Inside Wake PA Winter 2017 by Inside Wake PA

INSIDE WAKE PA

Stress busters

p16 Therapy dogs provide study break 4 Gail Curtis assumes chair of PA Studies 6 Goodbye to all that 7 N ew program director named

WINTER 2017

FROM THE CHAIR

Welcome to the inaugural issue of Inside Wake PA! We are excited to launch a quarterly digital magazine to inform, inspire and entertain alumni, students, faculty, supporters and friends of the Department of PA Studies at Wake Forest School of Medicine. This first issue of Inside Wake PA updates you on recent changes within PA Studies. Dr. Reamer Bushardt, our chair and program director for the past seven years, left at the end of 2016 for an exciting opportunity at George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington, D.C. Dr. Bushardt’s exit prompted my appointment as chair of PA Studies and Professor Suzanne Reich’s appointment as program director. Reamer was an incredibly inspiring force and he will be sorely missed; we all wish him well on his journey to do great things at GWU. You can read more about Reamer’s promotion, my new role and Suzanne’s promotion over the next few pages. As if these changes aren’t exciting enough, we’ve added a new faculty member at our Boone campus and new staff members in Winston-Salem, and our own Dr. Pat Ober, professor and medical director of the PA program, has received a prestigious national teaching award. This past fall, PA Studies (in partnership with AAPA) hosted a conference on health care leadership at our Winston-Salem campus as well as a CME event in Orlando. These events and news about our students — including photos of them enjoying a visit from some adorable therapy dogs — are all covered inside. An essential component of any educational magazine is alumni news. We enjoy hearing from our alums, and as an ’81 alumna I enjoyed reading about my classmates in this issue’s Alumni News. Please send an email and let us know what you’ve been up to: PAAlumNotes@wakehealth.edu. I look forward to the opportunities ahead for PA Studies, and this magazine is just one example of our momentum. By the way, the magazine’s name is the result of a contest we held this past fall. More than 60 names were suggested by students, faculty, and staff. Assistant Professor Sobia Hussaini submitted Inside Wake PA, which was chosen the winner by a committee of faculty and staff. If you have feedback to offer on this inaugural issue or any story ideas for our next issue to share, we would love to hear from you. Best wishes for 2017. And happy reading!

L. Gail Curtis, MPAS, PA-C Associate Professor and Chair

▶ Mark your calendars now to come back to PA school for a CME alumni event here at 525@Vine, Nov. 1–3, 2017. More details to come!

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CONTENTS

I N S I D E W A K E PA Winter 2017 • Volume 1 • Number 1

Department of PA Studies, Wake Forest School of Medicine Associate Professor and Chair L. Gail Curtis, MPAS, PA-C Associate Professor and Program Director Suzanne Reich, MPAS, PA-C

ED I T O RS

Teri Capshaw, MBA Tanya Gregory, PhD C O NT R IBU TORS

Andrew Gray (’18) Carol Hildebrandt Sobia Hussaini, MHA Jennifer Jackson, MD Alyssa Murray (’18)

FEATURES 4

Gail Curtis assumes chair of PA Studies

Goodbye to all that

New program director named

OF NOTE 8

Faculty member joins Boone campus

Whitt leaves ASU for Lenoir-Rhyne post 9

Ober receives national award

Lauren Carroll, Cameron Dennis, Elise Gmuca, Rebecca Moore

Executive PAs go back to class

PA Studies hosts CME event

D ESI G N

Job Fair connects students and recruiters

P HO T OGRAPHY

Creative Communications Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center

DEPARTMENTS

INSIDE WAKE PA is a digital quarterly publication for students, faculty, staff, alumni, preceptors, and friends of the Department of PA Studies, Wake Forest School of Medicine. Please send correspondence to: PA Studies, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157 or email PAAlumNews@ wakehealth.edu Wake Forest School of Medicine is an equal opportunity/equal access/affirmative action employer fully committed to achieving a diverse workforce and complies with all federal and North Carolina state laws, regulations, and executive orders regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. Wake Forest School of Medicine does not discriminate on the basis of race, age, color, religion, national origin or ancestry, sex, gender, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression.

New Faces

Student News

Alumni News

Photo Album

Back Page

@wakeforest_pa #wakeforest_pa

WINTER 2017

F E AT U R E S T O R Y

L. Gail Curtis, MPAS, PA-C, is going to be one busy person for the foreseeable future.

Curtis (’81) was named chair of the Department of PA Studies at the end of 2016 with the departure of former chair Reamer Bushardt, PharmD, PA-C. As if that wasn’t enough of a job, Curtis will assume the mantle as president of the American Academy of PAs (AAPA) on July 1; she’s serving as president-elect until then. “I am honored to be named chair,” Curtis said. “My goals for the department include successful reaccreditation, continuing and expanding our Emerging Leaders Program, and supporting faculty in their pursuit of scholarly work and leadership.” Curtis, an associate professor, was vice chair of PA Studies and director of student services during Bushardt’s tenure. She has been a PA advocate, educator and leader at the national and state levels as well as at Wake Forest for many years. In addition to her leadership experience, Curtis brings appreciation for her predecessor and the department to her new role. Though PA Studies achieved department status within Wake Forest School of Medicine before Bushardt’s arrival, Curtis says it was still functioning as a program. Bushardt reorganized the structure and function of PA Studies and distributed leadership opportunities among faculty and staff. “The first years with him were challenging because he had high expectations,” Curtis said of Bushardt. “But he never expected more of us than he did of himself. Through his leadership, we all grew and developed in ways we wouldn’t have thought possible.” Curtis’s objective is for faculty and staff to experience the transition to her leadership as seamless and for everyone to feel supported as the department’s work is carried on. “We will miss Reamer,” she said. “We will miss his innovative mind and infectious energy, but we won’t lose our way because he has set us on a strong path.” Curtis joined the School of Medicine faculty in 1985 as an instructor in PA Studies. She was named assistant professor in 1991 and associate professor in 2007. Her clinical practice has included working in otolaryngology, pulmonary, and family and community medicine at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. Curtis has published numerous articles and book chapters and presented on topics such as PA professional regulations, disorders in otolaryngology, substance use disorder and weight management. Promoting wellness among her fellow PAs is just as important to her as promoting it to her patients, and she often lectures on wellness issues for students and health care providers. Before becoming president-elect of AAPA, Curtis served the AAPA in various roles for decades, including as vice president and speaker of the House of Delegates. She has been president of the North Carolina Academy of PAs (NCAPA) and chair of several NCAPA committees. A member of the North continued

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one

busy person

Gail Curtis assumes chair of PA Studies

continued

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Curtis assumes chair of PA Studies Carolina Medical Society and the Piedmont Association of PAs, she served as director of the North Carolina Physicians Health Program and on the North Carolina Medical Board Compliance Committee. She won the NCAPA Outstanding Service Award in 2010 and became North Carolina PA of the Year in 2013. She has served on the editorial boards for the Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants and the North Carolina Medical Journal. Curtis earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and after graduating from the Bowman Gray School of Medicine PA program, she earned a master’s degree in PA studies from the University of Nebraska.

Goodbye to all that It’s the end of an era. Reamer L. Bushardt, PharmD, PA-C, professor and chair of the Department of PA Studies, left Wake Forest at the end of 2016 to become senior associate dean for health sciences at George Washington (GW) University School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) in Washington, D.C. “When my wife and I packed up and moved to Winston-Salem nearly seven years ago,” Bushardt said, “we could never have anticipated the adventure that awaited us nor predicted the profound way we would be affected by the faculty, staff, students and alumni of the Wake Forest PA family. We are ever grateful for the opportunity to have been a part of this family and for the love and support as we begin the next chapter in our lives.” “When I arrived, I challenged the team to dream big,” added Bushardt, who’s affectionately known as “RB” within PA Studies. “They trusted me and made a leap of faith. Today, it is inspiring to realize all that we have accomplished together.” And in fact PA Studies has experienced transformational growth since Bushardt joined the department in 2010, including development of an academic partnership with Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C., and launch of a new campus there. Another new initiative was the Emerging Leaders Program, a sequential degree program in which students earn an MA in management from the Wake Forest University School of Business before entering the 6

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PA program. Applications to the PA program increased under Bushardt, as did extramural dollars from grants and contracts and faculty publications of peer-reviewed scholarly works. And PA Studies became a top 10 program, currently ranked 9th in the country by U.S. News & World Report. RB left the department with a challenge very like the ones he issued over time at Wake PA: “Dream big,” he said. “Draw strength from and support one another. Embrace a path of leadership, and let your choices be shaped by your character and the desire to improve the lives of those we serve.” In addition to being chair of the Department of PA Studies and PA program director, Bushardt was also a professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and a program leader in WFBMC’s Translational Science Institute. Bushardt will lead all health sciences departments at GW SMHS, including the Department of Physician Assistant Studies, the Department of Physical Therapy and Health Care Sciences, the Department of Clinical Research and Leadership, and the Division of Integrated Health Sciences. Bushardt received his doctor of pharmacy with honors and bachelor of science cum laude from the University of South Carolina. He received his bachelor of science in physician assistant studies from the Medical University of South Carolina.

Reamer L. Bushardt with L. Gail Curtis

F E AT U R E S T O R Y

New program director named Suzanne Reich, MPAS, PA-C, has been named director of the PA program at Wake Forest School of Medicine. Reich, who joined the Wake PA program in 2002 as an instructor and the director of clinical education, succeeds Reamer Bushardt, who left at the end of 2016 to join George Washington University’s School of Medicine and Health Sciences. “I’m excited about taking on the role of program director, especially because of the value I place on seamless transitions for our current students and ongoing relationship-building with our PA alums,” Reich said. “The amazing staff and faculty at Wake PA create an excellent team, and I really look forward to helping everyone meet their personal goals while working together to continue to improve the curriculum and innovate in ways that will benefit the patients that our graduates care for.” Reich first joined Wake Forest University School of Medicine (formerly Bowman Gray School of Medicine) in 1984 as a physician assistant in the Section on Cardiology. In 1993, she moved to the Department of Family and Community Medicine, where she continues to practice. Reich served as an instructor and director of clinical education in the PA program from 2002 to 2006. She was named assistant professor in 2006 and continued as clinical education director until 2013, when she became associate program director. She served as distant campus coordinator for the Boone campus from 2014 to 2015 and was named associate professor in 2015. Reich is active in the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA), currently serving on its PA Foundation Board of Directors. She was named a Distinguished Fellow of AAPA in 2014. She’s also active on the N.C. Academy of Physician Assistants Endowment, where she serves as a trustee on the board of directors. Reich earned her BS degree from Pennsylvania State University and her BS in PA Studies from Hahnemann University. She has an MPAS from the University of Nebraska.

WINTER 2017

OF NOTE

Boone campus adds faculty There’s no place like home for Dr. Joel Miller of Hickory, N.C. But scratch that if a trip to space opens up or the fish are biting at Yellowstone National Park. Miller, an assistant professor on the Boone campus, has spent his entire life close to Hickory, where he grew up. “The longest I’ve been away is two-and-a-half weeks,” he said. “I just love this area. I like this part of the world.” The time away from Hickory? That was a river cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam with his wife, Nancy, and occasional fly fishing trips to Yellowstone. He’d like to travel more, but one knee replacement and his other bum knee limit that. The dream trip he’d love to take would be out of this world, literally. An avowed space buff since he was a kid, Miller said he would’ve considered trying out to be an astronaut if he hadn’t thought he was too tall. “If they called me tomorrow and said I could go on a space shuttle, I’d be at Cape Canaveral,” he said. Until then, you can find him on the Boone campus, where he has been an IBL facilitator and Patient Care lab instructor since July 2016. “When this opportunity was presented to me, I thought it would be fun,” Miller said. “I’m having to relearn a lot of things I haven’t done since med school; that’s been

challenging and fun. I enjoy IBL sessions — I like that process, the small group learning. I’m impressed.” Miller graduated cum laude with a BS from Wake Forest and earned his MD at the former Bowman Gray School of Medicine, where he also completed his residency. He’s a former associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the School of Medicine and had a private practice in Hickory for 37 years before retiring in 2015. Miller and his wife have two grown sons and three grandchildren. Outside of work, he enjoys amateur photography and volunteering with Trout Unlimited, a national conservation group that protects cold water fisheries. And there’s always fly fishing and keeping up with the space industry.

Whitt tapped for top post at Lenoir-Rhyne Congratulations are in order for Fred Whitt, who will become president of Lenoir-Rhyne University in February. Whitt, who has served as founding dean of the Beaver College of Health Sciences at Appalachian State University, is succeeding Wayne Powell, who has retiring. During his seven-year tenure at ASU, Whitt helped forge the university’s partnership with the Wake Forest School of Medicine and its implementation of the PA program in Boone. “Your support and good work have helped the Beaver College of Health Sciences become a jewel in the crown

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of Appalachian State,” Whitt said of the Wake PA program.

comprise so much of Northwest North Carolina,” Bushardt said.

Reamer Bushardt, immediate past chair of the Department of PA Studies and past director of the PA program at “Fred has been a Wake Forest, credited Whitt for his strong supporter vision for the program. “Fred and I of PA education shared a dream to build a private-public and practice, and partnership between a state and private every member of university that could accelerate the Wake Forest faculty and staff are interprofessional education, advance grateful for his many contributions,” research and workforce development Bushardt added. initiatives, and increase our collective Lenoir-Rhyne is a private liberal arts capacity to meet the healthcare needs university founded in 1891 with of patients and families living in the campuses in Hickory and Asheville, rural and underserved communities that N.C., as well as Columbia, S.C.

OF NOTE

Ober receives national award

Dr. K. Patrick Ober just went to the head of the class. Ober, professor of internal medicine-endocrinology and medical director of the PA program, has received the Alpha Omega Alpha Robert J. Glaser Distinguished Teacher Award from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). The award, which annually recognizes outstanding contributions to the education of medical students, was presented to Ober in November 2016 at the AAMC’s Seattle meeting. Ober also received QI Top Decile recognition from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center last fall. He was one of 25 WFBMC doctors rated by their patients in the 90th percentile or higher nationally in Press Ganey surveys for a one-year period ending Sept. 30, 2016. Ober and the other recipients were ranked for patient satisfaction both when compared against all physicians in the Press Ganey database and against all physicians in their specialties. This was the second consecutive quarter that Ober made the top decile. “It’s a little overwhelming,” Ober said of the accolades. “It’s not one of the things you expect to get; you expect other people to get it, so there’s a surprise element.” When asked why he thought he received the Glaser award, Ober chuckled, “I have no idea. I can list plenty of names of deserving people.” Ober is humble by design. “I’ve found that life is easier approached with humility than arrogance. Humility always gives you a little wiggle room and negotiating space.” Accepting kudos, though, is not unfamiliar territory for him. Wake Forest medical students have honored Ober with

more than 30 teaching awards. PA Studies established the Patrick and Cathy Ober Community Leadership Award in 2015 to annually recognize a student who has demonstrated remarkable dedication to community service and leadership in outreach, philanthropy and humanitarianism. Ober’s favorite aspect of teaching is the interaction. “The challenge is if I can figure out what I want to teach and get it across in a useful manner that makes sense,” he said. He also likes that no two days are the same. “I have the advantage of doing a number of diverse things in any given week: seeing patients, writing, teaching,” he added. “I try to enjoy each day for the day it is.” If he hadn’t gone into medicine, Ober might have been an English teacher. He’s a fan of literature and is an internationally recognized expert on Mark Twain, with a particular focus on Twain’s commentaries on medicine. He’s the author of Mark Twain and Medicine: “Any Mummery Will Cure,” published in 2003 by the University of Missouri Press. A native of Iowa, Ober earned a BS with High Honors from Michigan State University and his MD from the University of Florida. He completed his residency and a fellowship at Wake Forest and has been on the faculty since 1977. Ober and his wife, Cathy, have two grown children and one grandson. The Glaser award was established by the AOA medical honor society in 1988. The award is named for long-time AOA executive secretary Dr. Robert J. Glaser. WINTER 2017

C O N T I N U I N G E D U C AT I O N

Executive PAs go

back to class

Students were on fall break last November, but the atmosphere in the Department of PA Studies was reminiscent of the first day of classes. About 150 executive PAs from all over the country trekked to Winston-Salem to go back to school.

Cathy Shull, MPAS, PA-C, an assistant professor in the PA program who helped facilitate small group sessions, found the conference informative for her work as an educator and clinician. “I think it’s always good to get participants from all different parts of the country in a group and sharing their ideas — that’s the best way to disseminate new thoughts,” Shull said.

School, in this case, was a two-day conference that PA Studies hosted in partnership with the American Academy of Physician Assistants’ (AAPA) Center for Shull especially enjoyed the role-playing in small groups. Healthcare Leadership and Management. The “It wasn’t someone sitting there passively learning,” she “students” included some of the country’s leading PAs, said. “It was activity-driven. All the participants had who also hold clinical administrative roles. They were put some expertise that they shared.” to the test with a rigorous leadership development Besides attending sessions on a variety of topics and curriculum focused on personal development, reflection, interacting with speakers, participants were able to effective communication and business management network with leaders from across the country, including tools. Conference activities included plenary sessions, the AAPA board members, who were in town for a inquiry-based learning sessions with applied case meeting. scenarios, networking lunches and evening events.

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PA Program Associate Medical Director Zachary Hartsell, MPAS, MHA, PA-C, shares how to put lessons into practice and the value of reflection with conference participants

OF NOTE

PA program hosts Orlando CME event Hurricane Matthew packed a wallop, stopping many in their tracks, but the storm’s driving rain and high winds didn’t dampen spirits at “Wake Up Orlando,” a CME event hosted by the Wake Forest Department of PA Studies in October 2016. The hurricane added unexpected twists to the four-day event with cancelled flights, closures and a mandatory curfew, but by the end of the conference it was just a memory. More than 50 PAs from across the country attended the event, along with several Wake PA faculty members and alumni. Participants learned about updated clinical practice guidelines for common diseases, changes in health care practice environments, and new requirements for self-assessment and process improvement CME.

(L to R) Erica Hill (’15), Charlotte Gregory (’15), Gail Curtis (’81), Janie McDaniel, Liz Frost (’15) and Alex Perez (’15) catch up at the conference

“Even as a faculty member I found the sessions very informative,” said Janie McDaniel, MS, BSMT, MLS(ASCP)SC, an assistant professor with the PA program. “I also really enjoyed seeing all our alums and reconnecting with them.” In the keynote speech at the conference reception, one of those alums, Kevin Lacz (‘14), spoke fondly of his time at the Wake Forest PA program. “The time we spent training in the Department of PA Studies helped to shape our medical experience and has had a lasting impact on everyone around us,” Lacz said. Before attending Wake Forest, Lacz served as a Navy SEAL. He’s currently a PA with Regenesis LLC in Pensacola, Fla. The conference schedule included half-day sessions, so participants had the opportunity to experience Orlando theme parks and other attractions.

Come back to PA school! CME Alumni Event at 525@Vine, Nov. 1–3, 2017. More details to come.

WINTER 2017

OF NOTE

Job fair connects students and recruiters There’s nothing like a sea of potential employers in a room with soon-to-be graduates.

participants to the job fair were the N.C. Department of Public Safety, Randolph Hospital, Hugh Chatham Hospital, Llibott Consulturios Medicos and Southeastern Health.

the recruiting side was eye opening. “As an employee/recruiter this year things were different,” he said. “First, I wasn’t nervous. It was nice being on the other side of the conversation. Having recently been in the student position, I tried to provide them with information I would have wanted to receive…the role of the PA in our department, the lifestyle/hours and some insight into the transition from student to PA-C.”

That’s what greeted Class of 2017 PA students at the second annual employment recruitment event last Nicolas “Nico” Haller, PA-C, had November. The event, held at Wake the distinction of attending the Forest Biotech Place in Winstonevent as a recruiter just six months Salem’s Innovation Quarter, after graduating from PA Studies. connects recruiters, practice “Walking into the recruitment event administrators and providers with that second time, I was overclinical year PAs, who will graduate whelmed with emotions,” said in May. Haller (’16). “I could almost feel how nervous I was as a student and how “I realized that most of the Thirteen health care organizations urgent everything felt at the time. recruitment teams weren’t just from North Carolina, South Carolina Looking back now, I realize how trying to fill a position,” Haller and Virginia attended the event, much the event helped me in my added. “Most of them wanted the including Novant, Cornerstone, decision on what field of medicine I students to find their area of UNC Regional Physicians, wanted to go into.” interest and if possible point them WakeMed and Wake Forest Baptist in the right direction, whether it was Medical Center (WFBMC). New Haller, who works in Internal in their department or not.” Medicine at WFBMC, said being on

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NEWFACES Two join Winston-Salem staff Teri Capshaw’s work in medicine started back in high school as a candy striper at a Maryland hospital. Capshaw’s career has taken several twists and turns since then —newspaper reporter, editor, external relations director, 2010 Census manager, strategic planner and management consultant —but fast forward and she’s back in medicine. Instead of filling water pitchers and helping patients with meal trays, though, Capshaw oversees a variety of assignments as departmental project manager in PA Studies. She joined the department in July 2016. “I’ve always had an interest in medicine so I was thrilled to join PA Studies,” Capshaw said. “Just about anything can be defined as a ‘project,’ so there’s never a dull moment. This is a great collegial environment, and I truly love my work.”

Away from work, Capshaw enjoys travel, music and volunteering as a Guardian ad Litem and as a wish granter with the Make-a-Wish Foundation. Capshaw is married and has two daughters, a marketing writer with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Charlotte and a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Three rescue hounds, Buster, Popsicle and Panda, round out the family.

Lori Cook shies away from attention. There’s no surprising fact about herself nor bucket list she’d like to share. Cook, who joined the Department of PA Studies in August 2016 as program coordinator for the clinical year, would much rather help students with their rotations than talk about herself.

care nursery follow-up program. She served as the program’s clinic coordinator for 26 years. Prior to joining the PA program, she spent two years as education coordinator for MD students in family medicine. Outside of work, Cook is active in her church, where she’s the worship leader for the Praise Team. Besides working with teenagers at her church, she enjoys visiting Sunset Beach, N.C., and boating with friends and family whenever she and her husband can get away. “I just like to be on the boat on the water,” she said. A North Carolina native, Cook and her husband have been married for 34 years and live in Walnut Cove, N.C. The couple has three children: a daughter who is a PA in Seattle; and twins, a daughter who is a web designer in Winston-Salem and a son who is a civil engineer in Charlotte.

Capshaw, a native of Louisiana, grew “I like the people here and working up all over the United States, thanks with students,” Cook said. “I love to her dad’s aerospace career, and being downtown and in the eventually settled in Merritt Island, Innovation Quarter. I don’t know Fla. She left Florida to earn a BA at anything that I seriously don’t like Salem College in Winston-Salem about this job.” and has been in the area ever since. Cook is a longtime Wake Forest She earned an MBA from Wake Baptist Medical Center (WFBMC) Forest. employee. She first joined WFBMC in 1988 and worked in the intensive

WINTER 2017

STUDENTNEWS

PA and MD students learn respiratory care together First-year PA students and second-year MD students at Wake Forest School of Medicine (WFSM) joined forces to learn respiratory care skills in the new simulation center at the Bowman Gray Center for Medical Education in Winston-Salem. Both programs routinely use simulation events to expose students to basic clinical skills, but the October 2016 event was the first joint effort of its kind. “Effective teamwork is an essential skill set for all health care professionals,” said Jennifer Jackson, MD, associate professor of pediatrics and one of the coordinators of this event. “If you can’t interact effectively as a team, you will not be able to effectively take care of your patients.” Respiratory therapists from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center served as lead instructors during the training event, which used standardized patients, task trainers and high-fidelity mannequins. Multiple simulated medical environments were used to teach students about establishing emergency airway access, setting up bedside oxygen delivery and suction devices, and administering inhaled medications and incentive spirometry. Respiratory therapists encouraged students with prior experience establishing emergency airway access to share their experiences in small groups of PA and MD students. “When you’re entering the clinical setting as an early learner, it’s hard to focus on learning about patient care when there are so many new things in your environment that you’ve never been exposed to, especially medical equipment,” Jackson added. The activity gave the students an opportunity to learn the scope of practice of professionals they’ll work with during their clinical training, which begins this year for both cohorts. The event was made possible by the Duke Endowment, which provided funding to WFSM for interprofessional education, patient safety and simulation-based training activities. WFSM faculty are developing additional interprofessional events for the upcoming academic year.

Students in Boone raise money to help end Alzheimer’s disease A team of 12 Wake Forest PA students raised more than $10,000 for Alzheimer’s disease research last fall. The fundraising drive was part of the students’ participation in the Walk to End Alzheimer’s on Sept. 17, 2016, in Asheville, N.C. “We are very happy and extremely proud that our PA student team raised $10,365 to be used for Alzheimer’s support, care, and research,” said PA student Andrew Gray (’18). “This accomplishment was driven by the passion and care of future medical providers.” Shelby Wood, a student in the PA Class of 2018 who organized the Wake Forest team, has been impacted by Alzheimer’s disease. “At the age of 14, I lost my great-grandfather after a long fight against Alzheimer’s,” Wood said. “My grandmother currently has dementia. It’s difficult to put into words how this disease

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affects my grandmother, her family and friends. It cannot be prevented, cured or slowed. I am fighting for future generations, for a Walk to Remember, for my great-grandfather who lost his fight, for my grandmother, and for all the caregivers, family and friends.” Gray said Wood’s passion for the project inspired many to take part in the effort. “It is our hope that her passion to end Alzheimer’s will continue to spread until the disease has been eliminated once and for all,” Gray said. “Alzheimer’s changes people we have known all of our lives and can create a great burden for patients and caretakers alike. It is not a normal, inevitable part of aging. It is a disease, and it has become the passion of many in the Wake Forest School of Medicine community to find a cure.”

ALUMNINEWS 1970s

1990s

Terry Whitney (’76) reports that he worked in Level 1, 2 and 3 EDs for 13 years before “burning out.” After stints in surgery, orthopaedics and urgent care settings, he settled in family practice, where he still works, enjoying the time with his patients. “Still plan to work until ‘I’m unable to fog a mirror,’” he said.

Theresa Harrold and Bill Thomas (’93) are married and living in Lumberton, N.C.

Millie Jones (’78) retired after 32 years with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. She and her husband live in Madison, Wis.

1980s L. Gail Curtis (’81) was named chair of the Wake Forest Department of PA Studies in the fall of 2016. She’s also serving as president-elect for the American Academy of Physician Assistants. In July, her term as president-elect will end and she will become president of the organization, serving until July 2018. Leeann Fairall (’81) has lived for the past 20-plus years in Maryville, Tenn., at the foot of the Smoky Mountains. She retired from family practice five years ago, married a “Brit,” has five grandchildren and says she’s “in pretty good health for an old gal.” She’s involved in community volunteer work. Betty Lynne W. Johnson (‘81) is director of preclinical education at Campbell University. In 2014 she was appointed assistant dean for interprofessional education for the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences at Campbell. Johnson says she feels privileged to be at Campbell and to help develop health care providers who will offer service and leadership in their professions. Robert Lee Wooten (’81) has been appointed for a second three-year term as a medical examiner for Forsyth County by the State of North Carolina.

2000s Ethan Stonerook (‘12) has worked in bone marrow transplant at the University of Florida since graduating. He loves his job and the city of Gainesville, Fla., and says they are always looking for highly qualified PA graduates! He and his wife, Valerie, have four children ages 1 to almost 8. Sarah and Tim Dougherty (‘13) welcomed twin boys, Miller James and Henry ‘Hank’ Robert, on June 17, 2016. Houry Gebeshian (’14) works for the Cleveland Clinic in obstetric surgery. She reports that she coached herself and competed in gymnastics at the 2016 Olympic Games, representing Armenia. Rebekah Smyth (‘15) is currently working in the Department of Dermatology at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

Let us hear from you! Alumni are interested in hearing from you! Send us a note about your professional activities, any changes in your life (marriage, family, moves), honors or anything else you would like to share. Send your note to:

PAAlumNews@wakehealth.edu

WINTER 2017

Dog days First-year students had a welcome break from preparing for exams last December when four-legged friends from the Fostering Friendship Therapy Dog Team in Winston-Salem visited. Students mobbed the three dogs and showered them with love in the form of hugs, kisses and lots of petting. And many a selfie was taken with Nanook, a 5-year-old Samoyed; Ziva, a 6-year-old Border Collie; and Evie, a 7-year-old Akita, during the visit. “This is the highlight of my life,” said Rory McEathron (’18).

Community service Staff members channeled Santa Claus in December and delivered carloads of gifts for a disadvantaged family in Winston-Salem. Each holiday season, both the Boone and Winston-Salem campuses pick a community service project. In Winston-Salem, staff and faculty worked with the Downtown Health Plaza to assist a family of four adults, one wheelchair bound, and five children, one of whom was also wheelchair bound. Toys, clothing, household items and food were donated to the family. At the Boone campus, faculty and staff donated toys for Santa’s Toy Box, a community organization that makes Christmas gifts available to families who might otherwise struggle to provide their children with presents.

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PHOTO ALBUM

It was PB and J time at PA Studies this winter. From Thanksgiving through mid-January, the Boone and Winston-Salem campuses collected jars of peanut butter and jelly as part of a statewide campaign by the N.C. Guardian ad Litem programs to assist local food banks. Preclinical students (l to r) Meredith Shillinglaw, Emily Pena, Kaisey Medley and Erika Cummings take Boone donations to the food bank.

WINTER 2017

Happy 2017! PA Studies faculty and staff (and one future student) send best wishes for 2017!

Greetings from the Wake Forest School of Medicine Department of PA Studies. We are always available to help. Please use the quick reference guide below when you need assistance. We are grateful for your support and contributions. AR E A

C O N TAC T PER SO N

P HO NE

Department chair

L. Gail Curtis

gcurtis@wakehealth.edu

336.716.2027

Department administrator

Dorothy Carter

dncarter@wakehealth.edu

336.716.2026

PA program

Suzanne Reich, program director

suzreich@wakehealth.edu

336.716.2035

Preceptor education

Lori Cook, program coordinator, clinical year

lcook@wakehealth.edu

336.716.2023

Admissions information

Elise Gmuca, student admissions administrator

egmuca@wakehealth.edu

336.716.4358

Emerging Leaders Program

Sobia Hussaini, director, academic partnerships

ssharif@wakehealth.edu

336.716.2167

Boone campus

Sherrie Spear, distant campus coordinator

shspear@wakehealth.edu

828.262.7366

Completion of enrollment Camille Jones, registrar verification forms, transcripts, credentialing and licensure documents

camjones@wakehealth.edu 336.716.7068

Alumni news or address change

PAalumnews@wakehealth.edu

All other requests or questions and to join our mailing list

tcapshaw@wakehealth.edu 336.713.0820

@wakeforest_pa

INSIDE WAKE PA

Teri Capshaw, departmental project manager

#wakeforest_pa