Weekly Updates: Week of Sept. 21
Study: Insomnia, sleeping less than six hours increases risk of cognitive impairment
College of Medicine researchers found that middle-aged adults who reported insomnia and obtained fewer than six hours of measured sleep in the laboratory were two times more likely to have cognitive impairment than people with the same insomnia complaints who had six or more hours of sleep in the lab.
The results may help health care professionals understand which patients who report insomnia are at increased risk of developing dementia.
Julio Fernandez-Mendoza, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral health, said about 25% of the adult general population reports insomnia symptoms and another 10% suffers from chronic insomnia.
Growing Hispanic population means increasing need to tackle health care barriers
William Calo and Dr. Jonathan Nunez are working to improve the health of Hispanics through community programs. They’re also helping health care professionals and students at Penn State Health and the College of Medicine understand the barriers that Hispanics face.
As the nation marks National Hispanic Heritage Month Sept. 15 through Thursday, Oct. 15, Americans are celebrating the culture and contributions of Latinos.
Calo, an assistant professor of public health sciences at the College of Medicine, is involved with a project to help Hispanics in Reading and Lebanon lead healthier lives.
Nunez, an infectious disease specialist at Hershey Medical Center, spoke to health care professionals about cultural challenges involving Hispanic patients during a Sept. 3 Inclusion Academy session sponsored by the Office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
Both Calo and Nunez emphasize the importance of making certain all health care workers have cross-cultural training.
I am Penn State Health: Kassie Heeman
As baby’s first photographer, Kassie Heeman knows her job is an important one.
Parents are anxiously awaiting their first peek, and the doctors need her images to gauge how well the tiny subjects are growing. “If I don’t see something, then the doctors don’t see it – and that’s a big deal,” said Heeman, who works as a sonographer at Hershey Medical Center in the Maternal/Fetal and Radiology departments.
Delivering both good news and bad comes with the territory, as not every sonogram captures a healthy, growing fetus. As much as she tries to reassure parents, Heeman said delivering sad news is always a tough challenge.
The reward lies in knowing how to take advantage of the noninvasive, highly beneficial ultrasound technology to deliver pictures that best prepare the medical team, parents and patients.
Bike share returns to Hershey campus
The bike share program returned to Hershey Medical Center and the College of Medicine on Friday, Sept. 18. Participants can borrow from a pool of 40 Movatic bikes spread across nine stations.
Membership options:
Penn State Health and College of Medicine:
- Free with a pennstatehealth.psu.edu email
- Free trips under an hour
- Then $1.50 per 30 minutes
Annual community membership:
- $25 annually
- Free trips under an hour
- Then $1.50 per 30 minutes
Pay as you go:
- $1.50 per 30 minutes
Sign up via the Movatic app via the Apple store or Google Play Store and start riding. If you have questions, contact Movatic in the app or at support@tandem-mobility.com. Click here for maps and more information.
Racial relations follow-up town hall scheduled for Sept. 30
Lynette Chappell-Williams, vice president and chief diversity officer for Penn State Health and associate dean for diversity and inclusion for Penn State College of Medicine, will host a town hall at noon, Wednesday, Sept. 30, addressing structural racism within our organization. Chappell-Williams will share recommendations from the racial justice town halls that took place across the organization in June and offer opportunities to get involved. Register here for the town hall.
College of Medicine strategic plan town hall moves to Oct. 1
The date of the first Penn State College of Medicine town hall meeting to discuss the 2020-2025 strategic plan has been changed to Thursday, Oct. 1, from 4 to 5 p.m.
Hosted by Interim Dean Dr. Kevin Black and including various college leadership, the town halls are designed to conduct broad outreach to gather information, data and suggestions from across the college. All are welcome to attend.
Visit this dedicated website for more information, to add the Oct. 1 town hall to your Outlook calendar and to access the Zoom link. Future town halls will be listed here as they are scheduled.
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