September, 2011 - University of the Incarnate Word

CAMPUSpage 4 www.uiwlogos.orgSeptember 2011Teledermatology accessgets under students’ skinBy Dana SootodehLOGOS STAFF WRITERGot a skin problem?University of the Incarnate Word students have a new way to get a dermatologist’sconsultation regarding skin problems within a matter of minutes. It’s called “teledermatology”and UIW students need only access dermavisit.com to get answers.Dermavisit.com is a HIPAA-secure website that allows students direct accessto a dermatologist for their skin care issues. HIPAA is an acronym for the HealthInsurance Portability and Accountability Act, which requires the establishment ofnational standards for electronic health care transactions and national identifiers forproviders, health insurance plans, and employers. The standards are meant to improvethe efficiency and effectiveness of the nation's health care system by encouraging thewidespread use of electronic data interchange in the U.S. health care systemThrough the means of a computer, UIW students can receive quick answers, includingdiagnosis and treatment.This is how it works. A picture of the student’s skin problem is taken in UIW’sHealth Services Office. The picture is immediately forwarded to a board-certifieddermatologist on dermavisit.com. The student then can be diagnosed and prescribedsomething to help her or his situation.Longtime Health Services Director Marveen Mahon, a registered nurse, workswith Dr. Scott Henslee at San Antonio Skin & Cancer Clinic to help make teledermatologypossible.“Telemedicine is the wave of the future,” Mahon said. “Teledermatology providesa time-saving, cost-effective way to get a diagnosis online and if necessary, provide aprescription within 24 hours.”Dermavisit.com allows students to work around their schedule, instead of waitingfor weeks to be seen, she said.“For more complicated cases, it’s a very fast way to find out if you need a followupwith a dermatologist in person.” Mahon says.Students are charged $50 a visit, with follow up e-mails from the dermatologistincluded in the cost.“Students have to pay online with (a) credit card at the time of the referral,”Mahon said. “In the future, the doctor hopes to get insurance to cover this type oftelemedicine.”Health Services adds dental spaceBy Ashley RamirezLOGOS STAFF WRITERThe Campus Health Center now permanentlyhas a dental office that will caterto basic dental needs a student has. Andthe services are free if you have studenthealth insurance.If you have insurance from the university,you can visit Dr. Olaf Haerens,the on-site dentist. Haerens, a graduateof the University of Texas Health ScienceCenter dental branch in Houston, hasbeen doing dentistry 15 years.The dental service has been availablefour years, but now has become permanentwith the permanent office, which is veryunique because before the doctor wouldhave to his equipment with him. TejasDental Care PA is working in conjunctionwith student insurance services to providethis service.Haerens and his assistant, Cassie Rice,are the personnel for the office whichprovides basic dental services includingteeth cleaning, fillings, some extractions,and just overall basic dentistry. They comeabout once a month, usually on a Wednesdayfrom 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Appointmentsare recommended to ensure being seen.“Sometimes it’s hard for studentsto find a dental office, especially for theinternational and out-of- state students,”Haerens said. “Here, it is very consistentwith the staff and the work we do.”ASHLEY RAMIREZ/LOGOS STAFFDr. Olaf Haerens, right, and his assistant, Cassie Rice, get ready to examine Teddy Namirembe, a UIW gradstudent, in the new dental suite available in the Health Services office. Appointments are highly recommended.Headwaters Coalition seeks volunteers for workdaysBy JoAnn JonesLOGOS PHOTO EDITORThe Headwaters Coalition is looking for volunteers to help beautify the HeadwatersSanctuary of the San Antonio River.Volunteer work includes gathering brushpiles and logs to be placed in the woodchipper, the dispersal of mulch piles and the removal of dry brush from along the streetto reduce the risk of fire hazard. Volunteers also will be tasked with invasive speciesremoval from the headwaters trails.Any volunteers interested are asked to dress appropriately as most of the volunteerwork is done in wooded areas. Appropriate attire includes closed-toe shoes, glovesand pants.The Headwaters work days take place on Fridays from 2 to 5 p.m. and Saturdaysfrom 9 a.m. to noon through the semester. Fridays include Sept. 30, Oct. 14, Nov. 4and Dec. 9. Saturdays include Oct. 1, Nov. 12, Dec. 3 and Jan 7.For more information or inquiries about the work days, contact Helen Ballew,director of the Headwaters Coalition, at helen@headwaterscoalition.org or HowardS. Homan at howard.homan@gmail.com.Alpha organizations beginsBy Sana HarharaLOGOS STAFF WRITERFirst-generation college students –the first in their families to seek a degree-- have some needs a group of facultywho teach them want to address.At the University of the IncarnateWord, that faculty group is calling itselfAlpha.A recent study found first-generationstudents tend to face more obstacles intheir academic career that come fromfamily with a potentially misguided imageof college, and some lack of orientationthan traditional students.Alpha wants to work with thesefirst-generation students. Ten facultymembers in the group met Sept. 20 withstudents who came to a meeting in MarianHall Ballroom. Plenty of pizza wasthere to help feed the conversation thattook place between students and facultyaround several tables.The concept for Alpha sprang fromfaculty involved in a book club meetingorganized by Dr. Susan Hall, directorof the Center for Teaching and Learningat UIW. Dr. Tanja Stampfl, anassistant professor of English, and Dr.Tim Milinovich, an assistant professorof religious studies, are co-founders ofAlpha.“Our main goal for this semesteris to find out about past and ongoinginitiatives that benefit first-generationstudents and to start to reach out tothis group, primarily the freshman class,which contains a large number of firstgenerationstudents,” Stampfl said.Alpha’s goal for next semester is tobuild a mentoring network that is led byfaculty members in the task force and bypeer mentors (first-generation juniorsand seniors), she added.JOSCELYNE PONDER/LOGOS STAFFUIW students and faculty enjoy refreshments at the first Alpha meeting for first-generation college students.“Each leader team will be assigneda specific number of students and meetwith them regularly throughout thesemester, and the various leaders willmeet in monthly meetings to discusstheir findings and exchange strategies,”Stampfl said.At some point, Alpha, which plansto meet again Oct. 13 in Marian HallBallroom, would like to conduct a moreformal study of student needs, experiences,and successes of first-generationstudents at UIW that will benefit thosecoming in the future.Freshman Eric Pitty, a double majorin English and psychology, was amongthe students who attended the first Alphameeting.Although no one else in his familyhad attended college, Pitty said, he wasdetermined to seek a degree.“It (his decision to attend college)occurred sometime within my junioryear of high school when and where Iwas able to speak freely with my Englishdual-credit professor, whom I nowconsider a very good friend of mine,”Pitty said.“She, unlike my family who merelywent through the motions of saying ‘Goto school’ without actually offering anyguidance, expected me not only to havegood grades in high school, but to goonto college and really make somethingof myself -- something beyond whateven my family expected from me. I oweher for where I am today, no question.”For first-generation students, Pittysaid, “we are opening the door for ourfamilies into the collegiate world. As wepave a way outside what our family hashenceforth traversed, we make the visionfor attending college more psychologicallyviable for those generations still tocome.”'Light the Way' gets some helpBy Urshila OroscoLOGOS STAFF WRITERMore than 200 students showed up at two “Light the Way” workdays earlierthis month, eating free tacos and earning community service hours along the way,the coordinator said.Liz Valerio, special events coordinator for the Office of Public Relations, said 110students showed up Saturday, Sept. 10, and 115 on Saturday, Sept. 24, including thewomen’s soccer team, to inspect and replace bulbs on the strands of light bulbs inpreparation for the traditional holiday display set to kick off Saturday, Nov. 19.“They were told to replace old faded light bulbs on each strand of lights,”Valerio said.To pass the time, Valerio played Christmas music and every couple of hoursduring the three-hour sessions gave door prizes. She said six door prizes were givenat each workday, usually T-shirts, flash drives and water bottles.Valerio said she wrapped the door prizes in Christmas wrapping and encouragedthe winners to open up the packages they chose.“ ‘It’s Christmas in September,’ I would tell them. ‘Open up your presents.’ ”DESIREE SANCHEZ/LOGOS STAFFStudents work hard to inspect strands of old Christmas lights for UIW's annual 'Light the Way' celebration.