News

Sino-US Paramedic Training Program

In April 2008 a delegation from the Department of Emergency Medicine traveled to Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, PR China to participate in the first Sino-US Paramedic Training program. This program was sponsored by the Zhejiang Association of Science and Technology, The Zhejiang Provincial Emergency Command Center, and the Department of Emergency Medicine of Zhejiang Provincial People’s Hospital. All of the training was provided by: Dustin Riccio MD, Joseph Lauro MD, Jay Scott BS, NREMT-P, and Paul Ko, MD. Dr. Ko will be joining the Department as an attending in July 2008. The delegation was lead by Dr. John McCabe MD FACEP.

During their time in China, Dr. McCabe and William D. Grant, EdD worked with the Zhejiang Association of Science and Technology and several of the hospitals to establish new cooperative research programs. These are the first cooperative programs sponsored by the ZAST group that involve Sino-US hospital cooperation. The department and the ZAST grou also reaffirmed commitment to supporting the 12 year old exchange program which provides opportunities for physicians to travel to Upstate to improve their skills and for our medical students to have elective rotation time in China. During this trip Dr. McCabe and Dr. Grant received appointments as Visiting Professors at the Zhejiang Chinese Medical University.

A video about the program is available on YouTube (link open in new window).

Dr. McCabe Appointed Vice Chair of the American Board of Medical Specialties

John B. McCabe, MD, FACEP has been appointed as the Vice Chair of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS). He was inducted at the ABMS Interim Assembly Meeting on March 18, 2008. ABMS is the umbrella organization for 24 medical specialty boards, including emergency medicine, which develop and set standards for the ongoing evaluation and certification of physicians in the specialties.

As Vice Chair Dr. McCabe will serve as a member of the Liaison Committee for Specialty Boards (LCSB) and the Council for Medical Affairs (CFMA). He will assist and understudy the ABMS Chair as needed and serve ex officio on the ABMS Executive Committee and on all other ABMS committees. His appointment will continue to 2010. Dr. McCabe will add his leadership and guidance to the mission of ABMS as they continue to establish and maintain high standards for the delivery of safe, quality medical care by certified medical specialists in the U.S.

Dr. McCabe is Professor and Chair of Emergency Medicine at State University of New York (SUNY) Upstate Medical University and the founding Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at SUNY Upstate. He is Past President of the American College of Emergency Physicians and served as a trustee of the American Board of Emergency Medicine, an ABMS Member Board, from 1996-2006.

Dr. McCabe completed his medical degree at SUNY Upstate Medical College at Syracuse and his internship at the Charles F. Kettering Medical Center in Kettering, Ohio. He finished his residency at Wright State University School of Medicine, Dayton, Ohio. Dr. McCabe is board certified by the American Board
of Emergency Medicine. His clinical focus is in Emergency Medicine and hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy.

Medical Students Visit China!

From February 3 through March 2, 2008, five medical students from Upstate visited China for an emergency medicine elective, "Western & Traditional Chinese Medicine in the People’s Republic of China. The students that traveled abroad were: (Frederic) Josh Auerbach, Daisy Fischer, Kimberly Blasius, Byron Patton & Sherin Varghese.

Through their elective, the students, in association with ZAST (Zhejiang Association for Science and Technology), their hospital partners and Upstate, were able to experience medical care in China at two hospitals there. Both hospitals are located in Hangzhou, a large metropolitan city that is about a 2-hour drive from Shanghai. At each hospital, the students were able to see and participate in both the western style medical care as well as traditional Chinese medical care.

More pictures from their trip are available here (pdf; link opens in new window).

Dr. McCabe on HealthLink Radio

How important is board certification? Are some certifications better than others? And what does all that alphabet soup after a practitioner's name mean anyway? Dr. John McCabe, Professor and Chair of Upstate Medical University's Department of Emergency Medicine and newly appointed memeber of the executive committee of the American Board of Medical Specialties, gave clarity to the often muddy pool of medical specialization on the March 23^rd HealthLink radio program on WSYR AM.

The segment is available for listening in mp3 format.

Dr. McCabe also appeared on the March 2^nd show, discussing his efforts in broadening the career-life experiences of a number of medical residents training at Upstate. Through hands-on outreach programs in China, India and elsewhere, the residents develop new perspectives on health care as it is practiced stateside.

The March 2^nd appearance is also available in mp3 format.

New Chief Residents Named

Congratulations to Larry Cresswell and Tim Fortuna, who have been named as the new chiefs for next year!

Congratulations are also in order to Jeff Lapoint, who has been named as the EMRA rep for his class!

Dr Mariani Presents Research at National ACGME Meeting

The ACGME oversees medical education of more than 103,000 trainees in 8,000 GME programs. Dr. Mariani’s poster was a favorite among its Chardonnay sippers. Click the image above for a larger version (image opens in a new window).

Dr. Reed in Sudan

Dr. David Reed is currently in Dinka country, South Sudan, working in a clinic as part of the Africa Inland Mission.

NYS Poison Centers Toxicology Newsletter

The January 2008 New York State Poison Centers Toxicology Newsletter [pdf] is now available. This month’s newsletter, published by the Upstate NY Poison Center, includes a Case Study contributed by Emergency Medicine faculty member Christine M. Stork, Pharm.D. DABAT, entitled ’Caustic Exposure.’