Volume 10, Issue 1 n January 12, 2015

www.usuhs.edu

The Official USU Newsletter

Learning to Care for Those in Harm’s Way
Sharon Holland

Deputy Vice President for External 

Affairs and Managing Editor

Gwendolyn Smalls

Chief, Media Affairs

Master Sgt. Oshawn Jefferson

NCOIC of VPE and Deputy Chief, 

Media Affairs

Christopher Austin

Editor/Layout Design

MC3 Laura Bailey

Writer and Photographer

Production

Editorial content is edited, prepared 

and provided by the USU Office of 

External Affairs unless otherwise 

indicated. The Pulse staff may 

include or exclude articles based 

upon news value, impact on the 

university and space availability.

Submissions

The Pulse is published 

biweekly on Mondays. The deadline 

for submissions is at 4 p.m. 

Tuesday prior to the publication 

date. Submissions can be sent to 

christopher.austin@usuhs.edu or by 

calling 301-295-3338.

In Memoriam: Brig. Gen. (ret.) John E. Hutton, Jr.

by Christopher Austin, editor/layout design

2 the pulse January 12, 2015

R etired Army Brigadier 

General (Dr.) John 

E. Hutton, Jr., 83, 

former professor of 

surgery in the F. Edward Hébert 

School of Medicine, Uniformed 

Services University, passed away 

Dec. 19.

The former chief, Division of 

General Surgery, and Vice Chair of 

the Department of Surgery at USU, 

joined the university in 1981.

Hutton was born in New York 

City in 1931. He graduated from 

Wesleyan University in 1953, the 

same year he began his military 

career as a Marine Corps officer. 

After three years and attaining the 

rank of captain, he left the service 

and went on to attend medical 

school at the George Washington 

University School of Medicine, 

graduating in 1963.

He returned to active duty as an 

Army Medical Corps officer and 

completed his surgical residency in 

1968 and his peripheral vascular 

surgery fellowship in 1970 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

Two notable positions Hutton 

held during his career include 

Chief of the General Surgery Service at Letterman Army Medical 

Center, Presidio of San Francisco, 

and Chief of the Department of 

Surgery at WRAMC, among many 

others.

He was a White House physician 

and physician to President Ronald Reagan and maintained a very 

close relationship with the president and first lady well beyond his 

White House years.

Dr. Hutton is survived by his 

wife, Barbara Joyce Hutton; and 

children, John E. Hutton III, 

Wendy Hutton-Little, James 

Seward Hutton and Elizabeth Hutton-Shiau (husband, Danny Shiau, USU SoM ‘97); sister, Deirdre 

Driscoll; grandchildren Brittany 

Ann Hutton, Kristin Elizabeth Hutton, Grace Seward-Hutton, Holly 

Catherine Hutton, John E. Hutton IV, James Ten Yen Shiau, 

Daniel Seward Shiau and Kimberly 

Ashley Shiau.

President Ronald Reagan and Brig. Gen. (ret.) John E. Hutton, Jr., share a conversation in the 

White House. (White House photo)

Air Force Colonel (ret.) Dr. Tom Piazza 

demonstrates battlefield acupuncture on 

Chinese PLA Senior Col. Xiaojie Huang with 

assistance from Air Force Col. (ret.) Richard 

Niemtzow, who created the technique. Read 

about the exchange on pg. 4.

(photo by Thomas Balfour)
Army Lt. Col. (Dr.) Michael Ellis 

was the 2014 recipient of the John 

F. Maher Award for Research 

Excellence in the Department of 

Medicine, Uniformed Services University. The award recognizes research that represents a significant 

contribution to the understanding, 

remedy or prevention of disease 

or an innovative contribution to 

medical education.

Dr. Ellis, an associate professor 

in the department, also received 

the William Crosby Superiority in 

Research Award from the Army 

chapter of the American College 

of Physicians, as well as the Army 

A Specialty Designator from the 

Army Medical Department. These 

awards were presented to Dr. Ellis 

by Dr. Arthur Kellermann, dean of 

the School of Medicine, and Col. 

Kevin Glasz, brigade commander, 

during a USU Department of Medicine faculty meeting on December 

2. 

These awards recognize 

Ellis’ achievements as a clinical 

researcher, underscored by his 

leadership of IDCRP-055, a fieldbased, cluster-randomized trial 

of personal hygiene measures 

to prevent skin and soft tissue 

infections (SSTI) among military 

trainees at Fort Benning, Ga. 

In addition to evaluating the 

effectiveness of hygiene against 

SSTI, this study has yielded a 

wealth of data with respect to 

the epidemiology, pathogenesis, 

immunology and microbiome 

of SSTI in a population 

known to be at increased risk 

for Staphylococcus aureus

colonization and disease. 

Ellis and his team found that in 

general, personal hygiene-based 

measures, including weekly use of 

a chlorhexidine-based body wash, 

were ineffective at preventing SSTI 

in trainees. There was, however, 

an observed reduction in methicillin-resistant S. aureus SSTI rates 

among CHG-randomized trainees 

during the summer months, the 

peak period for MRSA colonization 

and SSTI (Ellis ME et al., Clinical 

Infectious Diseases 2014). 

Knowledge gleaned from these 

studies of SSTI and acute gastroenteritis is critical for the development of disease treatment and 

prevention strategies in this particularly vulnerable population of 

military trainees.Ellis and the SSTI 

investigative team, much has already been accomplished, and the 

foundation for future efforts in this 

research area has been solidified.

Associate Professor Recognized for 

Infectious Disease Research 

by Carey Schlett, MPH and Gene Millar, PhD, IDCRP

3 the pulse January 12, 2015

Doctor Arthur Kellermann, Dean of the School 

of Medicine, Lt. Col. Michael Ellis, and Brigade 

Commander Col Kevin Glasz. (photo by Thomas 

Balfour)

The 2014-2018 Uniformed 

Services University Strategic 

Framework has been approved and 

released for distribution.

The Strategic Framework, which 

USU President Charles Rice described as “a concise summary of 

where we are headed, the values 

that define our collective character, our unique mission and the 

essential task we must accomplish 

if we are to serve the nation,” is the 

product of a four-month effort by 

the Strategic Framework and Performance Assessment Task Force. 

The SFPATF was established last 

spring and includes the school 

deans.

The five-page document is rooted 

in the university’s overarching 

mission to support the nation, the 

uniformed services and Department of Defense’s Office of Health 

Affairs. The Strategic Framework 

describes five mission domains 

that include education and training, research and scholarship, leadership, global health and national 

security, and service. Each of these 

mission domains is further defined 

by a series of essential tasks that 

provide a roadmap by which the 

university community can navigate 

into the future.

While the strategic framework is 

directive in nature, Rice describes 

it as “a living document, receptive 

to new ideas and responsive to our 

evolving environment.” In order 

to ensure that the entire university is aligned with the Strategic 

Framework, each school, institute 

and center is required to review 

and, where necessary, revise its 

own strategic plans and documents. 

As with all strategic planning 

documents, its enduring value 

lies in its execution. Each school, 

institute and center is required to 

review, and where necessary, revise 

its own strategic plans and documents to ensure that the entire 

university is aligned with the Strategic Framework. To that end, Rice 

tasked each person in the USU 

community to “review the Strategic 

Framework and to plan for your 

role in its implementation.”

The 2014-2018 Strategic Framework is available on the USU website: at www.usuhs.edu/pres/pdf/

USUHSstrategicframework.pdf.

USU Strategic Framework Issued

by Chris Shoemaker, contributing writer
American military medical 

personnel met with their Chinese 

counterparts at Uniformed Services University this past December to discuss applications of 

acupuncture in a military setting.

From Dec. 8-10, six senior 

Chinese military acupuncturists 

visited USU to discuss with U.S. 

representatives how the non-traditional medicine can be used to 

treat short-term and long-term 

conditions.

“Not only was there some valuable information sharing, but the 

level of genuine collegiality and 

camaraderie that emerged over the 

two days was truly rewarding,” said 

Air Force Col. (Dr.) Arnyce Pock , 

F. Edward Hébert School of Medicine assistant dean for Curriculum, 

who served as primary coordinator 

for the exchange. She called the 

event “an example of global health 

engagement at its best.”

The engagement was part of 

a series of exchanges that were 

initiated with the help of retired 

Air Force Col. (Dr.) Richard Niemtzow, consultant for the Air Force 

Surgeon General on alternative 

medicine and the creator of battlefield acupuncture (BFA), one of 

the techniques that was presented 

during exchange.

The initial idea for the event 

came about in the late 2000’s when 

Niemtzow was invited to a meet 

with the Air Force Surgeon General 

and the Chinese Surgeon General in Washington. Niemtzow had 

been visiting the Beijing University 

of Chinese Medicine to demonstrate BFA to the staff and students 

there and the generals were both 

interested in setting up an official 

exchange. 

“I think that having this exchange at [USU] and having 

students attend will allow the next 

generation to be able to benefit and 

influence exchanges with China 

in a very positive manner that 

will help both countries grow to a 

peaceful arrangement between the 

two militaries using perhaps acupuncture and other areas of medicine as a common denominator,” 

said Niemtzow. 

Both Niemtzow and Pock 

praised the exchange, noting the 

advantages of using medical diplomacy to help foster ties between 

the two countries. 

Pock was one of the American 

representatives that attended the 

initial exchange in Oct. 2012.

“That was the inaugural exchange in which I and several of 

my colleagues had the honor of visiting the Chinese School of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Beijing, 

as well as a People’s Liberation 

Army Air Force hospital and meeting some of the military acupuncturists there,” said Pock. “That’s 

what established the foundation 

for this follow-on exchange.”

The BFA technique was one of 

the main topics discussed during 

the event. It involves the application of up to five tiny gold needles to points on either or both 

of the external ears that are used 

to relieve acute and chronic pain 

and is cited by Niemtzow as one of 

the most popular ear-acupuncture 

techniques being used in the armed 

forces.

“It has become very, very popular in garrison, in peacetime 

settings and clinics but also in an 

operational environment where 

you may need to do something very 

quickly to reduce someone’s pain 

but without having to rely on high 

doses of narcotics,” said Pock. “Especially if it’s a potentially hostile 

environment, at least until you can 

extricate the patient and get them 

to a more stable secure situation 

and then you can give them more 

definitive care.”

Pock cites the positive results 

that the BFA technique has had 

on patients, noting that 80 to 85 

percent of patients who have had 

the treatment alone have noticed a 

significant reduction in pain within 

minutes of application. 

U.S. and China Build Relationship Through 

Acupuncture Medical Exchange

by Christopher Austin, editor/layout design

Military medical professionals from The People’s Republic of China met with their U.S. counterparts at USU to exchange knowlege on the application 

of acupuncture in a military setting. (photo by Thomas Balfour)

4 the pulse January 12, 2015
5 the pulse January 12, 2015

USU Launches First Program Dedicated to 

Educating Students on Treating Sexual Assault Victims

by Christopher Austin, editor/layout design

Uniformed Services University 

launched a pilot program for its 

first course focusing on Military 

Sexual Assault Assessment last 

semester.

The goal of the online course is 

to provide students of the School of 

Medicine and the Graduate School 

of Nursing with the knowledge 

necessary to properly respond to a 

sexual assault as a provider.

The program was created by 

Professor Ann Burgess of Boston 

College, a leader in the field of 

forensic nursing who has worked 

with the FBI in the past.

“I was originally brought in as a 

visiting professor about a year ago 

because of my research in the field 

of sexual assault,” Burgess said 

during a phone interview. “Over 

time, [it was] suggested that I meet 

with the medical school faculty to 

see if they had any needs in that 

area. And that was the important 

meeting in which they said maybe 

GSN and SOM students could combine to have a course in military 

sexual trauma since it was a priority issue for the military.”

To get the course online, Burgess 

partnered with Air Force Lt. Col. 

Wendy Lee, GSN assistant professor, who has prior experience in researching sexual assault education 

and the creation of online courses.

Lee explained that Secretary of 

Defense Chuck Hagel made a point 

of calling attention to the military’s 

need to combat sexual assault, and 

that this program seeks to help 

by providing information on rape 

prevention along with education on 

the treatment of victims. 

The course is also getting input 

from Air Force 1st Lt. Felicia Keith, 

a clinical psychology student at the 

SOM, who is focusing her study on 

sexual assault in the military.

Keith gave input for the section 

on rape myths and on how the attitudes of the providers impact their 

behaviors around sexual assault 

victims.

“One of the things I really focused on [was] male rape victims 

and some of our prejudices and 

biases we have against male rape 

victims,” Keith said. “Some people 

believe that men can’t be raped, 

or men can’t be raped by a woman; just challenging [students] to 

challenge themselves about their 

pre-conceptions.”

Guest speakers participate in the 

course by providing narration for 

PowerPoint presentations and videos discussing real-world instances 

of sexual assault in the military and 

the responses taken by care providers.

One case examined was that 

of Petty Officer 2nd Class Daniel 

Wilt, who in 2012 was convicted 

of sexual assault against a female 

shipmate and sentenced to life in 

prison with possibility of parole 

after 20 years. The presentation 

described the incident in detail and 

then examined the legal and medical follow-up to demonstrate what 

proper procedures were followed 

or mishandled.

This example, along with other 

sources such as interviews with 

sexual assault victims and legal 

teams in prior cases, are meant 

to give the course an interactive 

aspect through use of multimedia, 

said Lee. 

Another reason for the creation 

of this course is what the creators 

see as a lack of sexual assault 

assessment training coming out of 

medical schools across the country.

“I had to do a systemic research, 

a lit review, on [sexual assault 

education practices] just these last 

few months and I found very few 

high-quality research studies looking at educational interventions 

for providers, health professional 

college students,” she said.

Lee cites in her systematic 

review that a 2014 report from the 

Association of American Medical 

colleges shows that 38 percent of 

graduating U.S. physicians have 

received training to care for victims 

of sexual assault. This percentage 

has decreased from 45 percent in 

2010.

“There’s a lot of differences in 

caring for a sexual assault victim 

because of all the forensic evidence 

that needs to be 

The online course uses videos providing hypothetical examples with actors, like the one pictured 

above, along with real-world cases in order to demonstrate proper care proceedure. (courtesy 

photo)

Continued on pg. 6
Uniformed Services University 

students and faculty took part in 

Specialty Night, sponsored by the 

Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society, 

at USU, Dec. 3, 2014. 

Specialty Night provides students with the opportunity to meet 

with program directors throughout the country in one convenient 

setting at USU where the specialties come to them, according to 

Student Coordinator Army 2nd Lt. 

Noel Dunn, a fourth-year medical student at USU. The informal 

setting allows for open dialogue 

between students and residency 

leaders from various specialties 

and helps students understand 

what each specialty entails and the 

locations of these residencies. Opportunities unique to the military 

such as dive medicine provide even 

more possibilities for students to 

consider. 

“I really enjoyed talking to both 

physicians and residents from a 

number of different specialties,” 

said Air Force 2nd Lt. Robin 

Alonge, a second-year medical 

student at USU. “It gave me an 

honest look into the future. I now 

have a better understanding of 

what would be expected of me as a what advanced rotations I’ll want attend in the future.”

resident or a physician in different 

fields. 

“By the end of the night, I was 

feeling much more hopeful and optimistic about the future. I’m really 

looking forward to my upcoming 

rotations and I have a good idea of 

to take later. It will be a pleasure 

to explore some of these fields 

more thoroughly and to work with 

the physicians I met that night. 

Specialty Night was a worthwhile 

experience, in my opinion, and I 

highly recommend that students 

6 the pulse January 12, 2015

Specialty Night: “An Honest Look Into the Future”

by MC3 Laura Bailey, writer and photographer

Air Force 2nd Lt. Robin Alonge, a second-year medical student at the Uniformed Services University, uses a simulator for ophthalmology during Specialty Night at USU, Dec. 3, 2014. The simulator 

allows students to get an idea of the types of technologies used in the ophthalmology specialty. 

More than 20 specialties and sub-specialties were represented at the event sponsored by the Alpha 

Omega Alpha Honor Society. (photo by MC3 Laura Bailey)

attained than you would if a person got hurt in a car accident...The 

interview and documentation [are] 

important, and different.”

The course is online to better 

allow both GSN and SOM students 

an opportunity to take the course 

at the same time despite separate 

schedules. This also helps students 

who might not be able to get to 

campus for the class, according to 

Lee.

Since this is the first year for the 

course, and it is the first of its kind, 

Lee has integrated multiple surveys 

in to gain feedback from students 

on its effectiveness

“Since it’s online, that’s the 

beauty of it; we would be able to 

substitute things if they were found 

to not to be as effective as we had 

hoped,” said Burgess. “We would 

also hope to include maybe some of 

[the student’s] comments in future 

courses.”

During the 2014 Operation 

Bushmaster, a scenario was played 

in all four platoons that saw the 

students interacting with male 

and female sexual assault victims. 

Students were expected to explain 

restricted and unrestricted reporting options and do everything 

possible to respect the patient’s 

privacy, said Lee.

The course counts as one credit 

hour for GSN students while SOM 

students utilize it as a resource that 

integrates into their Bench, Bedside and Beyond class.

Professor Ann Burgess and Lt. Col. Wendy Lee 

at a lecture on sexual assault hosted at USU. A 

video of the lecture is featured online for one of 

the course’s units. (photo by Richard Price)

Educating Students Continued

Continued from pg. 5
MENTAL SKILLS TRAINING YIELDS CLARITY FOR TODAY’S 

WARFIGHTER

By: Paul Bello, National Museum of Health and Medicine

Success and safety of the 

nation hinge upon the wellbeing of today’s Warfighters. Dr. 

Tim Herzog, Sport Psychology 

Education Specialist with the 

Uniformed Services University 

Human Performance Resource 

Center offered insight into a service 

member’s human performance 

optimization during the Medical 

Museum Science Café in Silver 

Spring, Md.

Entitled “Mental Skills for 

Energy Management,” the 

discussion was hosted by the 

National Museum of Health and 

Medicine and concludes a yearlong series of informal discussions 

dedicated to evolving health, 

science and medical technologies.

Herzog stated that mental skills 

training and sport/performance 

psychology are integral to the 

health and well-being of American 

service members. Some areas 

of HPRC focus include physical 

fitness, nutrition, family and 

relationships. As with any 

profession, he noted there are 

demands associated with these 

areas. From a military perspective, 

he said they can stem from 

such things as deployments, 

job performance and personal 

finances.

Performance in a military 

context is vastly different from 

that of a sports context, where the 

stakes aren’t as high. According 

to Herzog, there is a much more 

serious set of threats facing those 

charged with defending a nation 

as opposed to those tasked with 

athletic challenges like hitting a 

baseball or throwing a football. 

Sport psychology principles for 

dealing with pressure still come 

into play, though.

“When thinking about the 

demand resource model, the 

concepts the military has arrived 

at mesh quite well with sport 

psychology,” he said. “Experiencing 

flow, or being ‘in the zone’ as the 

media calls it, is a psychological 

state associated with people’s best 

performance. Part of flow is that 

you are completely immersed in 

what you’re doing, so you can set 

the stage for flow but you cannot 

force flow.”

By letting their training take 

over and not focusing on selfevaluation until later, the actions 

of Warfighters will lead more 

often to positive results. When 

personal demands become a 

dominant factor, Herzog said 

these demands may make flow less 

likely and impede a Warfighter’s 

performance. Part of flow is feeling 

in control and prepared. Mental 

skills are a sport/performance 

psychology resource that can help 

in feeling prepared to meet big 

demands, Herzog said.

The role of sport/performance 

psychology within the military 

has evolved over the last 25 years, 

as Herzog explained. The U.S. 

Military Academy at West Point 

started their Center for Enhanced 

Performance in 1989. Since that 

time, he said the program has 

trained cadets in the use of mental 

skills for performance in sports, 

combat, and life. In 2006, the 

U.S. Army’s Center for Enhanced 

Performance Program, which was 

based on the CEP at West Point, 

was introduced to installations 

around the country.

In 2007, the work of Martin 

Seligman, referred to as the 

“father of positive psychology,” 

was integrated with another Army 

program called Battlemind to form 

the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness 

Program. This aimed at improving 

resilience before battle as a 

means of improving subsequent 

transitions to life back home. That 

program has since been expanded 

to include soldiers, families and 

Army civilians, Herzog said. He 

also spoke of a customizable 

performance enhancement 

training program that was also 

first developed in 2007, called 

“One Shot One Kill,” which has a 

curriculum available on HPRC’s 

website.

“Mental skills training can affect 

the mind-body interaction and lead 

to better performance,” Herzog 

said. “Self-talk, the things you 

say to yourself inside your head, 

is a skill that can be developed 

largely through awareness of your 

habits. Mental imagery, where 

you can develop physical skills by 

practicing them in your head, is 

also useful.”

Herzog said it’s also important 

to focus on communication and 

that empathy can help Warfighters 

accept difficult emotions to regain 

focus on the task at hand. 

For more information on USU 

Human Performance Resource 

Center, visit www.hprc-online.org.

7 the pulse January 12, 2015

Dr. Tim Herzog, speaks about mindfulnessbased approaches to human performance 

optimization during the November 2014 

Medical Museum Science Café hosted by the 

National Museum of Health and Medicine.

(courtesy photo)
Uniformed Services University 

hosted representatives from the Air 

Force, Army, Navy and Marines 

along with several prospective 

students on Dec. 17 to formally acknowledge the partnership of USU, 

George Mason University and the 

Services for the Enlisted to Medical 

Degree Preparatory Program.

The EMDP2 is a new program 

started this year that is designed to 

help enlisted men and women set 

themselves on the path to becoming medical professionals while 

remaining on active duty.

“We are deeply grateful that our 

sponsoring services adopted the 

enlisted to physician reparatory 

program,” said Dr. Arthur Kellerman, dean of the Hébert School of 

Medicine, at his opening remarks 

during the implementation ceremony.

“From the earliest days of USU, 

some of our best students have 

come from the enlisted ranks. 

EMDP2 is designed to substantially boost the number of Soldiers, 

Sailors, Airmen and Marines who 

can pursue the dream of becoming 

a military doctor here at USU and 

other medical schools around the 

nation.”

The partnership between USU 

and GMU allows students to 

take their prerequisite classes for 

medical school at the GMU Prince 

William Country campus.

Each service branch devised its 

own criteria for selecting enlisted 

for the program. These criteria had 

to be approved by USU before they 

could be officially implemented. 

The Air Force and Army were the 

first services approved. The Navy 

and Marines have formally approved criteria and are working on 

the application process. It is anticipated they will begin the program 

in the next cohort.

“We wanted to make sure that 

the criteria was as consistent as 

we could make it,” said Althea 

Green-Dixon, director, Recruitment and Outreach for the F. Ed- long,” he said. “I actually had a 

ward Hébert School of Medicine, 

USU. “We understand that there 

are differences within the services 

so the criteria that each service 

was developing would certainly be 

based on service requirements. But 

we also wanted to make sure that 

those criteria were as consistent 

as they could be under the circumstances.

“We wanted to make sure that 

the service members that were going to be coming into the program 

were going to be the best quality with the highest potential for 

success. You can go out and earn 

a college degree, but that doesn’t 

necessarily portend well for success in a program that’s going to be 

science based. The services did a 

great job in selecting the right kind 

of people.”

Students will be able to apply to 

any medical school in the country 

once they complete their courses at 

GMU and pass the Medical College 

Admission Test, but Kellerman 

hopes that they will consider going 

to USU.

“No good idea stays isolated for 

dean of a medical school approach 

me in the last couple of weeks and 

say their institution is strongly 

considering creating something 

that would allow a pathway for 

enlisted service members to go 

to their medical school and I said 

‘Great! We want all the competition we can get.’ I can’t imagine 

a better group of young men and 

women to go into American medicine than people who have served 

their country in the enlisted ranks.”

USU Hosts Implementation Ceremony for EMDP2

by Christopher Austin, editor/layout design

8 the pulse January 12, 2015

Dr. Arthur Kellerman signs the proclamation of partnership between USU, George Mason University, Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marines. (photo by Thomas Balfour)

For more 

information on 

EMDP2, visit: 

www.usuhs.edu/

adm/emdp2.

html.
Final Frame

9 the pulse January 12, 2015

Third-year medical students at the Uniformed Services University (USU) participate in a laboratory class at 

USU, Jan. 3. Under instructor supervision, students learn to close wounds and dissect, scrub, gown, glove, prep a 

sterile field for surgical procedures and insert a catheter during the two-day lab. (photo by MC3 Laura Bailey)