SMPH Intranet
For the School of Medicine and Public Health Community

In the Know Quick Links – Week of March 1, 2021

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Timely information to help build community within SMPH:

Resources for everyone

    • The Wisconsin Medicine Livestream returned on Wednesday, Feb. 24 to examine how SMPH and UW Health are pushing the boundaries of transplantation. Watch the video The next episode on immunotherapy innovations occurs on March 10 at 7 p.m. Read more
    • Administrative Improvement Awards call for nominations: individual and team awards recognize outstanding work at UW-Madison in process design or redesign, innovation, development or customer service that resulted in improved efficiency, increased revenue channels, cost savings and/ or improved service delivery. Deadline: March 5, 2021 at 5 p.m. Submit a nomination
    • Corpus Callosum, Ebling Library’s online art journal, is now accepting submissions of original visual, written, and multimedia art from students, faculty, and staff in the UW-Madison’s health sciences schools (SMPH, Nursing, Pharmacy, and Veterinary Medicine). The fall issue included inspiring writings, photographs, music and paintings. We cannot wait to see what the spring issue will bring. Deadline: March 12, 2021. Download a flyer | Submit here
    • Vaccination updates from UW–Madison and UW Health: Check these sites for current information.
        • Enforcement of Badger Badge restrictions related to university building access is in effect. Your Badger Badge must be green (access granted) to be in compliance to enter a campus facility. 
        • Please review this week’s message to employees, graduate and professional students, and undergraduate students. A wealth of FAQs can also be found here.
        • UW–Madison workplace safety training for spring semester: All employees are expected to complete the COVID-19 Spring Semester Training, available at hr.wisc.edu/covid19/workplace-training.
        • Changes to PPE ordering: SMPH is longer handling orders of personal protective equipment (PPE). Instead, submit PPE orders to central campus Materials Distribution Services (MDS). There is no cost to units for PPE needed for on-site work. Read more
      • Changes to UW–Madison events policy: Effective March 8, the new campus events policy will allow up to 50 people to gather indoors and up to 150 people outdoors.
        • Facial coverings and maintaining physical distancing are required.
        • No food or drinks are allowed at events.
        • Only individuals who can participate in the Safer Badgers program can attend university-sponsored events; no guests or visitors are allowed.
        • Whenever possible, the university still recommends that events and meetings continue to be held virtually. Read more
        • Note that this policy applies to the UW–Madison campus and differs from the order issued recently by Public Health Madison & Dane County pertaining to other locations in the city and county. Read more
      • Recently hired supervisors can attend a LifeMatters Supervisor Orientation on Wednesday, March 10 from 10-10:45 a.m. Register here and receive a link the day before the session. LifeMatters offers free and confidential assistance with life, work, family, and wellbeing. Learning about this important employee resource will help you support yourself and your employees.
      • Applications are now being accepted for the Spring 2021 Academic Staff Professional Development Grant program. Proposals must be submitted electronically to department chair/unit head by March 19. See the program’s website for eligibility requirements.
      • Payroll schedule and benefits deductions changes coming in 2021: Beginning in April, employees who are currently paid biweekly will have most deductions for benefits split evenly over the first two biweekly paychecks each month. Beginning in July, employees who are paid monthly will be moved to a biweekly pay schedule. See more information here, including about upcoming forums on these topics on May 4, May 13, and May 17. Read more
      • Visits for three leadership searches are currently underway: Chair of the Department of Neuroscience, Chair of the Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, and Chair of the Department of Medical Physics. Visit the leadership search candidate visit page for details. Recordings will be available on that page for those who cannot attend. Passwords to access video recordings are “Neuroscience2021,” “MedMicroImm2021,” and “MedicalPhysics2021” for each respective search.
      • The SMPH All Staff Town Hall will occur on April 8 from 10-11:30 a.m. This event is co-hosted by the SMPH University Staff Issues Committee, SMPH Committee on Academic Staff Issues, and Hope Broadus, JD, Associate Dean for Human Resources. The session will be livestreamed and recorded for later viewing. Additional information is forthcoming.
      • The Office of Strategic Consulting will host the 22nd annual Showcase event on April 8. Showcase provides an opportunity for colleagues from across the UW–Madison campus to share best practices, learn from each other’s successes, and connect. The all-day event is free and open to faculty, staff, students, and community members. Interested in presenting? Fill out this form by March 17 and submit your digital poster by March 29.
      • The Global Health Symposium on April 14 is titled “Fostering Resilience Through Indigenous Wisdom & Scientific Knowledge.” The event, which is co-sponsored by the Native American Center for Health Professions, will bring together a diverse set of speakers, and they hope the UW and community faculty, staff, clinicians and students will submit virtual poster presentations. New this year: A student poster contest with $500 scholarship prizes. Read more
      • Save the date for the Spring Faculty/Staff meeting on Monday, April 26 at 4:30 p.m. An agenda and Webex link are forthcoming. Ring in spring by hearing the latest updates from school leaders and submitting your questions for discussion.
      • Take note of upcoming deadlines to use personal holiday hours or vacation carryover. Read more
      • Big changes coming soon to MDS/Shop@UW system and other payment processes: In mid-April, MDS/Shop@UW will transition to ShopUW+. The new platform will allow users to see the status of orders and payment request, work more efficiently with electronic approvals, easily access supporting documentation, and submit traditional requisitions, direct payments (DPs) and payments to individuals (PIRs) electronically. Read more

      Resources for researchers

      • Clinical Genetics Symposium Series: From March 1 to March 12, the Department of Medical Genetics will offer noon-1:00 p.m. Seminars in Modern Clinical Genetics that highlight advances in genomic research relative to human disease. The lectures will focus on human genomic analysis and how these approaches, in research and clinical practice, can be applied to better understand basic mechanisms of disease, improve diagnostic accuracy and efficiency, and direct precision therapy. All are welcome. Download a PDF with details and Zoom links
      • New Training Opportunity for Clinical Research Personnel: Best Practices for Clinical Trials is a two-part virtual course that supplements the online CITI Good Clinical Practice (GCP) training UW-Madison offers and highlights key information for personnel involved in the conduct of clinical trials. The course is intended for research coordinators working on drug/device/FDA regulated trials who are within their first year of training, or those interested in a refresher on these topics. Register by noon on March 15 for courses sessions on March 16 and March 18, both at 1-2:30 p.m. Read more
      • The next installment of the 2021 Innovations in Informatics Seminar Series will be on March 9 at 4:30 p.m., titled “National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C) and the Data Enclave.” The presentation will feature Melissa Haendel, PhD, Director of Translational Data Science, Oregon State University. Read more and register
      • All who are involved in in research and/or outreach are invited to participate as a presenter in the 2021 UW Science Expeditions Open House on April 9, 10 and 11. Sign up to present here using your UW NetID (deadline: March 8).
      • The newest issue of Faculty Central has been released, with information about mentoring, preparing for promotion, and other faculty development resources. Read more
      • A 10-episode podcast series on mentoring has been released, based on a National Academies report chaired by Angela Byars-Winston, PhD, Professor, Department of Medicine. Tune in.
      • The next Health Equity & Diversity Lunch & Learn Series session will occur on March 18 from 12-1 p.m. on the topic “Decolonizing Care in Population Health.” Register
      • The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Education has launched a new funding effort called Promoting Industry Collaboration to facilitate university research partnerships and graduate student internships in collaboration with the private sector. A cover sheet with a 300-word abstract is due March 5 for all proposals.
      • Research Funding Opportunity — American Family Funding Initiative: The American Family Funding Initiative offers grants of $75-150K to stimulate and support cutting-edge, highly innovative, and groundbreaking research in the rapidly growing field of data science. American Family Insurance has partnered with UW–Madison through the American Family Insurance Data Science Institute (AFIDSI) to provide this research funding opportunity. All UW–Madison faculty and staff with PI status are eligible to apply. Additional details are available here. Deadline: March 17.
      • Postdoctoral researchers and graduate students are invited to submit posters for the 15th Wisconsin Stem Cell Symposium poster session and contest. Poster deadline: March 31. The event will be on April 14. Read more and register
      • Drug development funding opportunity — Submit a project proposal to WARF Therapeutics by April 5. The program collaborates with researchers working on translational research with a validated target and therapeutic disease hypothesis to advance their project closer to clinical testing — a “bench to bedside” approach. Learn more and submit

      Resources for medical educators and clinicians

      • Clinical Genetics Symposium Series: From March 1 to March 12, the Department of Medical Genetics will offer noon-1:00 p.m. Seminars in Modern Clinical Genetics that highlight advances in genomic research relative to human disease. The lectures will focus on human genomic analysis and how these approaches, in research and clinical practice, can be applied to better understand basic mechanisms of disease, improve diagnostic accuracy and efficiency, and direct precision therapy. All are welcome. Download a PDF with details and Zoom links
      • UW–Madison Office of Student Affairs is offering a virtual Mental Health and Wellbeing Summit  on March 11-12. All learners and other interested parties are welcome to participate in a wide variety of virtual events. Read more
      • Four articles set for publication in the next issue of the Wisconsin Medical Journal (WMJ) are now online ahead of print, including a brief report by authors from SMPH that shows Wisconsin HPV vaccination rates remain consistently below national averages. WMJ is a peer-reviewed, indexed journal owned jointly by SMPH and the Medical College of Wisconsin. Read more
      • Faculty physicians: this year’s U.S. News & World Report “Best Hospitals and Specialties” annual survey will be conducted soon through Doximity. Watch for your survey invitation from Doximity in late February through March 2021, and cast your vote for UW Health clinical specialty programs. A high reputational score can make a difference in rankings. Our academic medical center is usually a high performer in the data-driven categories, so if we turn out our vote, we can make a difference in the outcome.
      • The newest issue of Faculty Central has been released, with information about mentoring, preparing for promotion, and other faculty development resources. Read more
      • Save the Date: SMPH Medical Education Day will occur on May 27, 2021 at 8:30 a.m. as a virtual event featuring keynote speaker Cynthia Nebel, PhD, of Vanderbilt University. The event is open to all SMPH faculty and staff and will feature professional development opportunities, engaging workshops and oral presentation sessions that highlight education initiatives and innovation. Registration and agenda will be announced in mid-April. Read more
        • All faculty and staff are invited to submit proposals for Medical Education Day Oral Presentations. These will be brief 10-minute, virtual TED-style talks that highlight medical education research, initiatives, or innovations. Oral Presentations will occur during breakout sessions at Medical Education Day. Submissions are due by March 10. See here for more details and to submit a proposal.

      Upcoming Events: Anti-Racism and/or Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

        • SMPH Spring 2021 Initiative: Advance Health by Acting Against Racism. A new webpage for this initiative serves as the one-stop-shop for our anti-racism events this spring, as well as others on campus and resources for further learning.
        • Save the date for the SMPH Diversity Summit on April 20 from 4-6:30 p.m. The virtual event will feature keynote speaker Elena V. Rios, MD, MSPH, FACP, President & CEO of the National Hispanic Medical Association and President of the National Hispanic Health Foundation. Registration is now open and all are encouraged to submit a question for the Q&A discussion. The event is co-sponsored by SMPH and UW Health and part of the SMPH Spring 2021 Initiative: Advance Health by Acting Against Racism.
        • Shenikqua Bouges, MD, was honored as part of the Outstanding Women of Color award reception on March 3. Dr. Bouges, assistant professor in the Department of Medicine’s Division of Geriatrics and Gerontology, was recognized along with five other honorees in the 2020-21 cohort. Read more and watch a recording of the ceremony
        • A lecture on unconscious bias in medicine titled, “Who, Me Biased? The Reality and the Solutions to Unconscious Bias in Medicine” will be held on March 9 from noon-1:00 p.m. with Narjust Duma, MD, assistant professor (CHS), Department of Medicine. Dr. Duma’s research is focused on understanding the challenges faced by underrepresented groups in medicine, improving the diversity of our medical workforce and the effects of unconscious bias in medicine and medical education. This lecture is hosted by the Women in Science and Engineering Leadership Institute and The Alliance of Women Alzheimer’s Researchers in Wisconsin. Register
        • The next Health Equity & Diversity Lunch & Learn Series session will occur on March 18 from 12-1 p.m. on the topic “Decolonizing Care in Population Health.” Register
        • The Building Community/Ebling Library Book & Film Discussion Club has scheduled discussions on two books: Race After Technology: Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code on Wednesday, March 24 and Money, Marriage, and Madness: The Life of Anna Ott on Wednesday, April 21, both at noon. To register for these discussions and to get access to an electronic version of the either book, please visit the Book & Film Discussion Club website. Participants need not read the entire book to join in on the discussions.
        • SMPH presented a Martin Luther King, Jr. event on Friday, Jan. 15, 2021 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. featuring a talk and Q&A with Tito Izard, MD, President and CEO of Milwaukee Health Services Inc., an independent not-for-profit Federally Qualified Health Center. Watch the recording