Posts Tagged

wynne

As we enter the third calendar year of SARS-CoV-2 (ugh), I see storm clouds close by, and the real possibility of brighter skies by the spring. First to the storm clouds. The omicron variant, as you know, is highly contagious and spreading very rapidly. The chart above is from the Financial Times and shows the […]

Welcome “back” and Happy New Year! It’s a cliché to say that those of us in leadership positions stand on the shoulders of giants, but in the case of Dr. Robert Eelkema, it’s absolutely true. As you may have heard, the UND SMHS family lost Bob last week at age 91. He was a giant […]

On Wednesday we held our annual Holiday Party, and as with last year, it was a virtual event. But unlike last year the attendance was modest and down from last year. We suspect that this modest turnout was a reflection of our “pandemic/virtual meeting fatigue” and, interestingly enough, may have been a demonstration of one […]

This past Tuesday was notable in two regards. Most important of course is that it was the 80th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The other event of note is that a federal court stopped (at least temporarily) the implementation of a SARS-CoV-2 vaccination mandate for employees working on federal contracts. Since […]

Yesterday UND sponsored a Town Hall meeting for faculty and staff to discuss the recent federal mandates for SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) vaccination. There was a productive “back and forth” discussion of the issues and implications for UND. Here’s a brief overview of what was discussed. There are three ways the Executive Order regarding vaccine requirements are […]

Recently, I attended the virtual retirement ceremony for Dr. Rick Vari, held October 29, 2021, by the Virginia Tech Carilion (VTC) School of Medicine where Rick was the Senior Dean for Academic Affairs and a founding faculty member. Many of you will remember Rick when he was a faculty member here at the School before […]

This will be a shortened column because of the shorter week due to the Veterans Day holiday yesterday. I’ll begin with a tip of the hat to each of the countless military veterans who have dedicated at least a portion of their lives to the protection of the United States. Your sacrifices—large and small—on behalf […]

This past Tuesday, Dr. Don Warne, associate dean for diversity, equity and inclusion, director of our Indians into Medicine (INMED) and public health programs, and chair of our newly established Department of Indigenous Health, testified in Washington, D.C., before the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the United States Senate. Dr. Warne got a […]

One week out from our annual continuing education symposium and I’m still in awe of the talent we’ve amassed here in North Dakota. Presenters from six different disciplines (from both UND and NDSU) gave six exceptional talks last week for our “Disrupting Aging” symposium, which, in the end, saw more than 100 participants-providers from across […]

All UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences (SMHS) faculty, staff, and students are invited to join us virtually for Java with Josh on Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021, with their own coffee, tea, or juice! Dr. Wynne will answer any questions you may have about the SMHS and its operations and events, plus COVID-19. Join us online […]

It may seem trite to say the obvious, but what makes institutions great is not simply wonderful facilities (such as the magnificent new School of Medicine and Health Sciences building in Grand Forks) so much as the people – faculty, staff, students, and friends and supporters – who occupy those facilities and support our operations. […]

I should begin by noting that earlier this week we celebrated Indigenous Peoples’ Day. As you know, the UND SMHS has made Indigenous health and healthcare – not to mention the education of Indigenous health providers – one of our major goals. Just a month ago, for example, we announced the formation of the world’s […]

Fall is in the air, of course, which means not only Fighting Hawks football but Homecoming at UND. If you’ve not already done so, remember to register for one of our Homecoming events, in particular our annual interdisciplinary continuing education symposium taking place at least virtually, if not in-person, on Friday, Oct. 22. The topic […]

This past Wednesday was a bitter-sweet day as we wished “Happy Retirement” to Dr. Jacque Gray with a drive-by celebration. Dr. Gray, associate director of Indigenous Programs at the UND Center for Rural Health and program director of the National Indigenous Elder Justice Initiative (NIEJI), is retiring after 22 years with us! I hope you […]

This week the faculty of the School held virtual symposia organized through the auspices of two of our research capacity-expanding grants sponsored and funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The first symposium was on Tuesday and centered on investigations related to host-pathogen interactions (HPI), especially by microbial pathogens. Obviously, the subject of microbial-human […]