NEOUCOM

MAGAZINE
VOL12.1
SPRING2009
A P U B L I C AT I O N O F T H E N O RT H E A S T E R N O H I O U N I V E R S I T I E S C O L L E G E S O F M E D I C I N E A N D P H A R M A C Y

THE BeST
KIND OOFF HOPE
THE BEST PRACTICES IN SCHIZOPHRENIA
TREATMENT CENTER ESTABLISHED AT
NEOUCOM THROUGH A $5 MILLION
GRANT FROM THE MARGARET CLARK
MORGAN FOUNDATION

NEOUCOM WELCOMES
NEW BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBERS 4
NEOUCOM ALUMNI HELP TO GIVE TRAUMA PATIENT
A FACE TO FACE THE WORLD
16
 Northeastern Ohio Universities
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
COLLEGES OF MEDICINE & PHARMACY

The Northeastern Ohio Universities

Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy
partner with The University of Akron,
Kent State University, Youngstown
State University, Cleveland State
University, 22 hospitals/health systems,
two health departments and associated
community pharmacies.
S S
WHAT’S NEW AT NEOUCOM?
NEOUCOM Magazine
is published twice a year by the I am often asked this question, and I always enjoy answering it. The specifics of my answers
Office of Public Relations and Marketing. vary, but I never lack for exciting news to share about the ways in which NEOUCOM is meeting
its mission to improve the health of the people of Ohio. Here are just a few examples:
NEOUCOM Board of Trustees
Steven P. Cress
We have a new board of trustees. I extend a warm welcome to the eight members of
Eric Kodish, M.D. (’86) the NEOUCOM Board of Trustees appointed by Gov. Ted Strickland. You can read about
Chander M. Kohli, M.D. our new trustees on pages 4 and 5. In the near future, this group will be joined by a ninth
Judith E. Barnes Lancaster, Esq.
trustee and two student trustees. I also express my gratitude for the tireless work and
Dianne M. Bitonte Miladore, M.D. (’81)
Anil M. Parikh, M.D., DFAPA dedication from every board of trustees member with whom I have been privileged to work.
Steven P. Schmidt, Ph.D. Their dedication, leadership and hard work have lead to many accomplishments, including
Gary S. Shamis, CPA, M.Acc. the creation of the College of Pharmacy, broadening of our research base and doubling the
Lois Margaret Nora, M.D., J.D.
size of campus.
President, Northeastern Ohio We have a new distinction as one of the Best Employers in Ohio. In our institutional
Universities Colleges of vision statement, one of the ways we define greatness is “being an outstanding place to learn
Medicine and Pharmacy
and work.” We recently learned – and celebrated – that NEOUCOM has been named one of
Dean, College of Medicine
the “Best Employers in Ohio.” The Best Employers in Ohio is a statewide program, and only ten
David D. Allen, R.Ph., Ph.D., FASHP organizations in each of two categories are selected for this recognition. Our status as a best
Dean, College of Pharmacy employer was determined through an extensive process, which included confidential surveys
completed by employees.
Lindsey Hugh Loftus
Vice President, Institutional Advancement We have a path-breaking new center designed to bring the best practices in
schizophrenia treatment directly to those who need them most – the patients themselves.
Mark Bosko The Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation of Hudson, Ohio, provided a $5 million grant to
Director of Public Relations and Marketing
Editor
establish the Best Practices in Schizophrenia Treatment Center (BeST Center) at NEOUCOM.
Our BeST Center is truly very special. It will make a tremendous difference in the lives of
Carole Harwood those with schizophrenia, their loved ones and our communities.
Coordinator of Public Relations
This issue of the NEOUCOM Magazine also includes considerable news about what is new
Associate Editor
with our alumni, from new babies to professional achievements. I hope you will enjoy reading
Vondea Sheaffer the feature stories about this year’s Distinguished Alumni Award recipient Dr. Gary L. Gorby (’83);
Contributing Writer, Alumni News Dr. Eric Kodish (’86) and Dr. Frank Papay (’84), members of the Cleveland Clinic team that
performed the nation’s first near-total face transplant; and Dr. William Ellert (‘91) and
Publication Design
L. Herbert Design Dr. Teri Sanor (‘06), who both received prestigious national recognition for their contributions
to medicine.
Northeastern Ohio Universities I hope that these stories will inspire you to drop us an e-mail at alumnioffice@neoucom.edu.
Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy
(NEOUCOM) is an equal opportunity
We’d love to hear what’s new with you.
educator and employer.
Sincerely,
Direct inquiries to:
NEOUCOM
Office of Public Relations and Marketing
4209 State Route 44, P.O. Box 95
Rootstown, Ohio 44272-0095 Lois Margaret Nora, M.D., J.D.
E-mail: publicrelations@neoucom.edu
President
©2009 NEOUCOM Dean, College of Medicine

NEOUCOMMAGAZINE

DEPARTMENTS
2 President’s Message
Lois Margaret Nora, M.D., J.D.,
president and dean for the College
of Medicine, welcomes new members
of the NEOUCOM Board of Trustees
and shares what’s new at NEOUCOM.
6 High Notes
NEOUCOM recognized diversity leadership
and employee service award recipients
and took part in the dedication of two
new facilities.
8 Educating, Researching
and Serving
NEOUCOM’s faculty members and
academic leaders are fulfilling the
institution’s tri-part mission of education,
research and service in the health
professions through significant leadership
roles and professional activities.
22 Every Gift Makes a Difference
Judith Wolf, M.D. (‘86), expresses
her gratitude and sustains her relationship
with NEOUCOM in many ways.
23 Alumni News
More than seven pages of news from
NEOUCOM alumni – our biggest
installment of alumni news to date!
30 Continuing Professional
Development
Learn about how gender differences
are being addressed in the curriculum,
how two departments have combined
resources for extra-strength education
and the schedule of classes for fall.
MAGAZINE
NEOUCOM
FEATURES
THE BeST KIND OF HOPE
Through a very generous $5 million grant from The
Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation of Hudson, Ohio,
the Best Practices in Schizophrenia Treatment Center
(BeST Center) was established at NEOUCOM. The BeST
Center’s mission is to make direct, immediate and
positive differences by identifying and implementing
best practices for treatment of one of the most severe
and devastating of all mental illnesses – schizophrenia
– and to bring these practices to those who need them
most, the patients themselves.
NEOUCOM WELCOMES NEW
BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBERS
Gov. Ted Strickland appointed eight new members of the
Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and
Pharmacy (NEOUCOM) Board of Trustees: Mr. Steve Cress,
Dr. Eric Kodish (’86), Dr. Chander Kohli, Judith Barnes
Lancaster, Dr. Dianne Bitonte Miladore (’81), Dr. Anil Parikh,
Dr. Steve Schmidt and Mr. Gary Shamis.
AT NEOUCOM, DIVERSITY IS EVERYONE’S JOB
Achieving equity in health care is a critical national need, and
one which NEOUCOM is addressing by adopting a new
organizational model that makes diversity everyone’s job.
A FACE TO FACE THE WORLD
Two NEOUCOM alumni, Eric Kodish, M.D. (‘86), and Frank
Papay, M.D. (’84), were members of the multi-disciplinary
team that performed the first near-total face transplant in the
United States at the Cleveland Clinic.
THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED
William A. Ellert, M.D. (’91), and Teri Rice Sanor, M.D. (’06),
received very prestigious national recognition this fall. Both
attended NEOUCOM while fulfilling life role not typical of
medical students: Ellert was a Franciscan brother and Sanor
was a grandmother. Both had wonderful role models who
inspired them to pursue their dreams of becoming physicians—
even if they had to take the road less traveled to do so.
ABOVE AND BEYOND – EVERY DAY
When Gary L. Gorby, M.D. (’83), gave his liver lobe to save
the life of a fellow doctor, no one who knew him was
particularly surprised. This act of going above and beyond was
another act of compassionate care in a series of many. Gorby
is the recipient of this year’s Distinguished Alumni Award.
SPRING2009 3
 NEOUCOM WELCOMES
NEW BOARD OF TRUSTEE MEMBERS
BY MARK BOSKO

Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland named the following members to the Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy Board of
Trustees, from left, Dr. Dianne Bitonte Miladore (’81), Dr. Chander M. Kohli, Atty. Judith E. Barnes Lancaster, Mr. Steven P. Cress, Dr. Steven P. Schmidt,
Mr. Gary S. Shamis, Dr. Eric Kodish (‘86) and Dr. Anil Parikh.
Gov. Strickland appointed the new board of trustees following his endorsement of House Bill 562, which also gained approval from Ohio Board
of Regents Chancellor Eric D. Fingerhut and the Ohio General Assembly.
“I thank Governor Strickland for the appointment of these accomplished individuals,” said Lois Margaret Nora, M.D., J.D., NEOUCOM
president and dean for the College of Medicine. “This diverse group represents people who not only have strong ties to NEOUCOM, but also bring
additional expertise and leadership in legal, financial, corporate and health care management – all of which are vital to the governance of the Colleges.”
“I also appreciate Chancellor Eric Fingerhut’s involvement in bringing these community leaders to the NEOUCOM Board. Their involvement in
our state and expertise across a broad range of areas will strengthen our institution and move us forward in new ways as we accomplish our mission
of improving the health of our region and state,” said Nora.
The Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy welcome trustees:

Steven P. Cress Eric Kodish, M.D. (’86)

Steven P. Cress Cress has served as president and CEO of Mid’s Pasta
Sauces in Navarre, Ohio, since 1997. Before that, Cress was president and
CEO of FinCom Corporation, a private equity merchant bank, president
of Unisource Grocery Supply and president and CEO of Service Packaging
Corporation. He served as chairperson of the NEOUCOM Board of
Trustees in 2008 and 2009, and is a member of the First Tee Program
Board of Directors in Akron. Cress is also a former board member of the
Kent State University Foundation, Inc. and the Kent State University
Alumni Association National Board of Directors. A graduate of Kent State
University and an active member of the golfing community in Ohio,
Cress works hard to support Kent State University’s collegiate golf efforts.
Kodish is the F. J. O’Neill Professor and chairman of the Department of
Bioethics at the Cleveland Clinic and professor of pediatrics at the Lerner
College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University. After fellowships
in pediatric hematology-oncology and medical ethics at the University of
Chicago, he joined the staff at Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital,
where he was the founding director of the Rainbow Center for Pediatric
Ethics. His areas of expertise include childhood cancer and blood diseases,
pediatric ethics, end-of-life issues and research ethics. He received the
NEOUCOM Distinguished Alumni Award in 2001. Kodish recently made
headlines as a member of the team that performed the country’s first
near-total face transplant surgery.

4 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE

Chander M. Kohli, M.D.
Kohli received premedical education from Hindu College, New Delhi, India,
and graduated from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi.
After serving in the armed forces of India as a general duty medical officer
for three years, he came to the United States in 1966 and began an internship
and surgical residency at the Elyria Memorial Hospital, Elyria, Ohio. He
performed neurosurgical residencies at the University Hospital, Edmonton,
Alberta, Canada, and Mercy Hospital, Pittsburgh, Pa. He has operated a
private neurosurgical practice in Youngstown, Ohio, since 1972. Kohli is a
Fellow of American College of Surgeons, Fellow of American College of
International Physicians, Director of Neurological Surgery at St. Elizabeth’s
Hospital, NEOUCOM clinical professor of neurological surgery and a
member of Congress of Neurological Surgeons. He is also a member of
American Medical Association, Ohio State Medical Association, Ohio State
Neurosurgical Society, Mahoning County Medical Society, Pain Section of
American Association of Neurological Surgeons, World Spine Society,
Indian Neurosurgical Society and the founding president of American
Association of Neurosurgeons from South East Asia.
Judith E. Barnes Lancaster, Esq.
Lancaster, an attorney serving as special counsel to the Ohio Attorney
General, practices law privately in Canton, Ohio, and is principal and
president of Global Management Group, Inc., a sports and entertainment
company. Lancaster received her B.S. degree from Kent State University and
a J.D. from The University of Akron School of Law. She served as a member
of the Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy
Foundation Board of Directors since 2004, and most recently, as its
president-elect. Lancaster is an active trustee of The University of Akron Law
Alumni Association, a member of the Walsh University Board of Directors,
a member of Kent State University’s Arts & Sciences Board, a member and
executive officer of the Board of Directors of Mercy Medical Center and
a member of the Canton Museum of Art. Her professional memberships
include the Ohio State Bar Association, the American Bar Association,
the Stark County Bar Association, and the Sports Lawyer’s Association.
She is active in number of community organizations, including The Links
Inc. In 2007, Lancaster created the Judith E. Barnes Lancaster Diversity
Student Scholarship for a deserving NEOUCOM student.
Dianne Bitonte Miladore, M.D. (’81)
Bitonte Miladore is a lifelong resident of the Youngstown area, who received
her B.S. degree Summa Cum Laude from Youngstown State University and
her M.D. as a member of NEOUCOM’s charter class. She completed
residencies in emergency medicine at Akron General Health System and
St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Toledo. She has worked as an emergency
room attending physician at The Medical College of Ohio at Toledo,
St. Elizabeth Health Center and Beeghly Urgent Care Center. Bitonte
Miladore has been very active with NEOUCOM, where she has served as a
clinical faculty member, and a member of the Admissions Committee, the
Academic Review Committee and the Clinical Competency Assessment
Medical Advisory Board. During 2008, Bitonte Miladore was the YSU
representative to the Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine
and Pharmacy Board of Trustees and served as chair of the Institutional
Advancement Committee. At Youngstown State University she is an active
member of the President’s Council, the College of Health and Human
Services Board of Visitors, the YSU Housing Corporation Board and the
Penguin Club serving, as its president in 1996-1997. Bitonte Miladore has
FEATURE
been a member of the YSU Board of Trustees, since her appointment by
Gov. Robert Taft in May 2005. As a member, she has been the chair of the
Academic and Student Affairs committees of the board.
Anil M. Parikh, M.D., DFAPA
Parikh received his premedical education at Jai Hind College, Bombay, India,
and graduated from Seth G.S. Medical College, Bombay, India. He followed
with an internship at K.E.M Hospital, Bombay, India, with residency training
at the Cleveland Clinic. He has operated a private practice in psychiatry in
Fairlawn, Ohio, since 1987. Parikh teaches psychiatry residents at Akron
General Health System and has given thousands of lectures around the
country to physicians, medical students, mental health professionals and
patients. He is board-certified in psychiatry, geriatric psychiatry, addiction
psychiatry, forensic psychiatry, pain management and psychosomatics.
Parikh is also a member of the American Psychiatric Association and
the Ohio Psychiatric Association.
Steven P. Schmidt, Ph.D.
Schmidt is the director of the Division of Surgical Research at Summa
Health System in Akron, Ohio. He came to Akron in 1978 after receiving his
Ph.D. from Idaho State University, and served as an assistant professor in the
Department of Biology at The University of Akron. In 1982 Dr. Schmidt was
recruited by William V. Sharp, M.D., to direct the Vascular Research
Laboratory in the Department of Surgery at Akron City Hospital. From 1982
to the present, the Vascular Research Lab has evolved into the Division of
Surgical Research, and it now supports the research needs of attending and
resident physicians within the Department of Surgery at Summa. Schmidt
currently serves as chair of Summa’s Trauma Research Committee. He is
also a member of Summa’s Medical Research Committee and Summa’s
Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. He is a founding member
and secretary/treasurer of the International Society for Applied
Cardiovascular Biology. He is also a NEOUCOM associate professor of
physiology and a member of the graduate faculties at Kent State University
and The University of Akron.
Gary S. Shamis, CPA, M.Acc.
Shamis is the firm managing director of SS&G Financial Services in
Cleveland, Ohio. He earned a B.S. degree in biology from Tulane University
and a M.Acc. from The Ohio State University. During his distinguished
career in the financial services profession, Shamis has served as an adviser to
firms in the CPA industry, including providing SEC testimony related to
Sarbanes-Oxley and practice management issues. He was named 2008
Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year (Northeast Ohio) in the financial
services category and named as one of Accounting Today’s most influential
people in the industry nine times. Shamis is a member of American Institute
of Certified Public Accountants and Ohio Society of Certified Public
Accountants. He is chairman emeritus of The Leading Edge Alliance and
founder of The Advisory Board. He serves as chairperson for the North
Coast Community Homes Board of Trustees, Hillel at Kent State University
Board of Directors and Cleveland Jewish News Board of Trustees. Shamis is
a past board member of the Anti-Defamation League, Jewish Community
Federation, Better Business Bureau, Montefiore Home and Cleveland
Museum of Art.
A ninth public member of the NEOUCOM Board of Trustees and two
student trustees will also be appointed.
SPRING2009 5
 NEOUCOM is Keeping the Dream Alive
HIGHNOTES
The Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy celebrated
NEOUCOM’s rich diversity, honored its outstanding award recipients and raised
support for student scholarships at its Fifth Annual Diversity Awards Luncheon,
“Keeping the Dream Alive,” which was held March 12 at NEOUCOM’s Ralph Regula
Conference Center. Proceeds from this event benefit student scholarships.
Radiation Oncology Physicians, LLC, was the visionary sponsor for the event. Mrs.
Olivia Demas and Mrs. Hortense Bobbitt served as honorary co-chairpersons. Alvin
Evans, associate vice president for human resources at Kent State University and  Diversity Leadership Award recipients Thomesha Smoot,
co-author of the award-winning book, Are the Walls Really Down? Behavioral and College of Medicine Class of 2009, recipient of the Rising
Star Student Achievement Award and Attorney Judith E.
Organizational Barriers to Faculty and Staff Diversity gave the keynote address. Barnes Lancaster, recipient of the Community-Based
Attorney Judith E. Barnes Lancaster of Canton, Ohio, received the Community- Diversity Partner Award.
Based Diversity Partner Award, and senior medical student Thomesha Smoot,
Special Thanks
of Akron, Ohio, was the recipient of the Rising Star Student Achievement Award. Diversity Leadership Award Sponsors:
“This award was presented in recognition of Judith Barnes Lancaster’s lifelong
commitment to education – a commitment that is evident by her own example, Visionary
her philanthropic leadership and her very generous volunteer service to a number Radiation Oncology Physicians, LLC
of educational organizations,” said Lois Margaret Nora, M.D., J.D., president and dean
Innovators
for the College of Medicine. “Most recently, she was appointed by Gov. Ted Strickland Cantine-Nora Family
as a member of the NEOUCOM Board of Trustees.” Dumas & Moyer/W3 Wealth Management
“Thomesha Smoot was one of five members of the Class of 2009 nominated Humility of Mary Health Partners
by NEOUCOM faculty for induction into the NEOUCOM Chapter of the Gold Summa Health System
Humanism Honor Society. The Gold Humanism Honor Society recognizes excellence Rajeev Venkayya, M.D. (’91), and the
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
in clinical care, leadership, compassion and dedication to service,” said Nora.
“In addition, Ms. Smoot’s clerkship directors say that her communication skills And thanks also to our many leadership,
and ability to gain the trust of her patients are among her special strengths.” legacy and patron sponsors.

James S. Tan, M.D., MACP, Honored With Memorial Conference Suite

The NEOUCOM community and family and friends of the late James S. Tan, M.D.,
MACP, dedicated the James S. Tan, M.D., MACP, Memorial Conference Suite on Oct. 2.
The suite is a permanent reminder of Dr. Tan’s outstanding contributions to NEOUCOM,
northeast Ohio and the profession of medicine. Dr. Tan was instrumental in the life of
every NEOUCOM graduate in his or her journey to becoming competent physicians;
he served the College of Medicine from its beginnings until he passed away in 2006.
Members of the NEOUCOM Student Council initiated a fund drive to create a
memorial on campus to honor Dr. Tan, and family, faculty, staff, students, alumni
and friends made memorial contributions.
 Mrs. June Tan, center, with her son, Dr. Michael Tan (‘99), at left, and daughter Dr. Stephanie Tan (‘94), at
right, at the dedication of the James S. Tan, M.D., MACP, Memorial Conference Suite.

A Presidential Search Web section is now active at www.neoucom.edu. This site Richard W. Lewis
provides information about the search process and allows for feedback from members Director, Governmental Relations
of the NEOUCOM community. We want to hear your thoughts on the challenges and Secretary, Board of Trustees
opportunities for the next leader of NEOUCOM and on the leadership qualities you
expect in your next leader. Please log on at www.neoucom.edu, and click the Kathleen C. Ruff
“Presidential Search” tab to submit your input toward this important search for the Vice President for Strategic Alliances
next leader of the Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy. Chief of Staff

6 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
 This section of the NEOUCOM Magazine is devoted to sharing news highlights from the
Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy (NEOUCOM).
To stay connected with daily news at NEOUCOM, please visit www.neoucom.edu

Community Health Center for Portage County’s Medically Underserved Opens

For nearly a decade, a dedicated group of individuals from NEOUCOM, Robinson
Memorial Hospital, Family & Community Services Inc. and the Portage County Board of
Commissioners have worked together with the hopes of establishing a federally qualified
community health center for the county’s medically underserved. Their diligence and their
efforts paid off, when the planning partners and the Portage County community celebrated
the opening of the Portage County Community Health Center.
Efforts to create this center received a significant boost in October 2006, when
an anonymous donor made a gift of $1.1 million to the NEOUCOM Foundation specifically
and exclusively for programs to help Portage County’s medically underserved. Recent
NEOUCOM graduating classes also made contributions to the fund for the medically
underserved as class gifts. These gifts were used to refurbish the facility on State Route 59
 Portage County Community Health Center in Kent, Ohio.
in Kent, Ohio, in which the new community health center is housed.
“Our anonymous donor is not here tonight, but he or she would be very pleased,” said Jay C. Williamson, M.D., associate dean for clinical
affairs, who represented NEOUCOM on the planning committee. “The Portage County Community Health Center provides exactly the kind
of services that the donor hoped his or her gift would make possible.”
The center provides diagnosis, treatment and preventive health services for adults and children, as well as a dental clinic and medication
access services. It is anticipated that 8,000 patients will be served during the center’s first year of operation.
The center will also serve as a major training site for NEOUCOM’s medical and pharmacy students.

Three employees were recognized for excellence at the Feb. 6 Annual

NEOUCOM Employee Service Recognized Employee Recognition and Awards Ceremony. From left, Clint W. Snyder Ph.D.,
associate dean for health professions education, recipient of the Olson/Blair
Award for Administrative Excellence; Michelle Mulhern, assistant to the
president and dean, recipient of the Community Service Award; and Lora K.
Nicholson, administrative coordinator for the Comparative Medicine Unit,

recipient of the 2009 Mary Jane Kelly Award for Staff Excellence.


Dr. Walter I. Horne,

director of the
Comparative Medicine
Unit, received the
President’s Award at the
Tenured Faculty Dinner
held in December 2008.


Ellen Whiting, director of

faculty development, at right,


received a Dean’s Award from Carol Elliott,

Dr. Lois Margaret Nora, coordinator of
president and dean for the faculty affairs, at
College of Medicine, at the right, was the
2008 College of Medicine recipient of a Dean’s
White Coat Ceremony. Award at the 2008
College of Medicine
White Coat
Ceremony.

SPRING2009 7
FEATURE

EDUCATING,
RESEARCHING AND SERVING
NEOUCOM’S FACULTY MEMBERS AND ACADEMIC LEADERS ARE FULFILLING THE
INSTITUTION’S TRI-PART MISSION THROUGH SIGNIFICANT LEADERSHIP ROLES
AND PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES.

Dr. Allen Chairs Council of Ohio Colleges of Pharmacy

David D. Allen, R.Ph., Ph.D., FASHP, dean and professor at the Northeastern Ohio Universities
College of Pharmacy, began a two-year term as chairman of the Council of Ohio Colleges of Pharmacy
July 1. The Council of Ohio Colleges of Pharmacy, the consortium of Ohio’s six colleges of pharmacy,
works with the pharmacists in Ohio through their various state and local associations in the planning
and implementation of activities related to the advancement of the profession of pharmacy in Ohio.
“I have enjoyed my affiliation with the Council of Ohio Colleges of Pharmacy very much, and I
look forward to continuing to work with colleagues from across the state to advance pharmacy and
pharmacy education in our state,” says Allen.

 Dr. David D. Allen Dr. Beeson Honored for Teaching

Michael S. Beeson, M.D., MBA, professor of emergency medicine, received the Accreditation
Council for Graduate Medical Education’s Parker J. Palmer Courage to Teach Award. The award, given
annually since 2001, honors Parker J. Palmer, Ph.D., a sociologist and educator who wrote The Courage
to Teach, a book of reflections on the intellectual, emotional and spiritual aspects of teaching. The
award recognizes innovative teaching in residency programs.
Beeson is also a member of the Emergency Medicine Residency Review Committee of the ACGME,
and chairman of the Initial Certification Task Force of the American Board of Emergency Medicine. In
2008, he was named Residency Director of the Year by the Emergency Medicine Residents Association.
He is president-elect of the Emergency Medicine Residency Directors’ Association.

Dr. Hull Annotates AMA’s Code of Medical Ethics

Sharon K. Hull, M.D., MPH, chairperson, Department of Behavioral and Community Health
 Dr. MIchael S. Beeson
Sciences, and associate professor of family medicine, served as an annotator for the Code of Medical
Ethics of the American Medical Association, Opinions and Annotations, 2008-2009 edition.
The Code of Medical Ethics has set the standard for practicing medicine ethically for more than 160
years. It is updated and revised biennially.
“I was amazed at the volume of medical ethics and legal scholarship that exists, particularly the
literature that pertains to end-of-life care and the ethics of the relationship between medical
professionals and the pharmaceutical industry,” says Hull. “I was also impressed by the extent to which
the Code of Medical Ethics is used by legal and ethical scholars as a foundation for their work.”
Hull, who was interim chair of the Department of Medical Humanities at Southern Illinois
University (SIU) School of Medicine before joining NEOUCOM in November 2007, worked with
colleagues in SIU’s schools of Medicine and Law to review medical and legal literature and create
annotations that cite references pertaining to each section of the code.
 Dr. Sharon K. Hull Hull is also president-elect of the Association for Prevention Teaching and Research.

8 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
Dr. Keck Honored by American Association of Public Health Physicians
C. William Keck, M.D., MPH, professor and chairperson emeritus of the Department of
Community Health Sciences, was one of four public health physicians from across the nation to be
honored at the American Association of Public Health Physicians’ national conference. Keck was
honored for creating a longstanding academic health department in conjunction with the university
when he served as the director of health for the City of Akron. It has been demonstrated that greater
coordination and synergy between local health departments, colleges of medicine and public health
and community partners can result in the development of “academic health departments.” AAPHP’s
vision is to create a network of teaching health departments across the country.

Dr. Van der Schyf Serves as Guest Editor for Neurotherapeutics  Dr. C. William Keck
Cornelis J. Van der Schyf, D.Sc., DTE, professor and chair of pharmaceutical sciences and professor
of neurobiology, and Professor Moussa Youdim from Israel (who developed the anti Parkinson’s drug
Azilect) served as guest editors of the January 2009 issue of Neurotherapeutics, the official journal of
the American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics. The journal delivers a multidisciplinary
perspective on the frontiers of translational neuroscience; provides perspectives on current research and
practice; and covers social and ethical as well as scientific issues. Each issue provides critical reviews
focused on a single important topic relating to the treatment of disorders of the nervous system, written
by international authorities. The topic for the January 2009 issue was “Multipotential Drugs.”
“The concept of multipotential drugs is a new paradigm in drug discovery that is quickly gaining
acceptance in treatment strategies for complex diseases such as neurodegenerative diseases and
cancer,” says Van der Schyf. In addition to serving as guest editor, Van der Schyf and several
collaborators, including Werner Geldenhuys, Ph.D., NEOUCOM assistant professor of pharmaceutical
sciences, contributed two reviews to this issue.  Dr. Cornelis J. Van der Schyf

Dr. Nora Is Chair-Elect, AAMC Council of Deans

Lois Margaret Nora, M.D., J.D., Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and
Pharmacy (NEOUCOM) president and dean for the College of Medicine, is chair-elect of the Council
of Deans of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and a member of the AAMC
Board of Directors for 2008-2009.
The AAMC’s Council of Deans is dedicated to the continuing improvement of the nation’s
medical schools. It addresses policies guiding the association in its service and advocacy functions;
programs for the advancement of institutional management; and support for the deans’ leadership
role in guiding individual schools toward excellence in medical education, research and patient care.
“Dr. Nora’s many contributions to academic medicine and her active involvement within the
AAMC’s Council of Deans have earned her widespread respect among academic leaders throughout  Dr. Lois Margaret Nora
the nation,” says John E. Prescott, M.D., chief academic officer, Association of American Medical
Colleges. “Her insights, experience and ability to think through and address challenging issues are
qualities that are welcomed by the AAMC’s Board of Directors.”
The AAMC represents all 130 accredited U.S. and 17 accredited Canadian medical schools; nearly
400 major teaching hospitals and health systems, including 68 Department of Veterans Affairs medical
centers; and nearly 90 academic and scientific societies. Through these institutions and organizations, the
AAMC represents 125,000 faculty members, 75,000 medical students and 106,000 resident physicians.

Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy congratulates the following
faculty members who received Ohio Magazine’s Excellence in Education Awards:
Nancy L. Gantt, M.D. Starla Glick Martinez, M.D. Elisabeth H. Young, M.D. (’85)
St. Elizabeth’s Hospital, Youngstown Akron Children’s Hospital NEOUCOM Director, Clinical Curriculum
Clinical Associate Professor of Surgery Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Professor of Internal Medicine
Clinical Curriculum Director for Surgery John Sutton, M.D. (’93)
Elaine Greifenstein, M.D. (’88), Aultman Hospital
NEOUCOM Course Director, Course Director, Longitudinal Course
Principles of Medicine for Medicine and Pharmacy
Clinical Associate Professor of Internal Medicine Associate Professor of Family Medicine

SPRING2009 9


Jonathan Edwards
Human Resources Recruiter
Gregory Freeman

Development Officer

Dawn Jenkins, Ph.D.
Assistant Director,
Diversity and Outreach

Tenille Kaus, J.D.
Assistant Director,
Diversity and Student Affairs
10 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
AT NEOUCOM,
DIVERSITY
IS EVERYONE’S JOB
There is considerable evidence that, from
cancer, heart disease and HIV/AIDS to diabetes
and mental health, African Americans,
Hispanic Americans and American Indians
frequently receive less and lower quality health
care than Caucasians. Despite efforts to reduce
disparities, significant inequities in health
status, health care and health outcomes persist
among members of America’s minority
populations.
A number of studies have been
commissioned to assess and analyze health
disparities, determine their causes and to
mitigate the disproportionate mortality and
morbidity rates suffered by America’s
minorities. Among these efforts was the
landmark 2002 study by the Institute of
Medicine, “Unequal Treatment: Confronting
Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care.”
In 2004, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s
Sullivan Commission on Diversity in the
Healthcare Workforce issued a report titled
“Missing Persons: Minorities in the Healthcare
Professions.” The Sullivan Commission
documented that while African-Americans,
Hispanic-Americans and American Indians
collectively make up more than 25 percent of
the U.S. population, individuals of these
backgrounds account for only six percent of the
nation’s physicians.
In 2007, only 14.8 percent of medical
school graduates were African-American,
Hispanic-American or Native American.
BY CAROLE HARWOOD
Because minority health care providers are
more likely to serve in minority and medically
underserved communities, increasing the
number of minority health care professionals is
a key strategy for reducing or eliminating health
disparities. But for this to happen, the culture of
health professions schools must change.
“We seek a community made up of
students, faculty and staff members who reflect
the diversity of our state and our region,
and we remain diligent in our efforts to
improve institutional diversity and cultural
competency,” says Lois Margaret Nora, M.D.,
J.D., NEOUCOM president and dean for the
College of Medicine. “We want to graduate
physicians and pharmacists who are prepared
to model our Five Cs—our core values of
competence, communication, caring, character
and community—with everyone with whom
they come in contact.
“To help us achieve our goals, we are
adopting a new, expanded model for diversity,”
continues Nora. “The new structure is a hybrid
of centralized and dispersed organizational
models, and we believe that this organizational
structure is well-suited to meet our goals.
“One of the key strengths of the new model
is that is makes diversity everyone’s job at
NEOUCOM,” Nora adds.
NEOUCOM’s new model for diversity has
two components: a centralized diversity
council and the addition of diversity
champions throughout the organization.
 Diversity Council
Members
Omowunmi Maureen Anibaba
Student Representative, College of
Pharmacy
The Diversity Council, which reports addition of a full-time development officer
directly to the president, is made up of faculty, who is focused on raising scholarships for Patrick Gallegos, Pharm.D.
staff and student members and recommends first-generation, underrepresented students Assistant Professor of Pharmacy
diversity initiatives and helps evaluate and veterans.
Mary Henefeld
progress. Marsha Mills, director of human “The rationale for increasing diversity at
General Manager,
resources, and Mark Penn, M.D., M.B.A, senior NEOUCOM and in the health care professions Conference Services
vice president for academic affairs and the is evident: The entire population will benefit
College of Medicine’s executive associate dean, from a workforce that is representative, culturally Michael G. Holder, M.D.
are council co-chairs. sensitive and focused on patient care,” says Nora. Associate Dean for Clinical Education
“To address national health care “And that is why diversity is Assistant Professor, Emergency
Medicine
disparities, health care must be provided by a everyone’s job at
well-trained, qualified and culturally NEOUCOM.” Assistant Professor, Pediatrics
competent health professions workforce that Akron Children’s Hospital
mirrors the diversity of the population it Walter E. Horton, Jr., Ph.D.
serves,” says Penn. Vice President for Research
In addition to the Diversity Council, new
Associate Dean for Graduate Studies
positions in human resources, development,
Professor of Anatomy
student affairs and admissions have been
added. “The individuals who hold these Stephen A. Jones
positions have specific diversity-related job Student Representative, College of
components. They work with their supervisors Medicine
to champion diversity, accomplish specific
Lindsey Loftus
activities and engage others in diversity
Vice President, Institutional
activities,” says Mills. Advancement
According to the Association of American
Medical Colleges, the cost of medical Marsha Mills
education is the number one reason why Director, Human Resources
qualified students of color chose not to apply Co-Chair, Diversity Council
to medical school.
Polly Moss
“The cost of a health professions education
Assistant Dean, Student Affairs and
has often put the dream of becoming a Admissions
physician or pharmacist beyond the reach of
too many underrepresented students,” says Mark A. Penn, M.D., MBA
Lindsey Loftus, vice president for institutional Senior Vice President for Academic
Affairs
advancement and executive director of the
Executive Associate Dean, College of
NEOUCOM Foundation. “We are very grateful Medicine
to those individuals and organizations that Co-Chair, Diversity Council
have created scholarships for underrepresented
NEOUCOM students, and we are committed Elizabeth E. Piatt, Ph.D.
to raising additional scholarships to help Assistant Professor, Community
Health Sciences
students achieve their goals.”
Through the InterUniversity Council’s Clint W. Snyder, Ph.D.
Ohio College Access Network (OCAN) and Associate Dean, Health Professions
Ohio Can! Go to College program, NEOUCOM Education
received a grant award that provides for the
Deborah Loyet
Coordinator, Academic Resources and
Budget/Division of Academic Affairs
Administrative Coordinator, Diversity
Council

SPRING2009 11
 BeST
THE
KIND OF HOPE
OO
D CENTER ESTABLISHED AT NEOUCOM THROUGH A $5 MILLION
RW
HA
L E
RO
CA
BY
 Dr. Lois Margaret Nora, NEOUCOM
president and dean for the College of
Medicine, and Dr. Mark R. Munetz,
The Margaret Clark Morgan Endowed
Chair in Psychiatry, unveil the sign
for the BeST Center at NEOUCOM.
 Rick Kellar, president of The Margaret
Clark Morgan Foundation, as he
announces that the foundation has
awarded $5 million to establish the
Best Practices in Schizophrenia
Treatment Center (BeST Center)
at NEOUCOM.
12 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
THE BEST PRACTICES IN SCHIZOPHRENIA TREATMENT
GRANT FROM THE MARGARET CLARK MORGAN FOUNDATION
A psychologist with schizophrenia.
A community philanthropist.
A psychiatric educator.
It may seem unlikely that this trio is linked by a common vision and a shared hope. But they are.
Their collective hope is to identify and implement best practices for the treatment of one of the
most severe and devastating of all mental illnesses – schizophrenia – and to bring these practices
to the people who need them most, the patients themselves.
When their paths converged, together they created something so tailor-made to fit the need
that it can be described as nothing short of remarkable.
The Best Practices in Schizophrenia Treatment Center (BeST Center) was established at the
Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy (NEOUCOM) through a very
generous $5 million grant from The Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation. The BeST Center’s mission
is to make direct, immediate and positive differences in the lives of patients with schizophrenia.
A Psychologist with Schizophrenia
Enemy spies were attempting to overtake the United States’ supply of atomic weapons. As part
of their plot, they had hypnotized American leaders…
In 1966, these were among the thoughts that consumed Frederick J. Frese III, then a 25-year-old
college graduate serving as a officer in the U.S. Marine Corps.
When the base’s psychiatrist learned that Frese was experiencing these thoughts, he had Frese
taken to a Bethesda, Md., naval hospital, where he spent the next five months taking prescribed
medication. The medication helped to quiet thoughts of atomic weapons and enemy spies.
Frese was hospitalized again a year later. This time he imagined he was inside an atom bomb
that was being loaded for use and thought he was “the instrument to usher in Armageddon.’’
For the year following the Armageddon episode, Frese wandered from place to place. In the
summer of 1968, he was picked up by law enforcement officers and held for three days in a state
mental hospital seclusion room. He describes these days as “utter rock bottom.” Frese was
diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia is a serious brain disorder that can cause hallucinations, delusions, impairments
in affect and motivation and deficits in neurocognitive functions that can be disabling.
Despite involuntary confinement in a mental health facility and a total of ten hospitalizations,
Frese has led an amazing life. He is married and the father of four children. He earned a graduate
degree in international business management and master’s and doctoral degrees in psychology
from Ohio University. He held a management position with a major corporation, and then became
the director of psychology for the Western Reserve Psychiatric Hospital in Sagamore Hills, Ohio,
a position he held until he retired in 1995.
 While Frese is quick to point out that his accomplishments are not all that unusual, and that
there are effective, evidence-based treatments that make meaningful recovery from schizophrenia
possible, many of those with loved ones with schizophrenia are astounded by Frese’s life story.
Their experiences are often that persons with schizophrenia are afraid, withdrawn and tormented
by inner thoughts and that their condition seems hopeless and requires a lifetime of custodial care.
Schizophrenia is poorly understood by the general public and the term is often misused in
ways that further cloud its understanding -- and keep people from knowing that schizophrenia
is highly treatable.
Frese has made more than 1,000 public appearances to educate the public about mental illness
and advocate for mental health consumers. He is also the director of the Summit County Recovery
Project, a program that helps recovering mental health consumers in the Akron, Ohio, area to find
jobs and fight discrimination. He serves in a number of significant leadership positions in mental
health organizations and is past president of the National Mental Health Consumers’ Association.
And he is an associate professor of psychiatry at NEOUCOM. As such, Frese teaches medical
students, residents, police officers and other professionals. He consistently receives very high
teaching evaluations, and students value his unique insights, candor and willingness to share
his knowledge and experiences.

A Community Philanthropist
Margaret Clark Morgan is a tiny woman with a strong sense of purpose. The founder of The
Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation in Hudson, Ohio, she is determined to make a very positive
difference in mental health practices in Northeast Ohio. Through her foundation, she is investing
in progressive organizations and innovative initiatives that raise the standards of prevention,
treatment and recovery of mental illness.
According to Rick Kellar, The Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation president, the foundation
 Mrs. Margaret Clark Morgan, center,
endeavors “to be a pathfinder.” Members of the foundation consult world-class mental health with her daughters, Suzanne Morgan,
experts and endeavor “to make a transformational impact on programs and people.” at right, and Dr. Mary Morgan Graves, at
left, at the special grant announcement.
In 2006, The Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation took a significant step to improve mental
health practices in northeast Ohio: The foundation partnered with NEOUCOM to establish
The Margaret Clark Morgan Endowed Chair in Psychiatry. The endowed chair, established through
a $2 million gift from the foundation, allowed NEOUCOM to recruit a talented psychiatrist and
educator to provide leadership for its psychiatric education programs.

A Psychiatric Leader
In 2007, Mark R. Munetz, M.D., a member of NEOUCOM’s Department of Psychiatry since
1991, was named NEOUCOM’s Margaret Clark Morgan Endowed Chair in Psychiatry. Munetz is
a practicing psychiatrist who has specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of severe mental
illnesses for many years. And he is a man on a mission.
Munetz’s mission: To bring practices that have been shown to work as effective schizophrenia
treatments to the patients who need them most.
 Dr. Mark R. Munetz, The Margaret Clark
Longitudinal studies indicate that when individuals with schizophrenia are treated with a Morgan Endowed Chair in Psychiatry,
combination of antipsychotic medications and psychosocial therapies, well over half make at NEOUCOM.
significant recoveries over the course of three or four decades.
Five evidence-based best practices have been identified by the Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as
necessary for successful treatment of schizophrenia: illness management and recovery, supported
employment, assertive community treatment teams, family psychoeducation and integrated dual
diagnosis treatment. In addition, the Schizophrenia Patient Outcomes Research Team (PORT),
a project supported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Agency for Healthcare

SPRING2009 13
 Research and Quality, issued updated evidence-based recommendations for the treatment of
schizophrenia in 2004. The PORT study made 20 recommendations, 14 of which pertained to
pharmacotherapy and six which involve psychosocial treatments.
“This research points to the effectiveness of treatment approaches that combine medications
with very specific psychosocial treatments,” says Munetz.
“The most significant advances in treatment lie in the increased options for pharmacotherapy,
“YET THE VAST with the introduction of second-generation antipsychotic medications, and greater confidence and
specificity in the application of psychosocial interventions, such as family education and support,
MAJORITY OF supported employment, assertive community treatment and skills training,” adds Munetz.
“When patients have access to these treatments, many of them experience significant relief
PEOPLE WITH from psychotic symptoms and improved opportunities to lead more fulfilling lives,” he continues.
“Yet the vast majority of people with schizophrenia do not have access to proven best practices.
SCHIZOPHRENIA DO Our goal is to change that.”

NOT HAVE ACCESS Moving in the BeST Direction

TO PROVEN BEST
PRACTICES. OUR
GOAL IS TO
CHANGE THAT.”
DR. MARK R. MUNETZ
 The Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation
President Rick Kellar, center, facilitates
a panel discussion, Moving in the BeST
Direction: An Incubator to Improve
Schizophrenia Treatment in
Northeastern Ohio. The conference
brought together the northeast Ohio
mental health community to learn
about evidence-based treatments for
schizophrenia that are being used
successfully in clinical communities
across the nation. Dr. Fred Frese is
on the right.
With the help of a $250,000 planning grant from The Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation,
Munetz and his northeast Ohio mental health colleagues developed a business plan to establish
the Best Practices in Schizophrenia Treatment Center (BeST Center) at NEOUCOM. The BeST
Center’s mission is to ensure that people with schizophrenia and related disorders receive the
state-of-the art, state-of-the-science treatments and therapies necessary to maximize their
ability to achieve recovery.
As part of the planning process, NEOUCOM’s Department of Psychiatry offered a conference,
Moving in the BeST Direction: An Incubator to Improve Schizophrenia Treatment in Northeastern
Ohio, in July 2008. The conference brought together the northeast Ohio mental health community
to learn about evidence-based schizophrenia treatments that are being used successfully in clinical
communities across the country. Such relevant and timely topics as adherence to medication
treatment in schizophrenia, evidence and implementation strategies for cognitive-behavioral
therapy for the medication-resistant symptoms of schizophrenia and emerging evidence-based
practices for treating posttraumatic stress disorder for patients with severe mental illnesses
were presented.
The conference concluded with a panel discussion,“Moving Northeast Ohio’s Mental Health
System in the BeST Direction.” During the panel discussion participants identified best treatment
practices that were either not being used, or were being underused, in northeast Ohio, and barriers
that impeded implementation of these treatments.
“The time between studies demonstrating the efficacy of an intervention or treatment program
and the time in which that intervention or program is routinely practiced in clinical settings is
often a generation – or sometimes longer,” says Munetz. “For example, the use of family
psychoeducation was demonstrated to be effective in the 1980s. But it remains little used even
today.”
Other barriers to the use of best practices in schizophrenia treatment cited were a lack of
reimbursement in current mental health environments, inadequate training and education for
community-based providers and limited research on how best practices can be implemented in
clinical settings.
Using feedback from the conference, Executive Advisory Board members and Stakeholders
Committee members, a business plan for the creation of the BeST Center at NEOUCOM was
developed and presented to The Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation.
In December 2008, The Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation awarded NEOUCOM a $5 million
grant to establish the BeST Center. This gift was announced at a Feb. 19 event held at NEOUCOM.

14 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
 BeST CENTER
The BeST Center is Established at NEOUCOM STAKEHOLDERS COMMITTEE
The BeST Center’s first priority is to increase the availability of treatments to people with ADULT RECOVERY NETWORK
schizophrenia – and to make a direct impact on the quality of their lives,” says Munetz. “The BeST
AKRON CHILD GUIDANCE
Center is also focusing on implementing strategies that are not already being worked on by others
AND FAMILY SOLUTIONS
in the area.”
AKRON CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL
The BeST Center serves as an incubator for the best and emerging best practices. To do so,
the center works with public and private clinical partners from Summit County, Ohio, and the AKRON GENERAL HEALTH SYSTEM
surrounding areas. CHOICES
The BeST Center’s goals are to develop and implement the integration of primary care, COLEMAN PROFESSIONAL
the use of specific cognitive behavioral therapies for persistent psychotic symptoms, family SERVICES
psychoeducation and a program for the early identification and treatment of psychoses. Each of COMMUNITY SUPPORT SERVICES
these programs will undergo assessment, including an analysis of the economic implications for
COUNTY OF SUMMIT ALCOHOL,
broad implementation, and strategies to overcome barriers will be developed.
DRUG ADDICTION AND MENTAL
The establishment of a primary care clinic on-site at a mental health treatment center,
HEALTH SERVICES BOARD
Community Support Services in Akron, Ohio, has already begun. “The creation of a primary care
clinic for persons with mental illnesses is particularly important because members of this KENT STATE UNIVERSITY
population have significantly higher mortality rates than members of the general population. THE MARGARET CLARK MORGAN
The life expectancy for those with mental illnesses is 25 years less than those without mental FOUNDATION
illnesses, despite the fact that people with mental illness die of the same things that members MENTAL HEALTH AND RECOVERY
of the general population do,” says Anthony J. Costa, M.D., professor and chairperson of BOARD OF ASHLAND COUNTY
NEOUCOM’s Department of Family Medicine. MENTAL HEALTH AND RECOVERY
The higher morbidity and mortality rates among the mentally ill are attributed to a lack of BOARD OF PORTAGE COUNTY
access to primary care, the side effects of psychiatric medications and problematic health
NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL
behaviors. “Often those with mental illness will not seek out, or do not have access to, primary
ILLNESS - OHIO
care so we are providing it where they receive their mental health care, ” adds Costa. The primary
care clinic is also a training center for health professionals. NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL
The implementation of very specific cognitive behavioral therapies (CBT) for persistent ILLNESS - SUMMIT COUNTY
psychotic symptoms will be another focus of the BeST Center. “Even with medications, NORTHCOAST BEHAVIORAL
approximately one-third of patients with schizophrenia continue to have delusions and HEALTHCARE
hallucinations,” says Munetz. “Often these symptoms can be modified by using very carefully NORTHEASTERN OHIO
designed CBT techniques.” UNIVERSITIES COLLEGES OF
The BeST Center will also focus on family psychoeducation. “Contrary to what some family MEDICINE AND PHARMACY
members may have been told, family members do not cause schizophrenia,” Munetz emphasizes. OHIO COORDINATING CENTER
“However, supporting family members and their loved ones can make a positive difference in the FOR ACT – ASSERTIVE
course of the illness.” COMMUNITY TREATMENT
The BeST Center will also develop and implement a community education program with
OHIO DEPARTMENT OF
the aim of shortening the time between the first symptoms of psychoses and its diagnosis and
MENTAL HEALTH
treatment. “Our hope is that the BeST Center will provide a welcoming and comprehensive
OHIO SAMI COORDINATING
treatment program for teens and young adults from the times they first experience the
CENTER OF EXCELLENCE
symptoms of schizophrenia.”
“As I often say, in my more than 40 years with schizophrenia, there’s never been a better time PORTAGE PATH BEHAVIORAL
to be a person with a serious mental illness,” says Frese. “There’s more hope now than ever before.” HEALTH
“NEOUCOM’s BeST Center will make a significant difference in the lives of people with SUMMIT CONSUMER PEER
schizophrenia as they gain access to treatments and therapies that are not currently accessible SUPPORT
to them,” says Lois Margaret Nora, M.D., J.D., NEOUCOM president and dean for the College of SUMMA HEALTH SYSTEMS
Medicine. “And the broader hope is that the study of these practices will fundamentally change THE UNIVERSITY OF AKRON
how people with schizophrenia are viewed and served in all communities.”
VETERANS ADMINISTRATION
And that is the BeST kind of hope.
AKRON COMMUNITY-BASED
OUTPATIENT CLINIC

SPRING2009 15
 A FACE TO FACE
THE WORLD
To view a video or see an animation of the
near-total face transplant procedure, please
visit http://www.cleveland.clinic.org/face.
BY CAROLE HARWOOD
16 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
Eric Kodish, M.D. (’86), at left
F. J. O’Neill Professor and Chairman of the Department of Bioethics at Cleveland Clinic
Executive Director, Cleveland Fellowship in Advanced Bioethics
Professor of Pediatrics,
Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University
Frank Papay, M.D. (’84), at right
Chairman of the Dermatology and Plastic Surgery Institute at Cleveland Clinic
Associate Professor of Surgery,
Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University
It was the largest, most complex surgery
of its kind ever attempted in the United States.
The transplant surgery integrated different
functional components such as nose and lower
eyelids, as well as different tissue types
including skin, muscles, bony structures,
arteries, veins and nerves. Nearly the patient’s
entire face was replaced.
Two NEOUCOM graduates, Eric Kodish,
M.D. (‘86), and Frank Papay, M.D. (‘84), were
members of a multidisciplinary team involved
with the nation’s first near-total face transplant
at the Cleveland Clinic.
Kodish is the F. J. O’Neill Professor and
chairman of the Department of Bioethics at
Cleveland Clinic and executive director of the
Cleveland Fellowship in Advanced Bioethics.
Papay is chair of the Cleveland Clinic’s
Dermatology and Plastic Surgery Institute,
and section head of Craniofacial
Reconstructive Surgery.
“We have finally done it,” said Maria
Siemionow M.D., Ph.D., team leader, in a
press conference following the surgery. “The
procedure went well, according to the plan,
and the patient is doing well.”
The Cleveland Clinic Dermatology
and Plastic Surgery Institute led the face
transplant surgery, partnering with the
Cleveland Clinic Head & Neck Institute.
Staff members from psychology/psychiatry,
bioethics, social work, anesthesia, transplant,
nursing, infectious disease, dentistry,
ophthalmology, pharmacy, environmental
services and security were also significantly
involved.
“The surgery took 22 hours to perform,”
said Siemionow. “The preparations for the
surgery took more than 20 years of work in
the field of composite tissue transplantation.
Studies included technical aspects, exciting
new immunological research and, most

importantly, the ethical aspects of the
procedure.”
The Cleveland Clinic’s Institutional
Review Board (IRB) was the first in the world
to approve a face transplant, consenting to the
procedure in November 2004. The actual
surgery, however, did not take place until
December 2008.
“We were very careful for four years,
training the multidisciplinary team in the
laboratories and establishing a thorough
screening process for potential candidates for
this procedure,” Siemionow said.
“From the very beginning, we agreed
that only the most disfigured—those who
had exhausted all conventional means
of reconstruction—would be candidates
for this procedure. We need a face to face
the world.”
“We are aware of, and responsive to, the
ethical challenges of all surgical innovations
here at Cleveland Clinic,” said Kodish. “We
integrate ethics into the function of all
transplant teams.
“We did this (near-total face transplant)
under IRB protocol and the patient was
appropriately protected,” Kodish said.
“This is not, in any conventional sense,
cosmetic surgery. The face is the physical
embodiment of personal identity, and
human beings are inherently social
creatures. Those with trauma to the face are
generally isolated and suffer tremendously.
The damage to the quality of life cannot be
put into words.
“In addition to the profound social
considerations, there are also functional
considerations. We hope that the patient will
begin to smile and to be able to smell again.
“The relief of suffering is at the core of
medical ethics, and it provides the abundant
moral justification for this procedure,”
said Kodish.
FEATURE
FACE TO FACE THE WORLD
“My colleague, Dr. Carmen Paradis, an
experienced bioethics consultant and former
plastic surgeon, and I met with the patient.
We discussed the risks of rejection, and the
risk of immunosuppression including cancer
and infection, and the experimental nature
of the procedure.
“She agreed to proceed with hope that
this will help her and will help others in the
future,” added Kodish. “The ethical basis for
this procedure is beyond reproach.”
“This work started with a medical team
that had an extraordinary vision for what
could be possible for patients who have
suffered severe trauma to their faces,” said
Papay. Cleveland Clinic’s team has worked
together to take that vision and make it
a reality.
“On behalf of the surgical team, I would
like to say that we are humbled by our
A
patient’s courage and her warm heart,” said
Papay. “Her realistic expectations about the
outcome of this procedure were balanced by
what this procedure could do for her and for
others like her.
“It has been an honor and a privilege to
work with this team. Preoperatively, the team
designed, practiced and organized the flow of
this particular surgery for many months in the
anatomy lab,” added Papay. On the day of the
surgery, the team worked tirelessly for 22
hours, and was able to complete the procedure
in an orderly and low-stress manner.
“We never thought for a moment that our
sister would ever have a chance at a normal
life again, after the trauma she endured,” the
patient’s sibling said in a prepared statement.
Now, this patient has a chance at a normal
life. And because of this medical milestone,
other facial trauma patients may also have a
chance at a normal life – and a face to face
the world.
 All images courtesy of the Cleveland Clinic.
SPRING2009 17
 THE
ROAD
LESS TRAVELED
BY CAROLE HARWOOD

Two NEOUCOM alumni, William A. Ellert, M.D. (’91), and Teri Rice Sanor, M.D. (’06),
received very prestigious national recognition in fall 2007.
Both attended NEOUCOM while fulfilling life roles not typical of medical students:
Ellert was a Franciscan brother and Sanor was a grandmother. Both began their health
care careers as nurses. Both were motivated to attend medical school because they
believed they could serve their patients better with additional training. Both had
wonderful role models who inspired them to pursue their dreams of becoming
physicians—even if they had to take the road less traveled to do so.
William A. Ellert, M.D., FAAFP (’91), was named 2009 Family Physician of the Year
by the American Academy of Family Physicians. Teri Rice Sanor, M.D. (’06), was one
of 21 individuals from around the globe selected for a trip to Boston to attend the
New England Journal of Medicine’s Horizons Conference, a conference that brought
together visionary medical residents to help plan medical education for the next
decade. Following the Horizons Conference, Sanor was invited to join a New England
Journal of Medicine advisory board.

The Road That Ellert Traveled

Ellert’s health care career began when he was 16 and worked as an orderly in a nursing home
operated by the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart. He was so touched by the sisters’ kindness
and compassion that he joined the Franciscan Friars of the Third Order Regular two years later.
While living and working with the Franciscan Brothers and Sisters, he learned “that the poor
should never be treated poorly.” He has dedicated his entire career to serving the homeless
and others most in need, sometimes even at the side of the road.
In addition to caring for the homeless and those with AIDS, he also founded Centro de la
Esperanza Health Services, a family medicine office that serves Mexican migrants and their
families.
In 2000, he became chair of Family and Community Medicine for Maricopa Integrated Health
System in Phoenix. Always concerned with providing the best care to his patients, Ellert created an
advanced hospital practice fellowship program to train family physicians to work as hospitalists
and to bring advanced techniques to underserved areas.
Today Ellert is project director and chairman of the board of a non-profit organization devoted
to assisting the homeless in Maricopa County. They are working to open a recuperative care center
for homeless patients. He is also associate director of the Family Medicine Residency Program at


Dr. William A. Ellert (‘91) St. Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix and a clinical assistant professor of family and community
medicine at the University of Arizona-Phoenix.

18 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
NEOUCO
NEOUCOM MAG
UCOM MA AZI
ZIINEE
The Road That Sanor Took
Sanor was a young mom when she decided to became a registered nurse. As an RN, she always
knew she would seek further education, but she thought she would become a nurse practitioner.
While with her daughter, Trisha, a B.S. / M.D. student, Sanor learned that older students could
apply to NEOUCOM. The next day she signed up for physics and organic chemistry, determined to
at least try to get into medical school because she had always admired physicians she encountered
while working as a nurse at Alliance Community Hospital in Alliance, Ohio.
She obtained her bachelor’s degree in biology at Mount Union College and survived taking the
MCAT. “Needless to say, I was thrilled when I got in to NEOUCOM,” she says with a laugh. She is
passionate about education and enjoyed helping the NEOUCOM teams developing curriculum.
Sanor’s decision to pursue a doctor of medicine degree was influenced by two wonderful role
models, her grandmother and her mother.


“My maternal grandmother, Iva Putnam Myers, set the precedent for me,” Sanor says. “When Dr. Teri Rice Sanor (‘06)
she was 50 years old, she and my grandfather began to have a few elderly people from their church
stay with them when they needed help. She cooked home-style meals and kept a nice home, so
soon everyone wanted to stay there. She obtained her driver’s license, a nursing degree and then
went to college for her administration credentials. And then she built Pleasant View, a nursing
home in Lisbon, Ohio.
When Sanor’s mother, Mary E. Rice, worked at Iva’s Pleasant View nursing home, she saw a
need for a nursing home devoted to younger patients – because younger patients had different
needs than elderly ones. At 40 years of age, Mary Rice went to college and obtained her
administrator’s license, and then she went on to build three facilities in Lisbon, Ohio: Opportunity
Homes, Sunrise Homes, and Vista Center. Mary Rice retired and she was thrilled to see her
daughter, Teri Rice Sanor, graduate with her medical degree from the Northeastern Ohio
Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy in 2006.
Sadly, Mary Rice passed away shortly after Sanor’s graduation. Her mother is the inspiration
for many of Sanor’s interests including quality improvement. While completing an internal
medicine residency at Aultman and Mercy hospitals in Canton, Ohio, Sanor remained interested
in education and patient advocacy. While in Boston for the Horizons Conference, Sanor met her
hero, Dr. Donald Berwick. Berwick led the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) in illness
prevention, including the 100,000 lives, ventilator-associated pneumonias and surviving sepsis
campaigns. Sanor was thrilled to be asked to help the IHI faculty develop a sepsis education
module. Early recognition of subtle signs of sepsis can save lives.
Ellert and Sanor are each making unique and valuable contributions to providing optimal
patient care. And while they arrived at their destinations by taking roads less traveled, neither
need ever regret a road not taken.

SPRING2009
SPR
PPRIN
ING
NG200
20009 1199
20
FEATURE
ABOVE AND BEYOND
– EVERY DAY
GARY L. GORBY, M.D. (’83) IS DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD RECIPIENT
Physicians are expected to save lives, and to make sacrifices to do
so, but few are expected to risk their own lives to save another’s.
When Gary Gorby, M.D. (’83), donated his right liver lobe to save the
life of a fellow doctor, no one who knew him was particularly surprised.
To his colleagues and friends, this was another act of going above and
beyond – which is something that Gorby does nearly every day.

20 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
BY CAROLE HARWOOD
On March 31, 2008, Gorby donated his
liver lobe to Joann Schaefer, M.D., chief
medical officer for the state of Nebraska, and
director, Division of Public Health, Nebraska
Department of Health and Human Services.
Schaefer had an inherited liver disease.
“In addition to being the doctor who
risked his life to spare mine, Dr. Gorby is a
talented, caring and skilled physician,” says
Schaefer.
“Dr. Gorby not only saved Dr. Schaefer’s
life, he contributed to multiple lifesaving
organ donations by inspiring others to
become organ donors,” according to Laurel C.
Preheim, M.D., FACP, FIDSA, professor of
medicine, medical microbiology and
immunology, Creighton University School of
Medicine and University of Nebraska College
of Medicine and chief of medicine, VA
Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System.
Preheim describes Gorby as “a skilled
investigator, educator and clinician who sits
comfortably atop the three-legged stool of
academic medicine.” Because of his
demonstrated commitment and achievements
in teaching, patient care, research and service,
Gorby was selected as the recipient of this
year’s Distinguished Alumni Award.
The Distinguished Alumni Award is the
highest honor that NEOUCOM bestows on its
outstanding graduates. The award recognizes an
alumnus/a who has met and transcended his or
her fundamental role as a health care provider
to become a leader in the advancement of
research, service and education.
After graduating from NEOUCOM, Gorby
completed an internal medicine residency at
Bowman Gray School of Medicine followed
by an infectious disease fellowship under the
mentorship of Zell McGee, M.D., at the
Dr. Gary Gorby (‘83)
University of Utah. In 1989, he was recruited
to join the Creighton University School of
Medicine faculty and the staff of the Omaha
Veterans Administration Medical Center as
an assistant professor and a member of the
Infectious Disease Division, thus beginning
his academic medicine career.
His leadership skills brought him to his
current position of chief of the Adult
Infectious Disease Division at Creighton
University School of Medicine. He also
directs the combined Creighton University-
University of Nebraska Adult Infectious
Disease Fellowship program.
“As division chief of the Adult Infectious
Disease Division, he tackles the most difficult
cases that are referred to us,” says Preheim.
“His bedside manner is legendary, his
sincerity, empathy, and outgoing personality
foster the exceptional rapport that he enjoys
with his patients.” His outstanding clinical
ability has earned him the admiration of his
trainees, the respect of his peers and his
inclusion in Best Doctors in America.
“He has the ability to calm his patients and
their families in the most dire of circumstances
and to train the next generation of doctors at
the same time,” says Schaefer.
An outstanding teacher in the classroom
and at the bedside, Gorby is course director
for the second-year medical student
curriculum on infectious diseases at
Creighton. Preheim notes that he consistently
receives accolades from M2s for his effective
and innovative teaching. “He has received
numerous teaching awards which recognize
his superior abilities to bring a patient’s
disease into clear focus while engaging
students, residents and fellows in patient-
centered care,” adds Schaefer.
NEOUCOM Distinguished Alumni Award Winners
Gary L. Gorby, M.D. ‘83
Barry Steinberg, Ph.D., M.D., D.D.S. ‘91
Serpil C. Erzurum, M.D. ‘83
Mary Jane “MJ” Barchman, M.D. ‘85
Crystal L. Mackall, M.D. ‘84
John J. Bissler, M.D. ‘85
Nominations may be submitted for the 2009 Distinguished Alumni Award. For nomination forms or more
information, contact the Office of Alumni Relations at 330-325-6664 or alumnioffice@neoucom.edu.
Gorby also applies his extensive
knowledge of technology to his teaching
and his research, which focused on the
pathogenesis of Neisseria gonorrheae
infections. He makes use of a computerized
avatar in his lectures on sexually transmitted
diseases and he developed novel techniques
using computerized image analysis to study
His outstanding
the role of key gonococcal virulence factors
in the invasion of fallopian tube tissues. His clinical ability
investigations have been supported by VA
Merit Review, NIH, and industry funding. He has earned him
received the Creighton University School of
Medicine Young Investigator Award in 1996.
In addition to caring for patients, teaching
the admiration
and conducting research, Gorby serves the
state of Nebraska with expert opinions on of his trainees,
public health and biopreparedness and
pandemic influenza. He is co-director of the the respect of
State of Nebraska’s Center for Biopreparedness
Education and is a member of the Governor’s his peers and
Pandemic Flu Advisory Committee. He is also
co-chair of the Pandemic Flu Planning
Committee of the Veterans Integrated Service
his inclusion in
Network #23, a five-state organization. His
research and other scholarly activities have Best Doctors
led to more than 50 scientific publications.
“He sat by my side in the waiting room, in America.
even though he was post-op himself,” says
GySgt Philip D. Haines, USMC (retired),
Schaefer’s husband. “Joann had two life-
threatening complications following her
surgery, and to have him by my side helping
me to understand the medical terminology
and providing a calm voice during what was
the most devastating day of my life, truly
showed how compassionate he is.”
Gary L. Clayman, D.D.S., M.D. ‘86
Eric D. Kodish, M.D. ‘86
Stephanie Zaza, M.D., MPH, ‘90
Philip Stepaniak, M.D. ‘83
Patrick Gallagher, M.D. ‘85
SPRING2009 21
 DONORPROFILE
EVERY GIFT MAKES A DIFFERENCE
Judith K.Wolf, M.D. (’86), Dedicates Study Suite to Women Fighting Cancer

If you visit a study suite in the Colleges’ Multidisciplinary Laboratories, you will see a plaque
that reads “Dedicated to Women Fighting Cancer and with Gratitude to NEOUCOM.” This suite
was purchased by Judith K. Wolf, M.D. (’86).
Wolf has expressed her gratitude and sustained her relationship with NEOUCOM in many
ways – through generous gifts to the Blue Fund and the general scholarship fund, through service
as a member of the NEOUCOM Alumni Association Board of Directors and through her
willingness to speak with students about her chosen field of specialty, gynecological oncology.
She is with M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, and she often flies from Houston
to Ohio for alumni board meetings.
“I received an excellent medical education through NEOUCOM and am grateful for this strong


Judith K. Wolf, M.D. (‘86)

foundation of knowledge that has allowed me to pursue my career goal. I want this opportunity
to continue for current and future students,” says Wolf. “As a physician who remains in academic
medicine, I understand how important alumni involvement and support is to an institution.
I also personally feel that in giving back, I can be an example for future students and alumni.”

GIVING TO NEOUCOM
You can make an immediate impact on the quality of heath professions education by making a gift
to the NEOUCOM Foundation. Gifts may be designated to help specific areas such as scholarships
or research, or may be contributed to the Blue Fund to assist where needs are greatest. Honor or
memorial gifts are thoughtful ways to recognize a person, achievement or life event.

Gifts to the NEOUCOM Foundation can be:

Cash or Credit Cards Gifts—Gifts can be made by mail, online at www.neoucom.edu,
during phonathons or in the envelope enclosed with this magazine.
Non-Cash Gifts — These may include securities, personal property, real estate or gifts-in-kind.
Please contact Institutional Advancement for stock transfer instructions.
Matching Gifts— You may have the opportunity to double or triple your donation if your employer
offers a matching gift program.
Planned Gifts— These may include annuities, bequests, trusts and wills.
Please contact Institutional Advancement for specific bequest language.
Corporate and Foundation Gifts—Your corporation or foundation can provide important
support for academic programs, research or scholarships.

The Institutional Advancement team welcomes the opportunity to discuss giving

opportunities that meet your personal philanthropic and financial needs. Please call
330-325-6671 to schedule a private meeting.

22 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
 CLASSNOTES
1980s
Our apologies to John C. Rosace, M.D. (‘88). His name was
inadvertently omitted in the previous list of Top Docs in the
summer 2008 issue of NEOUCOM Magazine.
John J. Fitzgerald, M.D. (‘83), opened CV Medical
Services, LLC, a company that provides pre-surgical
evaluations and a variety of pre-testing procedures.
Richard W. Hertle, M.D. (‘84), is chief, Division of
Pediatric Ophthalmology, and professor of ophthalmology,
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and director,
Laboratory of Visual and Ocular Motor Physiology,
Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and University of
Pittsburgh Medical Center.
Marc Malkoff, M.D. (‘84), is professor of neurosurgery
and neurology at the University of New Mexico and
director of the stroke program and Neuroscience
Intensive Care Unit.
Harriet Feick, M.D. (‘85), is a neonatologist at the
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Akron Children’s Hospital.
She was recognized as Ohio’s 2008 Health Professional
Who is Most Supportive of Breastfeeding.
Mark Herbert, M.D. (‘85), is an infectious disease
specialist with Herbert and Parsons M.D., Inc. and works
part-time for the city of Columbus Sexual Health Clinic. He
also sings with the Columbus Symphony Chorus.
Elisabeth H. Young, M.D. (‘85), is professor of internal
medicine and director of clinical curriculum (M3/M4) at
NEOUCOM. She received 2008 Ohio Magazine
Excellence in Education Award.
Jay Carter, M.D. (‘86), spends his time as a pilot, ham
radio operator and working with EMS agencies when he is
not working in the emergency department. He and his wife
have two sons and live in Hudson, Ohio.
Marita Volk-Allen, M.D. (‘87), is chief of staff and
medical director of the Emergency Medicine Department
at Euclid Hospital, a Cleveland Clinic Hospital.
Maria Heropoulos, M.D. (‘87), opened the Laguna Nigel
Surgery Center in Laguna Nigel, Calif., where she is
managing partner and medical director.
Rose M. Seliga, M.D. (‘86), joined the medical staff at
Wadsworth-Rittman Hospital. She is a board-certified
nephrology specialist.
Pradeep Manudhane, M.D. (‘87), is medical director of
Community Services of Stark County. He and his wife have
three children and reside in Canton.
Janice Moore Spalding, M.D. (‘87), is assistant
1980s
professor and medical director of the Physician Assistant
Program at Mount Union College in Alliance, Ohio. She is
a family practice physician.
ALUMNI NEWS
Harlan Ullman, M.D. (‘87), is a diagnostic radiologist
with Akron Radiology, Inc. He and his wife, Susan,
reside in University Heights, Ohio.
Gerald Volcheck, M.D. (‘87), is the practice chair for
the Division of Allergic Disorders and the program director
for the allergy and immunology fellowship at Mayo Clinic
in Rochester, Minn. He recently published a book,
Clinical Allergy Diagnosis and Management.
Elaine Greifenstein, M.D. (‘88), is NEOUCOM course
director for Principles of Medicine and clinical associate
professor of internal medicine. She is the recipient of an
Ohio Magazine Excellence in Education Award.
Michael Mancino, M.D. (‘88), is program director of the
Substance Abuse Treatment Clinic of the University of
Arkansas for Medical Sciences and director of the Outpatient
Buprenorphine Treatment Program with the Central
Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System. His wife, Anne,
a surgeon and a colonel in the U.S. Army, is serving a
second tour in Iraq.
Alumni Share
Jeffrey Marsh, M.D. (‘88), is the ICU director at Lehigh
Career Information
Valley Hospital-Muhlenberg in Pennsylvania and participates
Special thanks to the following
in an ICU telemedicine program called Doc-in-the-Box.
Raymond P. Onders, M.D. (‘88), performed surgery
alumni who participated in the
to implant a diaphragm pacing system that allows a January 2009 Specialty Night
ten-year-old boy with severe spinal cord injuries to breathe Reception and shared
without a ventilator. Approximately 160 people worldwide
information about career
have received this implant, but the 10-year-old boy is the
options with medical students.
youngest person to undergo this procedure. He was named
a Health Care Hero by Crain’s Cleveland Business. He is
with University Hospitals Case Medical Center and Erin Broderick, M.D. (’06)
Synapse Biomedical Ltd.
Brian Canterbury, M.D. (’04)
Karin Riggs, M.D. (‘88), is a primary care physician in Anita Dash-Modi, M.D.(’92)
Canton, Ohio, and participates in regular mission trips to
Central and Eastern Europe with an emphasis on Bosnia.
Heath Dorion, M.D.(‘97)
She mentors at-risk teenagers and provides instruction Angela Doty, M.D. (’91)
at a pregnancy support center. Michelle Emch, M.D. (’01)
Colene Young, M.D. (‘88), is in private practice with Eye James Hill, Jr., M.D.(’08)
Surgeons and Physicians, a Commack, New York, practice Marcus Julius, M.D. (’94)
that specializes in cataract and occuloplastic surgery.
Meredith Konya, M.D. (’06)
Julie A. Hendrix, M.D. (‘89), joined Heritage Medical
Jessica Lovish-Sapola, M.D. (’01)
Associates in Franklin, Tenn., a multispecialty practice.
Joni Maga, M.D. (’02)
David N. Linz, M.D. (‘89), is chief of the Department of
Pradeep Manudhane, M.D. (’87)
Surgery and NEOUCOM surgery clerkship director at Mercy
Medical Center, Canton, Ohio. He is also the Ohio Michael Miladore, M.D. (’82)
governor-at-large to the American College of Surgeons. Carrie Priebe, M.D. (’98)
Keith Stahl, M.D. (‘89), is medical director for Catholic Stacy Shundry, M.D. (’06)
Medical Center Physician Practice Associates-Primary Care
in Manchester, New Hampshire.
SPRING2009 23
 CLASSNOTES
1990s
Elizabeth Anderson, M.D. (‘90), is with Northshore
Physicians Group in Chicago and has a daughter,
Samantha Dawn.
Cynthia Herrington, M.D. (‘90), joined the medical
staff at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. She holds the
Ryan Winston Family Chair in Transplant Cardiology
and is one of 120 women cardiac surgeons
nationwide.
Holly Stemen Holm, M.D. (‘90), is in private practice
with Kensington Ophthalmology in Brighton, Mich.
Emily (Borus) McCourt, M.D. (‘90), is a psychiatrist
at the Mental Health Center of Denver and is one of
two Colorado representatives to the Assembly of the
American Psychiatric Association.
Rochelle Rosian, M.D. (‘90), has a clinical practice
at the Cleveland Clinic-Solon Campus and teaches in
the Human Values program at Lerner College of
Medicine. She is co-chair of the Cleveland Clinic’s
Women’s Professional Staff Association and is actively
involved in the Medical Therapeutic and Scientific
Committee for the Arthritis Foundation.
Vilma (Kistner) Briggs, M.D. (‘91), is an Ob/Gyn
with Physician Staffing in Cleveland. She lives in Mt.
PFC Levi K. Hoover+
Gilead and is active in dog rescue/rehabilitation and
competitive dog training.
Bradley Weiner, M.D. (‘91), is associate professor
at Weill Cornell Medical College, chief of spinal
surgery, director of academics and medical director of
Spine and Orthopedic Nanotechnology Laboratory at
The Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas.
Frank Batcha, M.D. (‘92), is in a family practice
with a sports medicine emphasis at St. Luke’s
Healthcare System in Hailey, Idaho. He and his wife,
Shannon, enjoy outdoor sports.
Marie Disch-Shieh, M.D. (‘94)
David Currier, M.D. (‘92), is chairman of the
Department of Anesthesiology at Aultman Hospital in
Canton, Ohio. He is a NEOUCOM Alumni Association
board member.
Jane M. Joseph-Delvechio, M.D. (‘92), is in private
practice with East Greenwich Ophthalmology in Rhode
1990s
Island. She and her husband, Peter, have three
children.
24 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
Eric Espinal, M.D. (‘92), a cardiothoracic surgeon
and a pioneer in minimally invasive robotic surgery,
returned to NEOUCOM to share information about his
specialty as part of Physician Career Stories, a lecture
series designed to provide first- and second-year
students with opportunities to explore medical
specialties and interact with NEOUCOM alumni. He
showed a video of innovative surgical techniques
during his presentation.
Darrell M. Polster M.D. (‘92), is chairman of the
Anesthesiology Department at Mercy Hospital-
Western Hills in Cincinnati, Ohio.
John D. Sutton, M.D. (‘93), is NEOUCOM course
director for the Longitudinal Course for Medicine and
Pharmacy and associate professor of family medicine.
He received an Excellence in Education Award from
Ohio Magazine.
Belinda Hoover Brewster, M.D (‘94), was
awarded fellow recognition in the American College
of Emergency Physicians and the MI-1 Disaster
Medical Assistance Team, one of 60 medical relief
teams activated at the request of the Department of
Homeland Security. She and her teammates
received a Resolution for Recognition from the state
of Michigan for emergency response in deployment
and support of the hurricanes in the gulf coast.
This is the highest level of recognition the state
senate can bestow upon a person or group. Her
son, PFC Levi K. Hoover of the 82nd Airborne
Division of the U.S. Army, was killed in action
in Zaganiyah, Iraq, on April 4, 2007.
Marie Disch-Shieh, M.D. (‘94), recently began a
wellness program at the International Hospital in
Beijing, China. She and her husband, Barry, have
two sons. They work with the United Foundation
for Chinese Orphans, a non-profit organization
with a mission is to provide medical care and
nutritional support to children living in orphanages
and foster homes.
Atul Grover, M.D. (‘94), is an anesthesiologist in
private practice. He and his wife, Anouk, daughter,
Amara, and son, Aarav, reside in southern California.
David Heiser, M.D. (‘94), opened Urology One in
Millersburg, Ohio, and he will provide services at
Pomerene Hospital.
+ = Deceased

Marcus Julius, M.D. (‘94), was named Teacher of
the Year by second-year medical students at
NEOUCOM. He is affiliated with Salem Radiologists
and Salem Community Hospital.
Michelle Nations Levitt, M.D. (‘94), is with
Children’s Physicians, Inc. in Canton, Ohio, and the
Tuscarawas Health Department in Dover, Ohio.
Gary Pinta, M.D. (‘94), is president of Pioneer
Physicians Network and a steering committee
member for the new Northern Summit Hospital.
He and his wife, Stephanie Tan, M.D. (‘94), have
three children.
Lori Crowe, M.D. (‘95), was inducted into the East
Palestine Hall of Fame and recognized as an alumna
who has contributed significant public, community and
professional service. Her practice, Prima Health Care,
was named Best Family Practice by Salem News.
Michelle Gill, M.D. (‘95), is with California
Emergency Physicians and resides in Redlands, Calif.,
with her husband, Jeff, and three children.
Mary Lou Kalmer, M.D. (‘95), is with Park Vista
Community Health System. She and her husband,
Cory Peele, reside in La Porte, Colo.
Dianna Tolen, M.D. (‘95), is with Kids 1st Pediatric
Care in Canfield, Ohio. Ralph Perrico, M.D. (‘96),
is a radiologist at Alliance Community Hospital.
They live in Canfield with their two sons.
Deepak A. Shah, M.D. (‘95), with his wife, Amim,
and two children, Parth and Prem, recently relocated
to Columbia, Md., where he joined Johns Hopkins
Community Physicians.
Nichole Brandts, M.D. (‘96), is a psychiatrist in
Cincinnati, Ohio. She and her husband, Anthony, have
two children.
Mari Bangayan Chen, M.D. (‘96), was voted 2008
Teaching Attending Physician of the Year for the
Internal Medicine Residency Program at Weiss
Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Ill. She practices
pulmonary and critical care medicine.
Gregory J. Facemyer, M.D. (‘96), has a solo family
practice, Austin Square Medical Group. He and wife,
Kristen, welcomed their second child, Madeline Anne,
on May 3, 2008.
ALUMNI NEWS
Reena Mehra, M.D. (‘96), is an assistant professor
of medicine at University Hospitals Case Medical
Center, and serves as medical director of Adult Sleep
Medicine Services. She received the Central Society
1990s
of Clinical Research Career Development Award,
Central Society of Clinical Research Young Investigator
Award and American Federation for Medical Research
Scholar Award in recognition of research being
performed to investigate the relationship between
sleep apnea and cardiovascular disease.
Christina M. Delos Reyes, M.D. (‘96), is an
addiction psychiatrist and chief clinical officer for the
Cuyahoga Community Mental Health Board. She
continues as director of the addiction psychiatry
fellowship at Case Western Reserve University
Department of Psychiatry and is a medical consultant
with Ohio Department of Mental Health Substance
Abuse & Mental Illness Coordinating Center of
Excellence.
Prema Eapen, M.D. (‘96), is in a group family
practice near the Jersey shore. She and her husband,
Santhosh, a pediatric endocrinologist, have two sons.
Sanjay Jain, M.D. (‘96), relocated to Dallas, Texas,
to join a radiology private practice group. He and his
wife, Priti, and son Milan welcomed a second son,
Arjun, on Oct. 20, 2008.
Sandra Johnson, M.D. (‘96), is with Johnson
Dermatology in Ft. Smith, Ark. She and her husband,
Brad, have two children. STAY
Seilesh Babu, M.D (‘97), is in private practice at the
Michigan Ear Institute. He and his wife, Abbey, have CONNECTED
three sons.
Please share news
Stephen Camacho, M.D. (‘97), and Eilynn Sipe,
about births, marriages,
M.D. (‘97), announce the birth of their fourth son,
Jack Christian. Jack joins Brandon, Alex and Derek. new jobs, recent
Jennifer Cummings, M.D. (‘97), is medical director
promotions, honors and
of cardiac electrophysiology at Akron General Health special achievements so
System. that we may publish them
Jaideep Chunduri, M.D. (‘97), and his wife, Lalitha, in the NEOUCOM Magazine.
and son Saahil welcomed a second son, Siddhant. To send news or photos,
Chunduri and his family reside in Cincinnati where he
send an e-mail to
is involved with the Theken Spine (Integra Spine),
a device used for anterior lumbar interbody fusion. alumnioffice@neoucom.edu
SPRING2009 25

Todd Lisy, M.D. (‘97) and wife, Staci, and
daughters Madison and Sydney
Corrine Hope and Elise Faith Hartmann
26 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
CLASSNOTES
Costas H. Kefalas, M.D. (‘97), has been elected to
a three-year term as American College of
Gastroenterology governor for northern Ohio. He
continues to serve the College as a member of the
Patient Care and Practice Parameters committees.
Todd Lisy, M.D. (‘97), is the physician manager of
Comprehensive Practice Resources, a new MSO in
northeastern Ohio that provides billing services,
credentialing and EMR assistance to physicians
using E-clinical works as an electronic medical
record. In addition, he serves on the board of
Pioneer Physicians Network. He and his wife, Staci,
have two daughters, Madison and Sydney.
They live in Uniontown, Ohio. He is also a NEOUCOM
Alumni Association board member.
Gurish V. Nair, M.D. (’97), is a cardiologist in
Indianapolis. He and Jennifer Galyen were married
Sept. 20.
Nalini Schatzel, M.D. (‘97), and Jason Schatzel,
M.D. (‘97), reside in the Dayton area with their two
daughters. Nalini is with Springboro Pediatrics and
Jason is with Premier Health Net, an internal medicine
practice.
John S. Visger, M.D. (‘97), completed four years of
military service at Mountain Home Air Force Base in
Idaho. He is now with Palouse Surgeons in Pullman,
Wash., where he and his wife, Cherish, and three
daughters reside.
Malathi Bathija, M.D. (‘98), and wife, Pavan, and
daughter,Talia, welcomed a baby boy, Krish, on Sept.
3, 2008.
Wendy Blumberg, M.D. (‘98), is with Ohio
Pediatrics Inc. in Kettering, Ohio. She and her
husband, Andrew, have one son.
James R. Coleman, M.D. (‘98), is in private practice
with Lakewood Anesthesia Associates Inc.
Antionette Hayek, M.D. (’98), and Reyaad Hayek,
M.D. (’99), reside in Albuquerque. Antoinette is in
family practice with Southwest Medical Associates
and Reyaad is an assistant professor of radiology,
assistant director of radiology and chief of
Interventional Spine Services at University of
1990s
New Mexico Hospital.
Jason A. Hoke, M.D. (‘98), is a family physician at
Indian Creek Family Health Center. He and his wife,
Jennifer, welcomed their third son, Andrew Noah, Aug.
12. Andrew joins brothers Isaac and Daniel.
Paul Watanakunakorn, M.D. (‘98), is in private
practice as a partner with Trumbull Mahoning Medical
Group in Austintown and is on the teaching faculty for
the internal medicine residency program at Forum
Health/Northside Medical Center. He and Amanda
Alford were married Aug. 2.
Phillip Greene, M.D. (‘99), is the first director of
Knox Community Hospital’s hospitalist program.
William P. Hartmann III, M.D. (‘99), and his wife,
Adrianna, welcomed twin daughters, Corinne Hope
(6 lb.10 oz.) and Elise Faith (5 lb. 2 oz.) Jan. 5.
Hartmann is medical director of Inpatient Psychiatry
Services at Akron General Health System and in
practice with Greater Akron Psychiatry/Akron
General Partners.
George Kefalas, M.D. (‘99), is medical director of
the Acute Care Specialty Hospital at Aultman Hospital
in Canton and practices pulmonary and critical care
medicine with Pulmonary Physicians, Inc. He and his
wife, Tanya, and daughter, Arianna, welcomed
Harrison George on Nov. 2.
Loren Kirchner, M.D. (‘99), recently returned from
Iraq after serving with the 345th Army Reserve
Combat Support Hospital in Iraq. He is a hospitalist
with the Cleveland Clinic.
Bryan Kobinski, M.D. (‘99), is a family practice
physician. He and his wife, Amy, and two sons live in
Smyrna, Tenn.
Seema Misbah, M.D. (‘99), completed a
hematology/medical oncology fellowship at Lenox Hill
Hospital in New York. She is an associate staff
member, Department of Regional Oncology, at the
Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute.
Leslie Murphy, M.D. (‘99), is a family physician in
North Lima, Ohio. She and her husband, Dan, have
three children: Luke, Janine and Cara.

2000s
Rajesh K. Bagai, M.D. (‘00), is a hematologist/
oncologist at the Cleveland Clinic. He and his wife,
Roshini, celebrated the birth of their first child, Ishan
Kumar, who was born in January 2008.
Benjamin S. Bolser, M.D. (‘00), is a hospitalist and
clinician educator at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.
He and his wife, Rebecca, have two children.
Hetal Kamdar Dhruva, M.D. (‘00), is with Bright
Oaks Pediatric Center. She resides in Bel Air, Md., with
her husband, Vivek, and two daughters.
Todd Emch, M.D. (‘00), is a neuroradiologist at the
Cleveland Clinic. Todd and Michelle Emch, M.D. (‘01),
have two sons.
Michael (Mick) Engle, M.D. (‘00), opened a third
location for All Points Physical Medicine, Rehabilitation
and Fitness in Niles, Ohio. He lives in Poland, Ohio,
with his wife, Tammy, and three children: Lauren, 5,
Nathan, 3, and Collin, 1.
Rajiv Lapasia, M.D. (‘00), and wife, Kavita, are the
proud parents of a daughter, Reya, born Oct. 29. He
is a vice president at BlackRock, focusing on public
equity investments in health care. They reside in
Princeton, New Jersey.
James Libecco, M.D. (‘01), and Julia Libecco,
M.D. (‘00), and their two sons reside in Solon, Ohio.
James is a staff dermatologist with the Cleveland
Clinic and Julia is a pediatrician with University
Hospitals Health System.
Ali Merchant, M.D. (’00), is a cardiac MRI/CT fellow
at The Ohio State University.
Chadwick Miller, M.D. (’00), and Lisa Miller, M.D.
(‘00), celebrated the birth of their first child,
Alexandra Margaret, on June 6, 2007.
Angela Peettenati Restaino, M.D. (‘00), and her
husband, Frank, welcomed a daughter, Abigail Marie,
on July 2, 2008. Abagail Maire joins 2-year-old
brother, Daniel.
2000s
ALUMNI NEWS
Milan Anadkat, M.D. (‘01), is an attending
physician and an assistant professor in dermatology
at Washington University in St. Louis. Jagruti Shah
Anadkat, M.D. (‘05), completed a pediatric
residency and is in a neonatology/perinatology
fellowship at Washington University. They have a
daughter, Bella.
Nadia Bajwa, M.D. (‘01), is a hospitalist at the
Children’s Hospital in Geneva, Switzerland. She and
her husband welcomed their first child, Aiden Mikhail
Alcala, June 27, 2008.
Reya Lapasia
Audrey K. Bennett, M.D. (‘01), is a pathologist at
Licking Memorial in Newark, Ohio.
Janice R. Brown, M.D (‘01), is a partner in a
seven-physician family medicine group in Centreville,
Va. She and her husband, Jeff, have one son.
Micheleanne Celigoj, M.D. (‘01), is board-certified
in interventional cardiology and is in private practice
in Chandler, Ariz.
Vanessa Chang, M.D. (‘01), is with Aurora Health
Care Behavioral Service in Kenosha, Wis.
Zahra Alexis Vuppala
Darlene Eckert, M.D. (‘01), began a pediatric
practice, Tree House Pediatrics, with a colleague she
met in residency. She and her husband, Omar,
welcomed their third child, Anisa, on July 14, 2008.
Erik Geibig, M.D. (‘01), is an emergency medicine
specialist with Team Health in Knoxville, Tenn. He and
his wife, Barbara, have two sons.
Noah L. Miller, M.D. (‘01), and his wife, Stephanie,
welcomed their first child, Rachel Rae, on Oct. 18,
2007. He is medical director of the new Child and
Adolescent Psychiatry Inpatient Unit at Rainbow
Babies and Children’s Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio.
Rebecca Russell, M.D. (‘01), is a board-certified
Ob/Gyn with the Cleveland Clinic Wooster Family
Health Center in Wooster, Ohio. She has one daughter,
Layla.
Srinivas Vuppala, M.D. (’01), and his wife,
Amanda Davis, M.D., are the proud parents of
Zahra Alexis Vuppala, who is now 6 months old.
SPRING2009 27

Dr. Pankaj Dhingra (‘02), his wife Sonia
and daughter Karishma
Isabella Reese and Ethan Hochstetler
Sarah Marie Kravec
Drake Brandon Dorsey
28 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
CLASSNOTES
Nicholas Wongchaowart, M.D. (‘01), and Sherri
(Suchora) Wongchawart, M.D. (‘02), live and
practice in the Columbus, Ohio, area. Nick is with
RMH Pathology and Sherri is with Concord Counseling
Services. They have one son, Alex.
Pankaj Dhingra, M.D. (‘02), his wife, Sonia, and
daughter, Karishma, welcomed Karina on Jan. 9.
The Dhingras live in Wisconsin.
Marion Hochstetler, M.D. (‘02), and Kemmely
Hochstetler, M.D. (‘04), and son, Ethan,
welcomed Isabella Reese on Nov. 21, 2008.
Summer James, M.D. (‘02), is an infertility
specialist at the University of Texas Medical Center
in Galveston.
James Kravec, M.D. (‘02), and Cindy Kravec,
M.D. (‘01), and their son, Jim, celebrated the birth
of Sarah Marie on September 20, 2008. Dr. James
Kravec is president of the NEOUCOM Alumni
Association.
Blake Ofobike M.D. (‘02), is a civilian Ob/Gyn at the
Naval Hospital in Jacksonville, Fla.
Aradhi (Doshi) Pandya, M.D. (‘02), is with Central
Ohio Primary Care Hospitalists and Urmil Pandya
M.D. (‘02), joined Trauma, Inc. Both practices are
in Columbus, Ohio.
Mark Rea, M.D. (‘02), is in an internal medicine
fellowship at the University of Massachusetts. He
and his wife, Carrie, and daughter, Anne, welcomed
Julia Elizabeth on Aug. 21, 2008.
Christiane Smith, M.D. (‘02), and Marvin Jacob
M.D. (‘01), welcomed baby Charles in November
2007. He joined big sister, Gretchen, while the family
was completing a locum year in Honolulu. The family
now resides in Wichita, Kan.
Amol Soin, M.D. (‘02), opened the Ohio Pain Clinic
in the Dayton area and specializes in innovative pain
management technologies.
Justin P. Strickland, M.D. (‘02), is an orthopedic
surgeon specializing in sports medicine at Iowa
Orthopedic Clinic in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
2000s
David Wiley, M.D. (‘02), opened a private practice in
Orthopedics/Sports Medicine. He and his wife, Shawna,
have two sons and reside in Hartsville, South Carolina.
Leah Maderia Adkins, M.D. (‘03), and Eric Adkins
were married on May 3, 2008. She is an Ob/Gyn with
Pickaway Health Services in Circleville, Ohio.
Sumit Bapna, M.D. (‘03), and his wife, Anitha,
welcomed their son, Ishaan, on Jan. 4.
Melanie (Drake) Dorsey, M.D. (‘03), and her
husband, Josh Dorsey, celebrated the birth of their
first child, Drake Brandon Dorsey, who was born
Dec. 22, 2008.
Jennifer Hall Huffstickler, M.D. (‘03), and her
husband, Jay, celebrated the birth of their son,
Joel Austin, on July 29, 2008.
Sarah Kline, M.D. (‘03), is a hospitalist specializing
in pediatrics at Carroll Hospital Center in Baltimore, Md.
Angela Rouse Scharschmidt, M.D. (‘03), and Tom
Scharschmidt, M.D. (‘03), reside in Seattle, with
their two-year-old son, Ty, and daughter, Zoe. Zoe was
born May 13, 2008. Angela is in a private Ob/Gyn
practice and Tom is completing a fellowship in
orthopedic oncology at the University of Washington.
Andrew J. Schoenfeld, M.D. (‘03), is completing a
spine fellowship at the Harvard Combined Orthopedic
Program. He has won six national awards for his
orthopedic research. He resides in Boston with his
wife, Erin, and children, Roman and Alyssa.
Marc A. Antonchak, M.D. (‘04), and his wife,

Katie, welcomed their first child, Jonah Christopher,
on July 24, 2008. They reside in Cincinnati.
Erin (Ort) Bertino, M.D. (‘04), and John Andrew
Bertino were married on May 24, 2008. In July 2008,
she began a hematology-oncology fellowship at The
Ohio State University.
Captain Charles A. Bonafiglio, M.D. (‘04), is
completing a child psychiatry fellowship at Tripler
Army Medical Center in Honolulu. He and his wife,
Mona, have one child, Abdul-Baaari Haadi Bonafiglio.

Brian Canterbury, M.D. (‘04), and his wife, Lisa,
welcomed their second daughter on Nov. 18, 2008.
Gretchen Sophie weighed 5 lbs. 15 oz. Big sister
Lucy Grace is 2 years old.
Elaine Cassidy, M.D. (‘04), is a second-year
pediatric rheumatology fellow at Children’s Hospital of
Pittsburgh. She and her husband, William, welcomed
their first child, William Phillip, on Aug. 4, 2008.
Kris Jatana, M.D. (‘04), is chief resident in
otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at The Ohio
State University. He will begin a pediatric head and
neck surgery fellowship at Children’s Memorial
Hospital (Northwestern University) in Chicago. He and
Courtney Zadell, D.D.S., an oral surgery resident at
The Ohio State University, were married in December.
ALUMNI NEWS
Vivek (Vik) Bhalla, M.D. (‘06), and Mary Colleen
Bhalla, M.D. (’05), welcomed a daughter, Naina
Marie, on Dec. 11, 2008.
Melissa A. Carter, M.D. (‘06), is a PGY-3 at
University Hospitals of Cleveland.
Gretchen Foley, M.D. (‘06), serves on the
Wright-Patterson Medical Center Professional
Education Committee.
Christina Liscynesky, M.D (‘06), has been Jonah Christopher Antonchak
accepted for an infectious disease fellowship at
The Ohio State University Medical Center.
Frank Lazzerini, M.D. (‘06), joined Austin Primary
Care in Barberton, Ohio, with Drs. Cook, Pamfilie
and Pluskota.

Jennifer Tarr, M.D. (‘04), and Brock McNutt were
married Dec.27, 2008. She is part of an internal
medicine group in Massillon, Ohio.
Hebah Hefzy, M.D. (‘05), and her husband, Ahmad,
welcomed their first child, Danyah, on Aug. 14, 2008.
Soumya Pandalai, M.D. (‘05), will begin a
toxicology fellowship at Emory University in Atlanta,
Ga., in July 2009.
Breeze Roberts, M.D. (‘05), and her husband,
Michael, welcomed triplets on Nov. 13, 2008.
Phoenix Michael, North Emmerson and Finn Nicholas
are all doing well.
John David Scrocco, M.D. (‘05), and Diana Lin
Awad were married on May 25, 2008. He is an
internal medicine resident at Summa Health System
and will begin a cardiology fellowship at MetroHealth/
University Hospitals in Cleveland.
Teri Sanor, M.D. (‘06), was one of 21 individuals
world-wide to participate in the New England Journal
of Medicine’s Horizons Conference October, 2008.
While in Boston she also visited the Center for
Health Improvement.
Katherine Sheridan, M.D. (‘06), husband, Ben, and Lucy Grace and Gretchen Sophie
Canterbury
son, Dominic, welcomed Xavier Michael Sheridan on
July 9, 2008.
Ronald Conner, M.D. (‘07), and Moriah Conner,
M.D. (‘08), are with Summa Health System. Ron was
named chief resident for the internal medicine
residency program.
Kyle Darnell, M.D. (‘07), and his wife, Colleen,
celebrated the birth of their first child, Conner Austin,
on June 4, 2008.
David R. Jury, M.D. (‘08), is completing an
anesthesiology residency with the Cleveland Clinic. Naina Marie Bhalla

Courtney Young, M.D. (‘05), and her husband, Anil Perumbeti, M.D. (‘08), is with the University of
Adam Heisel, welcomed a daughter Madeline Cheryl, Southern California in internal medicine.
on May 26, 2008. She is a family doctor at Fairfield
Rebecca Payne, M.D. (’08), is a resident at Medical
Medical Center in Lancaster, Ohio.
University of South Carolina in Charleston.
Sevasti Anagnostou, M.D. (‘06), and Dean
Yeropoli M.D. (‘06), were married May 24, 2008.
She is an Ob/Gyn resident at Akron General Health
System and he is an internal medicine resident at
Summa Health System.

SPRING2009 29
 CPDNEWS
CPD NEWS

For a complete list of live and online programs, visit www.neoucom.edu/ce or contact the
Office of Continuing Professional Development at 1-877-325-1212 (toll-free) or 330-325-6575.

DEPARTMENTS COMBINE RESOURCES FOR EXTRA STRENGTH EDUCATION

The offices of Continuing Professional Education and Faculty
Development are excited to announce that they have combined
resources to become the Office of Continuing Professional
Development (OCPD). “By joining forces we will build on the
strengths of both departments to improve the educational
opportunities for faculty and our community-based audiences,”
says Lori Gourley Babbey, director, Continuing Professional
Development.
“Our objective as a new department will be to create a continuum
of education to match a continuum of learning,” says Ellen Whiting,
director, Faculty Development. “This is grounded in the idea that
learning never ends and the goal is to be a constant resource of
learning for our students and faculty.”
The OCPD will soon have a new Web site that will be a
convenient resource for faculty, physicians and pharmacists
everywhere to access resources related to academic skills and/
or clinical skills development. Please visit www.neoucom.edu/ce
to learn more about our programs or feel free to call
1-877-325-1212 with questions or comments.

Gender differences in medicine addressed in
curriculum for students and physicians
In February 2006, NEOUCOM received a grant from the
Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO)
to continue efforts to incorporate sex and gender differences
in to the medical curriculum. Thanks to this grant awarded to
the departments of Ob/Gyn, Health Professions Education,
Family Medicine, Community Health Sciences and Internal
Medicine, a number of activities have been put in place.
During the Summer Practicum, premedical students are now
exposed to sex and gender issues in health care. Workshops
have been developed for faculty and educators to address
when and where women’s health competencies can be
addressed in the classroom and clerkship settings. Course
objectives have also been linked to the women’s health
competencies in NEOUCOM’s curriculum mapping online
database. And these are just a few of the ways the grant has
been applied to improve students’ education.
“This project is not just about women’s health,” says Margarita
Kokinova, Ph.D., assistant dean for assessment and
institutional effectiveness. “Its main purpose is to emphasize
the importance of sex and gender differences in health and
disease and to increase students’ sensitivity to gender issues
in health care delivery.”
The grant also extended its reach to faculty and community
physicians. In October 2008, the Office of Continuing
Professional Development sponsored a continuing education
conference based on women’s health competencies. More
than 120 participants came to learn about women and heart
disease, women with disabilities, peripartum psychological
disorders and much more.
While the grant period has ended, the funding allowed
NEOUCOM to make great strides in making students and
faculty much more aware of gender differences in medicine,
and established sex and gender differences in health care as
a permanent part of the curriculum.

NEOUCOM’S OFFICE OF CONTINUING

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
SCHEDULE OF CLASSES
SEPT. 9 Dermatology for Primary Care: Reaching Beyond
First-Line Dermatologic Therapy
NEOUCOM Rootstown Campus

OCT. 2 Annual Current Topics in OB/GYN

NEOUCOM Rootstown Campus

30 NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
BECOME
A WHITE COAT
SPONSOR
Members of the Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of
Medicine and Pharmacy Class of 2013 will begin a new chapter
in lifelong learning with their transition to professional school.
This important milestone in the lives of first-year students is marked
by a White Coat Ceremony, a NEOUCOM tradition since 1995.

This year’s White Coat ceremonies will be held September 2.

The White Coat ceremony for the College of Pharmacy will be
held at 10 a.m., and the College of Medicine ceremony will
be at 2 p.m.

Please consider sponsoring a white coat for a medical or

pharmacy student.

Your tax-deductible gift of $125 to sponsor a white coat shows

your support for an individual student and the NEOUCOM
Foundation’s Blue Fund, which benefits academic programs,
scholarships and research.

As a white coat sponsor, you will be recognized in the event

program and a card with your name on it will be inserted in the
coat pocket to let the student know of your generosity. Your name
will also be included in the NEOUCOM Foundation’s Honor Roll
of Donors.

To sponsor a white coat today pledge online at www.neoucom.edu

by clicking “Give a Gift” and then “Online Giving.” You may also call
us at 330-325-6671 to make your gift by phone. Please specify if
your gift is for a medical or pharmacy student.

Every gift makes a difference. Thank you.

SPRING2009 31
NEOUCOM’s
Ralph Regula Conference and Event Center
Northeastern Ohio Universities
COLLEGES OF MEDICINE & PHARMACY
NEOUCOMMAGAZINE
Whether an intimate retreat for 10, a professional
conference for 150 or a milestone celebration such
as a wedding and reception for 300, NEOUCOMʼs
Conference and Event Centerʼs professionals will
ensure your event is a success from beginning to end.
Please give us a call and let us help you plan an event
that meets your needs and exceeds your expectations.
Northeastern Ohio Universities
Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy
Conference and Event Center
4209 St. Rt. 44
P.O. Box 95
Rootstown, Ohio 44272-0095
Toll Free: 1-866-501-4100
Telephone: 330-325-6850
For a glimpse of our catering menus, meeting
packages, room profiles and other details,
visit http://www.neoucom.edu