Tue Nov 10
The College of Medicine recognized outstanding faculty, staff and students recently in a virtual 2020 Awards celebration meant to “thank you for keeping our medical school moving forward despite the challenges and for everything you do to teach our students, care for our patients and discover tomorrow’s medical treatments and cures” in the words of…
Thu Nov 5
With the global pandemic affecting almost all aspects of daily life, medical students who operate the free KNIGHTS Clinic have found creative ways to continue serving the community. In addition to conducting telemedicine clinics to continue seeing patients, students have started lifestyle coaching Zoom calls to teach patients better ways to manage their conditions and…
Thu Nov 5
As we approach the fall and winter holiday season, how can you plan festivities and still protect your guests, family and the community during COVID-19? The CDC offers suggestions to supplement local and state regulations that are in place. Different types of celebrations hold different risks of spreading the virus. Holding a holiday event with members of…
Fri Oct 30
With physical distancing restrictions in place and student outreach like the KNIGHTS and Chapman Clinics reducing services during the pandemic, UCF medical students have come up with new ways to serve the community. To help reduce the spread of the coronavirus, students have created “COVID Combat Kits” containing digital thermometers, facemasks, hand sanitizer and hygiene…
Thu Oct 29
After Hurricane Maria ravaged her home country of Puerto Rico in 2017, Rocio Vazquez Beltran came to Florida in search of a better future and an opportunity to continue her studies. She enrolled at UCF to complete her bachelor’s in biomedical sciences, but financial challenges during her third year of study forced her to move…
Thu Oct 29
Whatever our political opinions, we share one common view about medicine: Each one of us wants to stay healthy and wants access to a trained, knowledgeable and kind healthcare provider when we get sick. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us that medicine is not just a personal issue or choice. Elected officials also play a…
Mon Oct 26
Sudden cardiac death is the most common medical cause of death in athletes. About one in 40,000 children will have their hearts stop during exercise and one in five carry a gene that predisposes them to sudden cardiac arrest. Through his research, second-year UCF medical student Gabriel Krivenko is advocating for widescale echocardiogram (ECG) screening…
Fri Oct 23
Cancer researcher at the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, Dr. Alicja Copik. An immunity-boosting technology developed by the College of Medicine is being tested as a potential weapon in the fight against COVID-19. UCF cancer researcher Dr. Alicja Copik created the therapy that stimulates the body’s natural killer (NK) cells with nanoparticles to increase…
Thu Oct 22
If you caught the COVID-19 virus and are now well, your illness and your strength can help others. In this week’s health tip, we turn to Jane Gibson, an expert in molecular pathology and genetics at the UCF College of Medicine, on how convalescent plasma — blood plasma collected from people who have recovered from the…
Fri Oct 16
How do you make Zoom classes on biochemistry interesting? “You need a personality and an accent helps,” joked Associate Professor of Medicine Dr. Stephen Lambert of his full-time foray into online classes due to COVID- 19. Dr. Lambert, who hails from the United Kingdom said he knew he had to pull out all the stops…
Thu Oct 15
To effectively battle COVID-19, we all need reliable, accurate information. But what if you can’t understand the medical information your healthcare provider gives you? Health literacy is the ability to get, read, understand and use information to make appropriate health decisions and to be able to follow your provider’s instructions for treatment. But too many…
Tue Oct 13
More than six months into the COVID-19 pandemic, students have a new normal as they face the rigors of medical school, and the College of Medicine is taking steps to help ease their stress, including expanded peer and professional counseling programs. Dr. Katherine Daly leads the medical school’s wellness programs and said students, like everyone…
Thu Oct 8
Brain fog, difficulty concentrating and forgetfulness are common complaints among many cancer patients who have undergone chemotherapy. But while “chemo brain” affects about 75 percent of cancer patients, according to the American Academy of Neurology, the connection between cancer treatment and cognitive function has remained unclear – until now. College of Medicine researcher Dr. Dinender…
Thu Oct 8
Childhood obesity is a serious issue that has increased fivefold in the last 50 years. Today, one in three children in the United States is classified as overweight or obese. A variety of behaviors are linked to obesity in children, including lack of physical activity, diet, sleep and the amount of screen time a child…
Mon Oct 5
As the COVID-19 pandemic highlights health disparities and the need to better acknowledge the social determinants of health, the College of Medicine has added two faculty members to its new Population Health Sciences Department. Drs. Elena Cyrus (left) and Karina Villalba (right) both come to UCF from Florida International University, where they did extensive research…
Thu Oct 1
Should you be wearing gloves in public and at work to protect yourself against COVID-19? For answers, we turn this week to Erica Hoyt, a College of Nursing faculty member who teaches the fundamentals of nursing, including gloving. As part of this tip, she had her Community Nursing students research the effectiveness of gloves in…
Wed Sep 30
Matthew Abrams has dedicated his UCF medical school career to the LGBTQ+ community and his efforts were recently honored with two awards: a national scholarship and an award honoring the 49 people killed at Orlando’s 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting. Abrams, who is in his third year of medical school, was one of six students to…
Thu Sep 24
Many of us are feeling isolated because of COVID-19 and those feelings are especially hard for people in recovery from alcohol and drug abuse. September is National Recovery Month and in this week’s health tip, we turn to Megan Giddens, who leads Substance Use Disorder Services at UCF’s Student Health Services, on ways to support…
Wed Sep 23
College of Medicine faculty physician Dr. Analia Castiglioni is one of three women faculty honored by UCF President Alexander N. Cartwright on Wednesday with the university’s Women of Distinction Award. The award recognizes women faculty for their contributions to innovative teaching, with an emphasis this year on student engagement. Awardees were honored in an online…
Wed Sep 23
UCF President Alexander N. Cartwright honored three women faculty today with the university’s Women of Distinction Award. This year, the awardees were honored via Zoom and were given $1,000 in professional development funding. Applicants were asked their impact through the innovative ways they have engaged their students. The 2020 winners are: Cheryl Briggs, School of…