brendaembree

Students from HLTH 440 are assisting the NEMO Heart Health Committee again this semester (fall 2011). The major objective of the NEMO Heart Health Committee is:  1) to raise community awareness about AEDs (Artificial  External Defibrillators) and how they can be used in case of a sudden cardiac arrest; and 2) to raise money for the purchase of AEDs that will be placed in local businesses and facilities.

In just one year, NEMO Heart Health has placed over 20 AEDs throughout the Kirksville community.  The latest placement was at Trinity United Methodist Church in mid-September 2011.  The AED was made available in honor of Jack Bowen, former HES faculty member.  Pictured in the photo are members of the Bowen family.  Chelsie Covey, HS major, served as the AED mascot for the day.

Former Truman State Health and Exercise Science majors got a special treat as part of the  Homecoming festivities on Saturday, October 8, 2011; they got to see their former dean, who worked at the school for more than 30 years.

Dr. Fontaine Piper returned to Truman State University to take part in a Dedication ceremony. The new movement analysis lab in the Health Sciences building was dedicated in his honor. The lab will be used by students studying physical therapy and athletic training to study muscle activity and analyze the body in motion.

Piper retired from the school in 2005. He returned Saturday to accept the honor and to speak to former students, colleagues, and friends.

“It’s kind of overwhelming,” said Dr. Piper.  “You don’t think about those types of things when you’re here. I never had aspirations to think that one day, I ‘m working to have a lab named after me. I just did what I thought I was paid to do and that was to provide the best education for the students that were sent here.”

The lab will be getting new equipment such as a force plate, where students can analyze ground reaction forces, and a 3D motion analysis system which involves installing 12 3D cameras around the room so that students can analyze motion at different angles.

Senior Health Science major Margaret Loehnig took a trip during the summer of 2011 to Cape Town, South Africa, along with 20 other Truman students. The trip was one aspect of a course entitled Democracy and Human Rights in South Africa, led by sociology professor Dr. Elaine McDuff. In Cape Town, Margaret completed an internship at Maitland Cottage Home (MCH). MCH is an inpatient pediatric orthopedic hospital in which children may receive surgery for numerous conditions affecting their bones, including (but not limited to) leg length discrepancies, Blount’s, cerebral palsy, clubfoot, tuberculosis of the joints and/or spine, hip disorders, and fractures due to motor vehicle accidents. The children then recover in the wards and receive schooling and physical therapy.
Margaret’s job as an intern was to observe the work of the physical therapist, assisting whenever possible. She learned how to measure crutches for the patients, became familiar with several assistive devices that may be used in therapeutic settings, and observed the stretches the physical therapist performed with the patients. She also had the unique opportunity to help doctors put plaster casts on patients with clubfeet.
Margaret’s favorite part of the experience was interacting with the children at MCH. “They treated me as a playmate, teacher, and physical therapist combined, and I learned just as much from them as they learned from me. Most of the children were barely discouraged by their physical disabilities; they approached all challenges with energy and dignity. Even in the moments when they were being naughty or bossing me around, the children at MCH never failed to put a smile on my face. On my last day, they all wrote me letters and drew me pictures. It was painful to say goodbye.”

Abbie Smith, PhD, CSCS joined the Department of Exercise and Sport Science at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, as an assistant professor in July, 2011. Dr. Smith completed her undergraduate degree from Truman State University (Kirksville, MO) in Health and Exercise Sciences, and she completed her graduate work in Exercise Physiology from the University of Oklahoma (Norman, OK; MA and PhD), where she served as the coordinator of the Metabolic and Body Composition Laboratory.
Abbie’s research interests center around exercise and nutrition interventions to modify various aspects of body composition, cardiovascular health, and metabolic function in obese, elderly, and women. She is an active researcher in the field of sport nutrition and exercise performance, in both young and old athletes. Some of her primary work has focused on beta-alanine, creatine, and proteins/amino acids. She is also interested in applied aspects of neuromuscular fatigue.
Dr. Smith is an active member of the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN). Abbie also contributes to the field through many peer-reviewed manuscripts, scholastic book chapters and multiple International and National presentations.

A scholarship fund honoring Sam Minner, the outgoing Dean of the School of Health Sciences and Education, and his wife Joan has been established at the Truman State University Foundation.

Minner joined Truman in 2000 as Division Head and Professor of Education. He was named Dean of the School of Health Sciences and Education in 2007 and headed programs in elementary, secondary and special education, school counseling, health science, exercise science, athletic training, nursing, advanced placement, professional development and the regional professional development center.

Minner has been named provost at Radford University in Radford, Va., and will begin his new duties this summer.

To contribute to the Sam and Joan Minner Scholarship fund, please contact the Truman State University Foundation at 785.4133.

University President Troy D. Paino presents members of the Physical Plant with the Bulldog Award April 19. The Health and Exercise Science Department, represented by Chris Lantz (pictured top left), nominated the Physical Plant for their help in moving to new offices. The Bulldog Award recognizes “shared team achievement” for outstanding customer service practices. Faculty and staff are encouraged to nominate a department that strives to provide exceptional customer service. Nomination forms can be found online at http://hr.truman.edu/recognition/bulldogaward.

AED devices installed in businesses

By Calli Price (from Truman Index) Published: Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Northeast Missouri Heart Health has teamed up with Professor Janice Young’s Health 440 class this semester to start a media campaign for the installation of Automated External Defibrillators in businesses around Kirksville.

AEDs are machines used to assist someone who has gone into sudden cardiac arrest, meaning their heart has stopped functioning normally. In the past, this usually is seen in older adults. However, younger adults, like college students, are becoming at-risk for sudden cardiac arrest.

A few years ago, a woman suffered sudden cardiac arrest near A.T. Still University’s campus. When taken to A.T. Still by a friend, there was no public AED device. This was the “kickoff to the whole AED public access campaign,” said Lisa Archer, quality improvement coordinator at Northeast Regional Medical Center.

Seniors Anna Grinter, Kristen Siegler, Taylor Hockman and Jenna Osseck have been working on the campaign this semester as part of their senior capstone project. Their efforts include creating posters, business packets, radio and television PSAs and a mascot to represent the NEMO Heart Health organization.

“We’re proud of this project and we’re doing all that we can for it,” Grinter said. “We’re excited about what’s going to come of it.”

NEMO Heart Health has worked more than four years on the installation of AEDs all around Kirksville. This is the first time a project like this has taken place in Kirksville.

The cost of each device is $1,620, creating a financial burden that NEMO Heart Health has worked to raise money for, said Lisa Archer, Before they took on the role of fundraising, there was only one AED located on Truman’s campus in the security car.

After multiple fundraising events, A.T. Still’s campus received four AEDs, which were installed two weeks ago. Since then, multiple businesses have agreed to house AEDs, and helped with fundraising to acquire money to purchase one, including DuKum Inn Bar and Grille.

“We started looking into them four years ago,” said Craig Shorten, owner of DuKum. “I thought that would be great to put one in here. I hate the thought of something happening to someone and not having the resources to help them.”

The AED at DuKum Inn was unveiled last Tuesday. Eight DuKum employees took a BLS/AED training class, certifying them to administer CPR and to use the AED. NEMO Heart Health and Northeast Regional Medical Center have teamed up to offer free training for free to six employees of each businesses that buys or receives AEDs.

Other locations that received AEDs include City Hall, which installed theirs last Friday, and Hy-Vee, which unveiled theirs Monday.

“I think the message we’re sending is that it’s going to make Kirksville and all the businesses a heart-safe place to shop and eat, and to make Kirksville a safer place overall as a community,” Archer said.

NEMO Heart Health’s goal is to have 50 AEDs placed in businesses throughout Kirksville within the next five years. Efforts currently are being made to place AEDs at the Kirksville Regional Airport and the Adair County Courthouse.

(Smithville, Missouri) March 17, 2011—Todd Schuetz, Assistant Superintendent of the Smithville R-II School District in Smithville, Missouri announced the selection of Dr. Matt Teeter as the Smithville Middle School Principal beginning with the 2011-2012 school year.  Dr. Teeter is currently an assistant principal at Lakeview Middle School in the Park Hill School District where he has served for the past two years.  In addition, Dr. Teeter teaches graduate courses for William Woods University.  Prior to his experiences at Park Hill,  Dr. Teeter was an assistant principal at Thomas Jefferson Middle School in the Jefferson City School District and a PE teacher/athletic director in Mexico, MO.  Dr. Teeter holds an Educational Doctorate degree from St. Louis University, an Educational Specialist Degree from William Woods University, and Masters and Bachelors degrees from Truman State University.  From a very competitive field of 67 applicants, Dr. Teeter was a finalist of three for this position.

The Department of Health and Senior Services has a USDA funded program for Summer Food Service sites that operates statewide.  The program may have some paid internships available for the St. Louis, Kansas City and Cape Girardeau areas this summer, perhaps when students would be in their hometowns.  The work would include visiting certain child feeding sites and preparing reports.  We anticipate this to be about 20 hours per week.  Please contact Ann McCormack, MPH, RD at Ann.mccormack@dhss.mo.gov. Or you may also contact Susan White, MED, MPA at Susan.White@dhss.mo.gov. Direct inquiries from students will be acceptable.

Lindsay Dodge recently accepted  a full-time position with the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) as a Tournament Coordinator.   She will be planning, administering, and directing AJGA junior golf events all over the country.  You can learn more about how to get involved with the AJGA at www.ajga.org.

Lindsay graduated from  Truman State University in May 2009 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Science and an emphasis in Sport Management with a Business Administration Minor.  She was a member of the Truman Women’s Golf Team, Phi Epsilon Kappa, and Alpha Sigma Alpha while at Truman.  After graduation from Truman, Lindsay attended Wichita State University to start earning her Master’s Degree in Sport Management.