Sorum did research on the bacteria, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a bacteria that affects about 80 percent of cystic fibrosis patients by the age of 18. The bacteria is difficult to treat because it forms a biofilm in the lungs that protects it against antibiotics and white blood cells. He harvested secretions from a non-cystic fibrosis lung model and applied them to the bacteria to test whether the lung secretions would inhibit the formation of the biofilm.

For Sorum, simply attending the conference and presenting his research alongside students from U.S. and Canadian universities and colleges was rewarding. “The biggest thing for me was seeing that going to a small liberal arts college, you can be competitive with large research universities. Just being able to share my results was enough for me as a scientist, but it was definitely a surprise to win.”

The AAAS 2012 poster competition was open to students actively working toward an undergraduate, graduate, or doctoral degree. Posters were judged on content, and presenters were judged on their ability to present their findings to an audience. As a winner, Alex will receive a cash award, a framed certificate, and a one-year subscription to Science. Additionally, he will be recognized in an upcoming issue of Science as well as on the AAAS website. Alex’s trip to present at AAAS 2012 was funded by Augsburg’s Undergraduate Research and Graduate Opportunity (URGO) office.

in an URGO research project series YouTube video produced by Augsburg photojournalist Stephen Geffre.

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Avila is a first generation Chicana born in the barrios of El Paso, Texas. Her parents were born in Mexico and brought their medicine with them out of Mexico — medicine passed down through time. Her family’s health care included Curanderismo as well as Western medicine.

Avila is a practicing psychiatric nurse and renowned practitioner of Curanderismo, the traditional Mexican/Chicano folk medicine. She is also the author of Woman who Glows in the Dark, the only published title that reveals the ancient traditions of Curanderismo from a practitioner’s point of view.

These lectures are open to the general public and are presented free of charge.

Friday, Feb. 12 at 3:30 p.m.

Conversation: Woman Who Glows in the Dark

Marshall Room, Christensen Center

Saturday, Feb. 13 at noon

Convocation: A Curandera’s Concept of Medicine

Hoversten Chapel, Foss Center

When the natural and the spiritual are not torn apart into disjointed entities, there is a balance between human and nature. Human beings have a spiritual nature as well as an individual soul, and the body cannot be cut away from the soul and spirit. Humans are members of the natural world—animals, plants, minerals, earth, and all living things found on earth. Illness occurs when one does not live in harmony with all these aspects of “self.”

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In April Christi Schmit began her internship at University Hospitals, Case Medical Campus, in Cleveland, Ohio. This 950-bed hospital gives her broad experience in varying situations to help develop her music therapy skills. She explains that as a therapeutic intervention, music therapy has been found effective in relaxation and pain management, and in treating chemical dependency and memory loss.

Schmit’s daily schedule at the hospital includes visiting patients to sing favorite songs with them or help them write their own songs for loved ones. She also helps with physical and occupational therapy for patients with joint replacements or in stroke recovery, where music helps entrain the movements to make exercise more fluid. For patients with mood disorders, Schmit uses interventions like drumming, lyric analysis, and songwriting to augment the psychologists’ work.

The therapists also visit with families and patients at Ronald McDonald House and Hope Lodge, encouraging group support, coping, songwriting, and fun.

“Music takes a person’s mind off what is not so good and allows people to relax,” says Schmit. “Music uses a different part of the brain. A stroke victim who cannot speak can sing an entire song. An Alzheimer’s patient may not be able to remember a family member’s name, but they will remember a favorite hymn from childhood.”

Schmit’s supervisor, music therapist Deforia Lane, was recently featured on NBC Nightly News’ “Making a Difference” segment, as she made rounds in the hospital and sang with patients. Lane explained how a patient’s blood pressure, heart rate, and respiration can all decrease just by listening to her singing or humming — the slower the rhythm, the more calming the effect.

NBC News also featured “Toddler Rock,” a program for inner-city kids at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in which Schmit and other music therapists teach preliteracy skills through music.

At the end of her internship in October, Schmit plans to return home to northern Wisconsin where she is exploring job options. At some point, study toward a master’s degree is also in her future.

To see Christi Schmit in the NBC newsclip accompanying the singing with her guitar, go to .

For the newsclip on the Toddler Rock program, go to .

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Twelve second-year physician assistant students are preparing to travel to Guatemala for two weeks to study health care practices and to learn about indigenous culture. Part of their preparation has included raising money — two garage sales netted over $1,100 — that they’ve used to buy medical equipment and supplies to donate, small gifts and other health items — plus 44 pairs of reading glasses purchased at the dollar store.

Much of their time in Guatemala will be spent in Mayan communities, learning about traditional culture, spirituality, and medicine. The students will visit clinics and schools, and meet with healthcare workers. They’ll also present health education programs and conduct workshops for health promoters on topics such as hypertension and diabetes. Some of their purchased supplies are hygiene and health items for people to take home that reinforce these messages.

The Guatemala trip, from June 23-July 8, is a pilot course for PA students, led by Professor Donna DeGracia and coordinated by the Center for Global Education. While in Guatemala City, the group will stay at Augsburg’s guest house, Casa San José, for orientation and background on local history and culture. This will help the students understand how cultural differences, poverty, and a long civil war have deeply affected the Guatemalan people.

In the capital city, the students will visit poverty-stricken areas and meet with community workers to see first hand the deep disparities in culture. DeGracia says it’s a real eye-opener to actually see how little so many people have and how they find ways to live on and off of other people’s resources.

Traveling into the highlands, the center of Guatemala’s indigenous population, the students will visit Mayan communities in Chichicastenango and San Lucas Tolimán. From the Mayans, they’ll learn about traditional medicine, the use of medicinal plants and other healing practices. The students’ itinerary, planned by the CGE staff in Guatemala, also includes participation in a Mayan ceremony.

The PA students targeted hypertension and diabetes as two areas where they can provide both information and supplies to help local health promoters improve the community’s well-being. The students will donate basic medical equipment and supplies they’ve purchased, such as blood pressure cuffs, stethoscopes, and over-the-counter basics as vitamins and pain relievers, to the local communities.

The PA students hope to draw on this experience as they think about their own medical practice. This includes understanding better how people, especially in traditional cultures, approach medicine differently, and developing cultural sensitivity as they treat patients. They also hope to gain insight into making the best use of scarce resources, helpful for PAs who may practice in rural areas.

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