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Texas State students, faculty honored at ASCLS conference

Posted by Jayme Blaschke
University News Service
August 18, 2015

Ten students and faculty from the Clinical Laboratory Science program at Texas State University were honored during the 2015 American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science (ASCLS) Conference, held July 29-Aug. 1 in Atlanta, Ga.

Students Meghan Colvin received the Beckman Coulter Travel grant and Alpha Mu Tau scholarship; Jazmen Myers received the Dorothy Morrison Memorial scholarship, the ASCLS Student Forum travel grant, Keys to the Future and was elected ASCLS Student Forum national chair; Bihn Pham received the ASCLS Education and Research scholarship; Jasmin Davis received the ASCLS Education and Research Edward C. Dolbey graduate scholarship; and Elizabeth M. Edmunds received Keys to the Future. Also, Stephanie Fennelly made a round table presentation on cystic fibrosis molecular detection.

Among faculty, Joanna Ellis received the Theriot Award; Gerald D. Redwine received the CLS Distinguished Author award for a Clinical Laboratory Science journal Focus article; and Rodney E. Rohde received the Cardinal Health #urEssential award, the CLS Distinguished Author award for a Clinical Laboratory Science journal Focus article, Clinical Laboratory Science journal Practice article and the Joseph J. Kleiner Memorial Award for Best Clinical Laboratory Science journal article of the year. Additionally, Dave Falleur served as the ASCLS annual meeting chair for 2015 and will serve as ASCLS Advanced Management Institute meeting chair for 2016.

Physical therapy researchers win Stanford Award for journal article

Posted by Jayme Blaschke
University News Service
February 26, 2014

A team of researchers in the Department of Physical Therapy at Texas State University has won the Stanford Award for an article published in the Journal of Physical Therapy Education.

The Stanford Award recognizes the author of a paper "containing the most influential education ideas" published in the journal.

Brenda Boucher, Eric Robertson, Rob Wainner and Barbara Sanders published the article "'Flipping' Texas State University's Entry-level Physical Therapy Musculoskeletal Curriculum and Implementation of a Hybrid Learning Model" in the Journal of Physical Therapy Education 2013:27(3);72-77.

The award was presented at the 2014 Combined Sections Meeting of the APTA, Education Section Meeting in early February. The Stanford Award was initiated by Kay Shepard in 2000 through an endowment.

Respiratory research holds implications for suction catheter use

Posted by Jayme Blaschke
University News Service
January 13, 2014

Researchers in the College of Health Professions at Texas State University have published an article that will have bench top clinical applications for respiratory care.

Department of Respiratory Care associate professors Chris Russian and Joshua Gonzalez, along with assistant professor Nicholas Henry published "Suction Catheter Size: An Assessment and Comparison of 3 Different Calculation Methods" in the Jan. 1 issue of the journal Respiratory Care.

Current American Association for Respiratory Care clinical practice guidelines recommend a suction catheter to endotracheal tube ratio (SC/ETT) based on the external diameter of the suction catheter and the internal diameter of the endotracheal tube. The researchers show that volume and area calculations provide an alternative method for determining the SC/ETT ratio that is comparable in effectiveness to current methods.

The article abstract may be found at http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/59/1/32.abstract.

Texas State faculty, staff honored by journal as distinguished authors

Posted by Jayme Blaschke
University News Service
July 25, 2013

Rodney E. Rohde, associate professor in the Clinical Laboratory Science program at Texas State University, will be honored with the Clinical Laboratory Science Distinguished Author Award.

Rohde, along with his co-authors Tom Patterson and Gerald Redwine, both with the Clinical Laboratory Science Program in the College of Health Professions, Cheryl Rowder, former associate professor with the St. David’s School of Nursing in the College of Health Professions, Bob Edward Vásquez in the School of Criminal Justice and Dr. Emillio Carranco, director of the Student Health Center, will receive the award during the 81th American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science Awards ceremony to be held Aug. 1 in Houston.

The CLS Distinguished Author Award recognizes authors of original relevant articles that contribute scientific merit and value to clinical laboratory science, published in Clinical Laboratory Science. CLS is an award-winning, quarterly journal featuring articles on the very latest in research, education and government actions affecting the profession.

The article being recognized is "E. Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA): An Interim Report of Carriage and Conversion Rates in Nursing Students." The award-winning research project examined longitudinal colonization of Staphylococci, including the possibility of MRSA, in a cohort of nursing students over a two year time period. The prevalence of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) continues to be a serious concern in healthcare settings according to the CDC and WHO. Eighty-seven nursing students were periodically cultured for MRSA during their clinical rotations during the study. Self-administered questionnaires were collected from participants to assess demographic factors and risk for colonization.

The investigators concluded that MRSA did not increase in nursing students while S. aureus colonization remained fairly stable. However, there was a significant increase in non S. aureus species (e.g. S. epidermis, S. haemolyticus). A final report of the full study is in review by CLS with a publication date likely in late summer or fall 2013.

The project was supported by an internal grant from the Texas State Research Enhancement Program and an external grant from the Texas Society of Allied Health Professions. Additionally, the project was supported by the College of Health Professions.

Research and Innovative Practice Grant Award

Mr. Josh Gonzales (left), Assistant Professor, and Mr. Chris Russian (right), Associate Professor both in the Department of Respiratory Care, received a Research and Innovative Practice Grant award from the Texas Society of Allied Health Professionals (TSAHP) in the amount of $1,500.00.

The money will be used to purchase equipment and upgrades to a sophisticated test lung currently owned by the Department of Respiratory Care.

The goal of the research project is to provide an in-depth assessment of specific mechanical ventilator parameters while simulating a variety of partial and complete airway obstructions using a parabolic resistor ring (purchased using the grant funds). The test lung will record and calculate inspiratory and expiratory data as a result of the resistor ring and mechanical ventilator settings. We plan to complete an in-depth assessment of the test lung data to identify early indicators of partial and complete airway obstructions. Early detection of airway obstruction is key to reducing patient complications and avoiding life threatening emergency situations.

Texas State offers summer stuttering therapy program for adults

Posted by Jayme Blaschke
University News Service
June 13, 2012

The second Comprehensive Stuttering Therapy Program for Adults (CSTP-A) will be offered by the Department of Communication Disorders' Speech, Language and Hearing Clinic at Texas State University-San Marcos beginning July 9, 2012.

The CSTP is a therapy program developed for adolescents and adults who stutter. The program includes a residential intensive component and a non-residential structured follow-up component. The program is coordinated by Dr. Farzan Irani, whose research focuses on treatment outcomes for people who stutter.

The "intensive" component of the clinic will run for two weeks and include 60 hours of therapy. The "follow-up" component will be offered for a year after completion of the intensive component. The follow-up component will be completed using web conferencing technology that allows participants to attend therapy from their homes.

The CSTP is designed to provide therapy in a structured format that addresses various aspects of stuttering while paying attention to individual needs. The program will teach a number of speech techniques to deal with stuttering effectively in daily life, provide an opportunity to practice these techniques and increase control over fluent speech production. Additionally, the program addresses maladaptive reactions to stuttering on an individual level to help promote healthy acceptance of stuttering and develop the skills necessary to deal with a variety of real-life situations independently.

For more information, contact Dr. Irani at (512) 245-6599 or via email at firani@txstate.edu.

Texas State research on deadly MRSA infections named ‘Hot Topic’

By Kristina Kenney
University News Service
May 1, 2012

Research published on Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections in the international, open-access journal BioMed Central Health Services Research by two professors at Texas State University-San Marcos has recently been recognized as a “Hot Topic” on the journal’s website.

Authors of the study are Dr. Rodney Rohde, Associate Dean for Research at the College of Health Professions and Associate Professor in the Clinical Laboratory Science Program, along with Jovita Ross-Gordon, professor in the Department of Counseling, Leadership, Adult Education and School of Psychology. The research was conducted during Rohde’s Ph.D. dissertation, with Ross-Gordon as his dissertation chair in the Adult, Professional and Community Education (APCE) Program at Texas State.

Research addresses the staggering fact that more people in the U.S. now die from MRSA infections than from HIV/AIDS. These infections are often acquired in healthcare facilities or during healthcare procedures.

MRSA first emerged as a serious infectious threat in the late 1960s as the bacterium developed resistance to methicillin, the synthetic form of penicillin. These infections are quick to exploit any opportunity to invade wounds, nasal passageways or mucosal membranes where they can rapidly produce infections that can become life-threatening. Over the years, MRSA has been the focus of intense scientific and political interest around the world and has frequently been labeled as a superbug in mainstream media.

The high incidence of MRSA infections and the dangerously low levels of literacy regarding antibiotic resistance in the general public are on a collision course. The traditional medical approaches to infection control and the conventional attitude that healthcare practitioners adopt toward public and medical education are no longer adequate to avoid this collision. The study helps explain how people acquire and process new information and then adapt behaviors based on learning.

For more information on this research, please contact Dr. Rodney Rohde at rrohde@txstate.edu. To view and read the study in its entirety, visit www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1472-6963-12-88.pdf.

Arm robot boon to Texas State Physical Therapy patients

Texas State has launched a Balance and Gait Training Program. The Department of Physical Therapy students, in the teaching clinic, will learn to evaluate patients and work with the InMotion Arm Robot. The state-of-the-art device is used to benefit patients suffering hemiparesis-significant weakness on one side of the body due to stroke or brain injury.

For full article please go to the University News Service.

For additional information on the Balance and Gait Training Program, contact Dr. Denise Gobert, Department of Physical Therapy at (512) 245-8351 or via email at dgobert@txstate.edu