Christopher Stephens, (left), and Mohamed Mahfouz, (right), help lead collaborative research through the Institute of Biomedical Engineering.

UT has launched a new institute to research solutions to medical problems such as devices for improved delivery of medications, better imaging technology, and optimized efficiency in the healthcare setting. Finding answers to these and many other healthcare problems is possible through a unique collaboration introduced by the new Institute of Biomedical Engineering. This new institute connects not only engineering and medicine but also three diverse UT campuses in a collaboration that is unique in the country; innovative for faculty, physicians and students; and beneficial to people. To learn more about the institute, visit the College of Engineering website.

The dual-track conference is designed for beginners and long-time users of electronic health records. Nationally recognized experts in the field will teach the course.

Venue space is limited and participants are encouraged to register early. The registration fee is $895 per person. It includes materials, lunches, a light reception, breaks, and continuing medical education credits.

This symposium is certified for 10.5 American Medical Association continuing medical education credits and continuing education units for healthcare professionals.

The speakers are:

• Dr. Don Lighter, director of the Institute for Healthcare Quality Research and Education. He is a Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award senior examiner and co-author of the widely-used textbook, Principles and Methods of Quality Management in Health Care.

• Dr. Bill Bria, chief medical information officer at Shriners Hospital for Children in Tampa, Florida. He is an adviser to the National Center for Research Resources, a component of the National Institutes of Health, and author of the books The Physician-Computer Conundrum: Get Over It! and Digital Communication in the Medical Practice.

• Randy Bradley, healthcare IT strategist, researcher, and assistant professor at UT. He serves on the editorial review advisory board for the Journal of Organizational and End User Computing and Decision Sciences Journal. Bradley conducts research on healthcare information technology and advises US hospitals on integrating IT infrastructures.

For more details about the symposium and to register, visit the website. Applicants may also register by calling 865-974-5001.

The Center for Executive Education is part of UT’s College of Business Administration. It is home to a series of non-degree healthcare short courses and the Physician Executive MBA, a program exclusively for physicians.

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C O N T A C T S :

Cindy Raines (865-974-4359, craines1@utk.edu)

Lola Alapo (865-974-3993, lalapo@utk.edu)

Associate Professor Murray Marks

Alumna Shelly Huffaker Higgins wrote that Associate Professor Murray Marks was “possibly the best professor I ever had during my days at the university.” Formerly with UT Knoxville’s Department of Anthropology, Marks now teaches at UT’s Graduate School of Medicine, both in the oral and maxillofacial and dentistry and pathology departments.

Higgins graduated in August 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and in 1995 with a master’s degree in education curriculum and instruction. She is now a teacher.

“Back then, in the early 1990s, Dr. Marks was a grad student working on his Ph.D., and he was amazing,” she recalled. “I had one particular class with him called osteology, where you are given tiny — and I mean TINY — bits of bone and identify which bone it is, what side of the body it came from, and in some cases, sex and age. It was the most incredibly difficult class of my life, but Dr. Marks had all kinds of tips on how to identify these bones.”

Higgins graduated as one of the top students in her college.

“I know that if I had not had Dr. Marks for that class, I would most likely not have been able to earn an A in osteology.”

As a teacher, Higgins knows what made Marks so good.

“The best part was his excitement, encouragement and enthusiasm, like taking the class on trips he did not have to, including the cadaver lab and the Body Farm. I know that one student, after visiting the cadaver lab, decided to become a mortician and went home that day and applied.

“Dr. Marks not only could talk the talk, but could walk the walk. His ability to instruct, relate to his students and make the course work interesting is what the art of teaching is all about. His dedication to forensics and identification, as well as the progress of his students, is to be applauded. Anyone who has Dr. Marks as an instructor should consider themselves extremely fortunate and privileged.”