for spa services. To reserve a spot, email christopher.kosinski@utoledo.edu.

Media Coverage
The Blade (Aug. 17, 2015)
The Independent Collegian (Sept. 2, 2015)