pc connection

October 18, 2012

Volume 1, Issue 1 The PC Connection

Panther Communities:

• Anderson

Community:

Northwest Miami

• Hippocrates

Community:

Miami Gardens

• Pasteur

Community:

Opa Locka

• Semmelweis

Community:

Northeast Miami

Student Highlights:

White Coat Ceremony

Mentorship Program

Fit & Well Program

Mammography aRt Initiative

Heart Walk

MedSWISH

Dean’s Cup

Student Highlights

The White Coat Ceremony is

a time-honored, medical

school tradition that marks the

beginning of a first-year

medical student’s life in

medicine.

On Friday, August 10, 120

new medical students were

cloaked for the first time in

their crisp white coats -- the

attire that physicians have

traditionally worn for more

than 100 years -- followed by

the recitation of the

Hippocratic Oath. The

students also received their

first stethoscopes, a gift from

Leon Medical Centers, one of

the college's clinical partners.

"Our young medical school

continues to attract

outstanding students who are

Class of 2016 - White Coat Ceremony

looking to make a difference

in the community," said

College of Medicine

Founding Dean Dr. John

Rock. "This class is a great

reflection on our school's

commitment to developing

physicians who are

culturally competent and

community based."

Since the College of

Medicine’s inaugural class

was welcomed in 2009, the

class of 2016 is the largest

inducted to HWCOM as it

marks its 4th year of

presence among South

Florida’s medical schools.

The class of 2016 has an

average GPA of 3.6 and is

made up of 60 men and 60

women who come from as

far away as China,

Trinidad and Tobago.

Above: Herbert Wertheim scholarship recipients Daniel Lewis, Timothy Holley, Jeffrey Savin with Dr. Herbert Wertheim Below: Matthew Sussman, Alexander Fagenson

Dean John Rock

Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine Class of 2016

Editor: Jessica Lewis Panther community Coordinator

A newsletter created to promote and share the activities and experiences our students gain from opportunities provided to them by the Herbert Wertheim college of Medicine and the Panther Communities (PC).

The PC Connection of 6

“Attending this program is guiding me towards my

dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer.”

- Booker, Glades Middle School 7th grader

attending a “Project Pipeline event in Miami

Gardens led by Panther Community Hippocrates.

Panther Community

Coordinator, Carmen Ellis,

has been busy developing

the Herbert Wertheim

College of Medicine’s new

Medical Mentoring

Leadership Program

(MMLP). This new

program was started with

the intentions of bridging

currently enrolled FIU

Herbert Wertheim College

of Medicine medical

students with voluntary

faculty. Recognizing that

it is important for students

to develop a working

relationship with a doctor

NEW – Medical Mentoring Leadership Program

Research suggests that

student burnout is

increasing in U.S. medical

schools. In response, the

FIT & WELL Task Force

committee was formed,

led by Dr. Jorge Mora, Dr.

Heidi von Harscher, Dr.

Nathaly Shoua-

Desmarais, Dr. Suzanne

Minor, Scarlett Aldana,

Jessica Lewis, and Gina

Guzman. FIT & WELL

promotes student health

and well-being by

sponsoring monthly

fitness and wellness

classes to help students

achieve and maintain

Medical Student Fit & Well Task Force Program

Panther Communities – Know the Facts!

in the community to receive

insight, advice, and

guidance – this program was

designed to encourage,

define and achieve

academic, personal, and

career goals throughout

students’ experience in

medical school and

thereafter.

One of the highlights of the

program is the new online

registration database that

allows mentors and mentees

to register online at

http://medicine.fiu.edu/mentorin.

Once the online registration

is complete, students and

mentors will be matched to

each other based on

professional and personal

interests.

The MMLP will also hold its

mentee orientation on

November 1st, from

12:00pm-1:00pm in GC 243.

During orientation, mentors

and mentees can network

and learn more about the

program. For more

information, please contact

Carmen Ellis: [email protected]

or 305-348-6074.

optimal physical,

emotional, and spiritual

health.

An essential aspect of our

students becoming doctors

is learning to take care of

their own health and work-

life balance, thus allowing

them to become the best

healers that they can be to

their future patients. The

wellness skills learned

during the formative years

of medical school will help

our students continue to

grow personally and

professionally over long

careers as practicing

physicians. Student wellness

activities include: nutrition

assessments, yoga, mixed

martial arts, zumba, adapting

to change, tai chi, pilates,

kickboxing, and hip hop

classes.

At a glance:

@FIUMedicine Instagram

Second year student, Melissa Cardenas

being interviewedby Univision after

hosting a suturing clinic.

M3 students Heather Miller, Jinny Gunn, Alejandra Alvarez

Second year student, Katherine Raczek, practicing intubation on one of HWCOM’s

new patient simulation dolls.

Anderson - Named after Dr. Elizabeth G. Anderson, the first female physician in Britain. Official PC color is green and their mascot is the Green Alligator. Their assigned NeighborhoodHELP community is Miami Northwest. Fun fact: Anderson was home to the first annual HWCOM ping pong tournament in 2011 won by Anderson student, Christian Gutierrez-Morales. Hippocrates – Named after Hippocrates of Cos, the Western father of medicine. Official PC color is silver and

their mascot is the Hippo. Their assigned NeighborhoodHELP community is Miami Gardens. Fun Fact: In

addition to winning Panther Community of the Year award in 2010 and 2012, Hippocrates remains the

loudest community lounge since its inception.

Pasteur – Named after Louis Pasteur who confirmed the Germ Theory and is known as one of the main

founders of microbiology. Official PC color is red. Their assigned NeighborhoodHELP community is Opa-Locka.

Fun Fact: Pasteur won Panther Community of the Year award in 2011, and is in a desperate search of a

mascot.

Semmelweis – Named after Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis who discovered that hand washing could reduce the

spread of infections. Official color is blue and their mascot is the Wise Owl. Their assigned

NeighborhoodHELP community is Miami Northeast. Fun Fact: Semmelweis won the all-around Panther

Puzzlers (medical trivia) trophy in 2012, which is why they chose the Wise Owl as their mascot.


Saturday September 29th marked

the first annual Mammography

aRt Initiative. In conjunction with

The Green Family Foundation

President Kimberly Green, the

keynote speaker, 21 medical

students worked together to make

this a successful affair. The


effectively raised over $10,000 to

supply over 80 mammograms to

underserved women in the local

NeighborhoodHELP communities.

Project founder Robert Guido

explains (M2), “The initiative is

basically a combination art

show/fundraiser that aims to

initially raise enough money to

provide mammograms for 80

women who are enrolled in The

Green Family Foundation’s

NHELP program. The theme is

Radiology Meets the Arts, and in

a way it springs from my time as

president of the Radiology

Interest Group at FIU’s College of

Medicine. I thought it would be a

great idea to hold a benefit art

show that fuses radiology images

with traditional art.”

The event hosted over 160

attendees, and was held at the

FIU Frost Art Museum with

participation from 18 professional

and amateur artists, art students,

and breast cancer survivors.


For the third consecutive year, thousands of

supporters of the American Heart Association

gather on FIU’s Modesto A. Maidique campus

to walk and raise money to fight heart disease

-- the No. 1 killer of all Americans. Dean John

Rock and Wayne Brackin, Chief Operating

Officer of Baptist Health, are co-chairs of the

American Heart Association’s signature event,

which is created to raise lifesaving funds and

encourage people to embrace physical fitness.

This event is a favorite of the FIU students it

provides them a hands-on experience

volunteering with at the Baptist Hospital tent on

site. This year, the American Medical

Women’s Association (AMWA) and PC

Pasteur ranked in the top five groups for

fundraising at FIU.

American Heart Association Start! Heart Walk – Oct. 6th

Images were displayed that

portrayed either a personal

encounter with breast cancer or

support breast cancer awareness by

using images from CT scans, X-

rays, MRI’s and ultrasounds. The

students have already started to

plan next year’s event by selecting a

team of first-year medical students

to carry on the project that the

current second- year students

began. The goal is to have the

Mammography aRt Initiative become

another HWCOM student annual

event.

Money raised will help:

• Provide doctors’ with the latest research so

they can better prevent and treat heart

disease.

• Fund groundbreaking pediatric heart

research. About 36,000 babies are born with

heart defects each year —research is the

key to saving babies’ lives.

• Get life-saving information to those who

need it most – information that can save

lives, such as how to eat better, how to

recognize the warning signs of heart attack,

and how to talk to a doctor about critical

prevention and therapeutic options.

Above: M1 student volunteer, Anna Kuan-Celarier

Above: M1 student CJ Kwan shows art to participants

Top Left: LeAnn Shannon, Robert Guido, Natalia Echeverri-Botero

Top Right: Green Family Foundation President ,Kimberly Green

Above: M2 student and Medical Student Council President, Christian Nagel, checks Roary’s pulse at the American Heart

Association’s Start! Heart Walk.


This month, a group of

HWCOM medical students

will attempt to “break the

law,” and keep the coveted

Deans’ Cup in its rightful

home at the College of

Medicine.

The Dean’s Cup is an

intense annual rivalry

among university medical

schools and law schools

from all over the country

2012 Deans Cup – College of Law vs. College of Medicine

MedSWIS (Medical Students

Working to Improve Society

and Health) is a community

service organization founded

by students at the Herbert

Wertheim College of

Medicine. Last spring,

MedSWISH gained access

to the FIU mobile health

MedSWISH, Mobile Clinic visits the Breast Health Symposium

that dates back to the early

1980s. The second annual

Dean’s Cup competition

taking place Saturday, Oct.

20, consists of three athletic

events; kickball (which faculty

are invited to play with the

students), flag football and

softball – softball being the

main event. The med school

is hoping to extend its overall

record to two wins over the

law school.

In addition to the games the

MSC will also host a family day.

This is a great opportunity to not

only cheer on the medical

students, but bring your family

and children for a day of fun

and games. There will be a

bounce house, face painting,

and other activities. Student

organizations from both schools

will be in attendance with food,

games, and fundraising/bake

sales.

clinic that will be used to

attend to the health needs of

the underserved in local

communities. On Sept. 22,

MedSWISH and the Mobile

Clinic attended the Breast

Health Symposium in Opa-

Locka, sponsored by the

Beautiful Gate – a non-profit

group whose mission is to

provide education and support

services to all cancer patients.

Medical students performed

glucose and hypertension

screenings, and breast cancer

awareness activities.

MedSWISH hopes to go into

the communities to provide

free clinic services to each

community. Medical students

will be seeing patients in

NHELP neighborhoods who

are not yet involved in the

program to eventually get

them enrolled. Their goal is to

have their first free clinic at the

Royal Country mobile home

park in the Northeast

neighborhood in early

November.

Aug. – Sept., American Medical

Women’s Association (AMWA) visits to

Lotus House for educational programming

(STIs, Menstruation and Menopause)

Sept.19, American Medical Student Association (AMSA) screening of

Escape Fire, a documentary focusing on health care issues Sept. 24, American Medical Association (AMA) held a fundraiser/social mixer with

UM's AMA group at Tobacco Road Sept. 27, Latin Medical Student

Association (LMSA) hosts Medical

Spanish Workshop

Sept. 30- Oct. 2, Surgery Interest Group

attended the American Collegian of Surgeons Conference in Chicago, IL Oct. 2nd – Neuroscience Interest Group

hosted “Mechanisms of RNAi: Implications for Huntington Disease Lecture” Oct. 3, AMWA hosts lunch and learn with

Dr. Martinez on Women’s Cardiovascular Health Oct. 5-6, OB-GYN Interest Group (OGIG) American Congress of

Obstetricians and Gynecology conference in Charleston, SC Oct. 8, AMA Primary Care Social

Oct. 9, “The Traditional South Beach Diet” hosted by LMSA and Internal Medicine Interest Group

Oct. 10, Family Medicine Interest Group (FMIG) will host a program on gender and

orientation by the Yes Institute Oct. 10, OGIG attended the screening of

“The Business of Being Born” Oct.12, Public Health and Your Patients presentations by AMSA, FMIG, Non-Profit and Global Health (NPGHIG), Pediatrics Interest Group (PIG), and Student National Medical Association (SNMA)

Oct. 13, Patient Education and Primary Care Volunteer Clinic at UHI hosted by NPGHIG

Oct. 20-23, PIG students attending the

AAP conference in New Orleans, LA Oct. 27, AMWA and OGIG participating in

Breast Cancer Health Fair Oct. 29 – 30, AMWA hosts

Burnout/Empathy Assessment

Nov.13, SNMA and LMSA collaborating

with NHELP on the Health experience

Highlights:

Student Interest Groups

Above: Elena Rueda-de-Leon (M3) Marlen Rodriguez (M2) Clare Stevens (M3) Karla Diaz-Ayllon (M3), Alejandra Alvarez (M3)

Cory McLaughlin (M3)

COL Dean Acosta and COM Assistant Dean of OSA, Dr. Dollinger Dante Sorrentino (M3)

Members of PC Pasteur and MedSWISH at the Beautiful Gate event with the Mobile Clinic.

Above: the 2011 winning team


Wednesday September 19th,

first year students of PC

Anderson toured their

community of Northwest

Miami. They stopped to visit

their community partners

Royal Country mobile home

community, and the UHI

clinic. In addition, to get

familiar with the area, they

drove by other partners --His

House, Sandor Weiner

School of Opportunity,

Charles Wyche Elementary

School, and Betty’s

Preschool. Saturday Sept

22nd, PC Anderson students

participated in the 2nd annual

Global Health and Outreach

ministry’s health and

wellness event, “Our

Community in Health and

Wellness”, at Miami Lakes

United Methodist Church.

ANDERSON – MIAMI NORTHWEST

Sept. 15th, 12 members of

Hippocrates spent their

Saturday morning at Miami

Garden’s New Life Church

participating in their Project

Pipeline. Project Pipeline,

which is led by the medical

students in PC Hippocrates,

takes place monthly and is

designed to encourage

students from elementary to

high school to pursue

education opportunities,

especially in math and

science fields. The project

involves teaching the kids a

new topic each month.

September’s session

involved a short science

lesson and a review of a

scrapbook medical students

created that shows their

past activities and

accomplishments.

The next Project Pipeline is

HIPPOCRATES – MIAMI GARDENS

Students helped distribute

information to participants

regarding osteoporosis,

cholesterol, and blood

sugar. PC Anderson also

has a few things to be

proud of; they had the

most students who walked

at the October 6th

American Heart

Association’s Start! Heart

Walk, and was the PC to

collect the most socks for

the “The Odd Life of

Timothy Green Sock

Drive.” Inspired by Walt

Disney Pictures’ new

family film, the sock drive

was started to collect

socks for needy families

depending on Rescue

Missions across the nation.

set for October 20th, where

students will be assisting

the students in a Civil

Engineering project.

Later that week on Sept.

18th, the new M1s took a

bus tour of Miami Gardens

to visit some of the

NeighborhoodHELP

community partners --North

Dade Health Center, Miami

Gardens Neighborhood

Enrichment Center, Norland

Elementary School, Betty T.

Ferguson Recreational

Complex, and the Antioch

Missionary Baptist Church.

On Oct. 13th, members of

PC Hippocrates will also be

participating in a health fair

sponsored by the Center for

Advancement, Restoration

and Empowerment in Miami

Gardens, “Healthy Habits,

Healthy Bodies: An

Investment for a Lifetime.”

There they will volunteer

with members of

MedSWISH at the Mobile

Clinic to offer community

members BMI and blood

pressure screenings, as

well as glucose

screenings.

Panther Community Highlights

Above: Hippocrates M2s Kamen Kutzarov and Louis Carriillo give a science lesson to kids at the Miami Gardens Project Pipeline event on Sept. 15.

Hippocrates M1 students at Norland Elementary School during their community tour of Miami Gardens.

Members of PC Anderson in front of the UHI clinic during their community tour on Sept. 19.

M1s Aws Al-Abdulah, Eric Knott, and Daniel Castro at the American Heart Association Start! Heart Walk

of 6 The PC Connection

September 20th, 2012 the

members of the Pasteur Panther

Community participated in their

yearly bus tour to Opa-Locka. This

was an enriching and educational

experience where the students got

to tour elementary schools,

daycare centers, and retirement

homes in their surrounding

neighborhood. They visited Robert

Ingram Elementary School where

they got to see the facility and

engage in conversation with the

Principal Dr. Susan McEachin,

teachers and students.

Pasteur also participated in the

American Heart Association

annual Heart Walk on October 6th

,

2012 where they raised a total of

$404.00 for the American Heart

Association.—5th

highest total of

all FIU teams!

Members of the Pasteur

Community also participated in the

Beautiful Gate Foundation

Women’s Health Symposium on

PASTEUR – OPA-LOCKA

On Sept. 19th, first year

students from PC

Semmelweis toured their

NeighborhoodHELP

community of Miami

Northeast. They met with

community partners

Jackson North Medical

Center, Community

Partner City of North

Miami Beach’s Highland

Village Mobile Home Park,

Children's Academy Pre-

School- ELC Center, to

Toussaint L'Ouverture

Elementary School, and

Church of Saint Martha.

On September 29th,

members of Semmelweis

participated in a health fair

coordinated by one of

their community partners

called “Colombia Nos

Une” at The Fair Expo

Center where they

presented nutrition

education and conducted

BMI screenings for the

SEMMELWEIS – MIAMI NORTHEAST

September 22nd

, 2012 at Robert

Ingram Elementary School in Opa-

Locka, FL. They engaged in blood

pressure screenings and participated

in a panel discussion about the

navigation of health care and how to

obtain resources about breast cancer

and women’s health.

participants. In addition to these

events, Semmelweis is also

coordinating a School Supply Drive

for all of September for the Big

Brothers, Big Sisters non-profit

organization.

Above: Members of PC Pasteur at Robert Ingram on their Sept. 20

th community tour.

Left: Medical students at the Beautiful Gate

event in Opa Locka

Right M1 Kelsey Schweiberger, Cecily Koppuzha, Nibras Chowdhury, Krista Miller Left: M1 Krista Miller Top: M1 Cecily Koppuzha, M2 Faisal Rahim

Above: members of PC Semmelweis touring their community of Miami Northeast

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