By Jon Nalick
As any courier knows, delivering a package on time is just part of the equation. But it also has to be delivered to the right place.
The same is even more true inside a human cell, where timely, accurate deliveries of chemical messages, proteins and fuel mean the difference between life and death for the cell—and between health and disease for the body as a whole. … Read More »
In the previous edition of The Weekly, we announced that we would be publishing biweekly starting with this issue. Many of you who pick up The Weekly at campus newsstands or receive it in the mail will continue to see us in print every two weeks.
If you want more of The Weekly, you can find us at www.theweekly.usc.edu. It’s another way for you to catch up on the latest news from the Health Sciences Campus and other Keck Medicine of USC locations. … Read More »
By Alison Trinidad
USC has recruited renowned spine surgeon Jeffrey C. Wang, MD, to join its faculty as co-director of the USC Spine Center, a multidisciplinary program offering comprehensive services for spinal disorders.
An international leader in spine care with expertise in the surgical treatment of all neck and back disorders, Wang joined Keck Medicine of USC on Sept. 1 as chief of orthopaedic spine surgery at the Keck Medical Center and professor of orthopaedic surgery and neurosurgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. … Read More »
By Alison Trinidad
USC has recruited four physicians specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders that affect hearing, balance, speech, swallowing, sleep and facial function to join its faculty physician practice. … Read More »
By Amy E. Hamaker
Early childhood is a time for discovery, playing with friends and learning more about the world. But for Jacob Landis, it was also a time for that world to go silent.
Two-year-old Landis took his first hearing test when his mother felt that his speech development was slower than normal. Landis’ hearing was compromised, and over the next three years, his hearing continued to deteriorate — he was fitted with his first hearing aids in kindergarten. By fourth grade, Landis had lost his hearing entirely.
After more than 600 appointments with otolaryngology doctors, audiologists and other specialists, Landis was finally referred to John Niparko, MD. In June 1999, Niparko performed cochlear implant surgery on Landis, who was just 10 years old. … Read More »
By Elise Herrera-Green
Sheila Lau, a second-year student in the Keck School of Medicine of USC’s Primary Care Physician Assistant Program, has been selected to receive a 2013 National Association of Medical Minority Educators (NAMME) Scholarship. Lau was one of only eight students in the nation selected for this scholarship. … Read More »
By Amy E. Hamaker
Early childhood is a time for discovery, playing with friends and learning more about the world. But for Jacob Landis, it was also a time for that world to go silent.
Two-year-old Landis took his first hearing test when his mother felt that his speech development was slower than normal. Landis’ hearing was compromised, and over the next three years, his hearing continued to deteriorate — he was fitted with his first hearing aids in kindergarten. By fourth grade, Landis had lost his hearing entirely.
After more than 600 appointments with otolaryngology doctors, audiologists and other specialists, Landis was finally referred to John Niparko, MD. In June 1999, Niparko performed cochlear implant surgery on Landis, who was just 10 years old. … Read More »
William J. Mack, MD, was named to the board of directors of the Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery (SNIS) at the group’s Annual Meeting. In this position, Mack, an assistant professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery at the Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, will play a leading role with the society in continuing initiatives to resource, train and support veteran and new practitioners to bring advanced treatment approaches to neurovascular conditions. … Read More »
By Tania Chatila
Laurie Johnson comes to the Keck Medical Center of USC with more than 30 years’ experience in L.A.-based health care.
(Photo/Courtesy Keck Medical Center Human Resources)
The Keck Medical Center of USC has welcomed the newest member of its leadership team — a longtime, Los Angeles-based health-care administrator who will oversee outpatient operations while also ensuring long-term growth of the medical center’s overall ambulatory business.
Laurie Johnson assumed the position of executive administrator of ambulatory services on Sept. 3. In this role, reporting to Scott Evans, PharmD, CEO of Keck Hospital of USC and USC Norris Cancer Hospital, Johnson will manage the administrative, fiscal and operational activities of all of the Keck Medical Center’s hospital-based outpatient offices. She will be responsible for planning, implementing and evaluating delivery of care, service excellence, performance improvement and fiscal stewardship. … Read More »
Keck Medicine Health Information Services is celebrating National Health Information Technology Week, Sept. 16-20, here on the Health Sciences Campus.
Information booths can be found daily during lunchtime at the Keck Hospital of USC cafeteria. Visitors can receive free gifts, snacks and a chance to win a free Microsoft Surface RT tablet device. … Read More »
By Amy E. Hamaker
Bernice Christenson has a long history with USC, beginning with her time studying for her master’s degree in education in 1955. She was a founding member of the Keck Hospital of USC Hospital Guild, and president in 1995; she received the Widney Alumni House Award in 1997 for outstanding leadership, volunteerism and loyalty to the university.
Keck Hospital of USC and USC Norris Cancer Hospital CEO, Scott Evans, PharmD, and Luanda Grazette (right), MD, MPH, associate professor of clinical medicine at the Keck School of USC, celebrate the gift of a Cheetah NICOM monitor from Bernice Christenson (left) at a special luncheon in Christenson’s honor.
(Photo/Amy E. Hamaker)
At 95 years old, Christenson continues her support of USC through the gift to Keck Hospital of USC of $15,000 for a noninvasive monitor that will help physicians to better evaluate cardiac conditions with less discomfort to patients.
The USC School of Pharmacy, the USC Center for Excellence in Research and the Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at USC have collaborated to present a Careers in Science lecture.
The lecture will be held on Friday, Sept. 13, from 3-6 p.m. in the conference room (BCC 101) at the Eli and Edythe Broad CIRM Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research building at USC. … Read More »
The Roxanna Todd Hodges Stroke Foundation will be holding a Stroke Awareness & Prevention seminar at USC Verdugo Hills Hospital on Thursday, Sept. 5, from noon to 2 p.m. The guest speaker will be Nerses Sanossian, MD, assistant professor of neurology and associate director of the Neurocritical Care/Stroke Section at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. … Read More »
In the coming months, you’ll be seeing more — and less — of The Weekly.
Big plans are in the works. Soon we’ll be going digital and you’ll find us online! But, don’t worry — you’ll still find us in print. … Read More »
By Josh Grossberg
Researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of USC have found a way to identify patients who may be susceptible to certain complications while recovering from large wounds and complicated reconstructive surgeries. The team’s findings have been published in August in the Public Library of Science’s online publication PLOS ONE.
The team, led by Alex Wong, MD, assistant professor of clinical surgery at the Keck School, discovered five genetic biomarkers that can identify patients who could be susceptible to vein failure after receiving “flaps.” Flaps are tissues that are teeming with tiny blood vessels, which can be moved from one part of the body to another to help the healing process. … Read More »
It’s the start of the fall semester, and Keck School of Medicine of USC students are back on the Health Sciences Campus! … Read More »
The second annual Roxanna Todd Hodges Visiting Lectureship in Stroke Prevention and Education was awarded to Cheryl Bushnell, MD, MHS, associate professor of neurology at Wake Forest School of Medicine. Bushnell is director of the Wake Forest Baptist Stroke Center and a thought leader in issues regarding women’s health and stroke, and performing community interventions for reducing stroke risk.
Bushnell’s lecture, “21st Century Stroke Prevention: What will it look like?” was presented at Neurology Grand Rounds held the morning of Aug. 6 at the Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, part of the Keck School of Medicine of USC.
After years of limited advertising in the market, Keck Medicine of USC will hit the airwaves this fall with two 30-second television commercials featuring 15 physicians, researchers, nurses and support staff.
The two ads promote Keck Medicine of USC by showcasing Keck Hospital of USC and the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center. They will air on major networks and cable outlets the week of Sept. 7 and will continue through May 2014. (Schedule to be announced.) … Read More »
By Cristy Lytal
Chinese businessman Yong Chen has pledged $1 million to USC stem cell researcher Qi-Long Ying to support his future “eureka moments.”
“When I talked to Mr. Chen, I told him that groundbreaking discoveries often come from unexpected directions,” said Ying, PhD, associate professor of stem cell biology and regenerative medicine at the Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at USC. “You suddenly have a very creative and unusual idea, and you test it. And it works.” … Read More »
Celebration and fanfare continued for USC Verdugo Hills Hospital as leaders from the organization welcomed more than 150 dignitaries from throughout the community at a reception held Aug. 19 at the Glendale, Calif., hospital, the University of Southern California’s newest addition to its growing clinical enterprise.
Following a rousing entrance by the USC Trojan marching band, USC Health Senior Vice President and CEO Tom Jackiewicz, MPH, kicked off the event with a special greeting and introduction of elected and community officials and guests and the hospital’s new CEO Debbie Walsh, RN, MSN. … Read More »