MSU scientist named new U-M Medical School professor
and department chair
The U-M Board of Regents has approved the appointment of William L. Smith, Ph.D., as chair of the Medical School's Department of Biological Chemistry and the Minor J. Coon Professor of Biological Chemistry. Dr. Smith is the former chair of biochemistry and molecular biology at Michigan State University. His appointment was approved by the Board of Regents on March 20 and is effective on May 1. To learn more about Dr. Smith, click here.

View the UMMS Match Day photos on the Web
On March 20, U-M students, faculty, alumni, family and friends gathered at the Sheraton Hotel for Match Day, one of the most exciting days for a graduating medical student. One-by-one, students experienced the random call to the front of the room, received a sealed envelope, and opened it to learn which residency program had selected them. To view the Match Day Scrapbook, visit http://www.med.umich.edu/medschool/matchday03.htm. The photos were taken by David Bloom, M.D., Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and the Jack Lapides Professor of Urology.

Time is running out, get your HIPAA training now
The HIPAA web site should provide all the information you need to bring your projects into HIPAA compliance, but if you prefer the interaction of a live seminar, attend one of the group sessions listed below. The Health System is required to train its entire workforce, including faculty, staff, students, volunteers, contract employees and others, by April 13, 2003.

For additional training dates, please visit the HIPAA web site. Please note that the Medical School workforce will need to follow the special instructions at the end of the presentation on how to receive their certificate.

Everything you wanted to know about genetics
Explore "Genetics: The Symphony of Life," the U-M Health System's new multimedia educational web site on genetics and medicine. The site was designed for the general public and features the U-M's Life Sciences Orchestra. It contains basic information for non-scientists and highlights genetics research by Medical School faculty. If you have a genetics question, send it in. Questions of general interest will be answered and posted on the web site. This is the first phase of the project, so check back often for new content at www.med.umich.edu/genetics.

Join the First Annual UMMS "Stuffed Animal Stampede"
Please help to cheer up those who are in need of emotional support by donating new stuffed animals to the first annual UMMS "Stuffed Animal Stampede." The stuffed animals will be given to patients and their families. If enough donations are collected, stuffed animals will be distributed to various shelters for the homeless and abused.

Small to medium sized animals are the best since they are easy to carry. New, clean animals are preferred in order to accommodate the needs of
immunocompromised patients. Collection bags for stuffed animals have been placed throughout the medical school, outside lecture halls, in Fursty, on the way to the hospital, in the hospital, and in the "triangle," near the entrance to the medical school. Please contact Seth Blumberg at sblumber@umich.edu or Mark Benson at mdbenson@umich.edu with any questions, or if you would like to make a donation and can't find a collection bag.

Plymouth Road construction
Plymouth Road at US-23 will be narrowed to one lane in each direction starting on April 7 while workers build two new entrance ramps to the highway and rebuild existing ramps with a project cost of $6.5 million. Two lanes of traffic will be maintained on US-23 at Plymouth Road, but drivers will be shifted onto the shoulder

New ramps at the Plymouth Road bridge will allow motorists to enter the highway without turning across oncoming traffic. The construction project will also extend the existing northbound entrance ramp onto US-23 all the way to M-14.

All four existing ramps on and off the highway will be rebuilt but will remain open during the work, with traffic moved to the shoulders. Plymouth Road will be affected with one lane closed in each direction during the project. Visit http://www.med.umich.edu/prmc/bridge.htm for the latest updates on construction progress.

Register for the CACR Training Workshop
The Education and Certification Core (ECC) from the Center for the Advancement of Clinical Research (CACR) will once again offer a program for new study coordinators (less than six months on-the-job experience). The workshop will cover the following primary education modules:

--The ABC's of Good Clinical Practices Requirements
--The Roles and Networks of Study Coordinators
--The "How to's" of Clinical Research Study Files

The program will be held on Tuesday, April 15 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in LRC 2903. Please register by April 10. The $50 fee only covers materials. For questions, please contact Erich Jensen at 647-4438 or ejensen@umich.edu. To obtain registration forms contact Monica Healy at 647-3815 or mhealy@umich.edu. Forms and future class dates may also be obtain from the CACR.

Susan B. Meister Child Health Policy Initiative
The Susan B. Meister Child Health Policy initiative will present Latino Children's Health Policy on Monday, April 14 from 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. at the Campus Inn. Admission is free but registration is required by Monday, April 7. To register contact Carol O'Conner at 764-9519 or soleil@umich.edu.

News Releases and Health Minute
For medical press releases and the details behind the headlines, visit http://www.med.umich.edu/opm/newspage/relarch.htm

Next Week's Health Minute
Small gland, big problems: Diagnosing thyroid disease

Seminars, lectures, colloquia and events for next week
To access the entire UMHS events database, see:
http://www.academic.med.umich.edu/LassoPages/ProStaffEvents.lasso

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The Department of Public Relations & Marketing Communications
For information, contact Lisa Copeland at 647-4890 or e-mail at lisacc@umich.edu.

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