USU Newsletter 

VOLUME 2,ISSUE 19 WWW.USUHS.MIL NOVEMBER 13, 2007 

In This Issue 

Nursing Faculty Honors................2 

Team Physician at 4th MWG.......3 

New CHE Instructional 

System Specialist..............................4 

USU’s Body-builder.........................5 

Bone Marrow Donors....................6 

NSPS Qs and As..............................6 

Commander’s Cup...........................7 

News Briefs.........................................7 

Calendar..............................................8 

Touring USU’s NCA Simulation Center.........2 
USU Newsletter 

Editorial Staff 

Carol R. Scheman 

Vice President for 

External Affairs and 

Managing Editor 

Tech. Sgt. 

André Nicholson 

Editor 

Mass Communications 

Specialist Third Class 

Jeff Hopkins 

Assistant Editor 

Mass Communications 

Specialist 

Seaman 

Raul Zamora 

Assistant Editor 

 

Marla Wright 

Webmaster 

Publishing 

USU Duplicating Office

Production: 

Editorial content is 

edited, prepared and 

provided by the USU 

Office of External Affairs unless otherwise 

indicated. The Newsletter staff may include 

or exclude articles 

based upon news 

value, impact on the 

university and space 

availability. 

Submissions: 

The USU Newsletter 

will be published biweekly on Mondays 

and deadline for submission is Friday at 4 

p.m. Submissions can 

be sent to usunewsletter@usuhs.mil or call 

301-295-3925. 

PAGE 2 

Cover Photo By: 

Tom Balfour 

USU Nursing Faculty 

Members Inducted Into 

National Academies of Practice 

 The Department of Defense has created one of 

the world’s most advanced medical education and 

training simulation centers as a component of the 

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU). 

 The National Capital Area Medical Simulation 

Center extended invitations to tour the state-of-the 

future facility to members of the Association of 

American Medical Colleges during its annual meeting last week. More than 100 leaders in US academic medicine took this opportunity to tour the 

facility 

 The tour of the 20,000 square foot facility, located in Silver Spring, Md., included the four methodologies of medical simulation: 

 -A fully immersive 3-D, wide area virtual environment (WAVE) for peacetime and wartime medical 

training. 

 -Standardized patient simulations using audiovideo digital recording for medical and nursing student training in clinical skills. 

 -Screen based, interactive simulations that promote self-paced learning using computers. 

 -A procedural skills laboratory with a large array 

of part task trainers and human patient simulators 

for trauma and surgical skills training. 

 “We have high fidelity mannequins that breathe 

and have a pulse,” explained Dr. Joseph Loprieato, 

director of the center, “as well as virtual software 

that enables our trainers to teach specific tasks such 

as surgical procedures.” 

 “At other schools students may work with patients one day and simulation another day, but here 

they go through the full procedure in one day as if 

they were on an actual hospital ward or in an operating room,” said Amy Flanagan, manager, Standardized Patient Programs. 

 Last year the center, which provides training to 

both nursing and medical students, completed 

more than 8,000 student contact hours of training 

and conducted more than $3 million dollars of 

medical simulation research. 

AAMC Members Receive Tour of 

State-of-the-Future Simulation Center 

Photo by Tom Balfour 

Courtesy photo 

 Three faculty members from the Uniformed Services 

University of the Health Sciences’ (USU) Graduate School 

of Nursing (GSN) have been elected as Distinguished 

Practitioners in the National Academies of Practice (NAP). 

 Dr. Diane Seibert, (left) COL Bruce Schoneboom, USA, 

(right) and Dr. Gloria Ramsey (center) were inducted into 

the NAP Nov. 3. The three GSN associate professors were 

among only 18 nominees from the Nursing Academy 

selected this year. 

 The NAP is a group of national interdisciplinary leaders including: the Medicine Academy; the Nursing Academy; the Social Work Academy; the Psychology Academy; the Optometry Academy; the Osteopathy Academy; the Podiatry Academy; the Pharmacy Academy; 

and the Veterinary Medicine Academy. It was established 

to advise governmental bodies on problems of health 

care, and today it is the only interdisciplinary group of 

health care practitioners dedicated to addressing the 

problems of health care. 

By TSgt André Nicholson 

NCOIC, Office of External Affairs 

 AAMC members view the different scenarios available to students in the clinical skills lab. 
PAGE 3 

 A faculty member at the Uniformed Services University of the 

Health Sciences (USU) served as the team physician for the United 

States’ team during the 4th Military World Games (MWG) Oct. 14 – 

22 in Hyderabad and Mumbai, India. 

 LTC Kevin deWeber, MC, USA, director of the Primary Care 

Sports Medicine Fellowship (PCSMF) at USU, was responsible for 

the health and well-being of the military athletes from the Army, 

Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force who participated in the MWG 

events. 

 The MWG, held every four years, is the second largest series of 

sporting events next to the Olympics. It is an opportunity for highlevel athletes serving in their country’s military services to compete 

with other nations’ service members in the spirit of sportsmanship. 

This year, 105 countries sent about 5,200 service member athletes 

to compete in 14 events, which include: boxing; wrestling; judo; 

sailing; parachuting; handball; volleyball; football; track and field; 

swimming; diving; shooting; a military pentathlon; and a triathlon. 

 DeWeber said he was chosen for his role as team physician 

based on his expertise in primary care sports medicine, and his 

experience in working with the Army World Class Athlete program, which is a formalized opportunity for athletes in the military 

to pursue an Olympic medal or a world championship. 

 “These programs were created and funded because of a law 

enacted in 1945 that said high level athletes should not be prohibited from competing at a world level just because they happened to be serving their country in the military,” deWeber said. 

 “I was responsible for taking care of the boxers, swimmers, 

women’s soccer team, and kind of being an on call physician for 

any other athletes who had issues,” deWeber said. 

 “There were a total of five physicians, one of which served as 

the medical director, and didn’t take care of athletes. She was 

there to organize the medical support. There were two other doctors with the other teams, and two doctors in charge of taking 

care of the team as a whole, myself included,” deWeber said. “Of 

the two of us, I had the only prior experience in sports medicine, 

so I was kind of the go-to guy.” 

 DeWeber said he spent most of his working day at the boxing 

ring, keeping an eye on the competitors, and providing medical 

care when necessary. 

 “A typical day for me was getting up, talking with the boxers, 

ensuring they didn’t have any medical issues before they went to 

weigh in, eating breakfast at the dining facility, and chatting with 

folks from around the world,” deWeber said. “The boxers didn’t 

typically have to leave for their competitions until 11:30 a.m., at 

which time we’d bus for an hour to our venue, where the boxers 

would compete until about 6 p.m. So for about five hours, I would 

be on hand to make sure the boxers didn’t have any issues, and 

then we’d bus back, get some chow, decompress, and go to bed. 

In my spare time, I tried to get to some other events. Judo was my 

favorite; it’s amazing to see how quick the athletes are.” 

 DeWeber said there were many injuries, including a broken 

wrist, broken foot, a rib contusion, and an elbow ligament sprain, 

but that some of the biggest problems weren’t sport-related. 

 “One of the main problems was diarrhea,” deWeber said. 

“When you go overseas and try new foods, diarrhea is a big deal, 

as is as jet lag. We went eleven time zones away, and it took a 

good three or four days to adjust, so I did some briefings on that, 

and employed light exposure strategies.” 

 DeWeber says primary care sports medicine is emerging as a 

highly sought specialty for taking care of both soldiers and athletes. 

 “Soldiers are paid to perform physically, so in a sense they’re 

professional athletes,” deWeber said. “This specialty has been created in order to care for military athletes. Obviously, we have 

carryover in that the military sports medicine doctors are also 

uniquely qualified to take care of the classic Olympic athletes. I 

think it’s the beginning of what really ought to be regular attendance of the games by people who are uniquely qualified and 

trained to care for the competitors.” 

 The training of these doctors is part of deWeber’s mission at 

USU. As the PCSMF director, he trains four sports medicine physicians per year at USU. These doctors go out into the military community and take care of warrior athletes. 

 DeWeber said he took pride in aiding the military athletes under his care, and that he enjoyed watching them compete. 

 “Taking care of world class athletes is a thrill,” deWeber said. 

“It’s exciting to see them compete, it’s exciting to see them win a 

medal, and it gives you a great feeling of accomplishment being a 

contribution to that success. 

 “It was fantastic culturally as well; getting to talk with people 

from all over the world, eating breakfast or riding the bus with 

people, trading shirts, that cultural exchange is just fun,” deWeber 

said. “The motto for the Counseil International du Sport Militaire, 

the organization based in Belgium which created the games, is 

“friendship through sport,” and that mission was very much 

achieved.” 

 DeWeber says he hopes to attend the 2011 MWG, which will 

be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. 

USU Faculty Member is Team Physician at 4th MWG 

By MC3 Jeff Hopkins 

Assistant Editor, Office of External Affairs 

LTC Kevin deWeber, MC, USA, (left,) team physician for the U.S. 

team in the 2007 Military World Games with Andrew Shepherd 

from the U.S. team, displaying his gold medal. 

Photo courtesy of LTC Kevin deWeber 
 The Continuing Education for 

Health Professionals (CHE) directorate 

recently welcomed its first Instructional 

System Specialist (ISS) Cedric C. Tate. 

The ISS is the education and analysis 

manager that sets up the framework to 

measure the effectiveness of CHE continuing educational activities. 

 Tate comes to CHE from the U.S. 

Coast Guard Academy’s Leadership 

Development Center in New London, 

Conn., where he worked as a project 

manager and instructional systems 

designer. He has a wealth of both academic and professional experience that is a perfect fit for the department’s needs. He holds a 

bachelors degree in Workforce Education and Development, is 

completing an additional bachelors degree in Computer Science, 

and is pursuing a masters degree in Education. He also has a certificate in Information Technology and in Organizational Performance Consulting. 

 Tate served in the Air Force in a number of key roles including: 

the Joint Armed Services Committee for the 1998 Presidential Inauguration; the chief of Education and Training for the Air Force’s 

new Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System; and as special 

escort for the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty II delegation. 

 While assigned to Andrews AFB, he developed and managed 

training programs that, according to Tate, “enabled Air Force and 

Secret Service personnel to work much more cohesively in joint 

assignments.” 

 In his earlier years, Tate managed all education and training 

programs for more than 3,500 personnel at Elmendorf AFB, Ala. 

 The CHE department holds six continuing education accreditations and the evaluation of outcomes of educational activities has 

become a primary focus for the accreditation agencies. Tate, 

along with Dr. J. Mauri Hamilton, outcomes evaluation program 

manager, have become critical members in ensuring USU’s compliance with national accreditation evaluation standards. 

 Tate said he thinks his position is a perfect fit for him. 

 “Life-long learning is an infinite course that leads to a warehouse of opportunities,” he said. “I hope to enhance my learning 

at USU as I transition to my new role.” 

 Tate is married to Jacqueline, his wife of 26 years, and they are 

the proud parents of daughter Tiffany, a high school senior. He 

says he looks forward to having his family join him in the Washington area and is enjoying his new role with CHE. 

PAGE 4 

New CHE Instructional 

Systems Specialist 

Cedric C. Tate, 

Instructional 

Systems Specialist 

By CAPT Jaime Luke 

Senior Executive Director, CHE 

Commitment 

to Service 

 The 2007 Report focuses 

on the many Uniformed 

Services University of the 

Health Sciences (USU) students, faculty, staff and 

alumni who share a distinctive commitment to service. 

USU continues to distinguish itself as a center of 

excellence in both education and research and its 

world-class training programs have continued to 

grow in response to the 

needs of deployed troops 

and their families. The university plays a significant 

role in shaping the nation’s 

health care. 

 The report will be distributed throughout the university within the upcoming weeks. 
PAGE 5 

 Religious Programs Assistant Second Class Maria Rajas may be 

petite, but beneath her camouflage uniform, she’s anything but 

scrawny. 

 Rajas, the Religious Programs Director for the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) competed in her first 

body-building competition, the 2007 Charm City Classic Oct. 20, in 

Owings Mills, Md. 

 Rajas said she got into body-building when she first arrived at 

USU and met SFC Franklin Abram, Operations NCO for USU’s Military and Emergency Medicine Department, who has competed in 

two body-building competitions. 

 “I was already into working out, because on a ship that’s all you 

can do; it’s either that or sleep and get fat. Then I found out Sergeant Abram had competed before, and I thought that it was 

something I wanted to do,” Rajas said. “He thought I was joking, 

and I said no, I’d like to at least see it, and try it once.” 

 Rajas competed in the novice category, which is for bodybuilders competing in their first competition. 

 “It was fun,” she said. “I thought I was going to be nervous, but 

I got on the stage and it was pretty easy. All of the contestants line 

up, then the judges call a pose, and then you do it and show 

them each part of your body. The first one is the relaxed pose; 

you’re standing in front of them, and then they tell you to do a 

quarter-turn, so they can see each section of your body.” 

 Abram said that Rajas had no prior experience with bodybuilding competitions, and that she relied on research and Abram 

for guidance. 

 “Due to mission constraints, we couldn’t get to one of the other 

shows in the area, so that she could get to see one before she did 

one,” Abram said. “She ended up having to watch a tape of one of 

my competitions to figure out how everything goes down.“ 

Rajas and Abram began training in January, adhering to a workout schedule of about four or five days a week; the first six months 

were devoted to building Rajas’ muscle mass, and the remaining 

three were for muscle 

tone. 

 “We’d start at 6 a.m. 

and get done about 

7:30; then I’d have to 

come back in the afternoon and do a different workout, and that 

would last another 

hour and a half, so 

about three hours total 

a day,” Rajas said. 

 Rajas said that training for a body-building 

competition requires a 

lot of drive and dedication, with no room for cheating. 

 “It’s a lot of hard work; if you really want to get into it, you just 

really have to set your mind to it,” she said. “There were so many 

times I wanted to just quit, because of the diet and the exercise; 

you need a lot of discipline to follow it. If you cheat just a little bit, 

it’ll show.” 

 Abram said while Rajas didn’t place in the competition, she still 

performed incredibly, and that her body has undergone quite a 

transformation. 

 “I was very proud of how she performed,” Abram said. “She 

didn’t place, but it was a much larger show than I had anticipated. 

It was a professional qualifier show; the winner of the overall competition actually earned the professional card, and for Rajas to 

compete on that level is a pretty big accomplishment.” 

 Abram said that Rajas’ training has already begun for next 

year’s competition. 

 “She did an outstanding job, it was good for the experience, 

but next year she’s going to place, hopefully she’ll win. We know 

what we should have done this year, so we’re already training for 

next year,” he said. 

USU Staff Member Competes in First Body-Building Competition 

By MC3 Jeff Hopkins 

Assistant Editor, Office of External Affairs 

RP2 Maria Rajas (far right) poses for 

judges during her first body-building 

competition. 

Photo courtesy of SFC Franklin Abram 

 First-year school of medicine students took part in a patient evacuation exercise as part of the Introduction to Military and Emergency Medicine course on the USU softball field, 

Friday. Among many learning objectives, students learned to load and 

unload patients from a front line 

ambulance (left) and a UH-1 Iroquois 

Helicopter (commonly known as a 

Huey,) as well as how to effectively 

evacuate patients using the helicopter's hoist. Students took turns acting 

as patients and litter-bearers. 

Students take part 

in combat patient 

evacuation exercise 

Photo by MC3 Jeff Hopkins 
PAGE 6 

 As we get closer to the holiday season 

the sprit of giving is with all of us. However, 

as we are a federal facility there are rules 

that must be followed. 

 With the exception of the Combined 

Federal Campaign (CFC) and the Armed 

Forces relief funds, we are ordinarily not 

permitted to endorse or raise funds for any 

charitable groups. 

 Private fund-raising, such as the walk to 

cure breast cancer, raising money for the 

homeless, Toys for Tots (which most of us 

associate with the Marine Corps, but is actually a private foundation) or to support 

the latest disaster victims is prohibited in 

the federal workplace regardless of the 

virtue of the cause for which the funds are 

being raised. This prohibition includes the 

use of official government e-mail to inform 

others of charitable collection drives. 

 The electronic classified bulletin board 

may be used by individuals who want to let 

others in the university community know of 

a particular need or charitable organization. We should not, however, collect 

funds or materials here at the University. 

 Various fundraisers by either the Student 

Spouses Club or the Headquarters Company are permitted by the Joint Ethics 

Regulation (DoD Directive 5500.7-R) under 

an exception as long as the groups are 

"composed primarily of DoD employees or 

their dependents when fundraising among 

their own members for the benefit of . . . 

their own members or their dependents." 

These are organizations which must be 

registered with the university and their 

activities are approved in advance by the 

University President. 

Solicitation of 

Charitable Gifts 

on Federal Property 

Q. When will NSPS affect me?

A. The university will convert to NSPS Feb. 3, 2008. Prior to conversion, all eligible GS and GM employees, will receive closeout 

appraisals and awards under the current performance management system. Due to the conversion to NSPS, the current performance management appraisal cycle for GS/GM employees will be 

shortened. The appraisal period for GS/GM employees for the 

current rating cycle will end Nov. 30, 2007. All GS/GM appraisals 

and performance-based award nominations are due in CHR NLT 

Jan. 4, 2008.

Q. Who will be covered by NSPS?

A. Only General Schedule employees will be covered by NSPS. 

Wage Grade employees and Administratively Determined staff 

and faculty are currently excluded from NSPS.

Q. Will employees lose salary when converted to NSPS?

A. No. Employees will convert into NSPS based on their permanent position of record without a loss of pay. In many cases, employees will actually receive a salary increase equal to the amount 

they have earned towards their next within grade increase. 

Q. Will employees at Step 10 receive a WGI buy-in?

A. Employees at Step 10 are not eligible for a WGI buy-in because 

they have already received all 10 step increases under the GS system. The WGI buy-in is a process used during conversion to NSPS 

to pay employees for time spent working towards their next step 

increase.

NSPS Questions, Answers 

 Every 15 minutes someone in the United States is diagnosed 

with a medical condition that requires treatment with bone marrow or a blood stem cell transplant. Every day more than 6,000 

men, women and children around the world search the National 

Donor Program Registry for a life-saving donor. Thousands of 

lives are lost because a match is never found. 

 “Each year more than 35,000 people in the United States are 

diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma, aplastic anemia (marrow 

failure), and other life-threatening blood disorders. Seventy-five 

percent of patients in need of a marrow transplant cannot find a 

match within their own family,” said Army Major General (MG) 

Elder Granger, Deputy Director, TRICARE Management Activity. 

 November is National Marrow Awareness Month, and The 

C.W. Bill Young/Department of Defense (DoD) Marrow Donor 

Program, named for Congressman C.W. Bill Young (R-Fla.) who 

initiated and supported its development, is working hard to provide hope and help to patients waiting to find a marrow donor. 

The C.W. Bill Young Donor Program is only for Military donors. 

 The C.W. Bill Young Program works in conjunction with the 

National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) which brings donors 

together, within the U.S. and from across the world, in a confidential and secure data search system. 

 “Humanitarian support is a part of our commitment and Uniformed Service members can help save lives by enrolling in the 

National Donor Program Registry,” said MG Granger. 

 In addition to the NMDP in the U.S., there are numerous organizations around the world that share this database, working 

together to find matches for any individual requiring a transplant. 

Since the creation of the NMDP in 1986, more than six million 

Americans, including more than 400,000 Service members, have 

registered as marrow donors. 

 Hundreds of marrow donor drives are conducted on Military 

installations and ships each year. In addition, The C.W. Bill 

Young/DoD Marrow Donor Program, in cooperation with participating commands, has established “walk-in” registration programs 

for eligible personnel who wish to join the DoD Marrow Donor 

Program Registry. 

 Joining the registry is almost effortless and completely painless. 

Participants fill out a short two-page DoD consent form and a 

swab is taken from inside their mouth. 

 Potential donors receive an official card signifying they have 

registered as a bone marrow donor. They are added to the 

NMDP National Registry through the DoD Marrow Donor Program. 

 To be eligible to join the registry through the DoD program 

you must be: 

 Age 18 to 60 and in good health 

 Active Duty Military, Coast Guard, National Guard or Reservist 

 Immediate family member of an Active Duty Service Member 

 A DoD civilian employee 

Department of Defense Continues 

Efforts to Enroll Marrow Donors 
2008 Field Exercises: Operations Bushmaster and Kerkesner will 

be conducted from July 10-25, 2008 at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pa. 

These exercises are unique to the university and require the support of all of the university’s uniformed personnel. Only emergency leave will be granted during this time frame. 

Drinking Responsibly: According to Dr. Alexander Wagenaar, director, Alcohol and Other Drug Epidemiology Program, University 

of Minnesota School of Public Health, alcohol was involved in 

nearly 32% of aviation deaths, 62% of drownings, 48% of falls, 

54% of fires, and 40% of industrial injuries. Highway crashes involving drivers (and pedestrians) who are impaired by alcohol 

and/or other drugs are not considered "accidents," as they are 

preventable. 

Free Military Handbooks: There are several useful United States 

Military Handbooks available to active duty military, veterans, and 

dependents on topics such as pay, allowances, taxes, health care 

and TRICARE benefits, Veterans and Social Security Benefits, travel, 

transportation, SBP, retirement, Space-A, installation listings, statistical data and more. These handbooks are designed to help military personnel by giving them the most accurate and complete 

information available anywhere. To access these handbooks, visit 

http://www.militaryhandbooks.com. 

Marriage Enrichment Program: The USU Brigade chaplain offers a 

Marriage Enrichment Program in room C1026. This program is 

open to all USU personnel (spouses are encouraged to attend). 

The program will run Thursdays from 11:45-9:30 am for 15 sessions. The program is called Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP,) and is the result of over 25 years of research at the University of Denver. This program is also based on 

Christian scripture; however, all USU personnel are invited to attend. 

Workplace Sales of Goods and Services: Just as Federal law prohibits employees (within the workplace) from soliciting donations 

or selling items on behalf of private organizations, they are also 

prohibited from selling goods/services at work while on government time. Moreover, this prohibition extends to the use of government-furnished communication systems, i.e., via phone, fax, 

and e-mail. In short, federal employees [civilian/military personnel] are prohibited from selling beauty products, home decorations, life insurance, etc., at work or on government time. This 

prohibition includes soliciting sales or making any arrangements 

for sales while in the workplace. This prohibition also applies to 

handing out or placing fliers or catalogs for people to view. 

Please note that university employees are authorized to use the 

USU bulletin board, http://131.158.7.207/usuhs_only/cgibin/webbbs_config3.pl to alert USU personnel of goods and services. If this option is selected, they must use their home phone or 

private e-mail address for contact information. 

Brigade Enlisted Holiday Party: The Brigade Enlisted Holiday Party 

is Dec. 7 from 10 am to 2 pm at the bowling alley on base. Activities will include bowling, white elephant gift exchange, raffles, 

and a potluck. The ESC will provide the main dishes and each service will be tasked to provide side dishes, salads, and dessert. The 

Brigade Commander has authorized the Headquarters Company 

Commander to release the enlisted personnel at the conclusion of 

the party, pending approval of their immediate supervisors. 

USU News Briefs 

PAGE 7 

Photo by MCSN Raul Zamora 

Air Force Dominates 

Basketball, Dodge Ball 

 The Air Force bulldozed the Army and the Navy during 

the basketball and dodge ball events of the 2007 Commander’s Cup, at the Comfort Zone Fitness Center, Oct. 26. 

 The Air Force is usually the underdog during the Commander’s Cup events but this time, they took the other military branches under. 

 Each year there is only one military branch that wins the 

coveted Commander’s Cup, The U.S. Navy is currently holding the Commander’s Cup, which is a canteen cup attached 

to a plaque with a record of which military branch earned it 

last. 

USU 

A Traditional Academic University 

with a Unique Focus 
USU Calendar of Events 

11 

Veterans Day 

12 

Veterans Day 

Observed 

13 14 

Neuroscience 

Program 

17th Annual Open House 

and Poster Session 

3:30 p.m. 

Building B Lobby 

15 

LRC Training Classes: 

Advanced PowerPoint 

Register online at: 

http://training.lrc.usuh

s.mil/lib/training_reg.p

hp. Please call 319-

4039 or 295-3357 if 

you have questions. 

4 - 5 p.m. 

LRC

16 17 

18 19 20 21 

LRC Hours 

6am– 4:45 

22 

Thanksgiving 

Observed 

23 24 

25 26 27 28 29 30 1 

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 

PAGE 8 

November

December