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Spots are still available for our Rhine Castles and Swiss Alps River Cruise next year (August 22–29, 2022). The trip includes the Floriade Botanical Expo which only occurs once every ten years. Join us as we visit France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.
llusmaa.org
Alumni Association bookings also receive a bonus $75 shipboard credit. Perpetual members receive an additional $100 Amazon gift card.
In “Yearning for Healing,” Dafne T. Moretta, class of 2011, shares her experience providing medical care to Venezuelan refugees in Cucuta, Colombia.
llusmaa.org
By Dafne T. Moretta ’11 My husband and I flew to Colombia to help Venezuelan refugees in August 2018. Venezuela has been in a downward spiral for years with political unrest, hyperinflation, power o...
Jonathan Villena-Vargas has been on the front lines of the pandemic from its beginning. He is asst. attending cardiothoracic surgeon, New York Presbyterian Hospital and asst. professor of clinical cardiothoracic surgery, Weill Cornell Medical College (WCMC), Cornell University. He also conducts translational immunotherapy research at WC’s Neuberger Berman Lung Cancer Research Center.![]()
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“What impressed me about being in the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic at Cornell and NYC was our dedication,” he says. “From doctors to nurses, respiratory therapists, hospital janitors, not one person called in sick. Nurses came out of retirement and served food in the cafeteria. Young nurses, just out of school, took on extra shifts. Brave nurses from other states came to help. New York Philharmonic played virtual concerts in patient rooms. Eager medical students roamed the halls.”![]()
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After medical school he completed a residency in general surgery at Mount Sinai Health Systems (NYC) and a research fellowship in immuno-oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering; he also completed a fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery at WCMC.![]()
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“The most influential mentor I had at LLU was Dr. Leonard Bailey,” he says. “I remember as a third-year medical student assisting in heart transplants, learning about his initial curiosity and research. He saw a problem and worked hard to find a solution, revolutionizing the field.![]()
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“Attending a Christian University allowed me to treat the whole patient. Medicine at its core is a humble attempt to serve our fellow man. From the first person who extended their hand to help a fallen man to the woman who fed soup to a sick child that wasn’t her own—this is what the medical field is and what being a doctor is all about.”![]()
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He received the WCMC Dean’s Diversity and Healthcare Disparity Research Award; Outstanding Teaching Award (Albert Einstein School of Medicine); Looking to the Future Scholarship (Soc. of Thoracic Surgery); and the Chairman’s Award for Excellence in Basic Science Research (Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Ctr.).![]()
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Committed to training the next generation of cardiothoracic surgeons, he mentors medical students, researchers, and residents.
What happens after a medical mistake is made? Nancy Berlinger, PhD, shares practical, conceptual, theological, and moral implications during her lecture, “After Harm, Truth-telling, Apology, Repair, Forgiveness in Health Care Work." This Jack Provonsha Lectureship took place during the 88th Annual Postgraduate Convention.
2020 Jack W. Provonsha Lecture: Nancy Berlinger, PhD
www.youtube.com
“After harm: truth-telling, apology, repair, and forgiveness in healthcare”Speaker: Nancy Berlinger, PhD, Research Scholar at the Hastings Center
Ask Alumni a bi-monthly podcast where we talk to alumni of Loma Linda University School of Medicine to gain insights and information to help students and young alumni on their medical journey.
askalumni.buzzsprout.com
Ask Alumni a podcast where we talk to alumni of Loma Linda University School of Medicine to gain insights and information to help students and young alumni on their medical journey.
Richelin Veluz Dye, PhD, presents "Aging and Memory: Lifestyle Factors to Reduce Risk of Cognitive Decline." This seminar took place during the 88th Annual Postgraduate Convention.
www.youtube.com
In "AIMS Report: COVID-19 Relief at Bangkok Adventist Hospital," Steven W. Hildebrand, ’80-A, describes how the Alumni in Mission Service Council is providing support to alumni who are serving internationally. ![]()
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llusmaa.org/aims-report-covid-19-relief-at-bangkok-adventist-hospital/
Dr. Heather McKenzie is an associate editor and active participant on the editorial team that envisions and produces the Alumni Association’s ALUMNI JOURNAL. Each year she takes the lead role as an issue editor for one of the publication’s three issues. She is also a member of the Media Advisory Council where she works with fellow alumni to envision how content prepared by the Alumni Association is created and shared on the Association’s website, social media accounts, and as video, publications and podcasts.![]()
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Dr. McKenzie is board certified in anesthesiology, and her subspecialty is obstetric anesthesiology. She works with a private practice group in Atlanta, Georgia, where she was recently appointed chief of obstetric anesthesiology.![]()
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Her involvement with the Alumni Association began when she was looking for a way to give back. “Until 2019, I hadn’t been involved with the Alumni Association,” she says. “Besides receiving a JOURNAL or DIRECTORY from time to time, I knew very little about it.” This changed when friends shared with her the Association’s commitment to helping alumni connect with each other and encouraging medical students.![]()
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When asked what accomplishment she’s most proud of, she says, “Becoming a physician in a country and area that I have the opportunity to contribute to enhancing health care, especially for women.”![]()
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In her spare time she enjoys travel and cooking, and skydiving is the most outrageous thing on her bucket list she hasn’t yet accomplished. On a normal day her fitness tracker logs 11,000 steps while on busy days 24,000 steps are not uncommon. ![]()
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The advice Dr. McKenzie would give to herself the day she graduated with her MD degree is the same advice she shared in the speech she gave at her high school graduation: “With God, the sky is the limit. Think out of the box.”![]()
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#llusmaa #lomalindauniversity #doctor #llusm #llumedschool #alumnijournal
David Puder, MD, presents "An Analysis of the Opioid and Suicide Epidemic in America." This lecture was presented March 6 during the 88th Annual Postgraduate Convention.
David Puder, MD - An Analysis of the Opioid and Suicide Epidemic in America
www.youtube.com
David Puder, MD, shares his expertise on opioid addiction and suicide at Loma Linda University's Annual Postgraduate Convention.
Did you know that up to 80% of all people experience lower back pain at some point in their lives? In his seminar “Pain Management: Lower Back Pain,” Dr. Eugene Pak describes treatment options and steps that can be taken to help prevent this common occurrence. This seminar was presented during the 89th Annual Postgraduate Convention.
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Spots are still available for our Rhine Castles and Swiss Alps River Cruise next year (August 22–29, 2022). The trip includes the Floriade Botanical Expo which only occurs once every ten years. Join us as we visit France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.llusmaa.org
Alumni Association bookings also receive a bonus $75 shipboard credit. Perpetual members receive an additional $100 Amazon gift card.
In “Yearning for Healing,” Dafne T. Moretta, class of 2011, shares her experience providing medical care to Venezuelan refugees in Cucuta, Colombia.llusmaa.org
By Dafne T. Moretta ’11 My husband and I flew to Colombia to help Venezuelan refugees in August 2018. Venezuela has been in a downward spiral for years with political unrest, hyperinflation, power o...
Jonathan Villena-Vargas has been on the front lines of the pandemic from its beginning. He is asst. attending cardiothoracic surgeon, New York Presbyterian Hospital and asst. professor of clinical cardiothoracic surgery, Weill Cornell Medical College (WCMC), Cornell University. He also conducts translational immunotherapy research at WC’s Neuberger Berman Lung Cancer Research Center.“What impressed me about being in the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic at Cornell and NYC was our dedication,” he says. “From doctors to nurses, respiratory therapists, hospital janitors, not one person called in sick. Nurses came out of retirement and served food in the cafeteria. Young nurses, just out of school, took on extra shifts. Brave nurses from other states came to help. New York Philharmonic played virtual concerts in patient rooms. Eager medical students roamed the halls.”
After medical school he completed a residency in general surgery at Mount Sinai Health Systems (NYC) and a research fellowship in immuno-oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering; he also completed a fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery at WCMC.
“The most influential mentor I had at LLU was Dr. Leonard Bailey,” he says. “I remember as a third-year medical student assisting in heart transplants, learning about his initial curiosity and research. He saw a problem and worked hard to find a solution, revolutionizing the field.
“Attending a Christian University allowed me to treat the whole patient. Medicine at its core is a humble attempt to serve our fellow man. From the first person who extended their hand to help a fallen man to the woman who fed soup to a sick child that wasn’t her own—this is what the medical field is and what being a doctor is all about.”
He received the WCMC Dean’s Diversity and Healthcare Disparity Research Award; Outstanding Teaching Award (Albert Einstein School of Medicine); Looking to the Future Scholarship (Soc. of Thoracic Surgery); and the Chairman’s Award for Excellence in Basic Science Research (Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Ctr.).
Committed to training the next generation of cardiothoracic surgeons, he mentors medical students, researchers, and residents.
What happens after a medical mistake is made? Nancy Berlinger, PhD, shares practical, conceptual, theological, and moral implications during her lecture, “After Harm, Truth-telling, Apology, Repair, Forgiveness in Health Care Work." This Jack Provonsha Lectureship took place during the 88th Annual Postgraduate Convention.2020 Jack W. Provonsha Lecture: Nancy Berlinger, PhD
www.youtube.com
“After harm: truth-telling, apology, repair, and forgiveness in healthcare”Speaker: Nancy Berlinger, PhD, Research Scholar at the Hastings Center
Ask Alumni a bi-monthly podcast where we talk to alumni of Loma Linda University School of Medicine to gain insights and information to help students and young alumni on their medical journey.askalumni.buzzsprout.com
Ask Alumni a podcast where we talk to alumni of Loma Linda University School of Medicine to gain insights and information to help students and young alumni on their medical journey.
Richelin Veluz Dye, PhD, presents "Aging and Memory: Lifestyle Factors to Reduce Risk of Cognitive Decline." This seminar took place during the 88th Annual Postgraduate Convention.www.youtube.com
In "AIMS Report: COVID-19 Relief at Bangkok Adventist Hospital," Steven W. Hildebrand, ’80-A, describes how the Alumni in Mission Service Council is providing support to alumni who are serving internationally.llusmaa.org/aims-report-covid-19-relief-at-bangkok-adventist-hospital/
Dr. Heather McKenzie is an associate editor and active participant on the editorial team that envisions and produces the Alumni Association’s ALUMNI JOURNAL. Each year she takes the lead role as an issue editor for one of the publication’s three issues. She is also a member of the Media Advisory Council where she works with fellow alumni to envision how content prepared by the Alumni Association is created and shared on the Association’s website, social media accounts, and as video, publications and podcasts.Dr. McKenzie is board certified in anesthesiology, and her subspecialty is obstetric anesthesiology. She works with a private practice group in Atlanta, Georgia, where she was recently appointed chief of obstetric anesthesiology.
Her involvement with the Alumni Association began when she was looking for a way to give back. “Until 2019, I hadn’t been involved with the Alumni Association,” she says. “Besides receiving a JOURNAL or DIRECTORY from time to time, I knew very little about it.” This changed when friends shared with her the Association’s commitment to helping alumni connect with each other and encouraging medical students.
When asked what accomplishment she’s most proud of, she says, “Becoming a physician in a country and area that I have the opportunity to contribute to enhancing health care, especially for women.”
In her spare time she enjoys travel and cooking, and skydiving is the most outrageous thing on her bucket list she hasn’t yet accomplished. On a normal day her fitness tracker logs 11,000 steps while on busy days 24,000 steps are not uncommon.
The advice Dr. McKenzie would give to herself the day she graduated with her MD degree is the same advice she shared in the speech she gave at her high school graduation: “With God, the sky is the limit. Think out of the box.”
#llusmaa #lomalindauniversity #doctor #llusm #llumedschool #alumnijournal
David Puder, MD, presents "An Analysis of the Opioid and Suicide Epidemic in America." This lecture was presented March 6 during the 88th Annual Postgraduate Convention.David Puder, MD - An Analysis of the Opioid and Suicide Epidemic in America
www.youtube.com
David Puder, MD, shares his expertise on opioid addiction and suicide at Loma Linda University's Annual Postgraduate Convention.
Did you know that up to 80% of all people experience lower back pain at some point in their lives? In his seminar “Pain Management: Lower Back Pain,” Dr. Eugene Pak describes treatment options and steps that can be taken to help prevent this common occurrence. This seminar was presented during the 89th Annual Postgraduate Convention.
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