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TODAY

11-17-2008

TODAY - November 17, 2008Loma Linda University

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Volume 21, Number 16Monday, November 17, 2008

• LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY

• LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY

MEDICAL CENTER

• LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY

CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

• LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY

MEDICAL CENTER–EAST

CAMPUS

• LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY

BEHAVIORALMEDICINE

CENTER

• LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY

HEALTH CARE

• FACULTYMEDICAL GROUP OF

LLUSM

• FACULTY PHYSICIANS &SURGEONS OF LLUSM

BY JAMES PONDER

Every year, Loma LindaUniversity Adventist Health SciencesCenter recognizes the contributionsof its employees to the spiritual life ofthe organization.

“We have the privilege of recog-nizing outstanding spiritual serviceand leadership at our spiritual life andwholeness leadership banquet,” notesGeraldWinslow, PhD, vice presidentfor spiritual life and wholeness. “Thespiritual mission of our organizationis to further the teaching and healingministry of Jesus. The people wethank at our annual banquet areselected by their peers as those whohave helped us to live this mission innoteworthy ways.”

Dr. Winslow made his observa-tions at the spiritual life and whole-ness banquet on Monday, October27, 2008, in the Wong KerleeInternational Conference Center.

The program began at approxi-mately 6:30 p.m. with a program ofinspirational musical selections rever-ently performed on two cellos and apiano by Alva, Emerald, and JeremiahWaworoendeng. Following a briefwelcome, in which Dr. Winslowthanked attendees for spending theevening at the event, he called onConroy Reynolds, a chaplain at Loma

Linda University Behavioral MedicineCenter, to offer the blessing on thefood.

Nicceta Davis, PhD, professor inthe LLU School of Allied HealthProfessions, regaled attendees withtwo musical selections. The audienceexpressed its enthusiastic approvalwhen Dr. Winslow noted that inaddition to serving as a professor ofphysical therapy, Dr. Davis could alsobe a professor ofmusic.

While guests concluded dinner,Dr. Winslow announced the formathe would follow in presenting the twoawards: first, the 50 recipients of thespiritual life service award would beasked to stand as he read their namesand a brief description of why theywere individually honored. Second, hewould present the spiritual life andwholeness leadership award to oneindividual chosen for “exemplary lead-ership in spiritual life andwholeness.”

Dr. Winslow noted that the 50recipients of the spiritual life serviceaward are known for a “vibrant faithin God that leads to extraordinarycare for the spiritual well-being of oth-ers and an effective ability to bringhope and meaning in the midst ofeducational or health care challenges.”

Sidney Wu, MD, assistant profes-sor of pediatrics, School of Medicine,was noted for being “a very caring doc-tor who offers to pray for patients andactively asks about their spiritual well-being. He is a good listener and defi-nitely cares for his patients.”

The 2008 spiritual life servicehonorees included Martin Aguirre,Wil Alexander, Lupe Alvarez,Melissa Bassham, MichelleBuickman, Clyde Cassimy, VenetaCondon, George DeLange, RossEmerson, Christy Eskes, GuadalupeFraire, Rebecca Gryka, Kent Hansen,Joan Haynes-Lee, Melinda Johl,Shirley Jones, Wendy Lee, SaraLizardo, Marian Llaguno, GaryLucas, Terry Merrick, Bonnie Meyer,Claudia Miller, Barbara Ninan, LauraNyirady, James Padgett, MonicaPalmer, Joy Pastor, Jillian Payne,Priscilla Perez, Brenda Pfeiffer, JimPonder, Iris Ram, Frieda Roos,Barbara Sharp, Saula Silva, Lawrence

BYHEATHERREIFSNYDER

Individuals concerned about thenation’s health care system gatheredin Ontario October 21 and 22 forthe LLU School of Public Health’sfifth annual American Health CareCongress.

The non-partisan event featuredspeakers discussing health carereform at the federal and state levels.The conference also provided prac-tical solutions for businesses,schools, community-based organiza-tions, and individuals to get involvedin health care reform.

“This year’s event went toanother level of communityinvolvement,” says congress chairDora Barilla, DrPH, a School ofPublic Health faculty member.

“We had so many diverse stake-holders at the table.”

Themain session of the congress

featured about 15 speakers repre-senting diverse perspectives onissues of health care, ranging from

business and medical executives topoliticians and consultants.

After the first morning, attendeeDonna Crawford, RN, noted thatthe main session was excellent. Shefound herself interested in the pre-sentations by Robert Kraig, PhD,MA, and Nancy Turnbull, MBA,which respectively discussed whatthe states of Wisconsin andMassachusetts have accomplished interms of health care reform.

Other speakers during the mainpresentation discussed topics such asinnovative solutions in health care,contrasting visions of justice inhealth care policy debates, andencouraging preventive health andwellness in company employees.

SPH addresses reform at American Health Care Congress

GenevièveClavreul,PhD,MA,MPA, leads aworkshopon“comparativeanalysis of other countries’ health systems.” TheAmericanHealth CareCongress featured the chance for attendees to choose one of five work-shops each day.

Spiritual life andwholeness banquet recognizesinstitutional employees for faith and passion

Please turn to page 2

BY JAMES PONDER

Connecting with human need athome and abroad is the theme forCompassion in Action, a new, weeklylecture series Loma Linda Universityinaugurated on Tuesday, October 14,2008, in Randall Visitors Center.

The series, which will be pre-sented throughout the academic year,is designed to spotlight service learn-ing, global outreach, community part-nership, lifestyle issues, and a varietyof institutional initiatives related tocompassion. It is held every Tuesdayfrom 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. at RandallVisitors Center.

The first installment in the serieswas a presentation by Jerry E. Daly,MA, MSLS, assistant vice presidentfor global outreach, and associatedirector of the Global Health

Institute, on LLU’s involvement inpublic health projects inAfghanistan.

Mr. Daly began his remarks withan introduction to the concept ofcompassion, a word he said he hears alot, but seldom thinks about. “It’s con-sidered a virtue and you can find it inmost religions of the world,” he noted.“It’s based on the golden rule.”

He noted that the GoodSamaritan sculpture on campus is avisual reminder of the importance ofnot looking the other way when con-fronted with human need.He tied theUniversity’s interest in compassion tothe mission of the Seventh-dayAdventist Church, which has identi-fied a portion of the world defined as“the 10/40 window” as the region ofits greatest focus. The term refers toregions of the eastern hemisphere

located between 10 and 40 degreesnorth of the equator.

Mr. Daly noted that the 10/40window hosts two thirds of theearth’s population and 85 percent ofthe poorest people in the world. Hepointed out that LLU is currentlyinvolved in four countries within theregion: Afghanistan, China, Egypt,and Palestine.

He also noted that AdventistHealth International, an LLU-basedmanagement organization commit-ted to partnering with health careservices in developing countries, par-ticipates in health outreach programsin four additional nations of the10/40 window: Tchad, Niger,Nigeria, andMauritania.

In speaking of Afghanistan, Mr.Daly pointed out that the war-torn

Compassion in Action opens with feature on Afghanistannation boasts a population of morethan 32 million people, has a lifeexpectancy at birth rate of 44.21years, and suffers a very high infantmortality rate of 156 deaths per1,000 live births. He noted thatdespite the fact that the media some-times portrays Afghanistan as ahomogenous nation—largely due tothe fact that the majority of its peo-ple are members of the Islamicfaith—the reality is that the countryplays host to 11 ethnic groups whospeak three major languages. He alsodiscussed the role of warlords inmanaging the country, and said it hasa very high unemployment rate.

Mr. Daly illustrated his lecturewith slides and graphs showing thehealth care needs and challenges facingLomaLindaUniversity in the area.

Please turn to page 2

Gerald Winslow, PhD, vice president for spiritual life and wholeness atLLUAHSC, presents the 2008 spiritual life and wholeness leadershipaward to ArdisWazdatskey, MA, assistant professor of allied health stud-ies, and chair of the spiritual life and wholeness committee at the LLUSchool of AlliedHealth Professions.!e award was presented at the 2008spiritual life andwholeness banquet onMonday,October 27, 2008.

2 TODAYMonday, November 17, 2008

Sowers, Joan Standish, JeannineStuart-Mendes, Fernell Supit,Thomas Sweeney, Tamara Thomas,Timothy Thorsen, Sigve Tonstad,Susan Unruh, Mary Wamberg, LizaWest, Maryellen Westerberg,MichelleWilson, and SidneyWu.

The 2008 recipient of the spirituallife and wholeness leadership awardwas Ardis Wazdatskey, MA, assis-tant professor of allied health studies,and chair of the spiritual life andwholeness committee at the LLUSchool of Allied Health Professions.Dr. Winslow read a comment aboutMs. Wazdatskey from Craig Jackson,MSW, JD, dean, School of AlliedHealth Professions.

“Ardis has been the lifeblood ofour spiritual life and wholeness in theSchool of Allied Health Professions,”

Dr. Jackson wrote. “She constantlythinks about how we live our lives;how we balance all the competinginterests that confront us. Her cre-ativity is expressed in the unique andfun activities she and her committeedevelop and in the results of calm andreflection that we all feel. Her calmdemeanor radiates a spiritual essencethat is exactly what we need.”

“Our faith-based purpose forour educational and health careministries is the very heart of whatwe do,” Dr. Winslow asserts.

“We are blessed beyond mea-sure to have the enthusiastic andspiritually enriching support of somany great members of our team.Of all the events I attend each year,I look forward most to this eveningof giving thanks to our colleaguesand to our Creator.”

solution to the health problems thatwe are faced with today.

“I am especially burdened for ouryouth, with the rising obesity crisisthat we are currently battling, and forour brothers and sisters in developingcountries, in need of basic publichealth knowledge to simply survive.”

CANFit is a nonprofit organiza-tion dedicated to supporting thedevelopment of culturally resonantfood and fitness policies and practicesfor adolescents in low-income com-munities and communities of color.

Scholarship awards are granted toAfrican-American, Latino/Hispanic,Native American, Asian-American,or Pacific Islander students inCalifornia studying nutrition, physicaleducation, culinary arts, or publichealth. Awardees are selected basedon academic breadth, recommenda-tions, financial need, and a demon-strated commitment to CANFit’smission.

BY JAMES PONDER

We got a call the other day alleg-ing that some kind of alien invasionwas supposed to occur at LLUChildren’s Hospital on the afternoonof Friday, September 5, 2008.

Since Friday is usually a slow newsday—and since our curiosity hadrecently been aroused by a televisionfeature about UFO sightings in thevicinity of Area 51 in the Nevadadesert—we decided to investigate thebizarre allegation.

What we found was positivelyshocking! From the moment wewalked into the Stater Bros. ActivityCenter at Children’s Hospital, wecould see that a veritable firestorm ofactivity was going on. The kidsseemed calm enough, but parents andstaff members were running aroundlike they expected the invasion tooccur at any moment. At the back ofthe room, a nice lady was handing outbags of popcorn and soft drinks,which we gratefully accepted.

Fortunately, we spotted DorothyClark Brooks, a child life specialist atLoma Linda University Children’sHospital, who usually knows what’shappening. “What’s going on here?”we demanded. “We’ve heard allega-tions of an alien invasion.”

“It’s true,” she affirmed. “They’ll behere at anymoment.”

Needless to say, her statementraised our eyebrows. Call us old-fash-ioned, but we don’t believe in littlegreen men or flying saucers. Webelieve what our government tells us:namely, that extraterrestrials are just a

bunch of fun-loving CIA agentsdressing up forHalloween.

Ms. Brooks reminded us that thefall festival—the closest thing toHalloween that we celebrate at LLUChildren’s Hospital—was still a cou-ple of months away. She also saidDarth Vader was coming through thedoor at that verymoment.

Naturally, we turned to look inthe direction she was nodding andthere, to our amazement, stood notonly Darth Vader, the legendary vil-lain of a distant time and galaxy, butalso another tall space alien. It wouldbe too much of a stretch to say he wassmiling, but good ’ol Darth somehowmanaged to look both intimidatingand approachable at the same time.(At least, that’s what one of the kidstold us later. We were so over-whelmed at seeing him there that wepassed out cold and had to be revivedwith a whiff of limburger cheese.)

When we came to, Darth wasstanding in the room. He was dressedhead-to-toe in somber black, while hiscompanion—who looked like one ofthe Star Wars stormtroopers—wasclad in white. Was this the outerspace equivalent of the good guys vs.the bad guys from an old JohnWaynemovie?

Whatever it was, the aliens werehanding something to one of the chil-dren. It appeared to be a check writ-ten on colorful paper. “Strange,” wethought. “Space cadets don’t havechecking accounts.What’s going on?”

We didn’t wait for an answer.Wejust grabbed the camera and got up

close to snap the picture. We jumpedback, however, when the storm-trooper turned and gave us a verynasty snarl. His expression sent chillsdown our spine.

Amazingly, none of the childrenseemed afraid of these interstellarmarauders in the least. Hadn’t theyheard stories about being abductedby aliens? We hear tales like that allthe time! (Of course, they usuallycome from the same tardy colleaguewho’s always telling us the dog ate hishomework, so maybe there’s nothingto it after all.)

Nevertheless, the kids were boldas lions. They ran up to Mr. Vader

and his pal, hugging the space raidersand smiling for photographs. You’dthink Santa Claus had come to townif you didn’t know better!

When the event finally came to anend, Dorothy Brooks wandered overto ask if we were okay. She must haveseen us mopping the perspiration offour brows. We said we were fine,then asked her to spill the beans aboutthe colorful piece of paper the alienshad given the little girl.

“It was a check,” she reported, “inthe amount of $300 from theStormtroopers of the 501st Legion.The money goes to benefit the childlife program at Children’sHospital.”

Before we could say ET, Ms.

Brooks went off on a tangent abouthow these guys aren’t space aliens atall. She claims they’re members of anall-volunteer group devoted to dress-ing like characters from “Star Wars”movies and contributing to theircommunity through charity and vol-unteer work. She said this is theirsecond visit to LLU Children’sHospital and noted that the kids hada wonderful time.

We considered her story for amoment before dismissing it out ofhand. The visitors are obviously spacewranglers from a distant and remoteregion of the great beyond.

What does she think we are,gullible or something?

‘Space aliens’ invade Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital

Continued from page 1

Continued from page 1The main session closed October

22 with overviews of the presidentialcandidates’ health care plans, deliv-ered by campaign representatives AnnO’Leary, JD, MA (Barack Obama)and Don Kurth, MD, MBA, MPA(JohnMcCain).

In addition to the main session,each day of the congress featured achance for attendees to choose one offive breakout workshops. These

focused on topics such as communityclinic infrastructure, patient-centeredcare, and analysis of other countries’health systems.

About 200 people attended theAmerican Health Care Congress.Ms. Crawford says she chose tocome because she has seen first-hand the difficulties that low-income individuals have accessinghealth care; she works as clinicalcoordinator of Inland Agency, a

nonprofit whose work includes pro-viding free mammograms and papsmears to women who cannotafford them.

Ms. Barilla says that attendees leftthe congress feeling empowered.

“Working together is the onlysolution we have for improving ourhealth system,” she notes.

The American Health CareCongress took place at theDoubleTree Hotel in Ontario.

CONTRIBUTED REPORT

California Adolescent Nutritionand Fitness (CANFit) has awarded anutrition, physical education, andculinary arts scholarship in theamount of $1,500 to Teslyn Henry.She is a student in the School ofPublic Health working toward a doc-toral degree in preventive care.

Ms. Henry has been involved inmany community organizations andprojects including an African-American cookbook, the FAMEProject, Voices 4 Change Project,National Council of Negro Women,Inland Empire Black NursesAssociation, and Inland EmpireConcerned African-AmericanChurches.

Of her field of study, Ms. Henrysays, “While the path has not alwaysbeen an easy one, the victories wonhave continued to fuel my passion andcommitment to promoting nutrition,physical activity, and lifestyle as the

Spiritual life &wholeness banquet…

Fifth annual AmericanHealth Care Congress…

SPH student wins awarded scholarshipBYNANCYYUEN

The office of academic affairs inthe School of Dentistry extendscongratulations to students whoachieved dean’s list status for fallquarter. The eligibility requirementsfor achieving dean’s list status are:achieve a term grade point averageof at least 3.5 with no grade lowerthan a B-; receive no incompletegrades for the quarter; and completeat least 12 units of coursework.

The School’s academic reviewcommittee reviewed the performanceof all students for the summer quarterand voted to include the followingstudents on the dean’s list:

DENTISTRY CLASS OF 2011Scott Arceneaux, Junie Baldonado,

Clark Bassham, Jeri Bullock, AdamBurr, StephanieCalvillo, Chris Chang,Larina Chu, Christina Chun, AndrewCorbett, Justin Diederichs, MichaelGardner, Patrick Hachee, MichaelHiersche, Eric Hull, JonathanJackson, Eric Joo, Albert Kang, SheidaKhazaii-Tabari, Unyoung Kim,Michael Knutson, Jeffrey Lam, AlexisLaRose, Jessicah McGraw, JoanneOh, Christy Pogue, Devin Rentz,Michael Robbins, Carrie Roosenberg,Justin Schmidt, Thomas Szutz,Mohammed Tabel, Lee Tetz, RalitzaVarlakova, KirollosZakhary

DENTISTRY CLASS OF 2010Nathan Adams, Chad Allen,

Jerhet Ask, Iris Choi, BradleyField, Lisa Gortari, LaurenGutenberg, Brian Harward,Emily Herndon, Sherin Johnson,Darcy Kasner, Ryan Kim, SohYeun Kim, Donald Lee, ScottPyo, James Rho, Stuart Seheult,Maryam Seirafi Loloee, ErinStephens, Janelle Tonn, RyanWaring, Justin Weaver, JesseWhitely, Julie Yi

INTERNATIONAL DENTIST

PROGRAM

Elena Justice

DENTALHYGIENE CLASS OF 2009Melissa Beesley, Jessica Black,

Kerri Booker, Kelli Boyd, RebeccaBurke, January Chay, AshleyFujikawa, Jessica Hatch, Jayme Jesse,Roksana Kouroshnia, ChelseyMartin, Melissa McEwen, MerinneMesku, and JustinaTran.

School of Dentistry releases fall quarter dean’s list

Space aliens as philanthropists? Apparently so! An Imperial Stormtrooper hands a check for $300 to ayouthful representative of LLU Children’s Hospital while the sinister, but perhaps beneficent, Darth Vaderlooks on. The monies are earmarked to help the child life department continue to offer creative and inspira-tional programming for the children of the Inland Empire.

TODAY 3Monday, November 17, 2008

The School of Public Health (SPH) office of public health practiceand workforce development conducted a workshop for theOklahoma Society of Environmental Health Professionals(OSEHP) regional conference October 20–23 in Oklahoma City.The conference, attended by an estimated 300 environmentalhealth professionals from 13 states, emphasized their role andresponsibilities during unplanned events and emergencies.Pictured above are (from left) David Dyjack, DrPH, dean of theSPH; Corwin Porter, program manager for San BernardinoCounty Health Department and SPH adjunct faculty; TressaMadden, president of OSEHP; Debbie Watts, president-elect,OSEHP; and Jesse Bliss, MPH, director of LLU SPH’s office ofpublic health practice. LLU’s presence at the conference was madepossible through support of the SPH’s CDC-funded Center forPublicHealthPreparedness.

LLU trains environmental health professionalsfrom 13 states during Oklahoma conference

BY JAMES PONDER

Tired of stuffing your face andwatching football on Thanksgiving?Then join me for a run up the coastto Big Sur, Carmel, and SanFrancisco this year. I’ll meet youright here at noon on Wednesday.I’ll drive so you can relax.

* * *We left Loma Linda more than

four hours ago, and it’s time to visitUncle Albert. Who’s he? The patronsaint of a hole-in-the-wall restaurantthat serves the best burritos this sideof the moon. It’s called Tio Alberto’s(Uncle Albert’s in Spanish) and it’slocated on Broad Street in San LuisObispo. Imagine a huge flour tortillaslathered with your choice of beansor meat, rice, and a delicious whitecheese, and smothered in a tasty veg-etable stew that melts the cheese.Top it off with lettuce, pico de gallo,cilantro, onions, sour cream, gua-camole, and still more cheese, andyou’ve got instantaneous yum factorof the highest magnitude!

* * *It’s Thursday morning, so Happy

Thanksgiving! We greeted the dawnin a stroll down Cambria’sMoonstone Beach after checking outof our rooms, and right now, we’reheading up the switchbacks asHighway 1 enters the Big Sur coast.This is among the most magnificentwilderness on the planet! Nothingbut rugged cliffs and giant redwoods,with a tiny, meandering road nestledamong vast expanses of water, sky,and sea. The surface of the Pacificgleams in hues of pearl as we risefrom sea level to more than a thou-sand feet in a matter of miles.

We’re stopping in Lucia forbreakfast. Lucia’s not much of a

town, but the café here has spectacu-lar views of the blue ocean. Let’s eatoutside on the deck—grab a sweater;it’s cool this morning—and scan thetide line below for sea otters and BigSur jade. They find lots of the prizedgreen stone here and it’s both beauti-ful and exotic. These eggs and hashbrowns may not be beautiful orexotic, but they taste fantastic! Andthe fresh-squeezed orange juice isalmost as amazing as the view. Youcan see halfway to Asia from here!

* * *We’re walking into Julia Pfeiffer

Burns State Park. The trail runsunder the road and leads, on theother side, to McWay Falls andSaddle Rock. The place is lush withthe foliage of ferns, redwoods,sycamores, and oaks. The sycamoreleaves have turned a rich, red russetbrown that looks phenomenal thistime of year. But we’re here is to seethe waterfall that drops 80 feet overthe cliffs onto the beach below. Oh,my goodness, we got here right athigh tide; the Falls are plungingstraight into the surf. Ever see any-thing like that in your life?

* * *Back on Highway 1, we’re com-

ing up to—wait, there it is. See thatstructure up ahead on the left?That’s Nepenthe. It’s a restaurantdesigned in the late 1940’s by RowanMaiden, a protégé of great Americanarchitect Frank Lloyd Wright.Nepenthe juts out over the cliffsoffering expansive vistas of the dis-tant horizon and eagle-eye perspec-tives on majestic redwoods. Thegolden cliffs tumble down to sandybeaches and rocky shores. We’re toofull to eat, so let’s just explore the giftshop for books, postcards, and a

great selection of Big Sur arts andcrafts. Afterwards, we can have asoda on the patio deck.

* * *Ready to roll to the village of Big

Sur? Believe it or not, you can shopthere for everything from cactus andbegonias to free-form redwoodbowls, jade sculpture, stuffed ani-mals, even tie-dyed clothing. (Thisplace was a mecca for hippies andcounterculturalists in the 1960’s andsome of the locals seem blissfullyunaware that the peace and lovedecade ended 40 years ago.)Afterwards, we’ll take a secret road Iknow through Pfeiffer Canyon towatch huge waves exploding througha natural bridge at Pfeiffer Beach.Bring your camera; we might seeotters in the surf.

* * *It’s almost time for Thanksgiving

Dinner. Didn’t think I’d make youeat fast food on a day like this, didyou? We have reservations for 4:00p.m. at Rocky Point Restaurant. It’sthe best place around for watchingthe sun go down while the fog rollsin. In fact, it’s the only dining estab-lishment in Monterey County whereyou can look for whales, sea lions,otters, and pelicans right outsideyour window. It sits on the flanks oflow-lying hills, and the scenery is sec-ond-to-none. I’d eat sawdust if thatwere all they served, just to get tolook out the window. Fortunately,they have a great Thanksgiving feast,so no wood chips for me.

* * *Are you hooked on theMonterey

Peninsula yet? We’ll drive intoMonterey tonight then hit the artgalleries and boutiques of Carmeltomorrow. If you don’t mind, I’d like

to drive back to McWay Falls towatch the sun go down tomorrow.

* * *We can trek to San Francisco on

Sunday morning—we’ll stop forlunch at historic Duarte’s Tavern inPescadero; you’ll love their cream ofartichoke soup—and dine that nightat Horizon’s Restaurant in Sausalito.It’s right on the water and offers mag-nificent vistas of San Francisco Bay

and Alcatraz. Then we’ll head backover the Golden Gate for dessert inGhirardelli Square. On Sunday, we’llgrab some breakfast at Eagle Café onPier 39 before hitting the road. SanFrancisco may only be 7 hours fromLoma Linda, but it’s a whole otherplanet.

* * *Hope you had as much fun as I

did. See you on our next adventure.

Thanksgiving road trip features Big Sur, Carmel, and San Francisco

BYDUSTIN JONES,MALoma Linda University students,

in cooperation with Adventist HealthInternational (AHI), have “adopted”an African hospital in Malawi as amission project.

Since joining AHI in 2005,administrators and employees ofMalamulo Adventist Hospital(MAH) have been working with theassistance of AHI to stabilize theinstitution. With one of the bestphysical plants in all of Africa, MAHrepresents great potential for theSeventh-dayAdventist Church.

TheMalawi project is an endeavorby Loma Linda University studentsand others to help MalamuloAdventist Hospital by expanding thehealth care and education projects atthemedical facility.

“This project, initiated by LomaLinda University students, continuesto grow daily,” says Aimie Apigian, anMD/PhD student. “Many individualsare involved in the project includingstudents from all LLU schools, vari-ous clubs on campus, public schools inSan Bernardino, local Seventh-dayAdventist academies, students at theUniversity of California, Riverside,and students at California StateUniversity in San Bernardino.”

Malawi is one of the 10 poorestnations in the world. Approximately a

million children are orphaned as aresult of AIDS. Approximately 70percent of hospital patients in MalawiareHIVpositive.

One of themajor projects taken onby the students includes a water purifi-cation system for the MalamuloAdventistHospital campus. Estimatedtotal cost for the project is $50,000.

Other components in the Malawi

project include education, communi-cations, malaria, health care, andAIDS.

“For instance, it costs only $50 toprepare a soccer field for students,”Ms. Apigian says. “School books forone student for an entire year costonly $35—a small amount for us, buta huge amount for a student takingnursing atMalamulo.”

LLUstudent take onAHIhospital asmission project

LLU students in cooperation with Adventist Health International have“adopted”MalamuloAdventistHospital as amission project.

“The Pacific surf,” observed Robinson Jeffers, unofficial poet laureateof the Carmel coast, “still cheerfully pounds the worn granite drum.”Decades after he penned those words, breakers continue the agelessconflict of land and sea.

4 TODAYMonday, November 17, 2008

BY JAMES PONDER

Thanks to the generous supportof the National Institutes of Health, agroup of outstanding high school sci-ence students from the Inland Empirerecently joined with undergraduate,graduate, and medical students fromLoma Linda University and otheruniversities nationwide for an eight-week summer research programoffered through the Loma LindaUniversity Center for HealthDisparities and Molecular Medicine(CHDMM), and the Loma LindaUniversity Schools of Medicine andPublicHealth.

According to Carlos A. Casiano,PhD, associate director of theCHDMM, the high school studentswere part of the apprenticeship bridgeto college (ABC) program, while theundergraduate students were study-ing under the auspices of the under-graduate training program (UTP).

“The peer mentoring—withundergraduate, graduate, and medicalstudents—that the high school partic-ipants are exposed to is a key factor inthe success of the program,” saysDaisy De Leon, PhD, assistant to thedean for diversity, and director of themedical health disparities summertraining program of the center.

The goal of the research pro-gram is to enhance the academicand research skills of the 55 studentparticipants and maximize theiropportunities to succeed as futurescientists and physician scientists.But according to Marino De Leon,PhD, director of the CHDMM,another vital function of the healthdisparities summer program is toattract promising students fromdiverse backgrounds to the healthsciences and scientific professions.

“We are trying to bring a diversi-fied group of scientists into thefuture,” says Dr. De Leon. “Wewant to create a workforce in thebio-science professions that reflectsthe whole spectrum of socioeco-nomic composition of the commu-nity that we serve. Achieving thisgoal is essential to providing whole-ness to our communities, and toproviding high-quality education.”

That’s a big goal: Dr. De Leonpoints out that while Latinos consti-tute 30 percent of the population inCalifornia, only 4.5 percent oflicensed physicians in the GoldenState are Hispanic. The situation is

similar among African Americans,Native Americans, and PacificIslanders. “The summer researchprogram has created a successfulpipeline that brings members ofunder-represented groups, first-gen-eration college students, studentsserving their own community, andstudents from low-income house-holds into the ranks of tomorrow’shealth care leaders,” he notes.

To be eligible to participate in theprogram, students must be either ajunior or senior in high school, main-tain an academic GPA of 3.3 orhigher, have strong letters of recom-mendation from their principal,teacher, or school counselor, and havecompleted at least two science coursesin high school. The program strives toreflect the full diversity of the InlandEmpire, and it encourages studentswith a history of volunteering in theirlocal communities to apply.

Collegiate applicants are requiredto submit three letters of recommen-dation from their science professorsalong with current college transcripts,and to write a 400- to 500-word essayexplaining why they want to partici-pate in the program and how it willhelp in the achievement of their goalsin biomedical research.

Once accepted into the summerresearch program, students dive intothe research environment headfirst.Not only are they assigned to a facultymentor and given an active role in aresearch study, they also attendweekly seminars and workshopsdesigned to enrich their academic andcareer development.

“During these activities UTP andABC students also interact closelywith graduate and medical studentssupported by other CHDMM pro-grams,” Dr. Casiano observes.

“Some of the seminars expose stu-dents to contemporary issues relatedto health disparities,” he continues.Throughout the program, studentswatch segments of the PBS docu-mentary on health disparities titled“Unnatural Causes: Is InequalityMaking Us Sick?” Not only doesviewing the program heighten stu-dents’ awareness of the consequencesof health disparities in America, italso promotes discussions of theimportant roles biomedicalresearchers and physicians play inalleviating those disparities.

One of the highlights of the 2008

installment of the summer researchprogram was a lecture by RichardHart, MD, DrPH, president andchief executive officer of Loma LindaUniversity Adventist Health SciencesCenter. Dr. Hart made his remarksduring a luncheon for the students onJuly 14, 2008.

During his presentation, Dr.Hart read poignant stories fromJohn Bryant’s book Health and theDeveloping World. The stories—along with health statistics Dr. Hartpresented—graphically portray thetragic health care challenges affect-ing people from the developingnations of the world. He challengedstudents to get involved and make adifference with their lives andcareers. (See the sidebar article onpage 5, “A crisis in global health,”for more of Dr. Hart’s remarks.)

Another highlight was a presenta-tion by Roger Hadley, MD, dean ofthe LLU School of Medicine, inwhich he challenged students to pur-sue a medical career, and underscoredthe importance of biomedical researchin advancing the profession.

According to Dr. De Leon,some of the best learning occurswhen participants engage in infor-mal discussions with each other andtheir mentors during get-togethersat the mentors’ homes and trips totourist attractions.

“The students become engaged inthe processes of science,” he affirms.“When they first come here, they’retimid. But they become excited andengaged once they meet the staff andget acquainted with the program.”

How engaged? Ask La ShondraEllis and Chelsey Sellers. At the 11thannual scientific symposium of theLLU School of Medicine, visitors metMs. Ellis manning one of the stationsin the scientific poster exhibition.When questioned about the study sheparticipated in during the summer,Ms. Ellis answered with a degree ofaccuracy normally associated withfirst- or second-year medical studentsor PhD candidates. But in reality, shehad just completed high school. She isnow enrolled at La Sierra Universitywith a major in molecular cell biologyand aminor in journalism.

During the summer research pro-gram, Chelsey Sellers participated in aresearch study under the direction ofNathan Wall, PhD, assistant profes-sor of biochemistry and microbiologyat Loma LindaUniversity.

The title of the study—“Modulation of pro- and anti-apop-totic molecules as a rational approachto anti-metabollite selectivity for pan-creatic cancer”—offers a clue to thelevel of sophistication the summerresearch program entails. Ms. Sellers,who is a recent graduate of Cajon

High School in San Bernardino, iscurrently enrolled in the pre-med pro-gram of Fordham University in NewYork, where she is majoring in biol-ogy. “The program reinforced my lovefor science and the health field,” shenotes. “It allowedme to see that I defi-nitely want to go into the health fieldand become a doctor.”

Dr. De Leon is proud of the pro-gram’s success in helping talented stu-dents like Ellis and Sellers enhancetheir commitment to health careers.

“One of the key things wemeasureis the percentage of high school stu-dents who stay in a science major incollege. Nationally, 60 percent ormore drop out from a scientific cur-riculum in college. However, 65 per-cent of our undergraduate studentsare completing graduate education inthe medical sciences in either andMD, MD-PhD, master’s degree, orPhD program. We are proud that 36of our alumni from this program havegraduated, or are currently enrolledin, doctoral programs at Loma LindaUniversity and other competitive pro-grams nationwide.”

After noting that the NationalInstitutes of Health is interested indeveloping new scientists and physi-cian scientists, Dr. De Leon concludeswith an important observation: “Wehave zero dropouts from the summerprogram,” he says.

LomaLindaUniversity AdventistHealth Sciences Center president and chief executive officer RichardH.Hart,MD,DrPH (center), is surrounded by some of the 55 students who participatedin the eight-week summer research programoffered throughLomaLindaUniversityCenter forHealthDisparities andMolecularMedicine and the Schools ofMedicine andPublicHealth.

Summer research program inspires InlandEmpire students to pursue health careers

La Shondra Ellis, a participant in the 2008 summer research program of the Loma Linda University Centerfor Health Disparities and Molecular Medicine, speaks with passion and precision about a study she helpedconduct into the causes of heightened breast cancer incidence among African-American women. Althoughshe had just graduated from high school at the time, Ms. Ellis is now enrolled as a biology major at La SierraUniversity with a minor in journalism.

TODAY 5Monday, November 17, 2008

It’s no secret that Richard Hart, MD, DrPH, the president andCEO of Loma Linda University Adventist Health Sciences Center,is a longtime advocate for the needs of people in developing nations.Throughout his tenure at Loma Linda, he has traveled and workedwith health care personnel on every continent and sought to acquaintAmerican audiences with world health needs.

His recent presentation to students enrolled in the LLU Centerfor Health Disparities and Molecular Medicine’s summer researchprogram prompted questions about a variety of issues related toworld health issues. Here are a few of his responses:

What are the biggest health problems in theworld right now?Problems of excess and access. In theWestern world, it is primar-

ily excess—obesity, cardiopulmonary disorders, and degenerativediseases. But in the developing world, it’s access to health care.Countries in the developing world spend an average of $5 per personper year on health care. The availability of care in the developingworld is a huge issue!

We were making real progress toward extending the lifeexpectancy from birth in Africa back in the 1970s. It was somewherebetween 52 to 57 years of age. Now in sub-Saharan, or black, Africa,it’s in the mid-40s. In some countries, it’s down into the 30s. Thereason is the increase of infectious diseases, especially the Big Three:HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis.

Part of the problem is that the Church—and I don’t mean justthe Adventist Church; I mean the whole Christian movement—has,in the last 20 years, pulled back its level of support to developingcountries. Instead of sending missionaries, we’re more into “touristChristianity,” mission trips—the short-term approach.

As a consequence, we have defined ourselves out of health care bysaying one of three things. Either:

1). The government is providing health care;2).We don’t have the resources; or3).We don’t have the will.I believe that’s a cop-out. I think Americans are still willing to give

when they are challenged. If we articulate a vision for what the futurecan be, I think funding will happen.

What holds the best hope for meeting global health challengesin the future?

Youmean themagic bullet?We need a vaccine forHIV/AIDS, avaccine for malaria, and an effective vaccine for TB. We have one,but it isn’t very effective.

People are dying rapidly. We can’t fix it all, but God asks us toengage. Our challenge is to try to provide services that are responsiveto those needs.

EllenWhite talks a lot about the concept of disinterested benevo-lence. Of doing good for the sake of doing good when you don’texpect anything in return. I think our people will respond if we givethem the opportunity.

Where did you go on your recent African trip and what didyou accomplish?

I went to Malawi, Lesotho, and to South Africa. In Malawi, Iwent with Adventist Health International (AHI) to consult and par-ticipate in shooting a video for Hope for Humanity, the new namefor what’s left of the old Ingathering program. It used to be a $7.5million business; now it’s down to $2.5 million.

In Lesotho, I went to Maluti Mission Hospital. It’s struggling. Iwent to assess it to see if LLU or AHI can help it. This was the firsttime I’ve been there. My parents worked there. I found that it’s amature mission hospital that has not planned well for the future. Itneeds a major investment of time and energy to stabilize.

Then I went to Helderberg College in Capetown, South Africa,for the graduation of the off-campus master’s of science in nursing(MSc) degree from Loma Linda. There were 20 graduating studentsfromAfrica as well as from Jamaica, Bolivia, Argentina, and Peru.

What parts of the world are Loma Linda graduates impactingthemost?

We’re having a significant impact at Sir Run Run ShawHospitalin China and at the government hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan. Alsoat 70 to 80 Church institutions such as colleges and universities andmission hospitals, and several hundred clinics around the world.That has the biggest impact. They are run by local people whomLoma Linda graduates have trained.

The lack of specificity in Church offerings has hurt global mis-sion, as has the fact that the Church has been reluctant to tell the badnews of what’s happening in the world. We need to be more honestwith the Churchmembers in terms of the challenges we’re facing.

An interview with Richard H. Hart, MD, DrPH

A crisis in global healthLomaLindaUniversity Children’sHospital

Bike PresentationCeremony • Sunday,November 9, 2008

An estimated crowd of 5,500 children and their families attended the seventh annual Loma LindaUniversity Children’s Hospital bike presentation ceremony held Sunday, November 9, at the ArrowheadCreditUnionPark in SanBernardino.

Jack H. Brown, chair and chief executive officer ofStater Bros. Markets, congratulates students ontheir academic achievements.

A proud mother and her happy daughter leaveArrowheadCreditUnion Parkwith a newbicycle.

Stater Bros.Charities andK-Froggers 4Kids helpmake hundreds of InlandEmpire children happy

BYRICHARDWEISMEYER

Approximately 5,500 individuals attended the sev-enth annual Loma Linda University Children’sHospital bike presentation ceremony held on Sunday,November 9, at the Arrowhead Credit Union Park.

Congratulating the more than 1,000 deservingfourth-grade students for their academic achievementswas Jack H. Brown, chair and chief executive officer ofStater Bros. Markets. In his remarks, Mr. Brown com-mended the students for their perseverance in achievingacademic excellence.

The bicycle giveaway was made possible throughthe generosity of Stater Bros. Charities, the K-FROGstations, Arizona Tea, Clorox, Del Monte, Kellogg’s,Peet’s Coffee and Tea, and the many K-FROG listen-

ers who donated more than $482,000 during theannual K-FROGGERS for Kids Radiothon held inOctober.

Coordinating the event was Tiffany Hoekstra,Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital major giftsofficer. Ms. Hoekstra was assisted by numerous volun-teers from Auto Club Speedway, Loma LindaUniversity Children’s Hospital, Loma Linda UniversityMedical Center, Mattel, Ontario Reign Hockey Team,Pacific Coast Cheer, andTilden-Coil Constructors.

In addition to the children who received bicycles atthe event, the Candlelighters Childhood CancerFoundation of the Inland Empire will distribute 100bicycles to children with cancer who were unable toattend the event.

6 TODAYMonday, November 17, 2008

Winner Gift From ValueJoshZahid Barnes andNobleGift Card Marriage and Family $25RizalieNicolin Applebee's Gift Card Rideshare $25DonnaMalczewski OutbackGift Card Rideshare $25Lanita Jocson OliveGardenGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Ellen Rutebuka NordstromGift Card AHRP $50Elizabeth Fry Picnic Basket andGift Certificate EAP $50MearleneMartin Mission InnGift Card EmployeeHealth $50AnnetteWinkler Campus StoreGift Certificate EnvironmentalHealth and Safety $50EllenKeller ArcoGift Card HRM $50JacquelynChristiansen Cheesecake FactoryGift Card HRM $50RichardAyala Sports AuthorityGift Card&ESPNTrivia HRM $50Mark Platt Stater BrosGift Card HRM $50Norie Bencito TJMaxGift Card HRM $50Carrol Emery Wal-martGift Card Rideshare $50Lenore Skinner Paper Shredder RiskManagementWorkers Compensation $50Judy Peterson Centennial Pathway Paver and Barnes andNobleGift Card Philanthropy $125Jessica Lidner IpodGift Basket Retail and Services $200Daniel Tapanes Grand Prize HRM $500Raquel Celis Barnes andNobleGift Card Marriage and Family $25DeboraMahar Chili’s Gift Card Rideshare $25Chess Rivera OliveGardenGift Card Rideshare $25Ivan Fernandes Red LobsterGift Card Rideshare $25DelilaWhite Barnes andNobleGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Marco Soto Best BuyGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Cynthia Reese DraysonCenter Anti-StressMassageGift Certificate DraysonCenter $50PhoebeMacaya DraysonCenter Anti-StressMassageGift Certificate DraysonCenter $50CarmenNaval Picnic Basket andGift Certificate EAP $50GayleWendt Mission InnGift Card EmployeeHealth $50Mario Lopez Sports AuthorityGift Card EmployeeWellness $50Tyler Cornish Campus StoreGift Certificate EnvironmentalHealth and Safety $50Lydia Calinisan Barnes andNobleGift Card HRM $50JordanTreto ChevronGift Card HRM $50Teresa Boudreaux Chili’s Gift Card HRM $50DebbieHewitt GapGift Card HRM $50RamonaDeGuzman RossGift Card HRM $50AtsukoMiyajima Sports AuthorityGift Card andTennis Racket HRM $50MoniqueMoore Stater BrosGift Card HRM $50NaokiMiyajima Cosmetic Laser SurgeryGift Certificate LLFMG $50Marlyn Banquerigo Paper Shredder RiskManagementWorkers Compensation $50Sarah Sydnor Travel Duffle Bag Spiritual Care $50Michelle Castillo Centennial Pathway Paver and Barnes andNobleGift Card Philanthropy $125Rey Banquerigo IpodGift Basket Retail and Services $200ElvonVeluz Grand Prize HRM $500EsteraHughes Tote Bag Children's Center $10Cynthia Acevedo Applebee's Gift Card Rideshare $25CynthiaHernandez DraysonCenter Anti-StressMassageGift Certificate DraysonCenter $50LauraGarrity Chili's Gift Card HRM $50Debra Shea RossGift Card HRM $50Lavonne Lipscomb Sports AuthorityGift Card and Soccer Ball HRM $50Danette Curtis Cosmetic Laser SurgeryGift Certificate LLFMG $50VeronicaHartunlan Wal-martGift Card Rideshare $50MariaMeza Free Children's Center Registration Children's Center $100Robin Smith P.F. ChangsGift Card Rideshare $25FidaGeha Fitness Pack Campus Store $50NatalieMeikle Loma LindaMarketGift Certificate HRM $50Camerina Lopez Shell andCalifornia PizzaKitchenGift Cards HRM $50LillianGhosh TJMaxxGift Card HRM $50Sarah Leon Paper Shredder RiskManagementWorkers Compensation $50PatriciaMunoz Barnes andNobleGift Card Marriage and Family $25Debra Carrion California PizzaKitchenGift Card Rideshare $25Deena St. Germain Barnes andNobleGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Diana Pavlevsky DraysonCenter Anti-StressMassageGift Certificate DraysonCenter $50Nancy Sanchez Picnic Basket andGift Certificate EAP $50Cecilia Chavana Gift Basket EmployeeWellness $50Sophia Romero Campus StoreGift Certificate EnviromentalHealth and Safety $50CynthiaVest ArcoGift Card HRM $50DarahDiffie Barnes andNobleGift Card HRM $50Frances Trujillo Bass Pro ShopsGift Card andTennis Racket HRM $50Luiza Lopez-Cabrera Bed, Bath and BeyondGift Card HRM $50Ross Emerson Best BuyGift Card HRM $50Patricia Pena Loma LindaMarketGift Certificate HRM $50MaryMeza Macy's Gift Card HRM $50Krista Renstrom Sports AuthorityGift Card andVolleyball HRM $50Julie Lacanlale TGI FridaysGift Card HRM $50MichelleHolguin Macy's Gift Card LLUSchool of PublicHealth $50DianaDunn Mini-Cooler Opthalmology $50Christina Chavez Centennial Pathway Paver and Barnes andNobleGift Card Philanthropy $125ChristaWatts Grand Prize HRM $500YolandaMelendez Bass Pro ShopsGift Card andTennis Racket HRM $25Pat Spier Chili's Gift Card Rideshare $25Lydia Carrillo OutbackGift Card Rideshare $25Romelle Larsen Best BuyGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Laura Lynne Yulip-Lopez NordstromGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25CherieWatt ArcoGift Card HRM $50KarenMarsa Barnes andNobleGift Card HRM $50RuthDursteler Bed, Bath and BeyondGift Card HRM $50JosephChua Best BuyGift Card HRM $50

UniversityHospital central service employee JoannaDelgado (second fromleft) grand prize winner of $500 at the annual employee benefits fair is con-gratulated by Mark Underwood (left), central service manager; DannyFontoura, MBA, University Hospital administrator; and Patricia Larios,human resourcemanagement benefitsmanager.

Loma Linda University Health Services employee (second from left)Andrea Scott receives the grand prize of $500 from Patricia Larios (left);Kevin Lang, MBA, president, LLUHealth Services (second from right);and JordanTrent, human resourcemanagement benefit analyst.

University Health Care employee Christa Watts (second from left)receives congratulations on receiving the grand prize of $500. Presentingthe grand prize are Jordan Trent (left); David Wren, MHA (second fromright), senior vice president for clinical faculty, UniversityHealthCare; andPatricia Larios.

East Campus employee (second from left) Elvon Veluz receives the $500grand prize from Patricia Larios (left); Michael Jackson, MBA, senior vicepresident and administrator, East Campus (second from right); and JordanTrent (right).

Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital $500 grand prize winnerCyndee Pelton (second from left) is congratulated by Janel Isaeff,MA, RN,executive director for patient care; Zareh Sarrafian,MBA, senior vice pres-ident and administrator, Children’sHospital; andPatricia Larios.

BehavioralMedicineCenter employee and $500 grand prizewinnerDanielTapanes (second from right) is congratulated on his award by (from left)Lizette Norton, MBA, assistant vice president, human resource manage-ment; Jill Pollock, MS, RN, administrator, Behavioral Medicine Center;andPatricia Larios.

Recordnumber of employees attendbenefits fairsBYRICHARDWEISMEYER

A record number Loma LindaUniversity Medical Center employees

attended the 2008 benefits fairs heldonOctober 21, 22, and 23.

A total of 4,013 attended bene-

fits fairs coordinated by the humanresource management office underthe direction of Lizette Norton,MBA, assistant vice president forhuman resource management. Thefairs were held at various locationsaround the Loma Linda campus.

Individuals representing resourcesand services by various Loma LindaUniversity institutional and commu-nity entities were available to answeremployee questions.

A total of 522 employeesattended the benefits fair held atthe Faculty Medical Offices, 617 atthe East Campus benefits fair; 152at the Behavioral Medicine Centerbenefits fair, and 2,720 at the gen-eral benefits fair held at WongKerlee International ConferenceCenter.

Benefits fair prize winners

TODAY 7Monday, November 17, 2008

Winner Gift From ValueNeurity Bajet Big 5 SportingGoodsGift Card andVolleyball HRM $50Nanci Robison Campus StoreGift Card HRM $50KristaQuinones Campus StoreGift Certificate HRM $50Christopher Bowen Cheesecake FactoryGift Card HRM $50Marcella Garcia HomeDepotGift Card HRM $50Leonila Samson-Araneta KohlsGift Card HRM $50Cecilia Ferr Loma LindaMarketGift Certificate HRM $50MaryWilcox OliveGardenGift Card HRM $50Elizabeth Lee RossGift Card HRM $50JenCruikshank Sports AuthorityGift Card and Soccer Ball HRM $50Ingrid Roth Stater BrosGift Card HRM $50Sheila Santiago TGI FridaysGift Card HRM $50SarahOwen Blender Spiritual Care $50SalinaTamayo Centennial Pathway Paver and Barnes andNobleGift Card Philanthropy $125RyanHorner IpodGift Basket Retail and Services $200Cyndee Pelton Grand Prize HRM $500Michelle Roberts Red LobsterGift Card Rideshare $25FreddieDomondon NordstromGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Justin Carter VisaGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Donna Lester Gift Basket Diabetes Treatment Center $50JanineGoffar Picnic Basket andGift Certificate EAP $50AdrienneCampos Campus StoreGift Certificate EnvironmentalHealth and Safety $50NoraDiaz ArcoGift Card HRM $50Evelyn Isberto Barnes andNobleGift Card HRM $50WynneRobertson Bass Pro ShopsGift Card and Basketball HRM $50Celestia Pyo Bass Pro ShopsGift Card and ESPNTrivia HRM $50Somsak Limrosocha Bass Pro ShopsGift Card andTennis Racket HRM $50DebbieWalker Bass Pro ShopsGift Card andVolleyball HRM $50ShirleyWilliamson Best BuyGift Card HRM $50Stephen Fenning Campus StoreGift Certificate HRM $50BethGilbert Campus StoreGift Certificate HRM $50WoodrowTuazon Chili’s Gift Card HRM $50Teofila Taylor Chili's Gift Card HRM $50Terry Livingstone HomeDepotGift Card HRM $50EmmaKarim HomeDepotGift Card HRM $50Hortencia Tellez KohlsGift Card HRM $50SamanthaWebster KohlsGift Card HRM $50Eloisa Atienza Loma LindaMarketGift Certificate HRM $50RosendoDomingo Lowe’s Gift Card HRM $50Patty Santos Lowe's Gift Card HRM $50NicoleWhite OliveGardenGift Card HRM $50Gitana Scott OliveGardenGift Card HRM $50Nick Frantz Sport Chalet Gift Card and Basketball HRM $50ElvinTolentino Sport Chalet Gift Card and Soccerball HRM $50Megan$omas Sport Chalet Gift Card and Soccerball HRM $50Nataly Patterson Sports AuthorityGift Card and Badminton Set HRM $50CliffordOkere Sports AuthorityGift Card and Basketball HRM $50MalenaWareham Sports AuthorityGift Card and Basketball HRM $50Craig Austin Sports AuthorityGift Card andTennis Racket HRM $50Huguette Joseph-Domond Sports AuthorityGift Card andVolleyball HRM $50PhyllisMills TGI FridaysGift Card HRM $50MarieMelendrez TJMaxxGift Card HRM $50DominicGarcia OliveGardenGift Card Rideshare $25EddieGaitan Wal-martGift Card Rideshare $50Rochelle Guimmond Volleyball Set HRM $63.99Edwin Pedutem Volleyball Set HRM $63.99Paul Becker NordstromGift Card AHRP $100LeynaNguyen IpodGift Basket Retail and Services $200JoannaDelgado Grand Prize HRM $500SylviaHutchinson OliveGardenGift Card Rideshare $25Holly Anderson OliveGardenGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Maryann Jones VisaGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Gregory Cochran Sports AuthorityGift Card EmployeeWellness $50Alicia Becerra Campus StoreGift Certificate HRM $50Terrie Kuykendall Cheesecake FactoryGift Card HRM $50Patrica Ledford KohlsGift Card HRM $50SherryKoupal Claim JumperGift Card Milliman/UBS $50Rochelle Guimmond Volleyball Set HRM $63.99Raul Cahue OliveGardenGift Card Rideshare $25WilliamMartens NordstromGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25AmyCasey VisaGift Card RiskManagement-Health Plans $25Courtney Clark-marquez NordstromGift Card AHRP $50SandraAssman Mission InnGift Card EmployeeHealth $50Kathryn Butler Cosmetic Laser SurgeryGift Certificate FamilyMedicine $50AngelaHenderson Bed, Bath and BeyondGift Card HRM $50Jessica Campos Best BuyGift Card HRM $50Carlos Prado Cheesecake FactoryGift Card HRM $50Chuck Saenz HomeDepotGift Card HRM $50IreneAlmanza Loma LindaMarketGift Certificate HRM $50Deborah Powers Macy's Gift Card HRM $50Jason Peterson Shell Gift Card HRM $50HollyHolato Sport Chalet Gift Card and ESPNTrivia HRM $50Marcos Romo Stater BrosGift Card HRM $50Andrea Scott Grand Prize HRM $500

Chinese culture student from NewYork by the name of Annie Ren.Although the group’s name mightseem to imply a connection to a reli-gious organization, it is actually a secu-lar ministry. The “salvation” in its namerefers to its important role in savingAIDS-infected and affected orphansfrom a dangerous and uncertain exis-tence as social outcasts on the streets ofone of the largest cities in theworld.

When she first heard about AOS(Ms. Cochran-Yu’s abbreviated acro-nym for AIDS Orphan Salvation),she thought it sounded like a nobleenterprise and when Ms. Ren invitedher to spend a weekend in Fuyang,she said yes.

When the weekend was over, Ms.Cochran-Yu knew her life would neverbe the same after Ms. Ren introducedher to Zhang Ying, the founder ofAOS. Ms. Ying had been a very suc-cessful realtor in Fuyang when anassignment to show a visitingAmerican researcher around the cityturned into amoment of destiny.

“Her name is Kay Johnson,” Ms.Cochran-Yu offers, “and she’s a profes-sor of ethnic studies at HampshireCollege in Amherst, Massachusetts.She was writing a book on the develop-ment of Fuyang prefecture.”

On one of their excursions, she andZhang Ying found a girl of 9 or 10years of age who was literally dying ofHIV/AIDS. “She was living in a bro-ken down shack,” Ms. Cochran-Yureports, “and her mouth was coveredwith sores. She had no medical care orsupport system. Both her parents haddied after contracting AIDS from ablood transfusion, and her relativeswanted nothing to do with her becausethey were afraid of catching the diseasethemselves.”

The girl told Professor Johnsonand Ms. Ying her name was Ren Nan.What should they do? They couldn’tleave her to die on the streets, so theytook RenNan to a hospital and got herstarted on a medication regimen.WhenMs. Ying asked friends and con-fidants for advice, she was directed toopen a charity. She quit her job andopened an orphanage for kids who, likeRenNan, either hadAIDS themselves,or had lost their parents and way of lifeto the disease.

For her part, Professor Johnsonprovided financial support through sig-nificant donations of personal funds aswell as donating all the royalties sheearned from the sale of her book. Shealso raised money for the new charityin theUnited States.

Thanks to their interventions,Ren Nan’s situation is substantiallybetter, but her life is still in dangerfrom the disease. “Her AIDS is undercontrol,” Ms. Cochran-Yu says, “withantiretroviral therapy. Currently she’son the second line of medication. Thesecond line is what you take afteryour immune system becomes resis-tant to the first line. Unfortunately,she will be on shaky ground if sheever becomes immune to the secondline of meds.”

When Ms. Cochran-Yu metZhang Ying and saw the AIDSorphans first-hand, she felt a sharplonging to get involved. “There are over

500 kids receiving care fromAOS rightnow,”Ms. Cochran-Yu recalls. “About10 percent of them are infected withHIV/AIDS and the others have beentragically affected by it. It was shocking,yet gratifying to see the progress thathad beenmade.

“I made a decision to get involved,”Ms. Cochran-Yu says. “I talked toZhang Ying and she gave me a list ofthings she thought might be helpfulthat I could provide. Things like fine-tuning the translation of her websiteinto English, and contactingAmericanswho had been involved in China andmight be able to help. She said, ‘I have agrant renewal coming up. It’s inEnglish. Can you look at it?’ She getsgrants from American companies thatsupport AIDS programs. Basicallywhat she wanted to know was if Iwould be someone who speaks Englishfor her.”

When she got back from Beijing,Ms. Cochran-Yu jumped in with bothfeet and started working from her com-puter. “I mostly did projects for ZhangYing by e-mail,” she notes. “Then Icame back to the University ofRedlands for a class inMay.”

Not surprisingly, she told everyoneshe met about her experiences withAOS in China. One of those peoplewas Garry Fitzgerald, executive direc-tor for business development at LLUHealth Care. “He really jumped onboard. He arranged for me to meetEric Anderson,” chair of the health pol-icy and management department at theSchool of Public Health, “who intro-duced me to Roy Wu,” a physicianrecruiter at LLUHC. “Roy had beentelling Eric that he’d love to getinvolved in China, so Eric brought himalong.”

With support from Mr. Fitzgerald,Dr. Anderson, and Mr. Wu, Ms.Cochran-Yu used her month in theUnited States to raise awareness of theworkMs.Ying andAOSare doing.

“I traveled all around SouthernCalifornia and went to different col-leges and churches talking about AOSand AIDS in China,” she reports. “Iraised about a thousand dollars, pluswhatever people donated online. Somepeople gave me kids clothing for theorphans and I took it with me when Iwent toChina.”

When she graduated from theUniversity of Redlands in June, Ms.Cochran-Yu wasted no time in head-ing back toAsia.

“I left for China the day after grad-uation,” she says, “and got back here inearly August to begin my studies atthe School of Medicine. Right now,I’m mostly focused on raising moneyfor AOS while I’m going to school.I’m also trying to persuade others toget involved. I’m trying to get an orga-nization that provides dental care toswing by Fuyang and offer free carefor the kids at AOS during theirannual mission trip to the People’sRepublic of China.”

To learn more about the FuyangAIDS Orphans Salvation Association,check the group’s website at<www.faaids.com/en>.

Right now, Ms. Cochran-Yu isapplying herself to the academic chal-lenges of learning the profession sheonce decided to forego.

Continued from page 8

First-year medical student…

Kevin J. Lang, MBA, executive vice president for finance and administration and CFO of Loma LindaUniversity Adventist Health Sciences Center (right), presents a certificate of appreciation to representativesof the department of human resourcemanagement for excellent service to all the entities of LLUAHSC.Thepresentation occurred during a special luncheon to express appreciation to employees of the department onMonday, October 20, 2008. Pictured are (from left) Leticia Newman, compensation analyst; MesegaThomas, employee relations specialist; Robert Frost, MBA, director, Loma Linda University Foundation;andLizetteNorton,MBA, assistant vice president, human resourcemanagement.

Human resource management honored for excellent service

8 TODAYMonday, November 17, 2008

Volume 21, Number 16Monday, November 17, 2008

Editor RichardWeismeyer

Issuemanaging editor RichardWeismeyer

Advertising coordinator Carol Berger

CORRESPONDENTS

Dustin R. Jones, MASchool of NursingSchool of Religion

Larry Kidder, MASchool of Allied Health ProfessionsSchool of PharmacyDrayson Center

Heather ReifsnyderLoma Linda University Behavioral Medicine CenterSchool of Public Health

James PonderSchool of MedicineLoma Linda University Medical CenterLoma Linda University Children’s HospitalLoma Linda University Medical Center–East Campus

Patricia K. ThioFaculty of Graduate StudiesSchool of Science and TechnologyCommunity-Academic Partners in Service (CAPS)

Nancy L. YuenSchool of Dentistry

TODAY is a nonprofit news publication of Loma LindaUniversity, Loma Linda University Medical Center, and LomaLinda University Adventist Health Sciences Center, operatedunder the auspices of the General Conference of Seventh-dayAdventists.

Advertising accepted for publication inTODAY is intendedto be a service to the students, staff, employees, and faculty of allthree entities.

The management, at its sole discretion, reserves the right torefuse, without explanation, any advertisement. The acceptanceof advertising in this publication does not represent an endorse-ment or guarantee of any kind by Loma Linda University, LomaLinda University Medical Center, or Loma Linda UniversityAdventistHealth Sciences Center.

Questions about advertising, circulation, and subscriptionsshould be directed to TODAY, Burden Hall, Loma LindaUniversity, Loma Linda, California 92350. Phone (909) 558-4526.

WorldWideWeb address:www.llu.edu

University convocation puts childlike face on the meaning of compassionthe learning processes of theUniversity.

Ron Carter, PhD, vice chancellorfor academic affairs, concluded therecognition segment of the programby inviting the audience to recognizethe president, chair, and members ofthe LLU Board of Trustees and theLLUAHSC Councilors for theiressential contributions to the life ofthe organization.

Ruthita J. Fike, MA, administra-tor and CEO of Loma LindaUniversity Medical Center, lancedthe core of contemporary anxietyover world financial markets with theprecision of a surgeon. She gave trib-utes to faculty and researchers of theUniversity, and grounded the day’scelebration of learning in ancient tra-ditions going back to the prophets ofthe Old Testament and the philoso-phers of ancient Greece.

“We are unquestionably in a timeof worldwide change and instability,”she observed. To support herremarks, Ms. Fike read a litany ofheadlines from the last 40 days. Sheconcluded the evaluation of the shakycondition of world markets by askingan important question. “How couldthis have happened? After all, WallStreet is filled with smart people whoknow what they are doing, right? Ofcourse, we are observing that this isnot always true.”

Ms. Fike mentioned the “win atall cost” philosophy of companies likeEnron and other shipwrecked organi-zations as examples of the ruinousinfluence of self-interest and greed.“In the end,” she said of Enron, “theywent bankrupt with one of theirsenior executives committing suicideand several others convicted of fraud.Their CEO died of a stress-inducedheart attack before he served hisprison sentence.”

After citing examples of sustain-

able success from managementauthor Jim Collins, Ms. Fike dis-cussed LLU Medical Center’s teamquest—under the direction ofGerald Winslow, PhD, vice presi-dent for mission and culture—toclarify and express the values that setus apart from similar organizations,and to put them into behavioralterms that can be used in selectingand evaluating employees. She notedthat while compassion, integrity,excellence, wholeness, and teamworkwere chosen, “our entire campusselected compassion as the valuemost admired.”

But how does an organization asdiverse and multi-faceted as LomaLinda University Adventist HealthSciences Center communicate com-passion to the world? In answering thequestion, Ms. Fike restated the morn-ing’s scripture in contemporary lan-guage: “How can a man be wise,” sheread from a modern translation of theBible. “The only way to begin is byreverence for God. For growth in wis-dom comes from observing His laws.”Then she pointed out that the wis-dom of Jesus distilled all the com-mandments and precepts of God’sword down to two summary princi-ples—loving God and loving others.“Another way to say this,” sheexplained, “is that by loving God, wewill be brought to a compassionateapproach to our fellow human beings.”

Ms. Fike shared the story of howher 6-year-old daughter brought thereal meaning of compassion to lightduring a family vacation in Boston.

“One evening, as we went out todinner, I held her hand, but shebroke away to approach one of themost desolate-looking individuals wehad seen.” Fearing that her daughterwould be contaminated by contactwith the homeless man, Ms. Fikerushed forward to intervene. But

BY JAMES PONDER

In an age of proliferating cere-monies designed to demonstrateorganizational compliance withrequirements and corporate solidar-ity with desirable values, it’s refresh-ing when an event actually touchesthe hearts of the people in atten-dance. That’s what happened whenLoma Linda University hosted itsannual convocation chapel onWednesday, October 22, 2008.

As students, faculty, and staff con-verged on the University Church fromevery point on campus, a palpablesense of the importance of the occa-sion pervaded the atmosphere. Onecould hardly look in any directionwithout seeing scores of robed acade-mics and dignitaries clad in the color-ful uniforms of their almamaters.

Terry Swenson, MDiv, campuschaplain, welcomed everyone to theevent and asked the congregation tobow in prayer before invoking theblessings of God not only on the con-vocation service itself, but moreimportantly, on the larger issues ofhow we reflect the mercy and com-passion of God in our lives.

The familiar yet heartfelt strainsof “Praise to the Lord” filled the greathall as participants became celebrantsof the majesty of the King ofCreation for His blessings of healthand salvation.

As the music faded away, RichardH. Hart, MD, DrPH, president ofLoma Linda University, and VerlonW. Strauss, MBA, senior vice chan-cellor for financial affairs, acknowl-edged the contributions of faculty,administrators, and staff to the qual-ity of education at the University.After that, Rick E. Williams, PhD,vice chancellor for enrollment man-agement and student services, askedthe students to stand and receiverecognition for their commitment to

Volume21,Number 16Monday,November 17, 2008

something transcendent happenedwhen she got there. “As I caught upwith her and started a rebuke, I real-ized she was already on the groundand touching the man with tender-ness. On her face was a look of totalselfless compassion, and the unfortu-nate man soaked in that act of kind-ness. It was I who was rebuked.”

After sharing her hope that thesame compassionate spirit sheobserved in her daughter will under-gird our service to others, she offereda reflection on the nature of successand failure.

“We began this talk by citingfinancial and personal failures,” shenoted. “Would it have made a differ-ence if these smart people had an eth-ical core from which to work—avalue system that included compas-

sion as part of their culture? We canonly speculate about any eventualoutcomes. But these leaders, as indi-viduals, would certainly have beenbetter off had they been more awareof how actions impact others.”

Ms. Fike concluded with a quotefrom a man she called “one of theworld’s legendary intellectuals,”Albert Einstein: “Only a life lived forothers is a life worthwhile. We can-not live a full life unless we have apurpose bigger than ourselves.”

The lesson of Ruthita Fike’sdaughter lingers. The compassionshe showered on an anonymoushomeless man in Boston stands as amonumental reminder of the wisdomand eloquence of God.

In the immortal words of Jesus,“A little child shall lead them.”

Ruthita J. Fike, MA, administrator and CEO of Loma Linda UniversityMedical Center, delivered the keynote address at the 2008University con-vocation chapel. Ms. Fike challenged attendees to live for others, ratherthan following themisguided philosophy of “win at all costs.”

BY JAMESPONDER

Have you heard about the first-yearmedical student who made up hermind, when she was a junior in highschool, not to become a physician?

Her name is Meghan Cochran-Yuand it’s a good thing she changed hermind. In fact, for a group of Chineseorphans ravaged by AIDS, it’s a verygood thing.

“My dad’s an orthopedic surgeon,”Ms. Cochran-Yu explains. “During myjunior year, he opened an office inLoma Linda and I became his instantreceptionist until he could hire some-

one else.” She thought the experiencewould enhance her exposure to theworld of medicine and enhance herplans to become a doctor.

Instead, it actually nixed thoseplans as Ms. Cochran-Yu found shedidn’t like being around people withserious injuries and health problems. “Idon’t like seeing people sick,” sheshares. Medicine, it seemed, wasn’tright for her after all.

But over the months as she contin-ued helping her dad at his office, Ms.Cochran-Yu noticed that many of thepeople who had been in bad shape

when they first came in to see himweregetting better thanks to his skillfulinterventions. “It was a very gradualprocess,” she recalls, “but I eventuallydecided to become a doctor after all.”

Once she made up her mind, Ms.Cochran-Yu didn’t let the grass growunder her feet. She enrolled in theUniversity of Redlandswith an uncom-mon triple major in Asian studies, biol-ogy, and chemistry. In June of this year,she graduated from the University, andin August, she attended new studentorientation at Loma Linda UniversitySchool ofMedicine.

But it’s what Ms. Cochran-Yu didin January and March of 2008 thatturned out to be such good news forAIDS orphans in China. In January,Ms. Cochran-Yu enrolled in a six-month overseas learning program atBejing University. Not only would itallow her to complete the requirementsfor her Asian studies major andincrease her command of the language,but since Ms. Cochran-Yu is half-Chinese, it would also deepen her senseof connection to her ethnic heritage.

Once in Beijing, Ms. Cochran-Yuheard about a group called the FuyangAIDS Orphan Salvation Associationfrom her roommate, an American

First-yearmedical student advocates forAIDSorphans inChina

Meghan Cochran-Yu, a first-year medical student at the Loma LindaUniversity School of Medicine, hangs out with a couple of her new palsat the Fuyang AIDS Orphan Salvation Association in Fuyang, China. Please turn to page 7