Computers and other devices connected to the Medical Center network will soon participate in automatic “network time-outs” – after a defined period of inactivity, your network session will be “locked” until you re-enter your network password. This is a helpful standard security measure that protects both you and the organization from unwanted disclosure of sensitive information.
 
While these network time-outs provide one defense against intruders, you are still urged to manually lock or log-off your computer any time you leave it unattended, unless you are absolutely certain that no one else will have physical access to it. You generally don’t leave your house or car unlocked when you’re away from it, even if only for a short time; protect personal and sensitive information in your computer and the Medical Center’s network in the same way. It only takes a few seconds.
 
For detailed information about automatic network time-outs, including instructions for locking and unlocking PCs, visit the Information Technology web site at http://it.med.miami.edu/x970.xml. For assistance in evaluating this or other security measures appropriate to your organization’s setting, and help with putting them into effect, contact our Information Security Manager at 305-243-2202.

UM/Sylvester’s Pharmacy Department presents “Things to Know about Research.” All lectures will be held in UM/Sylvester, room 1301. Displays and give-aways take place from 11:30 a.m. to noon. The lectures are from noon to 1 p.m., are presented by Ollie Anum, Pharm.D., and are worth one contact hour for nursing and pharmacy. Lunch will be served. Please reserve your space with Joannys Cortinas at 305-243-9192.

The Miller School of Medicine is competing for the NIH/NCRR Clinical & Translational Science Award. This is a major award worth up to $6 million annually for five years. It is a vital element in the school’s strategy to enhance its standing in clinical research with the NIH; it establishes the Miller School of Medicine’s credentials with the NIH and will allow us to catalyze the application of new knowledge and techniques to clinical practice at the front lines of patient care.  

The University of Miami’s Families First Network is offering free parenting groups for parents of newborns through children age 5. Parents will discuss ways to manage behavior, build stronger families and help their children grow and develop. Parents will receive free items related to the topics discussed and lunch will be served. Classes will be held at the Debbie School during lunchtime. For more information or to register over the phone, call 305-243-8425 or email mastacio@med.miami.edu.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) Institutional Grant is providing funds for meritorious cancer research that cannot be readily supported through other funding mechanisms. The primary purpose of the ACS grant is to provide seed funds for the initiation of promising new projects or novel ideas by junior faculty members. Applicants must not have had any peer reviewed funding. Two awards for $35,000 are available for a one year period. For guidelines and application forms for the ACS Institutional Research Grant, contact Dorothy Mills at 305-243-6292 or dmills@med.miami.edu. The deadline for applications is Tuesday, January 31.

Effective immediately, the Miller School of Medicine’s performance evaluation process has changed to better align the performance evaluation with decisions regarding merit increases. This is part of an overall strategy of migrating to a performance-based approach and providing more meaningful evaluations. 

The Department of Medical Information Technology periodically conducts focus groups to help improve its services to the campus community. The small-group sessions last 90 minutes and are scheduled during lunch. We provide the food; volunteer participants provide the opinions.

To ensure that your child car seat is installed correctly, a certified child passenger safety technician will be available on Wednesdays in front of the Mailman Center from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The service is available to everyone who transports children under the age of 12 in their vehicle. For more information, e-mail gstepanian@um-jmh.org, or call 305-243-3928 to set up an appointment. Priority will be given to those with appointments. The Injury Free Coalition for Kids is a division of Holtz Children's Hospital/ Miller School of Medicine.

A representative from Fidelity Investments will be on the medical campus to conduct individual counseling sessions from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., February 1, March 1 and 29, April 27, May 24, June 28 and July 26. To schedule an appointment, call 1-800-642-7131.

• University Compliance (anonymous hotline): 866-YOURCALL
• Billing (anonymous hotline): 305-243-HELP or 877-415-HELP
• Research Integrity and Compliance: 305-243-6415
• Financial Improprieties: 305-284-2605
• Privacy Office/HIPAA: 305-243-5000 or 1-866-366-HUSH
• University Ombudsperson: 305-284-4922

Any University of Miami employee reporting or deciding whether to report activity that may be in violation of a law, rule, or regulation is protected against retaliation by the Whistleblower Protection Statement. For more information, visit the Office of Compliance site.

• Please note that submissions are due no later than 5 p.m. Thursday for publication on Tuesday.
• We are unable to include attachments.
• Please use URL addresses in your announcements rather than hyperlinks.
• Event announcements should include the time, date, location, speaker, topic and cost if applicable. All events should have a contact phone number or e-mail address for further information. We will run event announcements for three weeks only.
• Information must be written in paragraph form. PDFs, Publisher files and flyers are not accepted.
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• Events to be listed should be either held on the medical campus, sponsored or hosted by the Miller School of Medicine, or affect all or most of the employees on the medical campus.
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“Meeting Facilitation Skills for Supervisors” will be held tomorrow (Wednesday) from 9 to 11 a.m. in room 155 of the Dominion Parking Garage. Seating is limited. Visit NetLearning at http://netlearning.miami.edu to register. For more information about the Leadership Academy, visit www.miami.edu/development-training/la, or call 305-243-3090.

David D. Ginty, Ph.D., professor of neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, will present "Growth and Survival Signals Controlling Development of PNS Neurons” on Wednesday, January 4, at noon in the Lois Pope LIFE Center seventh-floor auditorium. For more information, call 305-243-7108 or visit http://www.miamiproject.med.miami.edu/x381.xml.

On January 6, Ellen Warner, M.D., MSc., F.A.C.P., F.R.C.P., medical oncologist, Toronto Sunnybrook Regional Cancer Center, will present “Is Breast MRI now the Standard of Care for Screening High Risk Women?” as part of the UM/Sylvester Distinguished Lecture Series. The lecture begins at noon in UM/Sylvester, room 1301. Lunch will be served. For more information, please call Diane Dames at 305-243-2287, or e-mail DDames@med.miami.edu.

May A. Wahab, M.D., will discuss “Radiation as a Treatment in Prostate Cancer,” on Monday, January 9,  from noon to 1 p.m. in UM/Sylvester, room 1301. This event is free and a light lunch will be served. Please call 305-243-1000 to reserve your space.

By May 2007, all research grant applications for NIH will have to be submitted electronically through Grants.gov using the SF424 Research & Related (R&R) form set. This training session, geared toward the applicant community, will provide an overview of NIH’s transition plans, the submission process and the new form set. The Office of Research has arranged to participate in a video-cast being sponsored by NIH. It will be held Wednesday, January 11, from 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m., in the Lois Pope LIFE Center, seventh-floor auditorium. A question and answer session will follow the formal presentations. Visit NetLearning at http://netlearning.miami.edu to register. If you have any questions, please e-mail mvalero@med.miami.edu.

The Landon-AACR Prizes for Basic and Translational Cancer Research are offered by the Kirk A. and Dorothy P. Landon Foundation and the American Association for Cancer Research, and are the largest prizes offered to cancer researchers from a professional society. Each recipient will present a lecture on Friday, January 20, at UM/Sylvester, room 1301. This year’s winners are Elizabeth H. Blackburn, Ph.D., Morris Herzstein professor of biology and physiology, University of California, who has been awarded the Kirk A. Landon-AACR Prize for Basic Cancer Research, and Janet D. Rowley, M.D., the Blum-Riese distinguished service professor of medicine and molecular genetics & cell biology, University of Chicago Medical Center, who has been awarded the Dorothy P. Landon-AACR Prize for Translational Cancer Research.  Lunch will be served immediately following the noon lectures. For more information, please contact Kathy Salce at 305-243-2287.

On January 27, Haydee Kapin M.S.N., and Karon Rzad, R.D., will present “Common Physical Symptoms II: GI, Fluid Balance, 2006 Anorexia and other Nutritional Issues.” It will be held at noon in UM/Sylvester, room 1301. Lunch will be served. Log onto NetLearning at https://netlearning.miami.edu to register. For more information, contact Diane Dames at ddames@med.miami.edu

Kelly Insignares will present “Update on HSRO and Changes with IRB” on Tuesday, January 31, from noon to 1 p.m. in the Mailman Center, eighth-floor auditorium. Advance registration is required as room capacity is limited. Log on to Net Learning at https://netlearning.miami.edu to register. For more information e-mail Maira Abraham at Mabraham@med.miami.edu.

Scripps Florida is now a sponsor of the annual Miami Nature Biotechnology Winter Symposium, along with the University of Miami and Nature Publishing Group.  The 2006 Symposium is entitled “Angiogenesis in Cancer and Vascular Disease” and takes place at the Wyndham Miami Beach Resort February 4-8, 2006.  Full-time employees of the University of Miami can register using tuition remission.  Send an e-mail to sblack@miami.edu with your UM ID# and full UM address if you wish to register.  Graduate students can register in the same way and receive a registration waiver. 

The fourth Miami International Revascularization Summit will be held February 9 to 12 at The Alexander Hotel, Miami Beach. For more information, please contact the Division of Continuing Medical Education at 305-243-6716, or e-mail e.perez6@med.miami.edu.

On February 10, David Carbone, M.D., Ph.D., Harold L. Moses Chair in Cancer Research, Ingram Professor of Cancer Research, Director of Specialized Program of Research Excellence in Lung Cancer, Vanderbilt University Cancer Center, will present “Molecular Signatures of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer,” as part of the UM/Sylvester Distinguished Lecture Series. The lecture begins at noon in UM/Sylvester, room 1301. Lunch will be served. For more information, please call Diane Dames at 305-243-2287, or e-mail DDames@med.miami.edu.

Presentations

Staff and faculty of the School of Medicine’s Tissue Bank division  played a big part in the 32nd Annual Florida Association of Medical Examiners (FAME) meeting, which was held in Key Biscayne this year. Former Attorney General Janet Reno was the keynote speaker. Ann C. Hughes, director of public relations and development, received an award for her dedication, commitment and ongoing service at the meeting’s banquet. Theodore Malinin, M.D., professor and director of the Tissue Bank, presented the award to Ms. Hughes.

The Division of Cosmetic Dermatology, directed by Leslie Baumann, M.D., is looking for people over the age of 18 who have never been treated with botulinum toxin to participate in a research study to determine whether injections with an investigational drug (Botulinum toxin Type A) will correct frown line wrinkles in the glabellar area (between the eyebrows). If interested, please contact a member of the research staff at 305-532-5552.

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