SUMMER 2011
Celebrating the 20th anniversary of our state's AHEC program!
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"Wisconsin AHEC: On Location" presents highlights of programs and people who bring teaching and learning to life in communities across the state. Suggestions for future articles are welcome; send your ideas to Keri Robbins, Wisconsin AHEC Communications Coordinator.
CONTEST - Identify the health department pictured in the masthead above for an "exciting" prize. Send your entry (be sure to include your U.S. Mailing address) to: webmaster@ahec.wisc.edu
In this issue:
- Profile: Welcome Brenda Gray, PhD, MPH - Milwaukee AHEC Center Director
- Teaching: Wisconsin Express, by Kristen Lucas - Site Coordinator: Stevens Point/Amish
- Curriculum Development: Interprofessional Education workgroup - Northeastern WI AHEC
- Featured Programs:
1)
Farm Disaster Drill - Scenic Rivers AHEC
2)
College Camp - Northern Highland AHEC
- AHEC announcements
 MILWAUKEE - We are delighted that Brenda Gray has accepted our offer to move to Wisconsin and become the Center Director of Milwaukee AHEC. Brenda began her position in July.
"Our interview team was deeply impressed with Brenda's training and experience in mentoring, coaching, research, board development, working with non-profits and funding," writes John Brill, MD, MPH, President of the Board of Milwaukee AHEC. "In person, her passion for community health, enthusiasm, ability to make a presentation, quick grasp of complex dynamics and ease at making connections shone through."
Brenda received her PhD from Jackson State University's College of Education and Human Development, where she completed her dissertation on “Health Value, Self Efficacy, Health Locus of Control: Cognitive Perceptual Factors Influencing Health Promoting Behavior in Minority College Students.” She also holds a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Alabama.
John adds: "On behalf of the Board of Directors, I also wish to thank Suzanne Letellier for her excellent work as interim director, and all of the AHEC staff for keeping on our mission during this transition."
Read more about Brenda in her One-page professional profile 
STEVENS POINT - North Central AHEC welcomed six students to participate in this year's Wisconsin Express, representing a variety of educational backgrounds including Nutrition, Family Nurse Practitioner, Health Education, Nursing, Biomedical Science and Pre-Med. The focus of the 2011 program was the Amish/Mennonite population. Based in Plover, Wisconsin, the students began their experience on Sunday, May 22 with a group dinner followed by an evening of ice-breaking activities. Much to the surprise of the group, the session was interrupted by a tornado passing just to the south of the Plover area. As the students watched the funnel cloud pass by, large hail wreaked havoc on the cars in the parking lot – bringing a whole new meaning to "ice-breaking" activities.
Sunny skies greeted the students the following morning. The day began with a webinar which chronicled the history of the Amish people and offered insight into Amish/Mennonite life, community, faith and culture. This webinar was a collaborative effort between NC-AHEC and Deborah Morse-Kahn. Deborah is a public historian and specialist in American ethnic and religious communities with a particular interest in the Amish and Mennonite population. North Central AHEC Center Director Suzanne Matthew, PhD, facilitated the day's events, which included a live question and answer session with Deborah.
After receiving this in-depth lesson about Amish life and culture, the students were ready to visit some Amish/Mennonite communities. On Tuesday, the students traveled to... Full story
MANITOWOC - Northeastern WI AHEC has convened a work group of academic partners to develop
more interprofessional (IP) student training opportunities in the region.
Group members represent the region's schools and colleges, including: Bellin College, UW-Green Bay, UW-Oshkosh, Lakeshore Techinical College, Moraine Park Technical College, Fox Valley Technical College, Marian University, and Concordia University.
IP education is defined by the Center for the Advancement of Interprofessional Education (CAIPE): ˜Interprofessional Education occurs when two or more professions learn with, from and about each other to improve collaboration and the quality of care." The IP work group is addressing the need for students to develop stronger interdisciplinary teamwork skills, which will enhance students' preparation for their roles after graduation when they will work with many other types of professionals. While in school, students rarely have opportunities to practice with students from different degree programs; this IP workgroup is looking at ways to help academic programs incorporate IP opportunities into their curriculum.
Three key projects that the group plans to implement this year are:
1) a
survey of academic and health care partners regarding attitudes and opinions
regarding IP education and teamwork;
2) an IP workshop for faculty from all health professions, in October;
3) an IP experience for students, in January.
If you are interested in more information about this project or other intiatives in this region, please contact Marty Schaller, Center Director of Northeastern Wisconsin AHEC
FARM DISASTER DRILL: A "Friday the 13th" scenario trains WARM students and emergency personnel in rural trauma care
LA CROSSE - With support from Scenic Rivers AHEC, medical students from the WARM (Wisconsin Academy for Rural Medicine) program stationed at Gundersen Lutheran experienced first-hand a simulated farm disaster on Friday, May 13.
"The scope of this day is amazing," writes Martha McCabe, Center Director of the Scenic Rivers AHEC. "I am very pleased with the partnership willingness of SWTC and UWSMPH along with all of the other partners."
This summary was published in "Bridges," the Gundersen Lutheran newsletter (June 2011):
A farmer is making repairs to the inside of his silo when he slips and falls 30 feet to the bottom, severely injuring himself. That is the scenario that played out recently on the Greco farm in rural Decorah where Gundersen Lutheran, along with emergency personnel from several agencies in Northeast Iowa, participated in a daylong rescue drill. The victim was played by a SimMan 3G simulator from Southwest Technical College in Fennimore, Wisconsin. Emergency personnel had the opportunity to work on rescue techniques to stabilize and remove the victim from a very confined space. The victim was then transported to Winneshiek Medical Center in Decorah before being flown by MedLink AIR to Gundersen Lutheran.
Also participating in the drill were eight medical students from Gundersen Lutheran who are part of the Wisconsin Academy for Rural Medicine (WARM) program.
"The WARM students, most of whom will be practicing in rural Wisconsin, had an opportunity to see all of the steps that occur with rural trauma patient care, literally from the scene of the accident to a regional hospital to Gundersen Lutheran for trauma care," explains Kim Lansing, MD, PhD, Gundersen Lutheran Family Medicine and director of WARM for the Western Academic Campus of the UW School of Medicine and Public Health. Dr. Lansing would like to thank all of the agencies who collaborated on this event to make it a success including: Lawrence and Joan Greco for the use of their farm, Scenic Rivers Area Health Education Center for the funds to rent the patient simulator and provide lunch, Winneshiek Medical Center, Gundersen Lutheran Department of Surgery, MedLink AIR, Tri-State Ambulance, the Decorah Fire Department and Southwest Technical College.
RHINELANDER - Middle school students from local schools, including Three Lakes, Rhinelander, Tomahawk, and Eagle River explored hands-on activities to discover "Who Wants A Health Career" during a week-long College Camp. A second session of the camp - named the Verol Mae Ritchie Camp - welcomed Native American students from Lac du Flambeau.
One of the most popular and memorable activities occurred toward the end of the week, during the veterinary medicine segment, when a special guest visited the campers. The students were delighted to use a syringe to administer a dose of applesauce to the miniature pony brought to visit by Lenore Mangles, Dean of Health Occupations at Nicolet College - and they reported that the pony enjoyed the experience, too.
Gail Nelson, Northern Highland AHEC Project Coordinator, and Jennifer Labs, a nursing instructor for Nicolet College, co-taught the sessions designed for campers with an interest in health professions.
The students participated in a variety of fun and educational sessions throughout the week, with an action-filled agenda that included... Full story
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