Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board Members and Friends,
Good morning from Horsham. Summer is upon us with hot and muggy weather, compounded with strong thunder storms. I hope, as you’re reading this, if you’ve lost power, it has been restored. If not, I hope it will be on soon! It’s been quite the week. Let me start by filling you in on what’s been happening on campus and then I’d like close in sharing my thoughts on external events, but not unrelated to us at Salus.
This week’s Faculty Focus is on Dr. Tracy Offerdahl-McGowan and her role as both a pharmacist and a “farmacist.” She’s got some great stories you can read more about here.
The inaugural Post-baccalaureate in Health Sciences class certainly left its mark on the University. I want to congratulate all of those students who finished the program and thank Drs. Darryl Horn and Brooke Kruemmling for taking the lead on this program, as well as the rest of our Rock Star faculty who helped to make it a success. Check out the virtual celebration to commemorate the accomplishments of the inaugural class here.
Congratulations to Faye Miller, O&M ’14, who was named the Blindness and Low Vision Studies Alumna of the Year by the Alumni Association. You can read more about Faye’s numerous accomplishments and contributions to her field here.
Best of luck to our Osborne College of Audiology externs who are about to begin their clinical rotations. Thanks for including me in your celebration last night. I know you all will just hit it out of the park!
A reminder that the next Continuing Education Grand Rounds lecture is titled “Personal Equipment in the Clinical Setting” from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. Friday, June 12. This is a mandatory session for PCO students, but I’d also highly recommend as many people as possible try to listen in as the use of PPE has become an integral part of everyone’s clinical lives. For more information about the program, click here.
While I have historically tried to remain apolitical in writing these posts, the events of the last couple of weeks have pushed me to the point where I can no longer stay quiet and keep my opinions to myself.
I want to comment on a couple events that have offended, disgusted and appalled me this week. The first was watching peaceful demonstrators being forcibly and violently removed from Lafayette Square in Washington, DC, so Donald Trump could have a “photo opportunity” holding up a bible in front of St. John’s Church on the square. This abhorrent abuse of power highlighted his disregard for the rights of those conducting a peaceful protest, voicing their indignation with racism, white supremacy and police brutality. Threatening the use of military intervention and force against protesters, as Trump has, is something a dictator would do and is not consistent with our Constitutional First Amendment right of peaceful assembly to be heard. I do not condone any of the violence and looting that went on, but that was a small minority, distracting us from the principal message we all need to hear – the injustice Black and other people of color have suffered over two centuries.
The second event was the unbelievably racist, incendiary and offensive press release from Joseph Gale, a Montgomery County Commissioner. I’ve already responded to his comments very publicly. We need to expect and demand more from our elected officials, especially one that lacks a sense of decency, compassion and respect. Dr. Di Stefano reminded us of the importance of voting during his commencement speech – this takes on an even more important role for all of us given the strife our nation is feeling right as a result of incompetent, immature and failing leadership at several levels. Our country and our democracy are at an inflection point today, and, while it will not be easy, we have an obligation to get us back on track to the ideals we were founded upon – equality, decency and freedom for all.
Even with all of that going on, I was uplifted and educated earlier in the week by the candidness and professionalism of our students, faculty and staff as we began to openly address the issues of race inequality and police brutality in our society.
Salus University stands in solidarity with the Black community and all communities of color. We must be diligent and actively listen to, learn from, and support each other. As healthcare providers we must actively address disparities in access to quality healthcare that are based on race, gender or sexual orientation. We must commit to making this moment in history a turning point for positive change rather than a blip in time. Let the actions of all of those working for a more just society further demonstrate that Black lives matter, and let us all commit to working together as one to build a better future. I would encourage all of you move out of your comfort zones and speak out and take action against these social injustices.
I hope you have a chance to reflect on this over the weekend. Today, Montgomery and surrounding counties move into the Yellow Phase of The Process to Reopen PA, so next week there might be several more people on campus. If you have to be on campus, please ensure you follow all social distance guidelines, continue aggressive hygiene routines, to include frequent hand washing and cleaning flat surfaces and wearing a face mask that covers your nose and mouth while on campus or in clinic. You can review our Yellow Phase guidelines here.
Stay safe, stay healthy, be respectful of one another - stay SALUS STRONG!
Mike
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