Population Health

Graduate Program Update

 

March 15, 2007

Informational
Websites

 

Biostatistics and

Medical Informatics
 

Demography and Ecology

Demography of Health

and Aging

Economics

Environmental Studies

 Institute for Research

on Poverty Seminars

La Follette School of
Public Affairs

 Sociology

Statistics

Transdisciplinary
Studies of Health and Society Working Group

 

Counseling and
Consultation Services

Graduate School

Graduate Student Council

Software Training
for Students

Teaching Assistants'
Association (TAA)

TAA Contract

Writing Center
Classes

Important Program Reminders


Fall 2007 Course Advising/Enrollment

Please look in your mailboxes for an important advising packet. The Fall advising period starts on Monday, March 19. The Fall enrollment period begins Monday, April 9.

Fall enrollment holds are placed on student records until signed Advising Forms for Fall are turned in to Lisa Steiner’s mailbox (7th floor WARF). Students who need to enroll in a 699 or 990 course need to complete a 699/990 Authorization Form for each relevant course in addition to the Advising Form. Please note that 699/990 Authorization Forms need to be signed by the instructor overseeing the work of the 699 or 990 course. Both forms have been included in the advising packet in your mailbox.

Please visit http://www.pophealth.wisc.edu/grad/info_curr_grad.htm for the following advising/enrollment resources:

  • Forms -- Course Advising Forms, 699/990 Authorization Form, and Course Advisor Change Request Form

  • Fall 2007 Course Grid – please refer to color key at bottom of grid

  • Statistics/Quantitative Electives Handout -- for students interested additional statistics/quantitative courses on campus


Summer 2007 Course Enrollment

The Summer enrollment period begins Monday, March 26. There are no general enrollment holds for summer; thus, there is not a Summer Advising Form to complete. However, if you intend to enroll in a summer 699 or 990 course, you will need to complete a 699/990 Authorization Form for each relevant course. The 699/990 Authorization Form needs to be signed by the instructor overseeing the work of the 699 or 990 course. These forms are available at http://www.pophealth.wisc.edu/grad/info_curr_grad.htm


Review Student Record for Incomplete/Pending Grades

All students should periodically review their student record (for example, at the conclusion of each semester) for any incomplete or pending grades. You should resolve any of the following grades: incompletes (I), no reports (NR), and progress (P) grades for any courses other than 990. If you find you have one these types of grades, you should contact the professor for the course. If the professor is a Population Health professor, he/she can contact Lisa Steiner at lmsteiner@wisc.edu for a Grade Change Form. If the professor is from any other department, he/she will need to work with their home department to complete a Grade Change Form. IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have not resolved an incomplete grade by the end of the next term in which you are enrolled, you are considered in bad standing by the Graduate School and could be placed on probation or suspended. Thus, review of these grades deserves your keen attention.

PhD Qualifying Exam

If you are a PhD student and would like to sit for the June 2007 Qualifying Exam, please email Kelly Haslam at haslam@wisc.edu by May 1, 2007. The dates for the June 2007 Qualifying Exam will be:

Monday, June 11: 8:30-11:30 (Epi)

Monday, June 11: 1:30-4:30 (Stats)

Tuesday, June 12: 1:30-4:30 (HSR)

Students will receive an HSR article upon conclusion of the 2nd exam (on the 1st day) and have the rest of that day and the morning of the next to review it prior to the HSR section of the exam. Further details regarding the exam will be provided in the upcoming weeks.

Exams conducted prior to June 2004 are available in the Commons for review and copying. These exams are intended to guide your course of study. You should not assume that exam question format or content will necessarily follow old exams. Course instructors will conduct Q&A sessions for the Qualifying Exam in the 758 WARF classroom during the week of May 21st. Students are expected to come prepared to ask questions at the Q&A sessions. The dates/times of these sessions will be:

Tuesday, May 22: 9:30-11:30 (Stats)

Wednesday, March 23: 9:30-11:30 (HSR)

Thursday, March 24: 9:30-11:30 (Epi)

Other Program Steps/Guidelines

For further details regarding the above or other program issues, please refer to the Academic Guide for further information: http://www.pophealth.wisc.edu/grad/info_curr_grad.htm


Recognition

Patty Grubb Selected for Award

Patricia Grubb is one of the five UW-Madison classified employees selected for the 2007 Classified Employee Recognition Award (CERA).  She and her guests have been invited to a special ceremony on April 11th at the Memorial Union in Madison.  Congratulations, Patty!

Lisa Colbert Joins Population Health Program Faculty

The MS/PhD Graduate Program is pleased to announce that Lisa Colbert of the Department of Kinesiology has recently accepted our invitation to join the Population Health Program Faculty.  Faculty and students alike believe her interests will compliment those of our program nicely.  Her research interests include physical activity in the prevention of cancer; benefits of an active lifestyle for cancer survivors; mechanisms of cancer risk reduction; and
physical activity in aging.  You can learn more about Dr. Colbert at
http://www.education.wisc.edu/kinesiology/faculty/#Colbert


Student Organization News

Volunteer Activities

Some fun upcoming events…. Thanks for your continued support and interest!

  • Extravagant Wine & Chocolate Tasting at Bunky’s Café to benefit Porchlight Inc, a local organization devoted to eliminating homelessness. On the evening of March 15, 5:30-9, $15 tax deductible donation, contact Marissa @ mkcourey@wisc.edu.

  • The MSMC Health Fair is coming up, on Saturday, March17th. And we need VOLUNTEERS!!! Please  consider singing up as we need lots of volunteers, especially if you are fluent in Spanish This is a great opportunity to get some clinical experience and help out the community. The event is at the Boys and Girls Club by the South Side clinic on Saturday March 17th, 10:45am-3:30pm. Contact Peter @ pmvila@wisc.edu

  • Camp Bingo is a fund-raiser for AIDS Network, AND a costume party, baby... you could win!!! A super fun event for an extremely important cause. Price of admission includes Bingo, Prizes, Entertainment, and Fun.  For $15, you will receive a Bingo Book of seven games (six Bingo Cards for each game) including two $250 Jackpot Games. Extra game books, Jackpot game cards, and food and beverages are available for purchase. Each event has its own theme with a contest for the best costume! March 25th 2pm, Highnoon Saloon, $15 cover. Contact Jessica @ jkathens@wisc.edu.


Poster Session Reminder

The annual Poster Session will be held all day on Monday, March 26, with presenters available for questions from 1-4 PM. The Philip M. Farrell Population Health Distinguished Alumni Lecture by Paula Lantz will take place at noon, food will be available afterwards. Refreshments will be available at 4 PM for the reception and the presentation of the Kit Allen Memorial Award for the best student poster.


Departmental Seminars

Monday Seminar Series

http://pophealth.wisc.edu/seminar.htm

All regular seminars held 12:00 noon, in Room 1309 Health Sciences Learning Center unless otherwise noted. Seminars on the first Monday of the month are co-sponsored by the UW Population Health Institute.

March 19

Bret Payseur, PhD, Assistant Professor of Medical Genetics, Laboratory of Genetics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, “Comparing Molecular Markers for Population-Based Association Mapping.”

March 26

Philip M. Farrell Population Health Distinguished Alumni Lecture –Paula Lantz, PhD, MS, Professor and Chair, Department of Health Management and Policy, and Director, RWJ Scholars in Health Policy Research Program, University of Michigan, “Title Pending” - Room 1335 Health Sciences Learning Center (please note room location)

If you have any questions about the departmental seminars, call Patty Grubb at 5-0516 or contact her by e-mail at pagrubb@wisc.edu

Wednesday Seminar Series

All seminars are held from 12:00-1:00 PM in 132 WARF unless otherwise indicated.

March 21

Albert Lanier: "Determinants and Patterns of Children's Health Insurance Coverage."

March 28

Melissa Boeke: "Incorporating Measures of County-Level Health Policies and Programs into the Wisconsin County Health Rankings"


Other Opportunities & Updates

Wisconsin Primary Care Research Forum

Greetings Wisconsin researchers,

Please mark your calendars now for the Wisconsin Primary Care Research Forum to be held at the Country Springs Hotel, Water Park & Conference Center in Waukesha, WI on Friday June 15th, 2007.

The Research Forum will be an excellent opportunity for you to present a paper or poster on completed research or works in progress on any topic relating to primary care research. We will also be adding a workshop for brief presentations of research ideas and open discussion.

The Research Forum will feature plenary sessions with Dr. Richard Brown, University of Wisconsin Department of Family Medicine and Dr. Ken Schellhase (tentative) of the Medical College of Wisconsin. Both Drs. Brown and Schellhase are exceptional leaders in their field. Educational workshops will include quality improvement in clinical settings and the development of teams.

We presently have scheduled workshops for and introduction to motivational interviewing and improving office practice. We welcome proposals for additional workshops.

This event is being sponsored by the Wisconsin Research and Education Network, The MCW Department of Family and Community Medicine, the Wisconsin Academy of Family Physicians and the UW Department of Family Medicine.

There is no registration fee to attend and CME credit will be awarded to attendees.

Overnight accommodations are available at the Country Springs Hotel by calling 262-547-0201 or 800-247-6640 or through their website at www.countryspringshotel.com.

See registration form, call for papers and abstract requirements.

Thank you for your interest.

Paul D. Smith, MD
WREN Director

"War on Cancer" and Accountability for Outcomes:
A Transatlantic Dialogue on How and Why of Success

April 16, 2007
1:15-6 pm

University of Wisconsin-Madison, School of Medicine and Public Health
Health Sciences Learning Center
750 Highland Avenue
Auditorium (Room 1325)

This workshop is the second in a series that examines emerging European Union-wide health policies and public health and their impact on the member states within the European Union. The workshops feature experts on the European Union recent initiatives in health policy and public health. University of Wisconsin experts on US Health policy and public health share their knowledge to create a transatlantic dialogue.

This 2007 workshop discusses how data dissemination can be used for accountability. The speakers will discuss the "war on cancer" from the EU and US perspectives. There will be three panels: Population Health Perspectives, Health Care Perspectives, and the Politics of Cancer and the Role of Governance. These categories are very general and overlap. The breakdown is designed merely to help structure what we hope to be a free flowing discussion. The dialogue will advance the sharing of experience and best practices on how and why success can be achieved.

This workshop is part of an ongoing a transatlantic dialogue. The first workshop was held on April 24, 2006 and was entitled "Public Health, Comparative Health Policy and Law in the European Union: A Transatlantic Dialogue". The topic for the 2007 workshop emerged from that earlier workshop. We expect the audience to include students and faculty from throughout the campus: the School of Medicine and Public Health, Social Sciences, Public Policy, Nursing and Law. Practitioners of medicine, law and business are expected to attend.

Sponsored by the UW-Madison European Union Center of Excellence (EUCE). Co-sponsored by the Center for Global Health (CGH), Law School Health Law Project, Global Legal Studies Initiative (GLSI), Institute for Legal Studies, Department of Population Health Sciences, Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC)

The workshop is free and open to public.  CLE (Continuing Law Education) credits have been applied for. Materials will be distributed.  Please check the workshop’s website at http://eucenter.wisc.edu/health for updates and the previous year’s workshop presentations and streaming video.

Please contact Sebnem Ozkan at eucenter@intl-institute.wisc or 608-265-8040 for more information.

Agenda

1:15 pm - 3 pm Discussion with speakers and commentators
(Food will be provided. To help us plan catering please fill out the short online registration form at http://www.zoomerang.com/survey.zgi?p=WEB22642PC586W. There is no charge for this event)

3 pm Opening Remarks

3 pm - 4 pm Population Health Perspectives

Speakers:

Dr. Michel Coleman
Professor of Epidemiology and Vital Statistics, Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology Unit, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
" Differences in survival between rich and poor - can the ‘war on cancer’ be won?"

Dr. Faruque Ahmed
Acting Chief of the Cancer Surveillance Branch
Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, CD
" National cancer statistics in the United States"

Commentators:

Prof. Patrick Remington
Department of Population Health Sciences at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH) and Associate Director for Population Sciences at the UW Comprehensive Cancer Center (UWCCC)

Dr. Mark Wegner
Chronic Disease Medical Director at the Wisconsin Division of Public Health; Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Health Sciences at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH); Participant at the Cancer Control Program at the UW Comprehensive Cancer Treatment Center (UWCCC)

4 pm - 5 pm Health Care Perspectives

Speakers:

Dr. Peter Boyle
Director WHO/IARC
" Health Promotion and Health Education in Cancer Prevention; European Code Against Cancer; Impact of the ‘Europe Against Cancer’ Programme; and New EU/EFTA Cancer Mortality Atlas"

Commentators:

Dr. Jim Cleary
Program Leader of the Cancer Control Program at the UWCCC; Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, UW School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH)

Gordon Ridley
Associate Dean for Administration and Finance, UW School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH)

5 pm - 6 pm Politics of Cancer and Role of Governance: How and why is it changing?

Speakers:

Dr. Jaroslaw Waligora
EU Commission "Health Information" Unit
" How the EU envisions its role in governance"

Commentators:

Prof. Pam Herd
Assistant Professor of Public Affairs and Sociology and Faculty Affiliate, Institute for Research on Poverty, UW-Madison

Prof. Graham Wilson
Professor of Political Science and Public Affairs, UW-Madison

Prof. Louise Trubek
Clinical Professor of Law, UW-Madison Law School and Director, Health Law Project


Certificate in Global Health

The UW Madison Center for Global Health is now accepting applications for the Certificate in Global Health, a collaborative offering of UW faculty from the schools of medicine and public health, nursing, pharmacy, veterinary medicine, and international studies. Through a 9-credit program that includes a global health field experience, the certificate prepares candidates to address health issues that transcend national boundaries, with an emphasis on health and disease in developing countries. The program is based in the Department of Population Sciences of the UW School of Medicine and Public Health and is administered by the Center for Global Health.

Available as a Graduate Certificate to professional students in the health sciences, and graduate students in health-related fields; and available as a Capstone Certificate to health care practitioners and persons who have a BA or BS in a health-related field, the global health certificate program meets the needs of both traditional and non-traditional students with an interest in global health.

Recognizing that candidates may want to develop global health skills while continuing with full-time employment, the Certificate in Global Health core courses are offered outside of the workday and are web-enhanced for easy access to course materials and increased opportunities to interact with faculty and students.

A detailed description of the certificate and an application form are available on the Center for Global Health website, http://www.pophealth.wisc.edu/gh/certificate.htm. The application deadline for 2007-2008 is April 13, 2007. Please forward this e-mail to individuals and groups who may be interested.

Questions? Contact Betsy Teigland, Network and Resource Coordinator, Center for Global Health, teigland@wisc.edu.

 

Teaching Assistant Needed for Fall Semester 2007
Public Health: Principles and Practice (PHS 780)

The Department of Population Health Sciences expects to appoint a TA to provide course assistance to POP HLTH 780, Public Health: Principles and Practice. The appointment is 50%. Responsibilities of this position include: coordinating guest lecturers, discussion leaders, and discussion group participants; researching case studies, grading class assignments and exams, and distributing guest lecturer evaluations. Attendance during class is mandatory. All NEW TA's are strongly encouraged to attend the New TA Orientation offered during Welcome Week (August 27 – 31, 2007).

All interested candidates should send a current CV or resume, along with a letter of interest to the Master of Public Health Program Office. All applicants who will be beyond their first semester of graduate school at the time of the appointment must be in good academic standing and making satisfactory progress in their program. Preference will be given to candidates who have successfully completed POP HLTH 780 Public Health: Principles and Practice and have prior teaching experience.

Full consideration will be given to applications received by April 1, 2007.

Send materials to:

Heather Cote
Student Services Coordinator
Master of Public Health Program
610 Walnut Street, 740A
Madison, WI 53726


Job Opening at the National Cancer Institute

A position within the Applied Research Program (ARP), in the Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (DCCPS), at the National Cancer Institute ( NCI ) is available immediately. Unlike federal jobs, the hiring process is quick as this is a contract position.

Position Description: The research assistant will function as a member of the Applied Research Program (ARP) and work with ARP staff on initiatives to promote the program mission. The research assistant will work collaboratively in a support role with scientific staff at the NCI and other Institutes at the NIH in the design, development and analysis of research projects and related activities Day-to-day activities will include:

  • Provide research management and analytic support for a range of major projects, including development of research protocols; designing and developing survey data collection instruments; development of computerized systems for data collection, reviewing and editing analytic databases, and performing portfolio analyses as needed.

  • Conduct literature searches and provide summaries of findings from literature as part of preliminary planning for new research activities and directions.

  • Participate in various conference calls and meetings for defined research projects potentially providing synopses of meeting discussion or action items.

  • Participate in activities related to improving the management and progress of research within ARP.

  • Draft reports.

  • Participate and aid in making recommendations and monitoring implementation to improve management and progress of extramural research managed within ARP.

  • Support scientific staff in conferring with other government agencies, extramural researchers and the broader scientific community on future projects, policy, and general research.

Qualifications:

  • Master's Degree in Epidemiology or knowledge and experience using various electronic software systems and databases (Windows Explorer, MS Word, Access, PowerPoint). Scientific background is ideal.

  • Two years or more post-graduate degree work experience.

  • Knowledge of management and administrative principles and practices that will enable the contractor to plan, develop, coordinate and evaluate epidemiologic and statistical research projects.

  • Experience with interrelationships between governments, educational, industrial and private research concerns.

  • Experience analyzing data and interpreting results of analyses.

  • Experience writing and editing documents.

  • Experience in a multi-tasking environment; specifically working in a timely manner on multiple projects in varying stages with several project directors and points of contact.

  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

  • Experience working effectively, both independently and with scientific and administrative staff, using professional interpersonal skills.

  • Experience being proactive and take initiative, as well as to follow directions.

Salary/Benefits: Salary is commensurate with experience and education. Benefits are provided.

To learn more about the ARP, please see the website: http://appliedresearch.cancer.gov/

If interested, please submit resume to Emily Dowling, Program Analyst, ARP, edowlinge@mail.nih.gov

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Send us your announcements and we will include them in the next issue of the Program Update. Send your announcements to us at lmsteiner@wisc.edu.

All announcements we receive that appear relevant to students, faculty and/or staff are included in the program update. Inclusion of an announcement in the program update does not imply endorsement of it.

   

 

© Department of Population Health Sciences