USU Newsletter

VOLUME 4, ISSUE 12 WWW.USUHS.MIL August 17, 2009
Bill Bester

Acting Vice President for

 External Affairs and

Managing Editor

Ken Frager

Public Affairs Specialist

André Nicholson

Staff Writer

Staff Sgt. Matthew Rosine

Production Editor

MC1 Chad Hallford

Layout and Design

Christine Creenan

Contributing Writer

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 bi-weekly on Mondays. 

The deadline for submissions is 

at 4 p.m. Friday prior to the publication date. Submissions can be 

sent to usunewsletter@usuhs.mil 

or by calling 301 295-0895. 

by Sharon Willis

Navy Cmdr. John Maye, Ph.D. was 

recognized as the recipient of the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists 

“Researcher of the Year Award” for 2009. 

The award was presented to Maye during 

the opening ceremonies of the AANA 

annual meeting in San Diego on August 

9 in front of more than 3,000 attendees.

Maye, an assistant professor in USU’s 

Graduate School of Nursing, or GSN, 

serves as Director of Research for the 

Nurse Anesthesia program.

He received the award for his efforts to 

advance the science of anesthesia through 

education and research, according to AANA 

President Jackie Rowles, and was cited for 

“his love and excitement for his work.” 

The Researcher of the Year Award is 

presented by the AANA Foundation to 

an individual who has made a significant 

contribution to the practice of anesthesia 

through clinical research. 

This Award recognizes the commitment 

of individuals to the profession of nurse anesthesia and to the advancement of research 

that furthers the art of anesthesiology and 

results in completion of high quality patient 

care through research studies.

“Dr. Maye is a strong clinical researcher 

focusing on pain as well as an outstanding 

mentor for students — many of the student awards won at the AANA would be 

his mentees,” said Ada Sue Hinshaw, RN, 

PhD, FAAN, and Dean and Professor 

of the GSN. “He has just recently been 

informed of a new grant award from the 

Tri-Service Nursing Research Program.” 

In addition to Maye, Maj. Judith Wiley, 

an Army reserve CRNA and assistant 

program director from Rush University’s 

nurse anesthesia program who was 

assigned to USU in the GSN Nurse Anesthesia Program, was presented with the 

AANA’s “Clinical Instructor of the Year 

Award.” 

She acknowledged and thanked her 

USU colleagues, along with her Rush 

University co-workers, during her acceptance of the award and remarked that 

she was “fortunate to work with such 

dedicated, hardworking and compassionate individuals.”

The GSN Associate Dean for Academic 

Affairs, Army Col. Bruce Schoneboom, 

Ph.D., was also recognized during the 

opening ceremonies as a “Friend for Life” 

by the AANA for his dedication to and 

support of the organization. 

The AANA represents more than 

39,000 nurse anesthestists nationwide.

Maye Selected as Researcher of the Year 

Cmdr. John Maye is presented the AANA 

Foundation “Researcher of the Year” award 

by AANA President Jackie Rowles and AANA 

Foundation board trustee Kenneth C. Plitt, 

CRNA, MBA.

USU Newsletter

PHS Cmdr. Kristal Dye, a USU CRNA student, explains her award-winning research 

poster to Capt. Kathleen Pierce, deputy 

director of the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps. 

(Cover photo:Sharon Willis)

photo by Sharon Willis

PAGE 2

Tunisian Visit

Dr. Norman Rich, MD, 

FACS, Chief and Professor of Surgery at USU (left) 

greets Tunisian navy Senior 

Col. Jamel Manaa alongside 

David Welling, MD, FACS 

USU Associate Professor of 

Surgery.

photo by Tom Balfour
 There’s still time...

To register for USU Night with the

Baltimore Orioles

Saturday, 5 September vs Texas Rangers 

5:30 PM start.

The Office of 

External Affairs and the 

USU Alumni 

Bookstore invite 

you to celebrate 

with us.

Enjoy picnic food and beverages in the 

Bullpen Picnic Area, followed by the game. 

Tickets are available through the USU 

Alumni Bookstore at the discounted price of 

$40 per person.

Questions can be directed to Ken Frager at 

295-3981 or kenneth.frager.ctr@usuhs.mil.

USU Students and Faculty Ear n Top Honors

for Anesthesia Nursing Research 

PAGE 3

by Sharon Willis

Competing against their civilian 

counterparts from all over the United 

States, nurse anesthesia students from 

USU’s Graduate School of Nursing 

took several top honors during the 

76th annual meeting of the American 

Association of Nurse Anesthetists on 

August 9.

Army students Maj. Laura Gallaway, Maj. Robert Morris, Maj. Joseph 

Romeo, Capt. Corey Jones, and Capt.

Gregory Phillips, along with GSN faculty members Navy Cmdr. John Maye, 

Army Lt. Col. Danette Cruthirds, and 

Navy Capt. Mark Larsen, were selected 

for their poster “Quantification of 

Regenerative Skeletal Muscle Components in a Malignant Hypothermia 

Susceptible Porcine Model: a Possible 

Link to Prolonged Muscle Weakness.” 

In addition, researchers from the 

former Navy Nurse Corps Anesthesia 

Program, which recently merged into 

USU’s program, were chosen for their 

work, “Patient Controlled Epidural 

Anesthesia Versus Patient Controlled 

Anesthesia, Plus Continuous Lumbar Epidural Anesthesia in Laboring 

Women.” 

The presenters included Navy Lt. 

Shane Lawson, Lt. Cmdr. Allecia 

Webster, Cmdr. Gregory Nezat, and 

retired Capt. Joseph Pellegrini. 

Both groups were among only eight 

out of 40 submissions for the AANA 

Foundation’s “State of the Science” 

competition selected for presentation. 

Five of the eight presentations chosen 

were from military programs, with 

USU’s two groups among the five.

The USU CRNA students also took 

first place in two out of three categories – clinical, scientific and leadership – for the poster presentations. 

Air Force Capts. Amanda Siango, 

Clinton Hartman, Danny Sandefur, 

James Spencer Jr., and Air Force Lt. 

Col. Christopher Dyer, Larsen and 

Cruthirds won top honors in the Scientific category for their poster, “Effect 

of Immobilization Stress and Hormonal Treatment on Nociception.” 

The second poster, “An Analysis of 

Selection Criteria for Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences 

Nurse Anesthesia Program,” took first 

place in the Leadership category and 

was authored by Public Health Service 

Lt. Cmdrs. Shane Parks and Kristal 

Dye, and USU GSN faculty member 

Air Force Lt. Col. Kevin Bohan. 

Gallaway, Morris, Romeo, Jones and 

Phillips received additional honors 

as the recipients of one of only five 

AANA “Program Administrator Outstanding Student Research Awards” 

for their presented work. Col. Bruce 

Schoneboom, GSN associate dean 

for Academic Affairs, and retired-Air 

Force Lt. Col. Adrienne Hartgerink, 

director for USU’s CRNA program. 

made the presentations on behalf of 

the AANA during the conference’s 

Army breakout session.

“Faculty and students from GSN 

have swept a number of awards in 

clinical scholarship at the AANA,” 

said Ada Sue Hinshaw, RN, PhD, 

FAAN, and Dean and Professor of 

the GSN. “The faculty’s strong focus 

on quality clinical research is certainly 

evident in the very successful track record they have made at the conference. 

It was fun to brag on GSN faculty and 

students at the recent USU Board of 

Regents meeting.” 

Maj. Gregory Phillips explains the research poster he and several of his USU CRNA program 

classmates presented at the AANA annual meeting in San Diego. 

photo by Sharon Willis
PAGE 4

Afghan Visit...

Pictured: Army Sgt. Rachael Thompson and Navy IT3 Robert Grounds 

(Left), USU President Dr. Charles L. Rice (Above Left), and Command 

Master Chief Clinton Garrett (Above Right) all police the grounds in the 

beautification efforts. On Friday, July 31,2009, the Brigade and the Office of the Assistant Vice President for Administration hosted a Campus 

Beautification Project, welcoming volunteer support from faculty, staff 

and students whose schedule permitted them to participate. For those 

who work, train, or serve here, we can maintain our campus through use 

of trash containers, proper disposal of cigarette butts, and by picking up 

trash seen as we walk around the campus/facility.

photo by HM2 Michael Oliver

photos by HM2 Michael Oliver

John Frankenburg tells the story of F. Edward Hébert and the history of USU to Afghan Maj. Gen. Ahmad Zia Yaftali (left) and Afghan Brig. Gen 

Qandahar Shinwari (center) during their visit to the USU campus. General Yaftali is the Surgeon General of the Afghan National Army and General 

Shinwari is the Surgeon General of the Afghan National Police. The Afghan generals also toured the University of Nebraska-Omaha’s Afghan Studies 

Center as well as the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Omaha. “The discussions in Washington were really an extension of our talks in Nebraska,” 

said Army Col. Scott Gronewold, operations officer for the Nebraska Guard, adding that officials there spoke with the Afghans about ways to help 

Nebraska medical instructors develop the curriculum to be used in Afghanistan. “We also discussed ways that the USU can help train Nebraska 

nurses to be effective trainers and mentors for Afghan nursing students.” (Caption elements courtesy of Army Maj. Kevin Hynes, Nebraska National 

Guard public affairs)

2nd Annual USU Campus Beautification Project 
PAGE 5

Life Imitates Art for Visiting High School Senior

by Christine Creenan

Like many teenagers, Artemisa Zuazo draws inspiration from 

the stars on the silver screen. It’s not their moments in the 

limelight that grab her attention, however, but their time spent 

on the frontlines. Because the characters Zuazo admires most 

are the unsung heroes of war-time medicine.

She received a candid glimpse into the lives of military medics after a chance viewing of the documentary film, “Fighting 

for Life.” The movie chronicles the challenges of practicing 

medicine on the battlefield as well as the rigorous education 

and training service members receive on their journey toward 

becoming uniformed physicians.

It was this behind the scenes look at USU that changed 

Zuazo’s focus. She still wanted to be a doctor, but her new 

goal was to graduate from the military’s medical school.

The aspiring trauma surgeon believes the University’s military-focused curriculum will better serve her in extreme environments, such as warzones.

“I want to deploy and to be able to take care of Soldiers while 

their injuries are still fresh,” Zuazo explained. “My father was in 

the Army and I would be absolutely devastated if anything ever 

happened to him. I don’t want anyone else to suffer either.”

It will be several years before the California-native can begin 

healing the wounded. In fact, Zuazo will begin her senior year 

of high school in September. Still, she is not letting age stand 

in the way of her dreams. Zuazo recently visited the campus 

and enjoyed a week of hands-on medical activities.

“After I watched ‘Fighting for Life,’ I absolutely fell in love 

with the school. I started to research it on the internet and 

learned there was an S2M2 program. I said, ‘this is just for me.’ 

I signed up and now I’m here,” Zuazo said. 

The S2M2 program, or Science, Service, Medicine and 

Mentoring, is open to high school students across the nation 

interested in pursuing careers in science and medicine. Zuazo 

and other aspiring medics shadowed a surgeon, simulated 

suturing and developed a health care presentation at a University-sponsored fair.

“The S2M2 program is definitely one of the best things I’ve 

ever done. It reinforced everything I thought about military 

medicine,” she said. “Now I know for sure this is what I want 

to do, and this is where I want to be.”

The USU Center for Health Disparities (CHD) completed the 

2009 Summer High School Internship Program, or SHIP, with 

research presentations, Aug. 5.

Four Washington, D.C. metro high school students were selected 

for SHIP based upon an online application process, including references and credentials, and more importantly belonging to a group 

that is racially/ethnically underrepresented in medicine, or coming 

from an economically or educationally disadvantaged background.

Each individual’s presentation, increases awareness of disease 

and conditions that largely affect minority and disadvantaged communities as USU faculty mentored and fostered advanced research 

from the students.

The USUCHD also offers undergraduate and graduate level 

research internships each summer based and chosen wtih similar 

criteria. Additional information may be found at http://www.usuhs.

mil/chd/training.html. 

USUCHD Sails Their SHIP

photo by MC1 Chad Hallford

“USU is amazing, and there’s nothing else out there like it,” said Zuazo, 

pictured above. “This school specializes in exactly what I want to do.”

photo by Christine Creenan
A ‘Comfort ’able Visit...

Dr. Charles L. Rice visited Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort(T-AH 20) (Upper left) and her Nicarauguan 

ports-of-call (Upper right) offering his support to USU alumni, the ship and local efforts.

Comfort completed Continuing Promise, a four-month humanitarian and civic assistance mission to Latin America and the Caribbean July 31 when First Lady Michelle Obama welcomed the crew home at Naval Station Norfolk. Comfort’s services included 

medical, dental, veterinarian, educational and civic action programs both ashore and afloat. 

Continuing Promise was a collaborative effort between the U.S. military forces, nongovernmental agencies and host nations. 

established partnerships and demonstrated goodwill showing America’s lasting commitment to countries in the Caribbean and Latin 

America. 

Comfort treated 100,049 patients, conducted 1,657 surgeries and treated 13,238 animals. The crew completed projects ranging from 

minor renovations and building new schools to community relations projects and public relation campaigns. 

PAGE 6

ToastmastersToastmasters

•Public speaking

•Leadership skills

•Communication

and overcome social phobia

...all for a better life!

Practice & Improvement:

Wednesdays

12:00 – 1:00

USUHS A2053

USU & AFRRI personnel –

stop by any time!

For information call: 301-295-3313

August 2009 marks 

the third annual Department of Defense 

(DoD) participation 

in the Centers for 

Disease Control and 

Prevention (CDC) 

National Immunization Awareness 

Month (NIAM) campaign. The goal of NIAM is to increase awareness about immunizations that are recommended for the entire lifespan of an individual. Within 

the DoD we often focus on the immunization needs of 

our deployed Service members and the immunizations 

required for children to attend school; but no matter 

the age or occupation, immunization health should 

be maintained throughout one’s lifetime. In the past, 

DoD has emphasized different parts of immunization 

healthcare. This year’s focus is on adult immunizations.

Immunization Health and the 

DoD Family

photos by Cmdr. Glen Diehl
Helpdesk Closure: The UIS helpdesk is closed for training on Thursdays from 10 to 11 a.m. During this time, you 

can leave a voicemail message at 295-9800, utilize the HEAT 

Self Service (http://www.usuhs.mil/uis/forms/trouble.html), 

or email help@usuhs.mil. If an emergency should arise, please 

call 295-9870.

Personal Exercise/Fitness Areas: Physical Fitness training should be conducted in designated areas. The only authorized space for PT within the university is room G060. 

All other spaces within the university are not authorized for 

exercise or fitness, with the exception of the Student Community Lounge area during specified PFT testing dates/

times. Indoor PT is also authorized on base at the Comfort 

Zone Complex, or CZC, in building 23. The CZC hours of 

operation are Monday – Friday from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. and 

on weekends and holidays from are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

PFT/PFA/APFT Fall 2009: The Fall 2009 Physical 

Fitness Test for all services is scheduled for Oct. 13-15 and 

20-22, 2009 at 0700 and 1200. Plan accordingly as all physical 

fitness testing, height, weight, and body fat measurements will 

be conducted at USU. No exceptions. If there are any questions please contact your service specific fitness coordinators 

- Air Force contact Tech. Sgt. Troyann Ernle at 295-3281; 

Navy contact IT3 Robert Grounds at 295-9800 or HM1 Joe 

Monsivais at 295-1479; and Army contact Staff Sgt. David 

Rogers at 295-3720. 

Proper Use of Computer Resources: Security incidents 

continue to be a drain to limited USU Information Assurance 

manpower. The following highlight current DoD policy and 

best practices: Personnel must not install self-coded or non-licensed software on network resources; add, remove, configure, 

or attempt to modify USU computer operating systems or programs; move audio/visual or network cables, computers or attempt to connect personal computers to the network including 

MDL and lecture hall spaces; connect personal devices except 

for those previously authorized by UIS; download pornographic material and store or display offensive material, such as racist 

literature, sexually harassing or obscene language or material; 

store or process classified information on any USU system; 

permit unauthorized individuals access to a government-owned 

or government-operated system or program; access online gambling, games and social engineering sites.

Military Awards Nominations: The next military awards 

panel will convene August 25. Nomination packages will be 

due through the chain of command no later than August 18. 

Any award with higher precedence than the Defense Meritorious Service Medal must be submitted 150 days prior to presentation. Please provide a signed copy as well as an electronic 

version to Air Force Tech. Sgt. Louella Campbell at (301) 

295-1515 or lcampbell@usuhs.mil or HM2 Sylvia McBee at 

(301) 295-3423 or Sylvia.mcbee@usuhs.mil.

photo by Ken Frager

USU Briefs

Name the Newsletter... 

Thanks to all who have submitted suggestions over 

the last few weeks to rename the USU Newsletter. 

We have received dozens of responses and now 

need to consider all of the suggestions. Watch for 

our decision in early September. Thanks for your 

participation and for your continued support and 

readership.

The USU Newsletter Staff

PAGE 7

Caption contest

The winning caption: “Please, God, let this field exercise be over 

soon!” submitted by Navy Ens. Jeffrey P. Fennelly.

Congrats to the runner-up, Barbara Pedevilliano, NCC Anesthesiology Residency Coordinator, Supervisory Educational Specialist and to 

third-place Navy Cmdr., Chaplain Bruce Mentzer. 

...and thanks to all who submitted.