Domus Doctrinarum

Thanks Advice Giving is a wonderful annuallearning communities tradition here at UMass, and theevent certainly lived up toits reputation this year!This is the event's 5th yearand proved itself to bebigger than ever. Withover 100 people inattendance, students ineach house were able tomingle amongst mentors, specialty advisors, and

house librarians. Eachhouse contributed adelicious side to themain entrée of roastedchicken. BlackstoneHouse provided yummybrussel sprouts,Burncoat brought

superb mashed potatoes, Tatnuck represented withfabulous sweet potatoes, Kelley brought scrumptiousstuffing, and Quinsigamond put up a serious dessertdisplay.

Students from all four years were in attendanceand advice wasgiven regardingeverything fromstudy tips toelective choicesto help withclinical rotations.Students tooktime out of theirbusy study,clinical and interview schedules to come together andbond (and smile for the camera!) during this deliciousevening.

Mentors and faculty also came out to enjoy

dinner and imparttheir wisdom. Thiswas a great wayfor students to getto talk casuallywith theireducators and askall of theirquestions in a

relaxed setting.Our house librarians, Judy Norberg

(Blackstone), Len Levin (Burncoat), Catherine Carr(Kelley), Penny Glassman (Quinsigamond), andNancy Harger(Tatnuck) contributedbeautiful table tentsand cards withinformation aboutonline medicalapplications as well asapples to go with ourcenterpieces. The librarians mixed and mingledamongst our students and mentors and gaveamazing advice as well.

The event was a fabulous way to kick off thefall holiday season. The Student Advisory Boardlooks forward to hosting it again next year! Manythanks to all who attended, as well as to our house

librarians fortheir alwaysappreciatedknowledge onthe latestmedicalinformationtechnology.

Thanks-Advice-Giving A Great Success!

Official newsletter of the UMMS Learning CommunitiesIssue V November/December MMXIV

Inside this Issue:

Issue V Page I

-Lesson from the library-Welcome to the new LC mentors

-House updates and student spotlights-Farewell to departing mentors

Page 2 Newsletter Header

Dear House Librarian,Although I understand we are expected to use evidence-based medicine inour practice, I am not quite sure what this is, where to find these resources,and how to know if an article is based on evidence. Can you point me inthe right direction?

Sure, there is a great source of information on the library website that willprobably answer most of your questions about evidence-based medicine(EBM). The Subject Guide Evidence Based Medicine has thoroughexplanations about EBM, directions to create good evidence-basedquestions to find the best answers, a list of resources to locate literature, and library-createdmodules and primers for self study. There are even a few EBM-oriented songs on video tobreak up your studying! This can all be found at this website:

http://libraryguides.umassmed.edu/EBMIn answer to your question about evidence-based medicine, it may be defined loosely as thecareful use of current best evidence in making decisions about the treatment of individualpatients. It involves knowing the right question to ask, turning that question into a good search,knowing the best place to look, finding what is available, and then using the evidence you findin the care of your patient. The pyramid below is probably familiar. It is a useful tool toremember where to find the best evidence, starting from the top and the strongest evidence,moving downward to the weaker evidence. Resources mirroring this pyramid can be found inthe Evidence Based Medicine Subject Guide on the library website.

While you are visiting the EBM Subject Guide, check out the many other subject guides on thelibrary website. Click on “Subject Guides” to view the A-Z list of guides. There are guides forspecific schools, departments, topics, and organizations. Check back often, as new ones arebeing created.

I hope you find these directions helpful. Please be sure to contact your House Librarian if youwould like further information or help finding any of these resources.

Catherine Carr (Kelley House)

Issue V Page II

Lessons From the Library:Kelley House librarian Catherine Carr answers our questions

about evidence based medicine resources

Feature: Introducing the newest mentors ofBlackstone and Kelley House!

Issue V Page III

Dr. Cynthia Ennis

What is your specialty? My specialty is Cardiology andElectrophysiology. I implant pacemakers and ICD’s and performablations for various arrhythmias.What makes you most excited about acting as a new housementor? I am particularly excited about the “mentoring” piece of thejob. I faced some significant challenges as a medical student and Ireally could have used a mentor to help guide me through theprocess. I look forward to getting to know my students and helpingthem to be the best doctors that they can be.If you could have one superpower, what would it be? Sometimes it can be difficult tobalance life at work and life at home. If I could have a superpower I would like to the ability toclone myself. That way if I am working late, my clone could go home and tuck my kids into bedat night!

Dr. Sonia Chimienti

What is your specialty? Infectious Diseases (Transplant ID)What makes you most excited about acting as a new housementor? I am most excited by the opportunity to work closelywith my mentees over the course of their medical school years tohelp them find the career paths that truly excite them. During myyears as a faculty member, I have been blessed to work withresidents, fellows and students, brainstorming about trainingprograms, career and life. It is incredibly gratifying to be a partof this journey; to see the joy that comes from finding one’s niche and realizing a dream.Having the opportunity to do this more formally, as part of the LC mentor program, is a dreamcome true for me.What are your hobbies or interests outside of medicine? My favorite distractions includeyoga, knitting, gardening and hiking. With three small kids, it’s hard to find time to balance it all,but I try to include my girls in everything I do; my husband and I like to take the girls on a hikeonce a week, the kids help me in the garden (they get to pick what we plant each Spring, andthey get to harvest what we grow), and I’m teaching my oldest girls how to knit. They get a kickout of hanging out with me on the sofa with our needles clicking away! They haven’t caughtthe yoga bug yet but I’m working on it!If you could have one superpower, what would it be? I’m not sure I’d call it a superpower,but I’ve often longed to channel “I Dream of Genie" and wrinkle my nose, transporting myselffrom home to work (and back) without having to deal with the drive! An extra hour every day!I’m probably dating myself with that reference! When thinking about this question, I asked mydaughters what they thought was the best superpower, and received the following as answers:Sophie said “I think the best superpower is the power of being kind” and Claire said “The bestsuperpower is being brave.” To me those sound pretty great!

Blackstone House

Issue V Page IV

Dr. Jay Broadhurst

What is your specialty? Family Medicine with a CAQ in SportsMedicine and additional board certification in Addiction Medicine(although the American Board of Addiction Medicine is not yet recognizedby the American Board of Medical Specialties)What makes you most excited about acting as a new house mentor?The opportunity to increase my time working and learning with medicalstudents. The opportunity, now realized, to be a Learning Communities mentor at UMMS is inmany respects a capstone to my career as a physician. Leaders in our medical school alongwith leaders in our profession stress the critical importance of lifelong learning as a hallmark ofsuccess as a physician. Gaining skill, awareness and sensitivity as the physician in thephysician-patient relationship is a key element of undergraduate medical education and an areain which the mentoring relationship may be most helpful to students. It is particularly exciting toshare the journey of becoming and being a physician.What are your hobbies or interests outside of medicine? Family, home maintenance andimprovement, sports (mostly watching now), hiking, waterskiing.If you could have one superpower, what would it be? Time travel.

Dr. Hugh Silk

What is your specialty? Family medicineWhat makes you most excited about acting as a new housementor? As far away as I get from medical school (16 years now) itseems like yesterday. I appreciated good mentoring and advisingmore than anything. I am still in contact with my favorite mentors. Ithink I learned well from them and want to pass that along. Selfishly, Ilove the energy students have for learning - everything is so new andinteresting. That positive outlook energizes me too.What are your hobbies or interests outside of medicine? I Spend a lot of time with my twolittle girls ages 8 and 10 - coaching their soccer, watching dance recitals, going skiing, andtravelling. My wife and I love to travel so we are already planning the next trip. I am also ahumanities junkie - movies, books, plays. Just saw Etherdome in Boston, the story ofanesthesia in the US - fascinating story of humanity, greed and innovation.If you could have one superpower, what would it be? Definitely flying. I am often flying inmy dreams and it feels great. I guess I need to try skydiving to try it out for real.

Thank you to our new mentors for answering our questions, and we speak on behalf ofthe SAB, student body, and your fellow mentors when we say welcome and we cannot

wait to work with you!

Kelley House

Page 5 Newsletter Header

Blackstone HouseThe

Bears havehad a greatstart to the2014-2015school year,welcomingPhilip, Tomand

Oghomwen as our new MS1 reps! With theirhelp, we kicked off the year with a housereunion at the Blackstone Tap, and recentlyhad a Pre-Exam AdviceNight dinner whereMS2s shared their top-secret testing strategieswith the new MS1s.

We also hosteda School Supply Driveto collect items for theNew Citizen Center inWorcester. We had anamazing response andare so grateful for thegenerosity of our

students!Although wemay not havelogged themost hours,the Bearshad a greattimeparticipatingin the LC Fitness Challenge & LC 5K. Too badhibernation does not count as a fitnessactivity!

This holiday season, wewill maintain our traditionof packing Thanksgivingbaskets for the St. Paul'sFood Pantry inWorcester. We also planto continue with our newtradition of adopting afamily through the Boysand Girls Club ofWorcester to provideholiday gifts.

Student SpotlightCassidy Mellin, Class of 2018

Where are you from? Somerville

Where'd you go to high school?Concord Academy

What about college? WesleyanUniversity

What is your astrological sign and whatdoes it mean to you? Aquarius... means Iwas born in January.

Favorite Color? Black...obviously!

Important question: your favorite bear?Pooh.

What type of doctor do you think you

want to be? Agood one... a littlehazy on the otherdetails.

Favorite thingabout UMass?Definitely thepeople (although itis really tough tobeat living in theParis of the new millennium).

What is your favorite"would you rather"?Would you rather enjoya date with RyanGosling or a limitlesssupply of cheese?

Issue V Page V

Burncoat HouseBurncoatstarted off thisyear withstrongparticipation inthe LearningCommunity FitnessChallenge, earning theOwls their secondconsecutive win as the'fittest house' at UMMS.We are very proudof this tradition!Throughout the fall,we have had socialevents to bringtogether studentsfrom all four yearsincluding our

annualvisit toFunkyMurphy'sat theend of

the summer, and a studybreak with coffee andpizza to fuel the Owls intotheir late nights of first andsecond year.

We wereexcited tocarry on thetradition ofpreparingthe potatoes

for Thanks-AdviceGiving and are lookingforward to our nextholiday-themed eventwith students, mentors

and their familieson December 7th.This will feature aCookie Exchangeand will help kickoff the winterholiday season!

Student SpotlightJared Giordano, Class of2018

What town are you from?Shrewsbury, MA

Where didyou go tocollege?GeorgetownUniversity

Favorite funfact aboutyourself?My first fishas a kid was named SpeedyRed Sox, even though I'venever been a big sports guy.

Favorite food? Hungariannokedli as prepared by mygrandmother.

If you could fly anywhere

tomorrow, where wouldyou go and why? I can fly?Awesome! I'd fly toCopenhagen because mysister is studying abroad

there now andthey have areally uniqueculture.

Best thingabout beingpart ofBurncoat?Being on theBurncoat

Board, which allows me toplan fun things like mentoringnights and social events.

Favorite activity(studying not included)?Literally doing anything thatinvolves music: playing it,listening to it, dancing to it,etc.

Favorite part of UMass?How readily theadministration utilizes theadvice and suggestions ofthe medical students. Forexample, I feel verycomfortable asking whyclasses are organized theway they are and if I haveideas, I can suggest them toimprove the curriculum.

Issue V Page VI

Kelley HouseFall 2014 has been

an exciting time forKelley House, especiallyfor ournewfirstyearclass.Westarted off the year atMOE with victories atboth trivia and MOE-lympics for the secondyear running!

Since startingschool, we havehosted severalevents, including asuccessfulbackpack-packingnight for our

community serviceproject, KelleyBackpacks.

We alsohosted aLearningCommunity-widekickball

competitionwhich was wellattended and verycompetitive! We didn't

come out on top, butwe had anoverwhelming showing

of Kelleymembers!In theupcomingweeks,we'll behosting a

study break forour students as thestudy the day away

and we will beholding a aholiday party. Weare lookingforward to aneven moreexciting springsemester.

Student SpotlightMichael “ Muz” Moverman, Class of2018

Where are you from, Mike? I am from NorthEaston, MA.

How about undergrad?What’d you study? I wentto Duke University where Imajored in biology andminored in chemistry.

Where did “Muz” comefrom? The nickname Muzhas been around forever! Ihave had many nicknamesover the years, largely dueto Brooks Willar (also a first year medical studentat UMass) who I went to high school with. Theoriginal nickname I had was “moves,” which camefrom my last name - Moverman. Over time itslowly evolved to Muz. My favorite nickname is“Papa Mova” though.

What are your activities outside of school? Myfavorite activity to do outside of school right now isgoing to salsa dance class every Tuesday night inthe fitness center. While I would consider myselfa completely mediocre dancer, I’d like to think Ican get my hips moving to beat every once in awhile.

If you were any mythological animal, whichwould you be? Pegasus, no question. Whowouldn’t want to be a divine pure white wingedstallion?

What do you like most about Umass? Thepeople. There are so manyamazing people here tolearn from and spend timewith. I have only been herefor about 5 months butalready feel like I have beenpart of the UMass family foryears.

Issue V Page VII

Quinsigamond HouseQuinsigamond

House kicked off thesemester by welcomingour first-year Squids atour annual get-togetherat Jimmy’s Tavern. Theevent was extremely well

attended and the firstyears had a chance tospend time getting toknow some of their upperclassmates.

This October,Quinsigamond Househeld the annual costumedrive for the WorcesterRefugee Assistance

Project, and sponsoredthe communitywide Halloweenparty! Generousdonationsallowedus to provideevery child witha costume, andQuinsigvolunteersattended to helpface paint andhand out treats. Theparty was a greatsuccesswithpumpkinpainting,bobbing forapples anda magicdemonstrationthat provided joy and

entertainment tothe entire WRAP

community.Currently,Quinsig isholding a toydrive to makesure thatrefugee kidsdon’t spend theholidayswithout anygifts! Look for

the WRAP toy drivecollection boxes in the

school lobbyas well asthe ASClobbythroughoutthemonth.

Student SpotlightRyan Burns, Class of 2018

Where are you from? I grew up in Wakefield, Massachusetts.

Where did you go to school? I attended UMass Lowell, where Istudied Biology.

All time favorite movie? The Shawshank Redemption.

What food can you absolutely not live without? Steak.

What's your favorite thing to do when you're not studying? Sleep!

What is your favorite thing about UMass Med School? How thefaculty treat and interact with the students. UMass does a great jobof making the students feel like colleagues and goes above andbeyond in making you feel welcomed.

Issue V Page VIII

Tatnuck HouseThis year got off to a

great start for Tatnuck aseveryone got to meet thenew first years and hangout atourback toschoolpotluck.Wewerelucky tohave some of our mentorsattend as well.This past week, we had a

Halloween bar night atCompass Tavern, co-hosted by Blackstone.There was a great turnout,and we hope to have more

events there in the future.At the end ofthe month wewill be holding

our annualclothingdrive, andplan to setup a timefor everyone inTatnuck to gettogether and

volunteer at Andy’s Attic

to help sort the clothesand otherdonatedgoods.We’re alsohoping tohave anevent atSkyzone

and get members fromall of the houses as wellas the mentors and theirfamilies involved. Thenew board this year hasbeen very committed andcoming up with newideas, and we’re alllooking forward toplanning more eventssoon!

Student SpotlightAmar Desai, Class of 2018

What has been your favorite part of first year so far? MOE!

What has been your least favorite part of first year so far? Theweekend before every exam.

If you could be any professor who would you be and why? I wouldbe Professor Royer so I could rock his mean ‘stache.

If you had to chug any flavor of soda in a hypothetical relay race,what flavor would you choose? Orange Crush!

What is one thing that surprised you most about medical school? I was surprised by howquickly we were exposed to clinical experiences and taught clinical skills.

Why did you decide on UMass? When I visited UMass during my interview day and secondlook, almost everyone seemed to genuinely enjoy working and going toschool here. Also, the proximity to home and low tuition didn’t hurt.

What is your favorite color and why? Orange! TAT-WHAT?!?

Do you have any idea what kinds of medical specialties you mightbe interested in? I don’t want to rule anything out until 3rd year, so I’mstaying open to all of them for now.

Issue V Page IX

Page 10 Newsletter Header

The SAB, student body, faculty and fellow mentors alike want to express ourdeepest thanks to our departing mentors. They have made such an impacton the lives of all their student mentees and they will be truly missed!

Dr. Joyce Rosenfeld, Blackstone House: Joyce has beena mentor since the start of the learning communities. Shehas introduced wonderful events to Blackstone such as thenow-annual NECC 5K for Autism, which brings students,mentors and families together to raise money and run for awonderful cause. She has also acted as faculty advisor forQMass and has been involved in work for the diversitydepartment at UMass. Her enthusiasm and passion forblackstone are contagious and will be missed!

Dr. Becky Spanagel, Blackstone House: Becky has alsobeen mentoring since the start of learning communities.Becky was awarded the Learning Communities Mentor of theYear Award in 2013 which was very well deserved! She is acomitted, compassionate mentor and teacher who alwaysgoes the extra mile for her students. She will be departing in2016 after her current third year students graduate fromUMass.

Dr. Daniel Kirsch, Kelley House: Dr. Kirsch has been amentor for the past four years. He has consistently goneout of his way to show his appreciation and compassionfor his students. His emphasis on connecting withpatients has also helped him to be an incredible teacherto his mentees. His students will miss his devotion toteaching and his dedication to mentorship!

Thank you to Dr. Rosenfeld, Dr. Spanagel and Dr. Kirsch for all you havedone for your houses and the school. We are so grateful for all you have

done for us and wish you the best of luck in the future!

A HUGE thank you to our departing mentors!

Issue V Page X

Learning Communities Student Advisory Board2014-2015Co-Chairs

Arianne "Cuff" BakerChristine Motzkus-Feagans

Members-At-LargeTimothy BoardmanMeghan GibsonSydney HartmanJennifer LeeJason Yang

House Leadership Teams2014-2015

Blackstone

Philip Feinberg MS1Tom Ford MS1

Oghomwen IgiesuoroboMS1

SaeJin Oh* MS2Christian Rose MS2Valerie Valant* MS2

Quinsigamond

Benjamin Crawford MS2Emily Fan MS1

Michael Noujaim* MS2Jennifer Perez MS4Courtney Temple MS2

Kelley

Steven Em MS1Naomi Malam MS2

James Nightingale MS2Abigail Smith* MS2Laura Ting MS3

David Toomey MS1Victoria Winslow* MS2

Burncoat

Jared Giordano MS1Hana Haver* MS2Kelsey Mantoni MS1Malek Mazzawi MS3Kent McCann MS1Shakti Nochur MS2Gianna Wilkie MS3

Tatnuck

Tedi Begaj MS3Jaclyn Davis MS3

Nicholas Hathaway MD/PhD candidate

Max Hoffman MS1Kevin O'Day MS3

Sara Rosenbaum* MS2Maria Steiner MS1*House Chairs

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