Dear Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board Members and Friends,
Good morning from our verdant Elkins Park campus where everything is vibrant and green helped by summer rains! It’s been a busy week around campus with all of our new students beginning lectures and labs and returning students heading back to clinics and didactic schedules. Our South Building construction project continues to make exciting progress as newly completed areas are already actively used by students, faculty and staff. Here are some other items of interest:
MOBILITY MEET UP: Salus University and the William Feinbloom Vision Rehabilitation Center at The Eye Institute (TEI), recently celebrated Orientation and Mobility (O&M) interns, patients and support persons. Click here to read more about the “Mobility Meet Up.”
SEESHORE FEST PREVIEW: Seeshore Fest 2023, an annual event that raises money for the William Feinbloom Rehabilitation Center and Foundation Fighting Blindness, will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 26, in Dewey Beach, Delaware. Click here for details.
STUDENTS WELCOMED FROM TAIWAN: Salus University recently hosted its on-campus clinical education program in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (SLP). Three Audiology students and five SLP students from Chung-Shan Medical University in Taiwan attended the four-week certificate program enhancing their knowledge within the professions and getting an up-close look at graduate-level training in the United States. The program was coordinated through the Academic Affairs Division of Global, Interprofessional and Specialized Programming (GISP). Read more here.
OAT TEST PREP COURSE: The Optometry Admissions Test (OAT) is designed to assess candidates’ knowledge base and aptitude in several key content areas relevant to optometry school curriculum. Currently, no optometry program in the country offers a prep course for the OAT. But, the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO) at Salus University is about to change that. Click here to read more.
FINAL THOUGHTS: As I mentioned during Orientation and White Coat ceremonies, there’s a great deal going on around us, and there’s also much to get accustomed to in school – between new schedules, new living environments, new subject matter to learn and working with new friends and colleagues.
I want you to know that you’re not alone. If you’re having difficulty with a specific subject I can guarantee that many of your classmates are experiencing the same challenges. For our first-year students, I can remember my first year at PCO, sitting in Dr. Lorraine Lombardi’s anatomy lectures trying to figure out how I was going to remember all that stuff. Throw in ophthalmic and physiological optics and my head was spinning. It took a little over a semester both to realize I had this and also that I wasn’t alone. Most of my classmates were feeling the same way. Your deans, program directors and faculty all realize the stress you’re experiencing. Please, don’t hesitate to reach out to any of them for help. While there is no simple answer and everyone copes with stress a bit differently, here are a few suggestions to help you through this that have served me well over the years:
Stay focused on your studies - Keep up with your studies and try not to fall behind.
Develop a routine you can stick to - Sounds basic, but it will make a world of difference. Get up, make your bed (now you’ve accomplished at least one thing!), do some exercise, have breakfast, etc.
Get enough sleep – This also sounds pretty basic and to some, maybe it seems like “mission impossible” but the better rested you are, the more capable your body and mind will be at handling things that come your way, to include stress. Prioritize sleep over other things and you’ll be more productive, resilient and attentive.
Get outside and enjoy the fresh air – There are so many places very close to campus you can go and enjoy nature that will help to calm your mind and present opportunities for some exercise at many levels. Alverthorpe Park is five minutes away!
Make sure you have what you need for the next day - Check the schedule, lay out your clothes, make your lunch, etc.
Use social media purposefully and not nonchalantly – Limit your screen time and refrain from posting for “likes” or for the sake of making the “best content”. Use social media to connect with some new classmates or the people you miss seeing every day.
We all understand how difficult these programs are. It’s important to remain focused, healthy and optimistic, which is the most difficult task. We have skilled counselors in our Center for Personal and Professional Development (CPPD) who are there for you. I strongly encourage you to contact them, if you feel like you need to. All you need to do is make an appointment here.
Finally, Covid cases are once again on the rise, both nationally and in our region. It is prudent for us to be aware of this and take appropriate precautions, such as social distancing and consider masking around crowds, especially if you are immunocompromised or have a chronic disease.
If you are not feeling well, please stay home and test yourself for Covid before returning to campus. If you’ve been exposed to someone with Covid please follow CDC guidelines, which include masking for at least 5-days when around others and testing at the 5-day interval, even if you are symptom free, to ensure you do not spread the virus.
This is also a good time for everyone to think about getting their annual flu vaccine as flu season will be here before we know it.
As you prepare for the weekend, please try to get outdoors, enjoy the late summer weather and recharge mentally and physically as I want you all to remain SALUS STRONG!
-Mike
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