Insights Magazine, Volume 11

V O L U M E 11

Learn the Art and Science of Caring

S C H O O L

O F

H EA LTH

BUILDING OUR FUTURE

A N D

M E D I CA L

T E C H AT O U R F O OT ST E P S

S C I E N C E S

A L O O K AT L I T E R A C Y

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Contents

Special Features

Why Research Matters

6 Building Our Future The School of Health and Medical Sciences is changing, growing and — eventually —

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relocating. The Interprofessional

Medication Adherence

Health Sciences Education Complex will be SHMS’ new home, shared with the College of Nursing and the Seton HallHackensack School of Medicine.

A Custom Collaboration

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Snapshot: Dashboard View of the Division of Health Sciences 26 New Online Resource for IPE

Alumni and Student News

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National Accolades for SHMS Students 19 In the Limelight 24 Saving Mothers – 8,000 Miles from New Jersey – A Dynamic Leader

Decoding Hip Pain

Happenings

Technology at our Fingertips and Footsteps

PLUS

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The Healing Power of Art and Poetry Strength in Numbers Emergency Response

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Dean’s Message 2 Interprofessional Perspectives: Infectious Diseases 4 What’s New at SHMS 19 Mental Health and the OT’s Expansive Role 20 Welcome to SHMS 22 Department News Insights magazine is published by the School of Health and Medical Sciences at Seton Hall University.

EDITORIAL OFFICE 400 South Orange Avenue, McQuaid Hall, South Orange, NJ 07079

Did You Know?

SHMS alumni, faculty and staff donated nearly 100 children’s books to the Joseph M. Sanzari Children’s Hospital at Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC).

Dean

Design and Production

Brian B. Shulman, PhD, CCC-SLP, ASHA Fellow,

Anthony Liptak

BCS-CL, FASAHP

Lorraine Joyce

Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs

Contributing Writers

Division of Health Sciences

and Photographers

Mona M. Sedrak, PhD, PA

Benjamin Ayzenberg, BS ’15

Associate Dean

Jennifer Boscia Smith

Division of Medical Residencies and Fellowships

Terrence F. Cahill, EdD, FACHE

John W. Sensakovic, MD, PhD

Kevin Coyne

Assistant Dean for Dual Degree Programs Division of Health Sciences Paul Cognata, MA, MSW, LSW

Vikram N. Dayalu, PhD, CCC-SLP Peter Goljan, MD Christopher Hanifin, MS ’99, PA-C Melissa Hebert

HUMC leaders, Drs. Ihor Sawczuk and Jeffrey Boscamp (left and center, pictured with Dean

Assistant Dean for Special Academic Programs

Vicci Hill-Lombardi, EdD, ATC

Shulman), attended the SHMS “Summer Alumni Celebration” to accept the books on behalf of

and Projects

Patrick McDermott, MA ’11

the Children’s Hospital and the countless families who will enjoy them.

Division of Health Sciences

Kimberly Olson

Christopher W. O’Brien, PhD, LAT, ATC

Molly Petrilla

specialized exercise programs for individuals with neurological conditions), participated in

Director of Public Relations, Marketing

Ruth Segal, PhD, OTR

a research study sponsored by the School that aims to help individuals with spinal cord

and Special Events / INS!GHTS Editor

Doreen M. Stiskal, PT, PhD ’03

injuries access information about their mobility (pages 14-15). Photography by Fred Stucker

Lori Riley, MA ’06

Fred Stucker

On the cover: Lori Douma, a client at Push to Walk (a clinical partner of SHMS that offers

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A Message from the Dean Dear SHMS Alumni, Students, Colleagues and Friends: Happy New Year! We anticipate that 2016 will be another banner year for the School of Health and Medical Sciences (SHMS) and Seton Hall University. Opportunities are everywhere…

For example, our students can take advantage of new international relationships we have cultivated in England, Ireland and the Philippines. Through these clinical education and exchange programs, SHMS students will benefit from the cross-cultural experiences that complement the rigor of their University-based academic programs.

The upcoming year also marks another milestone in our School’s IPE (interprofessional education) strategic initiative.

On March 22, the SHMS faculty will offer the second program in the new IPE Core Curriculum Series. All SHMS students are invited to an interactive workshop on medical terminology. In addition to technical knowledge, participating students will gain an even greater appreciation for the power of collaboration, communication and teamwork in providing patient-centered care.

As a research enterprise, we are taking bold new steps in our ongoing pursuit of scholarship. That brings us to this very

issue of — a showcase of just some of our faculty members’ and students’ research. From a grant-funded project to improve literacy for deaf and hard-of-hearing children, to an evolving study of a pressing healthcare issue — patients’ low medication adherence — SHMS’ faculty and student scholars are making an impact.

The cover of this issue — “Why Research Matters” — reminds us of why our pursuit of knowledge is so important. It’s the people whose lives are impacted. That’s why research matters. The research is for individuals, such as Lori Douma (pictured on the cover), who may benefit from new gait-assessment technologies. It’s for youth athletes and their coaches, who need a safe and healthy sporting environment. Research with a purpose — that is what changes the world of clinical practice.

Seton Hall, as an institution, is also leading the way for extraordinary change in health sciences education. Through the University’s partnership with Hackensack University Health Network, we are exploring the development of a world-class Interprofessional Health Sciences Education Complex. Establishing the state’s only private, four-year school of

allopathic medicine is a component of this ambitious plan, which also includes, at

its core, a synergy among the new Seton Hall-Hackensack School of Medicine and the University’s College of Nursing and SHMS. You can read the latest update on pages 6-8.

Just as research is about more than technical methods and data reports, Seton Hall’s plan is about so much more than a new medical school and a new building. It is about the future of our University, the future of SHMS, and the future of health sciences education, which is one of the major hallmarks of our institution.

As you can see, there is no shortage of opportunities. We continue to be strategic and inclusive as we advance our mission, and we look forward to continuing to involve you as we move ahead.

Go Pirates!

Sincerely,

Brian B. Shulman, PhD, CCC-SLP, ASHA Fellow, BCS-CL, FASAHP Dean and Professor of Speech-Language Pathology

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Interprofessional Perspectives Infectious Diseases While Ebola and measles were major media topics throughout 2015, infectious diseases of all types — influenza, Lyme, ringworm, HIV/AIDS, pertussis and innumerable other contagious conditions — are an ongoing concern for healthcare professionals. Four School of Health and Medical Sciences alumni and clinical partners discuss their roles in preparing for and responding to such occurrences.

— Lori Riley, M.A. ’06

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PREVENT AND CONTAIN When working with student-athletes, we worry about everything from staph infections and blood-borne pathogens to mono and the common cold. We concern ourselves with prevention and containment of any communicable disease before it ends up spreading through an entire team or locker room, or even through the school.

STEPHEN SPEZIO, MS, ATC, CSCS Athletic Trainer at The Pingry School and Clinical Preceptor for the SHMS Master of Science in Athletic Training program

VIGILANCE IS KEY Our infection prevention program provides continuous surveillance and monitoring and comprises a multidisciplinary team of experts who stay up-to-date on potential threats. Early communication that is factual and well thought-out has been a strategy to ensure our staff, patients and visitors feel safe and secure.

LYDIA STOCKMAN, RN, MHA ’11, CRA Vice President of Operations at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital

TREATING THE WHOLE PERSON Patient care goes beyond treating the illness — patient education is one of the most important aspects. People infected with diseases such as syphilis, HIV, chlamydia or Lyme may be unsure of how they were exposed, or frightened of the long-term effects and social ramifications.

Empowered patients are more likely to take their medications and implement precautions to prevent the spread of the disease.

HEATHER A. REINHARDT, PA-C, MS ’12 Clinical Director of Empire Medical

ADDRESSING SIDE EFFECTS When working with a client who has mobility impairment of an infectious etiology — for example, Lyme disease symptoms include arthritis and weakness in limbs — I create a plan of care that targets the individual’s specific deficits. As infectious diseases can manifest differently, a physical therapist’s ability to identify and address abnormal movement patterns can be very beneficial.

LATEFIA M. BAILEY, PT, DPT ’08, CCCE, ACCI Lead Physical Therapist, Atlantic Health System, Morristown Medical Center, and Clinical Instructor for the SHMS Doctor of Physical Therapy program

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AT In June 2015, the Athletic Training Strategic Alliance announced that the professional degree requirement to become a Certified Athletic Trainer will be changing to the master’s degree. This strongly positions the SHMS Master of Science in Athletic Training degree program, which is currently New Jersey’s only entry-level master’s program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education. An accelerated dual-degree route is also available for high school students entering Seton Hall.

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PA Statewide collaboration is underway for students and faculty in the Department of Physician Assistant, which is participating actively in the New Jersey

Physician Assistant (PA) Student Consortium. The Consortium’s goals include bringing PA students together for symposia and networking, creating collaborative community service opportunities and partnering on state and federal advocacy initiatives. A leadership meeting took place in June 2015, and the first student meeting is being planned for spring 2016.

IHSA The SHMS Department of Interprofessional Health Sciences and Health Administration, in partnership with the School of Diplomacy and International Relations, is offering a Graduate Certificate in Global Health Management. The 15-credit certificate program is designed to prepare students to become leaders in today’s rapidly changing, international healthcare environment.

Professional coursework in international health security and governance, the global impact of infectious disease, preventing humanitarian crises and healthcare policy will be critical in preparing skilled leaders capable of tackling the world’s current and future health-related challenges. This new certificate complements IHSA’s current offerings, which include the Master of Healthcare Administration and PhD in Health Sciences degrees, and the Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Administration.

OT The Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE®) granted the Master of

Science in Occupational Therapy (MSOT) program a status of accreditation (continuing) for a period of 10 years. The September 2015 announcement follows the extensive on-site evaluation, during which the MSOT program was recognized as having no deficiencies. The program continues to attract highly qualified applicants: the average incoming GPA for the newest class of MSOT students was 3.62, up from 3.51 for last year’s class.

PT All accredited physical therapist education programs now offer only the clinical doctorate for entry-level practice. To continue its role as a leader in this field, the Department of Physical Therapy will launch a redesigned, contemporary three-year Doctor of Physical Therapy program next year. Pending University approval, the curricular plan — featuring academic and clinical courses designed to graduate practitioners as movement specialists — aligns well with healthcare trends and Seton Hall’s mission to form servant leaders.

SLP The Department of Speech-Language Pathology now offers online courses that will satisfy a majority of the pre-professional coursework requirements for admission to its master’s program. The five online courses are: Introduction to Communication Disorders, Anatomy and Physiology of the Speech and Swallowing Mechanism, Introduction to Language Development, Phonetics and Introduction to Audiology. Individuals interested in pursuing graduate degrees in speech-language pathology at institutions other than Seton Hall may also enroll in these online courses.

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National Accolades for SHMS Students At the annual conference of the American Academy of Physician Assistants, SHMS students received top honors. Shontelle Berfet, Davya Newby, Amanda Viereck, Liana Jurgensen, Jennifer Goonetilleke and Bridget Desmarais (pictured above, left to right) presented their research poster, “Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Immunizations: College Students’ Beliefs,” which was named one of the three best student posters at the 2015 conference. Their

research advisor was Associate Professor Denise Rizzolo, PhD, PA-C. Student research in the Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology program also was nationally recognized. Jessica Saks received the Student Travel Award to attend the 2015 Symposium on Research in Child Language Disorders, where she and her faculty mentor, Associate Professor Nina Capone Singleton, PhD, CCC-SLP, presented “Durable Links Take Shape.”

The Healing Power of Art and Poetry A trio of unexpected collaborators — two poets and a neuroscientist — gathered at the inaugural South by South Orange festival to discuss a new therapy for maladies such depression and dementia. SHMS’ Fortunato Battaglia, MD, PhD, Associate Professor in the Department of Interprofessional Health Sciences and Health Administration, co-presented “Don’t Take a Pill, Write a Poem,” a dialogue about the burgeoning field of neuroaesthetics.

Battaglia’s research identifies ways to harness the brain’s natural response to art and poetry. “Looking at something beautiful tends to engage us and focus us more,” Battaglia says, explaining how people with brain disease or injury might benefit from a neuroaesthetic

approach to therapy. “Art appreciation and observation trigger a reaction in the brain, and we’re looking at that from a scientific — not just a social — point of view.”

Neuroaesthetics is part of an even larger field of neurohumanities, which Battaglia

Master of Healthcare Administration students continue to garner national attention. Denise Buchanan received a scholarship from the American College of Healthcare Executives; Zola Felix was selected for an internship with the American Hospital Association-affiliated Institute for Diversity in Health Management’s Summer Enrichment Program; and Elizabeth Oskierko received the Upsilon Phi Delta Award from the Association of University Programs in Health Administration.

likens to a Renaissance approach. “During the Renaissance, scientists were also philosophers, architects and artists,” he says. “Neurohumanities brings all of this thinking together, leading to new, plasticity-based treatments for aging, depression and Alzheimer’s disease.”

At the June 2015 festival, Battaglia presented with poets Gary Glazner, BA, the Founder and Executive Director of the Alzheimer’s Poetry Project, and Mark Svenvold, MFA, Associate Professor of Creative Writing at Seton Hall University.

Battaglia is also collaborating with Diego Coira, MD, Chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine at Hackensack University Medical Center, on research that looks at the interplay of conventional medical approaches, evidence-based complementary therapies and brain-stimulation devices to promote well-being.

— Jennifer Boscia Smith 5

BUILDING OUR

FUTURE The School of Health and Medical Sciences is changing, growing and — eventually — relocating in order to take the next step in interprofessional education. An Interprofessional Health Sciences

Education Complex will become the School’s new home, shared with the College of Nursing and the new Seton Hall-Hackensack School of Medicine.

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They pass each other on the Green daily as they hustle between classes, students sharing a goal — to learn how to make a difference in the health and wellness of the people they serve — but most of them are strangers to one another’s professions. On the Seton Hall campus in South Orange, New Jersey, the nursing students are in Schwartz Hall, and the students in the School of Health and Medical Sciences (SHMS) are scattered among five different buildings.

“Our future will bring exciting and innovative change, where teamwork and collaboration will be our guiding principles — all under one roof,” says SHMS Dean Brian B. Shulman, PhD, CCC-SLP, ASHA Fellow, BCS-CL, FASAHP. An Interprofessional Health Sciences Education Complex (IHSEC) that Seton Hall University, in partnership with Hackensack University Health Network, is creating will encompass more than a medical school.

It will also be home to SHMS, the College of Nursing (CON) and the new Seton HallHackensack School of Medicine. The IHSEC

INTERPROFESSIONAL EDUCATION OPPOSITE: Clinical Skills Labs would feature state-of-the art simulation experiences plus ample space and technology for teaching and learning.

ABOVE: Hi-tech and flexible, Learning Studios would have moveable walls to accommodate classes up to 120 students.

will represent a new national model for educating future healthcare practitioners — where all disciplines learn together, rather than apart, as they do now.

The possibilities are endless. For example, physical therapy students could sit side-byside with medical students in the same Gross Anatomy Cadaver Lab; future nurses may engage in classroom-based, grouplearning activities with speech-language pathology students.

“Right now, there’s no overlap at all,” says Marie Foley, PhD, RN, CNL, Dean of CON. A firm date has not been set for the opening of the medical school or the move of SHMS and CON to a new Seton Hall branch campus, but both schools plan to expand their current enrollment — SHMS by 30 percent, CON by 20 percent — to meet the growing demand for healthcare professionals. Those future students will not pass each other blindly on the new campus, but will instead be partners, learning with and from each other. continued on page 8

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How will the Seton Hall Interprofessional Health Sciences Education Complex embrace interprofessional education?

DEAN SHULMAN: “It’s really about expanding

one’s professional silo. All three of our distinct academic units will work together, as equal partners, to prepare the future healthcare professional — regardless of which program the student is in — to function as a member of a collaborative healthcare team.”

DEAN FOLEY: “It’s a new model for healthcare

education. Typically, all of the healthcare professions are educated in silos, which often includes physical separation. For example, a nursing school and a medical school in completely separate buildings, using entirely separate resources. Our approach is to move away from the individual silos, and instead, when possible, put all of the professions into the same classroom so that they understand each other. There are so many opportunities where all of our students can come together, learn from one another and understand each other’s roles. We all have the same goal — to provide the best-quality patient care.”

Why is this change important?

SHULMAN: “The future of health care is that the physician is no longer the ‘leader of the pack,’ but instead is part of a healthcare delivery team. It’s not the nurse, the PT, the OT and the physician each seeing the patient individually and acting independently in their silos, rarely communicating about care.

Healthcare practitioners need to learn about each other’s professions and work together in teams to make a difference for the patients and families they serve. We are bringing these three academic units together to teach students how to be team members.”

FOLEY: “The Institute of Medicine has shown

that most medical errors occur in hospitals due to miscommunication; therefore, interprofessional education, where all healthcare providers learn to communicate and cooperate with each other, will better prepare students to understand each other and be effective team members when they begin practicing as professionals.”

SHULMAN: “This is really a game-changer for the University. This will markedly elevate the institution and its national reputation.”

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ABOVE LEFT: The Chapel in the new Interprofessional

P HYS I CA L F EATU R E S The former Hoffman-La Roche campus in Clifton and Nutley, New Jersey, is being considered as the site for the new IHSEC. There, the main research building — a pristine laboratory tower that was once home to nearly 1,000 pharmaceutical workers — has been vacant for three years, but looks as if everybody just stepped out for a long lunch. The floors are still polished, the heat is on, and the echoing halls are waiting to be filled again.

“It’s a uniquely high-quality building, very robust and in very good shape,” says Scott Kelsey, managing principal for CO|FX Fowle Architects, the firm designing the proposed

Health Sciences Education Complex will be an intimate space for contemplation and prayer.

complex. “It’s a perfect candidate for this initiative.”

Three-and-a-half floors of the building and a basement level, a total of approximately 226,000 square feet, would be home to the three schools, and 28 percent of that space would be devoted to hands-on learning – outpatient and inpatient simulation suites, rehabilitation teaching labs, simulated patient exam rooms and a state-of-the-art anatomy teaching lab. The Learning Studios would have moveable walls to accommodate classes up to 120 students.

The project will benefit from CO|FX Fowle Architects’ experience designing health sciences education facilities, including several interprofessional education-based buildings.

This one would have an additional and distinctive feature: the Chapel, opening off the six-story Winter Garden Atrium and warmly representative of Seton Hall’s Catholic mission. — Kevin Coyne

Dr. George Perez Research Colloquium. In 2015, approximately 75 research projects were presented by HUMC researchers, alongside nearly 225 SHMS projects; HUMC will participate in the 27th annual Colloquium on April 22, 2016.

HUMC research highlights include:

Anti-CD19 CAR T Cells Administered After Low-Dose Chemotherapy Can Induce Remissions of Chemotherapy-Refractory Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma Goy, A.G.; Feldman, T.F.; Kochenderfer, J.K.; Rosenberg, S.R.; Klebanoff, C.K.; Sherry, R.S.; Yuan, C.Y.

Epithelial HIF Plays a Protective Role in Gut Graft Versus Host Disease Colorado, I.; Dziopa, E.; Dziopa, L.; Zheng, Y.; Zilberberg, J.; Korngold, R.; Feinman, R.

Deep Molecular Response in Patients with Newly Diagnosed Chronic Myeloid Leukemia in Chronic Phase (CML-CP) Treated with Nilotinib: ENESTNext Update Mauro, M.J.; Dakhil, S.; Cortes, J.; Rizzieri, D.A.; Keir, C.H.; Yi, S.; Goldberg, S.L.

ABOVE RIGHT: The open-concept lobby would include extra-large video monitors and comfortable seating groups, with access to dining amenities and student services.

A WI N N I NG TEA M The partnership between Seton Hall University and Hackensack University Health Network encompasses all the hallmarks of a great team.

“This is truly a win-win for both institutions,” says Jeffrey R. Boscamp, MD, Vice President and Chief Academic Officer for Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC), about the shared efforts to create the new education complex, which “will attract the best and brightest students embarking on a career in healthcare.”

Creating a “de novo curriculum” in the Seton Hall-Hackensack School of Medicine combines with the bridging of the three schools to offer a “rare opportunity to innovate in the sphere of interprofessional education,” he continues. “Seton Hall’s outstanding academic programs will couple with HUMC’s award-winning clinical programs to provide students with a unique educational opportunity.”

Ongoing collaborations between Seton Hall and HUMC include SHMS’ annual

Kallikrein Family Proteases KLK6 and KLK7 are Potential Early Detection and Diagnostic Biomarkers for Serous and Papillary Serous Ovarian Cancer Subtypes Tamir, A.; Jag, U.; Sarojini, S.; Blake, P.; Goy, A.; Pecora, A.; Suh, K. Haploidentical Allogeneic Transplantation Provides Comparable Outcomes to HLA-Matched or Mismatched Unrelated Donor Grafts in Hematological Malignancies Donato, M.; Rowley, S.; Baker, M.; McKiernan, P.; Kim, D.; Vesole, D.; Skarbnik, A.

Cognitive Recovery and Neuropsychological Evaluation: A Prospective study in ED patients After Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Ogedegbe, C.; Azmi, H.; Voelbel, G.; Wylie, G.R.; Dobryakova, E.; Dave, P.; Feldman, J. Ibrutinib, Single Agent or in Combination with Dexamethasone, in Patients with Relapsed or Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma (MM): Preliminary Phase 2 Results Vij, R.; Huff, C.; Bensinger, W.; Siegel, D.S.; Jagannath, S.; Berdeja, J.; Lendvai, N. — Lori Riley, M.A. ’06

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MEDICATION ADHERENCE It happens all too often. A doctor prescribes a medication — an antibiotic for a sore throat, for instance — then, about halfway through the course, the patient feels better and stops the dosing. This is just one example of “low medication adherence,” a serious issue facing health care that impacts chronically ill patients and their healthcare providers, in particular.

In an article1 published in the Annals of Pharmacotherapy, Ning Zhang, PhD, MD, MPH, and his co-authors looked at the impact of health literacy (a patient’s ability to understand medication instructions and information) on medication adherence.

While Dr. Zhang, a Professor in the Department of Interprofessional Health Sciences and Health Administration, found a statistically significant relationship between health literacy and medication adherence, his research shows that a number of factors can influence whether a patient takes the medication correctly.

Dr. Zhang discusses these variables and potential solutions:

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Zhang N., Terry, A. & McHorney, C. (2014). Impact of Health Literacy on Medication Adherence: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Annals of Pharmacotherapy. 48(6): 741751.

Communication: “Sometimes the patient doesn’t trust his doctor, or feels he has a better way to manage the disease,” says Dr. Zhang. “Technology can help. Chips can be built into pills to determine if the patient is actually swallowing them. Medication dispensers could be programmed to remind patients what dosage to take and when.”

Health Literacy: “Medication labels can be written for different literacy levels,” Dr. Zhang explains. Sending reminders and education through ubiquitous mobile devices could also contribute to improved medication adherence, he says.

Cost: “Patients sometimes stop taking medications because the cost is a burden.”

Health professionals, he says, can partner with pharmaceutical companies to provide patients with coupons or discounts.

— Jennifer Boscia Smith

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A Custom Anthony Koutsoftas

Two professors — with very different research specialties — are working together to improve literacy in children who are hard-of-hearing and deaf.

Deborah Welling

By Jennifer Boscia Smith

Picture it: Evening in McQuaid Hall. A Speech-Language Pathology professor working late hears a colleague’s voice across the hall, and something — maybe writer’s block or stiff legs — prompts him to get up for a chat. The casual “What are you working on?” conversation leads to talk of a professional collaboration to figure out how to improve literacy outcomes for deaf and hard-of-hearing children. A few weeks later, their idea morphs into a grant proposal, which is accepted and funded by the Board of Directors of Language Learning: A Journal of Research in Language Studies.

IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM With grant funding in place, Assistant Professor Anthony Koutsoftas, PhD, CCC-SLP, and Associate Professor Deborah Welling, AuD, CCC-A/ FAAA, both in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology (SLP), launched a study to determine the most effective means for teaching hard-of-hearing children to read. “Historically, the literacy achievements of deaf individuals is capped at about a fourth-grade level,” Welling says. “This may have created a ‘glass ceiling,’ and we would like to change that.”

PILOT STUDY Initially working on a pilot study with a single school-age male, Koutsoftas and Welling devised a framework for evaluating how hard-of-hearing children decode (recognize written words) and understand language. Two research questions were developed:

1) Are there between-group differences on measures selected to represent reading and writing?

2) Are there significant relationships across all participants among measures of hearing and reading, hearing and writing, and reading and writing?

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DATA COLLECTION Data collection took place in three area schools where students are enrolled in either oral/aural (relying on auditory input) or total communication (no reliance on auditory input) programs. Koutsoftas invited first-year SLP students to participate in the research protocols, which were administered individually to 30 children in grades three through six.

“Our framework is a simple view of reading,” Koutsoftas says. “We wanted to show how the children did with both word recognition and comprehension of stories.”

Tests focused on several different areas. The articulation and writing tests were adjusted for the hard-of-hearing population, and the comprehension test was a silent-reading test designed for any school-age child. The students were asked to say specific words, for example, “ball” or “go,” with the researchers noting how accurately each word was pronounced. Then the children produced writing samples about their “best day ever” and something they learned in school.

Ultimately, the result of all the testing was a comprehensive literacy, language and auditory profile on each child, which now allows Koutsoftas and Welling to plan the study’s next phase. They intend to determine which data points they will manipulate in order to devise a better literacy program for hard-of-hearing children.

ANALYSIS AND RESULTS For Koutsoftas and Welling, the relationships among the measures stood out immediately, underscoring the need for interprofessional approaches to intervention. “Reading is a language and an auditory task,” Welling says.

“The collaboration between our two fields — audiology and speech-language pathology — is critical to our next steps toward solving this problem.”

NEXT STEPS They hope these improved literacy programs will help deaf and hard-of-hearing children break through that fourth-grade-level expectation. “New and different strategies will give these children literacy commensurate with their peers,” Koutsoftas says. “Reading and writing abilities are important for academics and for being a productive member of society.”

The study remains open for recruitment of child participants who receive audiological services in school settings. Inquiries should be directed to Anthony Koutsoftas (anthony.koutsoftas@shu.edu).

Learn more about the terms used to describe individuals who are deaf and hard-of-hearing: www.tinyurl.com/infonad (National Association of the Deaf)

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Decoding Hip Pain: Looking Beyond the Joint Hip pain can result from a multitude of etiologies, whether from within the hip joint or even the surrounding soft tissues. Although treatment of intra-articular pathology is well researched and the surgical techniques are firmly established, the treatment of disorders of the surrounding soft tissue — which can mimic intra-articular pain — have not received equivalent attention.

Anthony Scillia, MD, Anthony Festa, MD, and Vincent McInerney, MD, of the New Jersey Orthopaedic Institute and the School of Health and Medical Sciences’ Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson, New Jersey, aim to bring greater clarification to these potentially murky conditions.

To aid their understanding, the faculty doctors designed a research project, “Surgical 12

Treatment of Tendinous Disorders of the Hip and Pelvis,” which was submitted for presentation at the 2016 American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting.

The research sheds light on a variety of the “non-articular” hip conditions — such as sports hernias, tears of the gluteal muscles or hamstrings and piriformis syndrome (see definitions, right)— that can mimic the pain experienced from intra-articular problems.

“We believe it to be of the utmost importance that orthopaedists be able to recognize and diagnose these non-articular conditions in order to provide appropriate treatment,” says Dr. Scillia,a 2012 graduate of the residency program and a board-certified sports medicine surgeon. “This project enables us to provide diagnostic physical examination tips, preferred radiographic imaging studies and surgical

technique ‘pearls and pitfalls’ for each condition.”

These recommendations are a direct result of data collected from the many cases seen and treated by lead surgeons on the project. Dr. Scillia himself has encountered each of these pathologies many times in his practice, including his time spent on the sidelines with Seton Hall University Athletics.

Dr. Scillia warns that “without proper knowledge or understanding of how these injuries present themselves, they can be easily missed or misinterpreted as other conditions, leaving the true culprit of a patient’s pain untreated. This can be especially devastating for athletes, who rely on their strength and mobility for their livelihood.”

He and his colleagues hope that, by sharing the outcome data and the success stories of their own patients returning to activity, they can help

Strength in Numbers Athletic Training faculty and students evaluate the relationship between a neck and shoulder strength-training protocol and the occurrence of head, neck and shoulder injuries.

By Peter Goljan, MD – Resident Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program

other orthopaedists provide better treatments. Dr. Scillia also lectures on these and other sports medicine topics at hospitals across northern New Jersey and within the residency program.

“ Sports hernias” describes a spectrum of injuries in which the tendinous connections between the abdominal and pelvic muscles become inflamed or torn, causing lower abdomen or groin pain,

High school football is one of the nation’s most popular pastimes. Amidst the cheering and spirited rivalries, though, many athletes find themselves sidelined with neck and head injuries, including concussion.

Experts believe that neck and shoulder strengthening exercises may help with prevention, especially for younger athletes, whose muscles might be less developed.

Therefore, when one of SHMS’ athletic training graduates shared with Vicci HillLombardi, EdD, ATC, Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Athletic Training, some hopeful observations from his own real-world experience, she was encouraged to learn more.

At a high school in the region, the alumnus works closely with the football team’s strength-and-conditioning coach.

Hill-Lombardi explains: “They had changed the football players’ lifting regimen, and he [the athletic trainer] thought they had seen a reduction in injuries.”

Intrigued, Hill-Lombardi launched a study, partnering with co-researchers Ashley Sivo, MS ’15, ATC; Jillian DeCuffa, MS ’15, ATC; Joseph Amicucci, MS ’15, ATC; and Jacob McCartney, MS ’15, ATC — who, at the time, were students in the SHMS Master of Science in Athletic Training program.

Intending to determine whether there is a relationship between a neck and shoulder strength-training protocol and the occurrence of head, neck and shoulder injuries, the research team reviewed de-identified data of 91 high school football players from the 2009–2013 football seasons. The data already had been collected by the athletic trainer and the strength-and-conditioning coach.

“We created rules as to what counted as a workout, and we analyzed the data,” Hill-Lombardi explains. Players had to have completed several exercises on a four-way neck machine as well as bench press, chest press, seated row and shoulder press exercises — three sets of 10 reps for each. The researchers then looked at injury frequency.

Involving students in research, she continues, is important. “One of the big movements in healthcare is evidence-based medicine. When students participate in research projects, they will become better consumers of research once they’re out in the working world.”

This study showed promising results. “There was a decrease in injuries to individuals who were more compliant with the strengthening protocol, so it is lending evidence to the necessity of having good neck and shoulder strengthening protocols,” Hill-Lombardi says. “There is still a need for further research. We will continue to collect data and look at it again in five years.”

— Kimberly Olson

which can be debilitating, especially in athletes. “ Piriformis syndrome” is a condition in which one of the largest nerves in the leg — the sciatic — becomes entrapped by a small hip muscle, the piriformis, causing shooting pains down the back of the leg, mimicking either

WHY R E SEARC H M AT TE RS: 7,807,047 high school students participated in competitive athletics in 2014 -2015, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. Research provides evidence to support best practices in injury prevention, resulting in a safer environment.

hip or spine pathology.

13

Fin Te Fo ot ge at o chn st and rti ur ol ep ps og y s 14

1

2

Amazing developments have been made in understanding and treating spinal cord injuries (SCI). Faculty in the School of Health and Medical Sciences have contributed to that progress.

Among them is Preeti Nair, PT, PhD, whose research may help SCI patients access critical information about their mobility. Her study’s focus is the Shaw Gait Assessment (SGA), which is a free online tool for measuring gait, and the validity and reliability of SGA compared to GaitRite, the “gold standard” for recording walking patterns.

“Until recently, recovery of lost function — such as walking — for a patient with SCI was virtually impossible. Therapy options were limited,” says Nair, an Associate Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy. “Now, we know more about how to improve and help individuals regain lost function.”

A facility that is applying this knowledge is Push to Walk (PTW), a gym in Riverdale, New Jersey, that offers specialized exercise

programs for individuals with different neurological conditions. Nair partnered with PTW on the study, collecting data from some of the gym’s clients who have incomplete SCI.

WHY IT M ATTE R S “An affordable instrument that can offer information about changes in the client’s walking ability would be a tremendous asset for facilities such as Push to Walk,” Nair explains, noting that many of PTW’s clients are no longer covered by insurance for their rehabilitation, or they want to supplement their therapy.

“Client fees cover about two-thirds of our operating cost. The rest comes from donations and grants from various organizations, individuals and special events,” says Tiffany Warren, ACSM, CPT, Program Director at PTW. “Even with grants, it’s still expensive to outfit a facility with what is needed,” Nair says.

3

Emergency Response Her father’s spinal cord injury inspired PhD candidate Balpreet Grewal-Virk to study hospital communication practices.

4

“Having a valid and reliable option that is free can make a big difference.” Whereas computerized gait mats are a major investment of resources, the SGA can be used by gym staff or health aides on a regular laptop computer.

The Shaw Gait Assessment (1) and GaitRite (4) report key spatial and temporal parameters: cadence, speed, step length and limb advance time. (2) Preeti Nair, PT, PhD, Associate Professor (standing), shows Cynthia Templeton, President and Founder of Push to Walk (PTW), how the Shaw software collects and reports data. (3) Lori Douma, a PTW client, walks along

HOW TH E S GA WO R KS

the GaitRite mat with PTW Program Director Tiffany

The client walks across a pre-defined space on the floor, and the trainer observes and uses simple keystrokes to input into the computer information on the patient’s gait (time, speed, number of steps). The analysis of that data provides invaluable information on the patient’s progress.

“If someone has balance issues, from a stroke, for example, the information can show exactly what the patient needs to work on in therapy,” Nair says.

Nair’s primary goal for the study was to determine if the SGA gave valid measurements that were accurate and would capture meaningful information as compared to high-tech research options.

Warren, ACSM, CPT, at her side (right).

“The results of the SGA study were highly correlated to data collected with GaitRite, showing that we could use this particular tool with confidence to detect changes in a client’s walking ability,” Nair says.

Seeing her work go beyond a laboratory environment and into the community is rewarding, Nair says. “Patients are striving to regain lost function. Research like this is meaningful in that effort.”

— Melissa Hebert

When New Jersey was devastated by Superstorm Sandy, many in the Seton Hall community were personally affected — including Balpreet Grewal-Virk, MBA, a doctoral candidate in the PhD in Health Sciences program.

On November 5, 2012, Grewal-Virk’s father, a gas station owner in Rochelle Park, New Jersey, was working around the clock to provide much-needed fuel to emergency responders. That night, he experienced a spinal cord injury (SCI); he is now a quadriplegic. Full of emotion — and motivation — Grewal-Virk was compelled by her father’s injury and the emergency response to make a positive impact in health care.

In addition to being politically active, Grewal-Virk spreads her message through scholarly knowledge. Her doctoral dissertation research, defended in June 2015, focused on provider-patient communication during medical emergencies. She presented her study, “Understanding how patients perceive their medical providers’ communication in a hospital-based emergency department setting,” to the Board of Directors at Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC), where she completed an independent study and where her father received treatment.

The interplay of communication and emergency-department dynamics (e.g., prompt care versus inpatient stays, triage environment, hospital types, provider training) was the focus of her investigation.

Her results highlight the important role that provider communication plays in the provision of quality care, with mentoring and accountability as contributing factors.

Grewal-Virk continues as an ambassador for SCI research and a partner to HUMC in its patient-centered care mission.

— Benjamin Ayzenberg, BS ’15 Second-Year Doctor of Physical Therapy Student 15

[ SNAPSHOT ] A dashboard view of the Division of Health Sciences demonstrates that our

the world’s – future healthcare leaders.

Fast forward to the present, and SHMS has grown tremendously — and we continue to expand our offerings and impact. In addition to the Division of Medical Residencies and Fellowships, which is what the School was founded upon in 1987, we now have six academic departments within the Division of Health Sciences. These departments offer seven degree programs, two certificate programs and five undergraduate-tograduate dual-degree programs, among other co-curricular opportunities through which our students learn the art and science of caring within an interprofessional education context.

The Seton Hall motto — Hazard Zet

strengths lie within our impressive academic programs —six departments, seven degrees, two certificates, five dual-degree programs and more.

The origin of the School of Health and Medical Sciences (SHMS) goes back nearly 30 years, when top administrators from 13 New Jersey Catholic hospitals and medical centers met at Seton Hall University to address medical education within the state. As a result, our School was founded, combining the University’s commitment to enriching the mind, heart and spirit of its students with the mission of educating the state’s – and, increasingly, the nation’s and

Department of Athletic Training R AC E / E TH N I C ITY

D EPARTMENT C HAI R

Asian

3

Black

4

Hispanic

6

Unknown

National Board of Certification Exam Pass Rate (above rates based on five-year mean)

160 88% 100%

CU R R ENT EN ROLLMENT

three-year mean/aggregate unless otherwise indicated.

R AC E / E TH N IC IT Y Asian 10 Black

1

Hawaiian/ Pacific Islander

1

White 87

Total Number of Graduates

7

Graduation Rate National Certification Examination for the Occupational Therapist Pass Rate (mean average for 2013 & 2014)

Two or more races

1

Unknown

9

336 92% 97%

C U R R E NT E N RO L L M E NT

AVE R AGE AGE 23.2

female

121 Students

male

female male

10

16

inception. Graduation and board pass rates are cited as a

FU L L-TI M E FAC U LTY

AV E R AG E AG E 23.4

38 Students

who identify. “Total Number of Graduates” is since a program’s

Hispanic 12

Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education

Graduation Rate

“Race/Ethnicity” refers to the number of enrolled students

Ruth Segal, PhD, OTR

6

Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education

4

which use data from external sources (e.g. accrediting bodies).

D E PA RTM E NT C HA I R

ACC R E D ITATI O N

Total Number of Graduates

School of Health and Medical Sciences departmental reports,

Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (MSOT)

ACC R EDITATION

FU LL-TIME FAC U LTY

Research and Division of University Advancement, as well as

P RO G R A M

White 19

Vicci Hill-Lombardi, EdD, ATC

NOTES — Data provided by Seton Hall’s Office of Institutional

Department of Occupational Therapy

PRO G R A M

Master of Science in Athletic Training (MSAT)

Forward (translation: “In spite of the hazards, go forward”) — will always remind us of our commitment to continuous improvement.

In order to advance our mission, we must also pause and reflect upon our collective strengths, which we present here, in numbers. Indeed, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, and we hope that this dashboard view of the Division of Health Sciences will help to tell our story, now and into the future.

— Lori Riley, M.A. ’06

30

50

70

90

110

130

10

30

50

70

90

110

130

Department of Physical Therapy PRO G R A M

R AC E / E TH N I C ITY

Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)

C U R R E NT E N RO L L M E NT

AVE R AGE AGE 23.7

124 Students

Black

female

Asian 14

D EPARTMENT C HAI R

4

Hispanic 20

Doreen M. Stiskal, PT, PhD ACC R EDITATION

6

Unknown

6

male

White 74 Two or more races

Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education

10

FU LL-TIME FAC U LTY

11

Total Number of Graduates

251

Graduation Rate

PRO G R A M

R AC E / E TH N I C ITY

National Physical Therapist Examination Pass Rate

Black

6

Hispanic

7

D E PA RTM E NT C HA I R

Two or more races

2

Unknown

4

Vikram N. Dayalu, PhD, CCC-SLP

Physician Assistant National Certifying Exam Pass Rate (five-year average for first-time takers)

480 90% 99%

CU R R ENT EN ROLLMENT

FU L L-TI M E FAC U LTY

8

Total Number of Graduates Graduation Rate Praxis Pass Rate

AV E R AG E AG E 23.5

6

Black

3

Hispanic

9 1

350 99% 100%

C U R R E NT E N RO L L M E NT

AVE R AGE AGE 23.3

female

88 Students

10

30

50

70

90

110

130

10

30

50

70

90

110

continued

male

male

female

92 Students

Asian

Unknown 13

Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology

Graduation Rate

97%

Two or more races

Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc.

8

130

White 56

ACC R E D ITATI O N

Total Number of Graduates

110

R AC E / E TH N IC IT Y

ACC R EDITATION

FU LL-TIME FAC U LTY

90

Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology (MSSLP)

White 60

Christopher Hanifin, MS, PA-C

70

P RO G R A M

Asian 13

D EPARTMENT C HAI R

96%

50

Department of Speech-Language Pathology

Department of Physician Assistant

Master of Science in Physician Assistant (MSPA)

30

130

17

Department of Interprofessional Health Sciences and Health Administration PRO G R A MS

D E PA RTM E NT C HA I R

• G raduate Certificate in Healthcare Administration • Graduate Certificate in Global Health Management

• Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) • Doctor of Philosophy in Health Sciences (PhD)

Terrence Cahill, EdD, FACHE FU L L-TI M E FAC U LTY

12

(joint program with Seton Hall School of Diplomacy and International Relations)

I NSI DE TH E MHA D EGR EE P ROG R A M PRO G R A M DI R ECTOR

R AC E / E TH N I C ITY

I N SI D E TH E P H D I N H EA LTH SC I E N C E S D E G R E E P RO G R A M P RO G R A M D I R E CTO R

Asian 15

Anne M. Hewitt, PhD

Black 21 White 35 Two or more races

Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education

Asian Hispanic

Graduation Rate

Two or more races

2

Total Number of Graduates Specialization Tracks

AV E R AG E AG E 27.9

68 3

C U R R E NT E N RO L L M E NT

AVE R AGE AGE 40.9

female

104 Students

male

male

female

119 Students (62 in the online program, 57 in the on-campus program)

1

Unknown 24

644 98%

CU R R ENT EN ROLLMENT

5

White 45

Unknown 33

Total Number of Graduates

7

Black 22

Terrence Cahill, EdD, FACHE

Hispanic 13

ACC R EDITATION

R AC E / E TH N IC IT Y

10

30

50

70

90

110

130

10

30

50

70

90

110

130

FACU LT Y, STA F F A N D A DM I N I STR ATO RS

Full-Time Faculty

By The

Numbers The School of Health and Medical Sciences’ faculty, staff and administrators foster a challenging and rewarding educational environment.

18

49

82% Doctorally Full-Time Staff Prepared and Administrators

E N RO LLE D STU D E NTS

Total Enrolled Students

Average Age

687 26.9

495 Female 192 Male

States Represented

17 20

70% NJ 15% NY, PA, and CT

Note: These data represent SHMS’ seven degree programs and the Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Administration.

Mental Health and the OT’s Expansive Role Defined broadly, mental health includes a person’s emotional, psychological and social well-being. It affects how individuals think, feel and act as they cope with life. Occupational therapy services promote participation in daily life; therefore, an occupational therapist (OT) can play an invaluable role in the life of a client with a mental illness. For example, OTs work with individuals with polytrauma, developmental disabilities and eating disorders.

Recently, occupational therapy was included in the federal Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Agency’s list of suggested staff members in community behavioral health clinics. SHMS faculty member Karen Hebert, PhD, OTR/L, comments on the OT’s role in mental health.

How can an OT help with a mental health condition?

Occupational therapists look at how a person’s condition — including psychiatric (e.g. anxiety, bipolar disorder) and developmental (e.g. autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) — impacts his or her daily life. For example, depression can make it hard for someone to participate in the classroom, so OTs work on strategies to engage in school-based activities.

An OT’s approach is distinctive. Tell us more.

OTs go into the community with clients. How does one drive across town or problem-solve when grocery shopping, for example? OTs also can help employers modify a professional position for someone with a mental health condition, such as developing a work schedule that gives the employee time to utilize stress-management techniques and coping skills.

How do OTs work with the healthcare team?

An OT can advise the physician if a medication could be changing someone’s performance. For example, an OT might say, “Yesterday, the client was more aware and able to participate more in activities.” OTs also can inform a social worker if a client appears ready to live independently and what services he or she will need. As OTs, we have the unique opportunity to see people do activities. Our work goes beyond just talking with them.

— Kimberly Olson

In the Limelight Last December, an audience enjoyed a spirited production of The Wizard of Oz. The participants — clients at Mt. Bethel Village, a special needs community in Warren, New Jersey, for adults with autism, developmental disabilities or traumatic brain injuries — were coached by students in the SHMS Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (MSOT) program to rehearse lines, learn staging and make costumes.

For their Level II fieldwork, the Seton Hall students (pictured above, bottom photo) incorporated occupational therapy into Mt. Bethel’s intervention program.

After conducting a needs assessment, they determined that the adults could develop invaluable skills by producing a play.

“Many of the young adults at Mt. Bethel are on the autism spectrum and have challenges presenting in front of a group,” says Karen Hoover, OTD, OTR, an Assistant Professor and prior Director of Clinical Education for the MSOT program.

“OT is rooted in the ‘act of doing;’ our students helped the adults contribute meaningfully to the play. Sometimes that meant encouraging them not to hide their faces while on stage, or to feel comfortable sharing ideas about costumes and props.”

The students’ work at Mt. Bethel Village demonstrates the breadth and depth of an OT’s role in helping individuals develop skills and strategies needed to lead fulfilling lives.

— Kimberly Olson 19

Welcome to SHMS New and promoted faculty and administrators in the Division of Health Sciences bring invaluable experience and insight to our School.

H EALTH SC I E NC E S FACU LTY

1. M irela Bruza-Augatis, MS, PA-C Bruza-Augatis is a faculty member in the Department of Physician Assistant (PA). She is a graduate of the MSPA program at Pace University. Bruza-Augatis has experience in endocrinology and family practice. She previously was an adjunct faculty member and clinical preceptor at Pace University-Lenox Hill Hospital. Her passion lies in medicine, teaching and scientific research, and her professional interests include endocrinology and metabolism, women’s health and student development.

2. Marcia Downer, PT, DPT, NCS Downer is an Instructor in the Department of Physical Therapy. She received a DPT degree from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

Acute-care practice is her specialty,

1

5

and she has had more than 20 years of experience in a Level 1 trauma center.

As an APTA-certified clinical instructor, Downer was the center coordinator for clinical education at University Hospital in Newark, New Jersey.

3. Karen Hebert, PhD, OTR/L Hebert is a faculty member in the Department of Occupational Therapy. She received a BS in occupational therapy and

2

6

a PhD in psychological sciences from the University of Missouri, where she also was an assistant professor. Hebert’s clinical experience is in adult acute and rehabilitation hospital settings. Her research, published in Psychophysiology and the British Journal of Occupational Therapy, focuses on the impact of mindfulness on emotional regulation and cognition during performance of daily occupations.

4. Allison Kellish, PhD, DPT, MPH 3

7

Kellish is a faculty member in the Department of Physical Therapy. A graduate of Seton Hall’s DPT and PhD in Health Sciences degree programs, Kellish has been a clinical instructor, center coordinator of clinical education, faculty member in a physical therapy assistant program and adjunct faculty member for Seton Hall’s DPT program. Her professional practice has centered on treating musculoskeletal injuries, and her research interests include musculoskeletal injuries of the

4

20

8

knee and clinical education.

OF F I C E OF TH E D EAN

5. Alicia MacGregor, MS, OTR

1. Paul Cognata, MA, MSW, LSW

MacGregor is the Director of Clinical

Cognata is the Assistant Dean for Dual

Education in the Department of

Degree Programs. Prior to joining SHMS

Occupational Therapy. She is a graduate

in September 2015, he worked at New

of the Seton Hall MSOT program and

York University (NYU) as Assistant Director

was an adjunct professor for eight

of the Preprofessional Advising Center

years at Seton Hall and other colleges.

in the College of Arts and Science. Cognata

MacGregor has been in clinical practice

holds master’s degrees in clinical social

for more than 15 years, working with adult clients with vision, vestibular and

1

work and the psychology of music from NYU. He is also a Licensed Social Worker

cognitive disorders. Her research interests

in New York and New Jersey and a Certified

include utilizing executive function as

Professional Life Coach.

a predictor of fall-risk in the older adult.

2. Mona M. Sedrak, PhD, PA Sedrak was promoted to Senior Associate

6. Jurga Marshall, MS, PA-C

Dean for Academic Affairs in 2014. She

Marshall is an Assistant Professor in

has been with SHMS since 2006 and most

the Department of Physician Assistant.

recently served as Associate Dean. She is

She is a graduate of the Seton Hall

also an Associate Professor in the Depart-

MSPA program. Marshall has six years

ment of Physician Assistant. Among her

of practice experience in emergency medicine and is a contributor to Patient-

2

Centered Pharmacology: Learning System

varied responsibilities, Sedrak oversees the six academic departments within SHMS’ Division of Health Sciences, which

for the Conscientious Prescriber (F.A.

continues to expand its offerings.

Davis Company, 2013). Her goal is to guide students toward uncovering their true interests and strengths as clinicians and leaders in their fields.

7. Kathleen Nagle, PhD, CCC-SLP Nagle is an Assistant Professor in the

DE PARTM E NT L EAD E R SH I P

Department of Speech-Language Pathology and Director of the Speech and Voice

1. Vicci Hill-Lombardi, EdD, ATC

Outcomes Laboratory. She received a PhD in speech and hearing sciences from the

Hill-Lombardi was named Chair of

University of Washington. Nagle’s research

the Department of Athletic Training

focuses on associations among acoustic and

in July 2015. She has been with the Department since 2005 and maintains

perceptual measures of disordered speech

her appointment as Associate Professor.

and voice. Her work has been published

Hill-Lombardi has more than 25 years

in American Journal of Speech-Language

of athletic training experience. Her

Pathology, Journal of Communication Disorders and Journal of Voice.

1

8. Vasiliki (Betty) Sgouras, MD

2. Kim Poulsen, PT, DPT, PhD

Assistant Chair in the Department

Poulsen was named Assistant Chair

of Physician Assistant. She received her

of the Department of Physical Therapy

medical degree from Saint George’s

in July 2015. He previously served

University School of Medicine and has

as Director of Clinical Education

worked in biological and medical sciences

(2005–2015) and will maintain his

higher education for more than a decade.

appointment as Assistant Professor.

Sgouras’ approach to PA education professionalism, inquisitiveness, team management, analytical thinking and selfawareness. Her administrative experience

exercise physiology and athletic training topics.

Sgouras is an Associate Professor and

embraces current knowledge as well as

research interests include autonomics,

Poulsen is passionate about lifelong

2

learning. An alumnus of SHMS’ PhD in Health Sciences program, his research focuses on the movement sciences.

includes curriculum mapping, development and evaluation and program assessment.

21

DEPARTMENT NEWS The chairs of each department in the Division of Health Sciences share these updates on their programs.

Top row: Vicci Hill-Lombardi Terrence Cahill Ruth Segal Bottom row:

Doreen M. Stiskal Christopher Hanifin Vikram N. Dayalu

Athletic Training (AT) Chair: Vicci Hill-Lombardi, EdD, ATC To our wonderful alumni: thank you for everything that you’ve done over the past 13 years! You have remained overwhelmingly involved in our MSAT program, and we rely heavily upon your presence in the athletic training world. Your contributions as faculty, preceptors, research partners and mentors are simply amazing.

While we bid farewell last May to the 20 students of the Class of 2015, we said “Hello” this summer to our largest-ever incoming class. Twenty-seven (yes, 27!) athletic training students began their journey this past July to attain their MSAT degrees at Seton Hall University.

Our recent graduating class once again achieved a 100 percent first-time pass rate on the BOC, a feat that maintains our (your) stellar record of accomplishment. All student research posters were presented at the 2015 NATA Annual Clinical Symposium held in St. Louis, MO, in June. Some of those researchers and their work are highlighted in this Insights issue (see page 13).

Our preceptors and clinical sites are among our most outstanding programmatic features.

22

New this year to the clinical experience: we have a female, second-year ATS working with the New York Jets! We have also contracted with the Red Bulls First Team as well as with Union Catholic High School and will be sending our students to these sites this year.

Be on the lookout for announcements regarding the 2016 ATSNJ Annual Conference.

The Seton Hall University Department of Athletic Training is providing the educational content for the meeting as well as student volunteers to help with registration and other duties.

Interprofessional Health Sciences and Health Administraion (IHSA) Chair: Terrence Cahill, EdD, FACHE It has been a busy first year for our newly constituted Department of Interprofessional Health Sciences and Health Administration (IHSA, formerly Graduate Programs in Health Sciences). The addition of the Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) program in 2014 has doubled the number of students in the department. To meet the needs of our 220-plus IHSA students (MHA and PhD programs combined), we have expanded to 12 core faculty and 17 active adjunct faculty.

These larger IHSA numbers were particularly noteworthy when our department’s graduates marched into the SHMS commencement ceremony last May — 51 MHA and 13 PhD graduates. This was our largest PhD graduating class and one of the MHA’s largest. But, big numbers don’t tell IHSA’s whole story.

Last year, our PhD program successfully transitioned students to a 57-credit curriculum; plus, our department developed a Graduate Certificate in Global Health Management program with the School of Diplomacy and International Relations. Our Biomechanics Laboratory (i.e.

Movement Sciences) installed a state-of-the-art Vicon Motion Camera System. And, in respect to alumni accomplishments, both MHA and PhD graduates continue to report very positive career successes in both practice and academic positions.

We are particularly excited that our MHA alumni are increasingly opting for continued learning as they pursue fellowships and doctoral education.

We now have several MHA alumni in our own PhD program.

Our IHSA faculty, students and alumni continue to make numerous contributions to both academic and practitioner journals and conferences. Our MHA Program Director, Dr. Hewitt, is a guest editor and author (two articles) for a special issue (fall 2015) of the Journal of Health Administration Education. Plus, Dr. Zhang was appointed editor of the International Journal of Healthcare Technology and Management and published a special issue on health informatics. In summary, there is a lot happening in IHSA, and, as the saying goes: “It’s all good.”

Occupational Therapy (OT) Chair: Ruth Segal, PhD, OTR The Department of Occupational Therapy onsite reaccreditation visit was held June 15-17, 2015.

The onsite team found no deficiencies! The Accreditation Council of Occupational Therapy Education granted the MSOT program a status of accreditation for a period of 10 years.

The faculty and students of the department continue to engage in advocacy and servicelearning activities. In September, we went to the annual Capitol Hill Day that is organized by our professional association. We offered Backpack Day on campus and promoted occupational therapy. Finally, we held our annual CarFit event again in the Crane’s Mill Retirement Community in West Caldwell, New Jersey.

We had three presentations at the 95th Annual American Occupational Therapy Association Annual Exhibition and Conference in Nashville, TN. Drs. Podvey and Hoover presented, with their students, “SNiPS©: Development of an Evidence-Based Scissors Skills Program.”

Dr. Mernar presented “Using Clicker Technology: Comparing Student Perceptions of Learning and Participation.” Finally, Drs. Mernar, Torcivia, Podvey, Hoover and Picard presented “Infusing IPE Throughout a Curriculum: Coursework, Fieldwork and International Programs.”

We are in our second transition year from the old curriculum to the new curriculum. These are challenging and exciting times, as we have to stretch our resources while evaluating the new curriculum closely to ensure its success.

The main challenge in occupational therapy education is the shortage of fieldwork sites to train the larger cohorts of students. Our creative faculty and supportive Dean’s Office allowed us to offer unique opportunities that ensured excellent, challenging and educational fieldwork experiences.

We continue to increase student enrollment, drawing the best students from a strong and large applicant pool. Our faculty complement is changing with the retirement of Dr. Robert Faraci and the addition of two new faculty members: Professor Alicia MacGregor, our new Director of Clinical Education, and Dr. Karen Hebert, a full-time faculty member.

We are looking forward to a challenging and successful new year!

Physical Therapy (PT) Chair: Doreen M. Stiskal, PT, PhD ’03 Doctor of Physical Therapy program graduates continue to be recognized as outstanding. As practitioners who embrace leadership within professional and healthcare environments, each exemplifies the department’s mission.

Michael Mozia ’11/DPT ’14 received the very prestigious Minority Scholarship Award during APTA’s 2014 NEXT Conference. Chosen from many nominees nationally, Michael’s scholarship and robust engagement in Seton Hall community life characterized him as a true servant leader. He continues to exhibit his passion for the profession, influencing the next generation through teaching about PT careers to high school students.

Assuming leadership roles to shape our PT profession can be very daunting, but not for

our grads. Spirodoula Riley ’02/DPT ’05 remains committed to representing New Jersey in the APTA’s House of Delegates. Suzanne Brain, DPT ’07, selected the Seton Hall campus to host a recent APTA-NJ Northern District Meeting. At this event, graduates Ashleigh McAdam ’12/ DPT ’15 and Michael Zaorski ’15, plus current student Dem’be Wilson, reflected on how commitment to developing oneself professionally can impact healthcare policy and delivery.

Providing optimal care is also a hallmark of a Seton Hall DPT graduate. Our alumni practice in diverse settings to address the varying needs of society. For Class of 2010 alumni, who graduated five years ago, their unique career paths have brought exciting successes. Elizabeth (Troutman) Arcentales, DPT ’10, received her OCS Certification at APTA’s 2015 CSM meeting.

Joanna Borawski, DPT ’10, collected a quarterly Company Grade Officer award from the 59th Medical Wing of the U.S. Air Force. Kristi Heinzinger, DPT ’10, completed the American leg of the Neil Diamond tour, providing PT for the performers.

Victoria (Walter) Belkewitch, DPT ’10, was named to New Jersey Family magazine’s 2015 list of Favorite Kids’ Docs. We congratulate them all!

And, we welcome hearing from you, DPT graduates.

Kindly share your achievements.

Physician Assistant Chair: Christopher Hanifin, MS ’99, PA-C The 2014-2015 academic year was another solid year for our PA program. As this issue goes to press, we still have some alumni waiting to take the PANCE, but our performance so far has been strong. Graduates continue to enjoy a good job market, and, on the local front, legislation is slowly working its way through New Jersey government that will make the Garden State a much better place to practice as a PA. We were pleased to have Vasiliki (Betty) Sgouras, MD, join us in January as the department’s Assistant Chair. Dr. Sgouras is assisting with the daily operation of the program as well as improving our assessment efforts. We are in the process of preparing for a site visit from our accreditation agency, and we will be able to report that things are running well and that our graduates enjoy good outcomes.

We have some other new faces in the department. Last January, we bid a sad farewell to Sandra Kaminski, MS ’01, PA-C, who left her faculty position to return to full-time practice.

Kaminski continues to be a strong supporter of the program and will be back to lecture

for us this year. Jurga Marshall, MS ’08, PA-C, joined us as a core faculty member and is helping instruct first-year classes in clinical skills. Other alumni set to lecture for us include Brian VanNess, MS ’02, PA-C; Jaime Morley, MS ’02, PA-C; and Natasha Greendyk, MS ’13, PA-C. If you are interested in lecturing or serving as a clinical preceptor, please contact us!

Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) Chair: Vikram N. Dayalu, PhD, CCC-SLP This has been an exciting year for the faculty and students in the Department of SpeechLanguage Pathology. I am happy to report that the MS-SLP program has been reaccredited for eight more years (2014-2022). The department continues to implement its progressive strategic plan focused on student success, academic and scholarly advancement, and expanding community outreach and alumni engagement.

We recently graduated 40 students in the MS-SLP Class of 2015. Approximately 25 percent of this cohort was able to participate in an international academic or clinical program. Likewise, 25 percent of the cohort participated in research projects with five of the academic faculty. One of the graduate students, Jessica Saks, MS ’15, co-authored a manuscript with Dr. Nina Capone Singleton in a peer-reviewed journal. Graduate students engaged in research projects co-authored 13 poster presentations.

During the 2014-2015 term, faculty implemented three grant-funded projects (Dr. Sona Patel, NIH grant; Dr. Anthony Koutsoftas, CERLL Grant and a Seton Hall internal grant).

Faculty also submitted three new grant applications. In total, faculty authored/coauthored six publications (including a book and a book chapter) and 28 poster and platform presentations.

Our alumni continue to be engaged in the academic and clinical training of our students.

Over the last academic year, alumni have taught courses and served as on-site clinical supervisors. Please feel free to contact us to explore potential collaborative opportunities.

You are also invited to attend our biannual free CEU event, held on campus for our supervisors and alumni. In the department, we are committed to supporting our students during their time at Seton Hall and supporting their professional growth after graduation.

Go Pirates!

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ALUMNAE AROUND THE WORLD

Saving Mothers

GUATEMALA

Physician Assistant alumna Jessica Oliveira is helping to prevent maternal deaths in Guatemala by training indigenous women to serve as birth attendants.

In rural Guatemala, pregnant women face staggering challenges. Most have no education or access to medical care. Local clinics, where they do exist, are sometimes shut down by worker strikes. Predictably, Guatemala has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, with indigenous women especially vulnerable.

Compelled to action, Jessica B. Oliveira MS ’07, PA-C, a graduate of the Master of Science in Physician Assistant program, provides specialized training to women’s attendants in Guatemala through the all-volunteer group Saving Mothers. “The most common causes of the deaths are hemorrhage, preeclampsia and infection, and they’re preventable with basic education,” she says. “About 75 to 95 percent of births in rural areas are attended

by Mayan midwives — comadronas — not a doctor. So we focus our educational initiatives on them.”

Oliveira, Saving Mothers’ Guatemala Programs Director, has earned the comadronas’ trust. “We would walk the hills of Santiago, 24

seeing pregnant women at home,” she says. “I taught our students how to do a proper prenatal visit, check vitals, check the fetal heart and recognize an emergency and refer properly.”

Having built a presence in Santiago Atitlán and San Juan La Laguna, she is now helping to launch School of POWHER (Providing Outreach in Women’s Health and Educational Resources), a 16-week training program for comadronas and other attendants that combines their traditional health practices and Western medicine.

“We teach how to prevent lacerations, for example, because these women do not suture and repair,” Oliveira says. Students receive kits for a safe, sanitary home birth, stocked with items like a vinyl shower curtain (to cover the bed, where most home births occur), scissors, cord clamps, soap, hand-sanitizer, gauze and a towel.

Data shows that the training has boosted the attendants’ knowledge of prenatal, birth and emergency care. Meanwhile, Oliveira says, “It’s really opened up a sisterhood of maternal healthcare providers.”

—Kimberly Olson

99%

• of all maternal deaths occur in developing countries.1 • I ndigenous women in Guatemala have an average of children — the country has the fifth highest fertility rate in the world.2

6.2

5

• A Guatemalan woman is times more likely to die from childbirth than her American counterpart.3 S OU RC E S : 1

World Health Organization

2 3

Saving Mothers The World Bank

8,000 Miles from New Jersey Johannesburg, South Africa, is where alumna Jamie Hyler-Naudé works as a speech-language pathologist for children with autism.

Wanting to impact people’s lives, Jamie HylerNaudé, MS ’13, CCC-SLP, left a job in public relations to study speech-language pathology.

Her new career has really taken her places — including South Africa. She discusses what it’s like to work as a speech-language pathologist (SLP) in her adopted country.

A Place to CARE: Hyler-Naudé works at the Centre for Autism Research and Education (CARE) in Johannesburg, South Africa. CARE is a privately-owned school with students as young as 18 months and up to age 12. She sees 10 children almost every day for individual speech therapy and leads classroom-based groups. She also works closely with the school’s occupational therapists, often in joint therapy sessions.

The Scarcity of SLPs: While most U.S. school

systems have SLPs, Hyler-Naudé says that, in South Africa, they mainly work in private, special-needs schools, and that is why many people don’t fully understand the need for their services. The professional network remains strong, though; she is active with the South African Speech-LanguageHearing Association.

How Many Languages? South Africa’s 11 official languages — Zulu, Xhosa and Afrikaans, to name a few — also pose challenges for SLPs, she explains, noting that there are “not nearly enough speech therapists” who speak the less common ones.

To-MAY-to, To-MAH-to: Hyler-Naudé worried about her American accent at first.

But at CARE, an English-only school, “it really isn’t an issue,” she says. “Since the majority of television shows kids watch here are American, many children with autism will have American accents regardless of how their parents, teachers or therapists speak.”

Alumna Jamie Hyler-Naudé (left) is a speech-language pathologist at the Centre for Autism Research and Education in Johannesburg, South Africa.

SOUTH AFRICA

—Molly Petrilla

Türkan Özilhan Tacir, a graduate of Seton Hall’s Master of Healthcare Administration program, is CEO of a medical center in Turkey.

A Dynamic Leader Healthcare Administration alumna Türkan Özilhan Tacir is the CEO of Anadolu Medical Center, where patient-centered care is a top priority.

The goal of providing patient-centered care is a shared commitment among healthcare professionals near and far. As the CEO of Anadolu Medical Center in Turkey, alumna Türkan Özilhan Tacir, MHA ’15, puts theory into practice. Under her leadership, the medical center created the Patient and Family Advisory Council. Comprised of patients,

TURKEY

family members and hospital executives, the council focuses on specific agenda items in order to make a real impact.

“As healthcare professionals, we might be blinded by the workload and not seeing what our patients and their families see and feel,” Özilhan says, noting that the council is contributing to design plans for the internal medicine polyclinic. “Once we reconstruct the area, we will visit the new clinic together. They [council members] will see that their opinions were not swept under the carpet, but adopted.”

— Lori Riley, M.A. ’06 3

400 South Orange Avenue South Orange, NJ 07079

SHU-207-15

New Online Resource for IPE A new website for the Center for Interprofessional Education in the Health Sciences, housed within the School of Health and Medical Sciences (SHMS), is the online hub for all things “IPE” (interprofessional education).

• SHMS’ IPE Signature and Core Curriculum Experiences • Multimedia Resources • Scholarship and Publications • IPE News

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www.shu.edu/ipe A comprehensive resource for our faculty, students and colleagues as they embark upon teaching, learning and practicing — collaboratively.