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HEALTHCARE EDUCATION HEALTHCARE EDUCATION HEALTHCARE EDUCATION

MDC’s Medical Campus to Open State-of-the-Art Center

for Innovation, Learning and Simulation

Miami Dade College (MDC) will soon open the
Center for Innovation, Learning and Simulation, a
state-of-the-art facility designed to provide students
with the training needed to thrive in today’s fast-
changing health care industry.
“Health care occupations are expected to grow by 18
percent by 2026,” said Dr. Bryan Stewart, Medical
Campus President. “We’re going to be able to offer stu-
dents the technology and resources they need to fill
many of the ‘hot’ new jobs.”
Scheduled to open in the fall, the five-floor Center
will feature an entire floor dedicated to advanced med-
ical simulation that will facilitate the practice of work-
ing in real-world clinical environments such as operat-
ing and emergency rooms. With the help of innovative
technology, students will be able to recreate various
medical scenarios, helping reduce errors, improve
safety and elevate the quality of patient care.
The Center contains amenities comparable to any
cutting-edge hospital, including 15 high-fidelity
patient rooms, a simulated ambulance, a home health
apartment, and 10 examination rooms. Students will
be able to utilize a 300-person multi-purpose confer-
ence center with state-of-the-art projectors and record-
ing capability; and a 150-person tiered lecture facility Ribbon Cutting at the Opening of the Center for Innovation, Learning and Simulation
with a power outlet and a network port for each seat.
The building will also house fully equipped medical
labs for nursing, respiratory care, physician assistant, histology, medical laboratory sterile processing and surgical technology.
science and other programs, and student collaboration areas. MDC also offers a wide range of associate degrees in other fast-growing allied health
The Center will allow for the expansion of some of the College’s most in-demand industries, including health information technology, radiography, physical therapy
programs – including emergency medical services, nuclear medicine technology, assistant and pharmacy technology.
nursing and physician assistant – as well as make room for new programs like central

The National Institutes of Health
UM Faculty Invited to Join
Awards FIU Stempel College $2.8
American Academy of Nursing

Million to Study the Effects of
The University of Miami School of
Nursing and Health Studies Soluble Corn Fiber on Bone Mass
(SONHS) is pleased to announce that
Stephen McGhee, DNP, MS, PGCE, The National Institutes of Health’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of
RNT, RN, VR, associate professor of Child Health and Human Development has awarded Cristina Palacios, associate pro-
Clinical and associate dean for fessor in the department of Dietetics and Nutrition at FIU’s Robert Stempel College of
Nursing Undergraduate Programs, Public Health and Social Work, a $2.8 million grant to study the effects of soluble
has received one of the nursing pro- corn fiber as a dietary supplement to optimize bone mass in adolescents.
fession’s highest honors. He has been Currently, calcium intake of U.S. adolescents is inadequate with only 30 percent
invited to join the American meeting the dietary recommendations. The current recommendation set by the
Academy of Nursing (AAN). Institute of Medicine is 1,300 mg/d for children and adolescents, or the equivalent to
McGhee will be formally inducted four servings of dairy products (1 cup of milk, ¾ cup of yogurt, or 1 ounce of cheese).
into the AAN on October 26 in Puberty is one of the most important windows of development to prevent osteo-
Washington, DC, and will thereafter porosis later in life. More than 1.5 million bone fractures occur yearly in the U.S. and
be eligible to use the credentials osteoporosis fractures are estimated to cost $25 billion by 2025.
FAAN (Fellow of the American “The main source of calcium in our diets comes from dairy products and adoles-
Academy of Nursing). Stephen McGhee cents tend to replace dairy consumption with sweetened beverages. Usually dairy
The Academy’s highly selective cri- product consumption is high just before adolescence but then it falls off during puber-
teria include evidence of significant ty, which is a crucial time for bone mass development,” Palacios said. “As the bones
contributions to nursing and health care and sponsorship by two current grow and become elongated, they can remain a little hollow if calcium intake is low,
academy fellows. Applicants are reviewed by a panel of elected and which leads to bone loss and fractures later in life.”
appointed fellows, and selection is based on the extent the nominee’s Maximizing calcium intake during the key growth period of adolescents is expected
nursing career has influenced health policies and the public’s well-being. to be a key strategy in preventing osteoporosis. Pilot studies have shown that there is
“It is exciting to be part of an organization such as the AAN, which a 12 percent greater absorption of calcium into the body when soluble corn fiber,
helps shape the policies and direction for the nursing profession, and ulti- which can be found in powder form and added to foods or drinks, is added to a diet.
mately, the way care is provided. To have been honored in this way by the The 12-month study will include 236 adolescents who will consume either soluble
American Academy of Nursing, and to be British, as well as helping rep- corn fiber or a placebo twice daily to determine if the soluble corn fiber results in
resent the University of Miami and the state of Florida, means so much to greater bone mass.
me,” said McGhee, who was selected for his international work on emer- “The soluble corn fiber changes the gut microbiome to allow more calcium to be
gency nursing and the care of the military and veteran population. absorbed, but now we need to understand if that greater absorption actually translates
to greater bone mass,” Palacios said. “This fiber could be added to foods that are com-
monly consumed by adolescents to help give them a lifetime of stronger bones.”

28 August 2019 southfloridahospitalnews.com South Florida Hospital News