THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER JOINS LARGEST EARTHQUAKE DRILL IN CENTRAL UNITED STATES: GREAT CENTRAL US SHAKEOUT - APRIL 28 - US Fed News Service, Including US State News

MEMPHIS, Tenn., April 5 -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news release:

What would you do if an earthquake struck Memphis? Too many people stare dumbfounded at that question. Do you run outside? Jump in your car and head for home? Freeze in place and hope it will stop? Who knows what's best? On Thursday, April 28, more than one million participants in the Great Central U.

S. ShakeOut will practice exactly what to do when they participate in the largest earthquake drill in the Central United States. The more than 5,000 faculty, staff, students and administrators on the Memphis campus of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) will join the one- to two-minute drill, taking time to Drop, Cover and Hold On.

At precisely 10:15 a.m. on the designated day, UTHSC team members will Drop to the ground, take Cover under a sturdy desk or table, and Hold On to it until the shaking stops - in this case until the one-minute drill is completed. Following the drill, participants will assess their surroundings to identify any items that could have fallen and caused injury, such as unsecured bookcases or improperly stored lab chemicals. This information will be used to make the UTHSC campus more earthquake resilient.

As a linked event of the New Madrid Bicentennial and the National Level Exercise 2011, this first ever central U.

S. ShakeOut is being organized and coordinated by the Central U.

S. Earthquake Consortium and its member and associate states, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.

S. Geological Survey, and dozens of other partners.

Scientists estimate that there is a 25 to 40% probability of a damaging earthquake occurring in the central United States within the next 50 years. The ShakeOut is designed to help individuals and communities in the region get ready for damaging earthquakes, practice how to protect themselves (Drop, Cover, and Hold On), and to prevent disasters from becoming catastrophes.

'Drills are designed to make us think and plan ahead for what we know will eventually happen,' said John Bossier, safety officer for UTHSC. 'The ShakeOut will help participants be ready to react to this particular type of emergency.

'Knowing and practicing these three simple steps can prevent serious injury when an earthquake strikes,' Bossier observed. 'When you drop to the ground, that prevents you from falling or being thrown to the ground by the violent movement of an earthquake. Taking cover under a heavy table or desk protects you from falling objects loosened by the earthquake's force. Holding on for the duration of the emergency can help keep you protected from flying debris. The recovery process can begin only after the shaking stops.'

The Great Central U.

S. ShakeOut is free and open to the public. All individuals or organizations interested in disaster preparedness are encouraged to participate including schools, businesses, governments and families. States participating in the ShakeOut include Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee. These are the states most at risk from damaging earthquakes along the New Madrid Seismic Zone. Additionally, the states of Georgia, Oklahoma and South Carolina are participating in the ShakeOut. These states also have varying degrees of earthquake risk. For more information about the Great Central U.

S. ShakeOut visit www.

ShakeOut.org/centralus/dropcoverholdon.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service. In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrates its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care. Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy. The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit. In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit. Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state. For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu. For any query with respect to this article or any other content requirement, please contact Editor at htsyndication@hindustantimes.com

TONIA S. REX ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER AWARDED $200,000 GRANT FROM RESEARCH TO PREVENT BLINDNESS - US Fed News Service, Including US State News

MEMPHIS, Tenn., March 24 -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news release:

Tonia S. Rex, PhD, an assistant professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), has been named the recipient of the Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) Career Development Award, a $200,000 grant. Dr. Rex serves as an assistant professor in two UTHSC departments - a primary appointment in Ophthalmology, which is organized under the auspices of the UT Hamilton Eye Institute, and a secondary appointment in Anatomy and Neurobiology. She will continue to pursue her academic and scientific responsibilities in both departments.

The grant will be used to help equip Dr. Rex's laboratory and finance her research efforts. The term of the grant runs through 2014.

The RPB Career Development Award Fund was established in 1990 to attract young physicians and basic scientists to eye research. To date, the program has recruited 152 vision scientists to research positions in departments of ophthalmology at universities across the country.

'Dr. Rex is a talented research scientist and clinician who is very deserving of this award,' said Barrett G. Haik, Hamilton Professor and chair of the Department of Ophthalmology, and director of the Hamilton Eye Institute (HEI). 'We are grateful to Research to Prevent Blindness for their long-standing commitment to support sight-saving research.'

Founded in 2004, HEI consistently ranks among the top 10 providers of ophthalmic clinical care across the country. Its mission is to prevent blindness through patient care, research and education. As a premier eye center providing an advanced level of vision care, the institute's team manages more than 40,000 outpatient visits annually. HEI is the only university eye center providing an advanced level of vision care within a 200-mile radius of Memphis.

ABOUT RESEARCH TO PREVENT BLINDNESS

RPB is the world's leading voluntary organization supporting eye research. Since it was founded in 1960, RPB has channeled hundreds of millions of dollars to medical institutions for research into the causes, treatment and prevention of blinding eye diseases. For information on RPB, RPB-funded research, eye disorders and the RPB Grants Program, go to www.rpbusa.org.

ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service. In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrates its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care. Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy. The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit. In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit. Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state. For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu. For any query with respect to this article or any other content requirement, please contact Editor at htsyndication@hindustantimes.com

Health Net Management Inc. Announces Communications Department Personnel Changes - The Tennessee Tribune

Tennessee TRIBUNE, The
05-30-2001
HEALTH NET MANAGEMENT INC. ANNOUNCES COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL
CHANGES

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Health Net Management, Inc., has promoted Lisa Daugherty
from communications specialist to communications manager and added Andrea
Lybarger to its communications department as a communications specialist.

'We're very excited about having Lisa move into her new role as
communications manager and about having Andrea join our team,' Cynthia
Howard, senior vice president, sales and marketing, said. 'Lisa has done
outstanding work for us in the past, and we know that under her leadership
the best is yet to come for our communications department. Based on her
health care industry experience, we believe that Andrea will be a valuable
addition to Health Net.'

In her new position, Daugherty will oversee Health Net's marketing and
communications efforts, including-, direct mail, print, television, radio,
special events and manage a two-person staff.

Daugherty brings more than eight years of advertising, marketing and
communications experience to Health Net. Before Joining the Health Net
team, she worked for Saint Thomas Health Services as a marketing and
communications specialist. She also served as an account executive for Bill
Hudson & Associates and as an assistant account executive for Ericson
Marketing Communications.

Daugherty earned a degree in liberal arts from the University of Tennessee,
Knoxville and currently resides in Nashville.

As a communications specialist.. Lybarger will assist in putting Health
Net's marketing and communications plans into action. She will be involved
in efforts to distribute information about and promote Health Net through
multimedia channels.

Prior to joining Health Net, Lybarger served as a guest and community
services department representative for Abilene Regional Medical Center.
Before that she served as a medical information representative for the
center.

Lybarger earned her bachelor of applied studios, human services degree from
Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas.

Health Net www.healthnettn.com was formed in 1984. The Nashvillebased
company provides health benefits through a network of 35 contracted
hospitals and more than 3,000 physicians. Baptist Hospital, Saint Thomas
Hospital and Tenet HealthSystem hold interests in Health Net Management,
Inc., while TennQuest Health Solutions is the majority owner.

Article copyright Tennessee Tribune.

Article copyright Tennessee Tribune.
V.11;

WAFA KHASAWNEH, DOCTORAL NURSING STUDENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER RECEIVES FELLOWSHIP AWARD FROM SOUTHERN REGIONAL EDUCATION BOARD - US Fed News Service, Including US State News

MEMPHIS, Tenn., Aug. 8 -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news release:

This year, Wafa Khasawneh, a doctoral nursing student at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), is one of six individuals nationwide to receive a three- to five-year doctoral fellowship award from the Southern Regional Education Board. The doctoral candidate's work is focused on identifying strategies that support and promote breastfeeding for the health of both the mother and baby.

The incidence of breastfeeding in the United States has been declining over the past two decades. Such a decrease in prevalence and duration of breastfeeding can be attributed to numerous obstacles. Khasawneh explains, 'My primary concerns are to improve the health and quality of life for women and children. These are my strongest interests because they are fundamental to our nation's health.'

Khasawneh's goal is to be exposed to high-quality scientific research and education and share information about promoting mother-child health through breastfeeding practices within the scientific and health care communities. She intends to help create an awareness of this emerging national concern with the general public. The UT College of Nursing's Doctor of Philosophy program offers her the opportunity to participate in cutting-edge research projects that will benefit women and children's health. Khasawneh will conduct her dissertation using data from the CANDLE Study, Conditions Affecting Neurocognitive Development and Learning. Funded by The Urban Child Institute, CANDLE, http://www.candlestudy.org, is conducted by a cross-disciplinary team headed by the UTHSC Department of Preventive Medicine. CANDLE investigators examine factors that promote or inhibit a child's development and ability to learn from birth through the child's third year. More than 60 percent of women in the program are African-American. Data collected from the study will allow Khasawneh to analyze various factors that facilitate or hinder the act of breastfeeding.

The Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works with 16 member states to improve public pre-K-12 and higher education. Founded by the region's governors and legislators in 1948, SREB was America's first interstate compact for education. Today it is the only regional education compact that works directly with state leaders, schools and educators to improve teaching, learning and student achievement at every level of education. For more information, visit www.sreb.org.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service. In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrates its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care. Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy. The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit. In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit. Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state. For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu. For any query with respect to this article or any other content requirement, please contact Editor at htsyndication@hindustantimes.com

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR TONIA REX OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER RECEIVES $1.8 MILLION GRANT TO CONTINUE GLAUCOMA RESEARCH - US Fed News Service, Including US State News

MEMPHIS, Tenn., April 9 -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news release:

Tonia Rex, PhD, assistant professor in the Departments of Ophthalmology, and Anatomy and Neurobiology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), has received a grant totaling $1,874,688 from the National Eye Institute, a subsidiary of the National Institutes of Health. The award will fund research on glaucoma. The study titled, 'Novel Therapy and Mechanisms in Glaucoma,' will be conducted over a five-year period.

'I am grateful to have received this grant in this competitive environment,' said Dr. Rex. 'I am excited about performing this translational research geared towards providing important insights into the pathogenesis of glaucoma and the development of much-needed treatments for this blinding disease.'

The primary goal of Dr. Rex's research is to treat glaucoma using systemic neuroprotective gene therapy. Nearly three million people have been diagnosed with glaucoma, a leading cause of blindness in the United States. Current preventive therapies are directed at lowering the intraocular pressure (IOP), the most significant risk factor for the development of glaucoma. However, the need for daily treatment can lead to poor patient compliance.

Dr. Rex and her research team focus on an alternative IOP-independent neuroprotective therapy, wherein they modify the glycoprotein hormone that controls red blood cell production, known as erythropoietin. This modification diminishes the erythropoietic activity while preserving its neuroprotective activity, and packages it into a format to provide sustained, systemic delivery. Early results have shown that this therapy could lead to breakthroughs in glaucoma treatment.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH), the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.

S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service. In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrated its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care. Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy. The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit. In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit. Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state. For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu. For any query with respect to this article or any other content requirement, please contact Editor at htsyndication@hindustantimes.com

METHODIST TRANSPLANT INSTITUTE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER SETS RECORDS FOR TRANSPLANT VOLUMES, PATIENT SURVIVAL RATES - US Fed News Service, Including US State News

MEMPHIS, Tenn., Feb. 27 -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news release:

In 2011, the Methodist University Hospital (MUH) Transplant Institute, which is operated by physicians at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), set new records for transplant volumes and patient survival rates. The institute's 140-person team has become recognized as one of the top 10 transplant programs in the United States. Last year, a total of 270 transplants were performed, the most ever at the MUH Transplant Institute, up to 13 percent more than the prior year. The 2011 numbers included 122 kidney transplants, 138 liver transplants, and 10 kidney/pancreas transplants. Additionally, in 2011 adult patient survival rates markedly improved to 90 percent for liver transplants and 97 percent for all transplants combined.

'We are committed to working in tandem with UT Health Science Center to provide the best quality transplant services to our patients,' stated Gary Shorb, president and chief executive officer of Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare.

James D. Eason, MD, professor of Surgery at UTHSC and program director for the MUH Transplant Institute, noted, 'Some people still think a transplant is like this end-of-the-world, doomsday scenario, but most of our patients are in and out of the institute in a week. They spend as little as one or two days in the Intensive Care Unit.'

'The experience, skills and team commitment to quality care are the elements that make our transplant unit so successful,' observed Kevin Spiegel, chief executive officer of MUH. 'Our Transplant Institute receives patient referrals from some of the most prestigious cancer centers in the country, including MD Anderson, Sloane-Kettering, and Stanford.'

'UTHSC is a pivotal partner with Methodist in transplant, bringing a commitment to academic excellence and recruiting that has enabled us to achieve and sustain a top-tier program,' said David M. Stern, executive dean of the UTHSC College of Medicine, and vice chancellor for Health Affairs.

An alumnus from the UTHSC College of Medicine, Dr. Eason and the institute he leads are known worldwide for performing the 2009 liver transplant on Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. The surgery saved the billionaire's life, returned him to the maximum level of health possible, and extended the visionary's time.

'The UT-Methodist partnership enabled us to really create a dream team by recruiting what I consider to be the top transplant physicians from all over the country and world,' Dr. Eason said. 'This year, we are going to probably be one of the largest liver transplant programs in the United States and probably one of the 10-largest liver transplant programs in the world.'

The MUH Transplant Institute is a partnership program with the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. Methodist assumed management of UT Bowld Hospital and its transplant program in November 2002. Almost two years later, the UT Bowld Transplant Program moved to MUH, and the MUH Transplant Institute was formed. UTHSC continues to staff and operate the Transplant Institute.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service. In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrated its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care. Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy. The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit. In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit. Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state. For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu. For any query with respect to this article or any other content requirement, please contact Editor at htsyndication@hindustantimes.com

TERESA WATERS, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF PREVENTIVE MEDICINE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER RECEIVES $793,056 FROM DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES - US Fed News Service, Including US State News

MEMPHIS, Tenn., Sept. 12 -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news release:

Teresa Waters, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), has been awarded a grant totaling $793,056 from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, part of the Department of Health and Human Services. The award will fund her two-year study titled 'Responses to Medicare's Nonpayment for Preventable Hospital Complications.'

Dr. Waters' research project will examine the impact of a new Medicare payment policy on the quality of hospital care delivered to Medicare beneficiaries. On October 1, 2008, Medicare implemented a policy that denies payments to hospitals for any additional care associated with eight complications of medical care deemed preventable. These eight 'hospital acquired conditions' include such complications as an object left in patient during surgery, blood incompatibility, catheter-associated urinary tract infection, vascular-catheter-associated infections and inpatient falls. Medicare believes that its nonpayment policy will cut costs and improve quality of care. This new policy is unusual, however, because it is the first major use of negative incentives by Medicare.

'I'm very excited that the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has chosen to fund this research because we really need timely information on the impact of Medicare's new nonpayment policy,' said Dr. Waters. 'Other insurers often follow Medicare's lead, and Medicare is likely to consider expanding this payment change to additional areas of care.'

Dr. Waters will lead a team of researchers from UTHSC, the University of Florida, Virginia Commonwealth University, Kansas University Medical Center, and the University of Iowa in examining whether the policy has been effective in reducing targeted complications and how specific hospital circumstances have affected responses to the policy. The results will inform Medicare and other insurers about those aspects of the policy that are working as intended and those that are not , and can be used to tailor future payment policy changes.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is the United States government's principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves. HHS represents almost a quarter of all federal outlays, and it administers more grant dollars than all other federal agencies combined. HHS' Medicare Program is the nation's largest health insurer, handling more than one billion claims per year. Medicare and Medicaid together provide health care insurance for one in four Americans. For more information, visit www.hhs.gov.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service. In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrates its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care. Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy. The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit. In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit. Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state. For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu. For any query with respect to this article or any other content requirement, please contact Editor at htsyndication@hindustantimes.com