Remembering Queen Elizabeth: Week of September 9, 2022

 

Dear Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board Members and Friends,

Greetings on a beautiful Friday morning from our Elkins Park campus. While it was a short week due to the Labor Day weekend, it’s been a busy one! Both in-person and hybrid classes have been ongoing as have been our labs and clinics. Additionally, teams have been meeting to finalize our plans for the renovation of the 1st floor of the South building which will be an exciting improvement to our campus. 

Here are some other items that may be of interest to you:

PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL WINNER: The Salus University Presidential Award is an accomplishment that Neil Draisin, OD ‘71, FCOVD, is excited and honored to add to his long list of achievements throughout his career in optometry. Read more about Dr. Draisin here. 

FACULTY DEVELOPMENT DAY: Faculty members met recently in the Hafter Student Community Center for an in-person reception recognizing new members of the University faculty, those who were promoted and those who officially received tenure while mingling and enjoying much needed refreshments. Read more here about our University Faculty Development Day.

WORKING ON A DREAM: How many faculty members across the country can boast that they have opened for Bruce Springsteen? Well, the Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) department at Salus University can. Nora Whittaker Jones, MA, CCC-SLP, an SLP adjunct professor since 2017, was a professional singer before transitioning into academia. Read more about her here.

NEW RESIDENT: While attending Ursinus College as a biology major, Samuel Kim, OD ‘22, Resident ‘23, interned with a small optometric practice. He enjoyed working there and it sparked his interest in the profession. Read more here about Dr. Kim, one of our 2022-2023 residents.

APPROVED COVID BOOSTER AND MONKEYPOX AWARENESS: As I mentioned last week, the FDA and CDC have approved the lasted COVID booster, specifically targeting the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 variants in addition to the original COVID strains. I want to strongly encourage all of us to receive this vaccine to get it as soon as you are eligible (at least 2 months after your last booster or 90 days after testing positive for COVID). The CDC defines being “fully vaccinated” as having the initial 2 doses of the COVID vaccine and “up-to-date” as having the most recent booster shot. As healthcare providers who interact with the general public, we have a professional responsibility to remain up-to-date on these vaccines both to protect our patients and clients but also to protect ourselves and our families. I am relying on your commitment to maintaining a high standard of professionalism to keep up to date. Additionally, Monkey Pox still presents a threat to many in our general population. Please continue to be vigilant when seeing patients and clients as well as in your personal interactions and follow CDC guidelines if you suspect you’ve been exposed or you have a patient or client who might have the virus.

FINAL THOUGHTS: History gained another marker yesterday with the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. And while the United States has not been under British rule since 1783, many Americans still claim the Royal Family as our own, with Queen Elizabeth as their symbolic matriarch. In reality, she was the monarch of the United Kingdom and 14 commonwealth realms. Her Majesty took the throne in 1952, at the young age of 26 years old, during a period in global history when much of the world had difficulty seeing a woman at the pinnacle of leadership. While the world may have been confounded by her gender, she quickly earned the respect of many through her embodiment of grace, courage, integrity, steadfastness and decency. Queen Elizabeth displayed immense courage throughout significant political and personal changes in the monarchy and the family.

Integrity was her posture during the personal scandals of the Royal Family over the last few decades. And Her Majesty was the epitome of steadfastness, often lauded as an unwillingness to change, as she held closely for much of her reign, many longstanding traditions of the monarchy. The world has lost a leader who epitomized decency and respect. As you begin this beautiful weekend, please take some time to reflect on Queen Elizabeth’s legacy and how we can emulate some of her leadership qualities in our professional lives. Be safe, look out for one another, continue to follow CDC masking guidelines when out and about and remain SALUS STRONG!

-Mike

Salus Weekly Update: Week of July 22nd, 2022

Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board Members and Friends,

Good morning from a very hot and muggy Elkins Park campus. This is a far cry from the weather I was experiencing just yesterday in Iceland where the high temperature was 52 degrees! I wanted to call your attention to a few things that might be of interest to you:

THE TEI EXPERIENCE: Check out the second part of a two-part Q&A with the 2021-2022 Residents of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO) at Salus University and their on-campus residency experiences at The Eye Institute (TEI) during their first official year of being a Doctor of Optometry. Click here.

O&P FACULTY UPDATE: Welcome to Virginia Muthard, CPO/L, FAAOP, the newest addition to our Orthotics and Prosthetics (O&P) faculty. She comes to Salus after a year of teaching orthotics in the Master of Science in Prosthetics and Orthotics (MSPO) program at the University of Pittsburgh. Read more about Virginia here.

‘OPENING EYES’ VOLUNTEERS: A group from PCO/Salus participated in the “Opening Eyes” program for athletes who competed in the New Jersey Special Olympics, held recently at The College of New Jersey in Ewing Township. Over two days, 12 students from PCO/Salus screened 268 special Olympians and provided glasses and sunglasses for 350 individuals. Click here to learn more about their experience.

INTERDISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION: Salus University and Brandywine River Museum of Art have created accessible programming for visitors with autism and sensory-processing disorders. Over the past five years, the project has blossomed into an interdisciplinary collaboration that not only includes the University’s Occupational Therapy (OT) department, but the Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) and Blindness and Low Vision Studies (BLVS) departments as well. Read more about the initiative here. 

FINAL THOUGHTS: It is going to be close to 100 degrees, sunny and humid this weekend. Please ensure that you stay hydrated and try to restrict your outdoor activities to times when it’s relatively cooler outside such as early in the morning or early evenings. Also, please keep in mind that cases of COVID have been on the rise nationally, and we’ve not been immune in our region. Remain vigilant in taking the appropriate preventive measures when you’re out and about by following CDC masking guidelines. Remember, if you’re not feeling well, rule out COVID with a self-test before you interact with others. 

Have a great weekend - stay cool, be safe and remain SALUS STRONG!

Mike

Addressing Stress: Week of February 26th, 2021

Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board Members and Friends,

Greetings from a sunny and cold Elkins Park campus. The snow is starting to melt and we’re looking forward to some warmer days ahead! It’s been another busy week on campus. We’ve said farewell to a long-standing PCO faculty member, Dr. Francine Pearlman-Storch after 40 years teaching PCO students clinical skills and participated in an alumni beer tasting event, which was lots of fun. In addition to this, here are some of the other things happening around campus:

BLACK STUDENT UNION: One of our newest student organizations is the Black Student Union (BSU) group. Forming a new group is difficult under normal circumstances, but for a group that has a mission that includes being out in the community and advocating for the various professions in which Salus students are trained, the challenges have become even more complicated. Read more about the BSU and its goals at salus.edu/BSUgroup.

NEW BOT MEMBERS: Salus University’s Board of Trustees kicked off the new year by adding three new members. Dr. Kate Kinslow, Shannon Tornoe and Emily Turner were named to the board at its January 2021 meeting. Learn more about our new members at salus.edu/NewBOTmembers.

BEHIND THE SCENES AT TEI: Our next “Behind the Scenes at TEI” podcast features Alissa Coyne, OD ‘10, Resident ‘11, FAAO, staff optometrist for primary care and emergency service at The Eye Institute. Read more about Dr. Coyne at salus.edu/ACoyneTEI.

PHILANTHROPIC PARTNERSHIP: We are grateful that the University’s philanthropic partnerships have continued to thrive despite the pandemic. Our most recent donation of $7,500 came from a new donor named Keplr Vision. The Illinois-based company has recognized an opportunity to help students through the Optometry Learning Experience (OLE), a program established 40 years ago by the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO) at Salus. To read more about this contribution, click here.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW: This week’s Where Are They Now features Caitlin Panella, MS ‘18, CCC-SLP, who now works in early intervention after school with children three to five years of age and also serves students in kindergarten through 12th grade for ASPIRA Bilingual Cyber Charter School in the Olney section of Philadelphia. Read more about Caitlin at salus.edu/CaitlinPanella.

FINAL THOUGHTS: In just a couple of weeks, we will have been working within this public health emergency for a year. That has taken a toll on all of us, but I know, especially faculty and students. To that end, I’d like to address this last section specifically to them. We all realize how much stress you have been under over the last year. I want you to know that you’re not alone – not at all, and we recognize this. For our students, I can almost guarantee if you’re having difficulty with a specific subject, many of your classmates are experiencing the same challenges. Because you are not spending time together as groups, you just don’t have the opportunity to “compare notes” as you would have if we were not living in a mostly virtual world. Your deans, program directors and faculty all realize the stress you’re currently under. For our faculty, while we don’t say it enough, we realize the extraordinary efforts you have made to ensure our students are getting the best education possible. We also realize the challenges associated with teaching in a virtual environment, leveraging the technology that’s available to us and working in close quarters with others in clinics and labs. None of this is perfect and frankly, none of the learning platforms that people are using across higher education were designed to be used in totally virtual environments. Your creativity and ability to adapt and make things work less than optimum settings have been enviable and extremely effective and we also realize that often the results of everyone’s efforts are not up to your high standards. We also know how stressful this is. There is no simple rejoinder to many of these stress-causing challenges and we also know that everyone copes with stress a bit differently. I’d like to share some stress-relieving strategies that I’ve shared in the past and suggestions to help you through this, that have served me well over the years:

For students, stay focused on your studies - Don’t get behind. Keep up with your studies, ask questions when you’re not sure and seek help as you feel you need it. Stay in close touch with your faculty.

Develop a routine you can maintain - Sounds basic, but it will make a world of difference. Get up, make your bed (now you’ve accomplished at least one thing!), start or maintain a regular exercise routine, 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, including stress. Prioritize sleep over other things and you’ll be more productive, resilient and attentive.

Get outside and enjoy the fresh air, even in the cold – There are many places around us that you can go and safely walk around in nature that will help to calm your mind and present opportunities for some exercise at many levels.

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.

Give us concrete suggestions on how we can improve our learning environment - While we cannot redesign Blackboard or Blackboard Collaborate, we may be able to design workarounds or can provide specific training that help to augment the teaching and learning experiences.

I can assure you that the pandemic and everything we’ve had to do to keep everyone safe and healthy, while ensuring everything else gets done, has stressed all of us. With the impending approval of a third vaccine, hopefully, later today, there is definitely light at the end of the tunnel. While we probably won’t be back to “normal” until enough people are vaccinated, that time is approaching, hopefully by late summer or early fall. In the meantime, we all need to remain focused, healthy and optimistic. We have skilled counselors in our Center for Personal and Professional Development (CPPD) who are there for students and Human Resources has access to counselors for faculty and staff. I would strongly encourage you to contact them, if you feel like you need to. For students, all you need to do is make an appointment here.

Finally, it appears we might have a rainy weekend but you still should be able to get out and enjoy some fresh air. I strongly encourage you all to get out and enjoy the good weather while we still have it.

As you get out and about, please continue to wear your double face mask when around others, practice social distancing and wash your hands frequently. Remember what you do off campus affects all of us on campus.

Be safe, have some fun and remain SALUS STRONG!

Mike

New Student Orientation: Week of August 14th, 2020

Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board Members and Friends, 

Greetings on another hot and muggy Southeastern Pennsylvania morning. While the weather outside may be a bit soupy and gloomy, things are pretty bright at Salus. Our students and faculty have been working hard completing required lab work, NexGen training and even some didactic coursework, even though the majority of classroom work remains virtual. Below are some examples of what’s happening around campus. 

NEW STUDENT ORIENTATION: I am so excited to welcome all of our new students to Salus. I know many of you have been engaged in our virtual orientation program since early last week. We’re thrilled to be able to hold our first synchronous events next week, where we may actually get to greet some of you on campus personally. Of course, because we’ll all be wearing our masks, we won’t recognize each other, but it still will be wonderful for me to personally welcome you all on board – mask to mask!  

WHITE COAT CEREMONY: As most of you already know, this year’s White Coat ceremony will be conducted virtually next Thursday at 9:30 AM. All members of the University Community will receive a link to the event, so you can participate from afar. Dr. Eckert and I are thrilled to be keynote speakers for the event. While we won’t be handing out white coats at this time, each program will be holding their own ceremonies later in the semester where students will actually receive their coats.

 

OPTOMETRIC GRAND ROUNDS TODAY: I hope you are able to tune in this morning to Erin Jenewein, OD, MS, and Siva Meiyeppen, OD, Resident ‘15, Pennsylvania College of Optometry assistant professors, who will be presenting, "The Ins and Outs of Strabismus Management in a Primary Care Optometric Practice” for Grand Rounds. We really appreciate the time and energy our faculty and residents put into making these lectures so fantastic.

OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY UPDATE: Salus University’s own Dr. Fern Silverman, Occupational Therapy (OT) assistant professor and assistant director of the Occupational Therapy Doctoral (OTD) program, and Dr. Andrea Tyszka, OT associate professor, were recently interviewed by Rebecca Smith from Thomas Jefferson University and Deanna Longo from Stony Brook University for the student-run podcast “My OT Journey.” Get to know more about this niche area of OT practice, all while getting to know the Salus OT faculty, by tuning into the podcast here.

FACULTY FOCUS: All through middle school and high school, Alice Lim, OD ‘18, Resident ‘19, took art classes. Although she never officially studied art once she started college, she always maintained an interest in drawing and painting as a long-term hobby. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, though, Dr. Lim drew on that interest and incorporated it into her teaching. Read more at salus.edu/AliceLim.

SALUS COMMUNITY SUPPORT: Dr. Brandy Scombordi and optometric staff members took the Salus Vision Van on the road again on Aug. 13, where they provided much needed vision care for children in the Kingsessing Hub section of the city. Salus PCO and TEI continue to connect with our communities in meaningful ways during our challenging times. I’m so proud of Dr. Scombordi and her team for the work they continue to do under challenging circumstances. I know our patients really appreciate their work.

SUPPORTING OUR FELLOW INSTITUTIONS: Earlier this week I had the opportunity to participate in Arcadia University’s annual golf outing. For those of you who know me, you know that golf is not my forte, so this was somewhat humbling, yet enjoyable. Salus sponsored a hole and got great visibility for the work we’re doing in the Speech-Language Institute for our community.   

 

SOME FINAL THOUGHTS: A new academic year is always an exciting time for our incoming students, as well as for our faculty and staff. This year, though is different. Not only are we confronted with the usual butterflies that go along with starting a new adventure in one’s life, but we’re doing this in the middle of a global pandemic that has affected almost every aspect of our lives. I want you all to know that we have been working very hard since this all began to ensure that your learning and teaching environment and other campus activities at Salus remain safe and effective. 

If you’re a returning student you will see many differences, starting from when you actually enter the buildings. Once inside, we have a shared responsibility to keep each other healthy and safe. The pillars of these responsibilities are wearing a face mask that covers both your nose and mouth, social distancing of at least 6-feet and frequent hand washing. While no one can predict if all of these precautions will be enough, we have a joint obligation to try our hardest to keep Salus safe and these are the best tools we have to do that right now. As testing becomes more available, cost-effective, and reliable, that too will be integrated into our process. We must all do everything we can to be as successful as possible. That means, even while you are off-campus, remember to practice social distancing, properly wear a face mask and frequently wash your hands. What we do off campus will directly affect everyone on campus. 

I am convinced that whatever this year brings - between the pandemic, exploring and helping to address social injustice and a national election - it will present us will the opportunity to be united in the fact that we are SALUS STRONG. When we all look back on these times we can say that we have been able to overcome adversity and enable Salus to accomplish the mission of educating all of you, while at the same time addressing the biggest challenge we have ever faced – and we have accomplished this together. What an achievement to embrace! 

Mike

Good Luck with Finals: Week of November 30, 2018

Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board Members and Friends,

Greetings from our Nation’s capital where Melissa Vitek, OD, FAAO, interim provost and vice president of Academic Affairs; Brooke Kruemmling, PhD, COMS, associate provost; and I are attending the annual meeting of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education’s (MSCHE). MSCHE is the overarching accrediting body for Salus. It’s always enlightening to learn about trends in accreditation and to see what other colleges and universities are doing as well as ensuring we remain in compliance within the standards we are accountable for. 

Later today, I head up to New York along with Dennis Washington, vice president for Institutional Advancement and Don Kates, CPA, vice president for Finance, to represent Salus at the annual meeting of the Pennsylvania Society. Most of our regional politicians head up to New York City this time of the year to network and learn about constituent needs and wants. This presents a great opportunity for us to market the University and lobby for state funding for some of our most important projects. By keeping our local legislators informed about all the great things we’re doing for our students and the local communities we serve, we’ve been successful in the past in obtaining significant state grant funding for things such as the renovation of The Eye Institute, to include the lower level and our newest primary care clinic.  This time we’re hoping to lobby for funds towards making improvements at the Elkins Park campus.

Around campus, lots of great things are happening as well. 

Rachel Ditoro, MSPAS, PA-C, associate professor in the Physician Assistant Program, was interviewed by the Physician Assistant Education Association about the work our PA program is doing in Competency Based Education (CBME). 

We’re always trying to enhance our current academic partnerships and develop new ones. We're happy to announce that we have signed two new articulation agreements with the University of the Sciences:  a 3 + 4 Doctor of Audiology Degree Program and a 4 + 4 Doctor of Audiology Program. These help to develop pipelines of qualified students for all of our programs. 

I’m very proud to inform everyone that the University's Veteran’s Readiness Initiative (VRI) was recently awarded the Union League Veteran’s Club Table 2018

Philanthropy Award. The award was accompanied with a nice monetary donation to the program. Karen Hanson, PhD, program development ; Linda Casser, OD, FAAO, coordinator of Interprofessional Education, and I were all on hand to accept the award during a special ceremony at the Union League of Philadelphia just prior to Thanksgiving. 

As we prepare to enter finals week at the University, I want to wish everyone lots of luck (although I know you won’t need it because you all have been studying so hard) and thank the faculty for the great job they’ve done in preparing everyone so well! Have a great weekend. Be safe and look out for one another. 

Mike

Travels to Japan and China: Week of March 9th

Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board members and Friends,

Greetings on a cold, yet bright Philadelphia Friday! I hope everyone enjoyed the rare snow day we had earlier in the week. No one would guess we’re in March!

You didn’t see a “Weekly Update” from me last week as we were traveling in Japan and China.  As many of you know, Google and thus Gmail, does not work in China, hence my lack of update last week. So let me tell you a little bit about our trip.  

Drs. Scharre, Vitek and I had the opportunity to do an externship visit at our site at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Okinawa, Japan.  This is a very special place for me as I actually helped to facilitate this externship site when I was there in the early 2000’s as the commanding officer of the faculty. My team had the privilege of doing the majority of the design work for the new Naval Hospital that I had the opportunity to open when I was the Deputy Surgeon General of the Navy in 2013. The hospital our externs practice in today is only 5 years old and a state-of-the art facility. While there, we had the opportunity to meet with our current extern, Kathryn Ordonez (Class of 2018) who really appeared to be enjoying her experience over there. In addition to seeing lots of patients she was enjoying the Okinawan culture and staying in shape by biking to work every day!  

The next phase in our travels was to Shanghai, China where we held a reception to recognize many of our Chinese alumni as well as introduce prospective students to the University.  The event was extremely well attended.  It was fun to see alumni and also to meet some of the new students who will be coming our way next year. An added bonus was that the weather in Shanghai was uncharacteristically warm - 75 degrees and sunny. Running in shorts and a tee shirt in March is always a good thing!

As always, it’s good to be home. One of the first things I noticed was that we’re making great progress on what will be the new Lorraine Lombardi classroom on the 3rd floor.  Demolition on one side is complete and the framing has commenced. It’s always great to see new infrastructure that will be used to support our academic activities. This classroom will seat over 300+ people allowing us to really leverage interprofessional education at Salus.

The next stop of the Lombardi Farewell CE tour is in Pittsburgh on March 11th. The Western Pennsylvania Optometric Association will be hosting the event which I’m certain will be a great success, as all the others have been.  

As part of our outreach to local political officials, today we will be hosting State Senator Sharif Street and Representative Isabella Fitzgerald at The Eye Institute to show them what we do for the local community as well as to explain all the great clinical education experiences our students receive at TEI.  As the PA legislature looks at expanding optometric scope of practice, it’s important for them to understand the high quality education all of our optometrists receive at Salus.

So, this weekend looks like it will be cold, but no snow!  I encourage you all to get out and enjoy the good, albeit, cold weather.

Mike

First View of the New Clinical Procedures Lab: Week of June 9th

Students, Faculty, Residents, Alumni, Staff, Board members and Friends,

Finally, the rain has stopped and the sun is shining! While we always can use the rain, it’s really nice to look out the window and see our beautiful pond lined with students eating their lunch and just enjoying the serenity of the campus.  

This week started out with a bang. We hosted our Alumni Association board meeting at a hotel near Citizens Bank Park last Sunday. It started with a wonderful brunch followed by a business meeting and a very informative presentation from Ryan Hollister, the University's coordinator of Career Services and Enrollment, on the importance of employing social media in one’s practice, and doing it correctly.  He also described the new and improved Bennett Career Services Center and what the University offers to graduating students as well as alumni from all of our programs. It was extremely informative and well received. After all the “official” stuff, about 70 of us headed over to the ballpark to watch the Phillies beat the San Francisco Giants. This was a great way to end the day! 

This week we also celebrated students and faculty using our new Clinical Procedures Lab for the first time.  It was wonderful to see both groups taking advantage of the new facility as well as "Exercising" some of the great technology and equipment that's been installed there. I happened to walk through while Dr. Jeff Nyman was lecturing about gonioscopy in one corner to about eight students, displaying normal PowerPoint slides on one screen and diagrams and photos on another. While this was going on, in another section of the lab an additional faculty member was working with a student to hone their 90D fundus exam skills. It was great to overhear that particular student say how clear the image was through the brand new slit lamp!

Construction on the parking lot at The Eye Institute (TEI) is moving forward in earnest. While it’s a bit inconvenient right now, when this is completed we will have an additional 70 parking spaces and some really nice landscaping on the Spencer Street side of the building that faculty, staff, students and patients can all enjoy.  

The CityLife Neighborhood Clinics at TEI will have  a soft opening later this month with a more formal grand opening scheduled for July. We are so excited to embed a  primary care facility in The Eye Institute as well as to our East Oak Lane neighborhood. 

Earlier this week the University's President’s Council bid farewell to Dr. Larry McClure who served as our director of Institutional Research and Strategic Planning as well as our director of Financial Aid for over 40 years.  Rumor has it he started when he was just 16 years old :-). Larry will retire at the end of this month and transition to having fun and relaxing a bit. We all wish Larry the very best as he gets ready to start his new adventures.  

Finally, I’d like to remind everyone to save the 11th of November for our annual "Looking Out For Kids" charity fundraiser dinner. This year we’ll be having the event at the Philadelphia Cricket Club, located in Chestnut Hill.  I know it’s going to be a very special evening as we honor Shelly Yanoff with our Lighthouse Award.  Ms. Yanoff is the former Executive Director of Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY).  PCCY works to improve the lives of our region’s children by developing initiatives and advocating for quality healthcare, child care, public education and family stability.  We’re very excited about having Ms. Yanoff join us for the event. To learn more about Looking Out For Kids, visit our website. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend. Stay safe and have some fun!

Mike