From caregivers to physicians, researchers to patients and everyone in between, there is an entire community dedicated to helping those with Alzheimer's and related disorders, committed to find ways to slow and stop the progression of the disease. Through Mind Matters, the quarterly newsletter of the Dale and Deborah Smith Center for Alzheimer's Research and Treatment at SIU Medicine, we want to highlight the impactful stories and transformative work being done. We hope you find this newsletter enjoyable and informative. Thank you for reading and for your support!

Dr. William Robinson, Professor and Division Chief of Vascular Surgery at SIU Medicine, has been appointed as the Chair for the Committee for Post Graduate Education of the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS). The Post Graduate Education Committee solicits proposed content from SVS members to provide relevant education to advance the practice, curricula, and scope of practice in vascular surgery. Dr. Robinson will lead the Committee in identifying and developing post-graduate educational content for the SVS Annual Meeting in June. The mission of the Society for Vascular Surgery “seeks to

The Dr. Kenniebrew Equity Award is an acknowledgment bestowed upon an individual or organization actively promoting inclusive excellence.

The Dr. Kenniebrew Equity Award is an acknowledgment bestowed upon an individual or organization actively promoting inclusive excellence.

A pharmacology and neuroscience student at SIU School of Medicine, Jesse Britz, along with Shelley Tischkau, PhD, and the Smith Alzheimer's Center Hascup Labs , recently researched the link between Alzheimer's and circadian rhythm (the body's 24-hour internal clock). Britz, who is from Divernon, earned his PhD this past December. Tell us about your recent research. The whole focus of the project started because sleep/wake cycles are heavily disrupted in Alzheimer’s. For a long time it’s been looked at as a symptom – sundowning is a term that is normally used. People in late-stage Alzheimer’s

A CUT ABOVE Learning From the Best in Microsurgery Imagine being a resident physician – doing your normal rounds in the emergency department – when you encounter a woman walking in with no pants and covered in blood. Maybe your first thought is that she has suffered some sort of trauma, until you learn that it’s her husband who suffered an accident. In the moment of crisis, she gave the only item of clothing she could, to make a tourniquet and try to prevent her husband’s loss of blood – her pants. The only person who offered her a clean pair of pants, after she had spent several hours in two

Here’s a look at the Top 5 education innovations that have put SIU at the forefront of medical education worldwide. SIU School of Medicine has been innovative from day one, striving to find better ways to educate medical students. In 1976, it was the first U.S. medical school to publish curricular objectives, the first time in the history of medical education that the entire curriculum was identified through learning objectives. A few years later, problem-based learning (PBL) and standardized patients (SP) made SIU School of Medicine world-renowned. These two principles of medicine have been

Here’s a look at the Top 5 education innovations that have put SIU at the forefront of medical education worldwide. SIU School of Medicine has been innovative from day one, striving to find better ways to educate medical students. In 1976, it was the first U.S. medical school to publish curricular objectives, the first time in the history of medical education that the entire curriculum was identified through learning objectives. A few years later, problem-based learning (PBL) and standardized patients (SP) made SIU School of Medicine world-renowned. These two principles of medicine have been

Here’s a look at the Top 5 education innovations that have put SIU at the forefront of medical education worldwide. SIU School of Medicine has been innovative from day one, striving to find better ways to educate medical students. In 1976, it was the first U.S. medical school to publish curricular objectives, the first time in the history of medical education that the entire curriculum was identified through learning objectives. A few years later, problem-based learning (PBL) and standardized patients (SP) made SIU School of Medicine world-renowned. These two principles of medicine have been

Here’s a look at the Top 5 education innovations that have put SIU at the forefront of medical education worldwide. SIU School of Medicine has been innovative from day one, striving to find better ways to educate medical students. In 1976, it was the first U.S. medical school to publish curricular objectives, the first time in the history of medical education that the entire curriculum was identified through learning objectives. A few years later, problem-based learning (PBL) and standardized patients (SP) made SIU School of Medicine world-renowned. These two principles of medicine have been