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When members of the Summit County Democrats discussed the campaign commissioner with Thomas Davidson in 2006, he was not sure about this idea.

At the time, Davidson, who had served as development director at Vail Resorts Development Co., participated in a campaign that required voters to approve property taxes to help support early childhood care and education.

Once the measure is passed, Davidson hopes that things will continue as normal. However, the women who participated in the campaign with him had other plans.

He said: "All these women who have worked with me, who are also active in the Democratic Party, come to me and say,'We want you to put on your hat and become the new commissioner." "I kind of deny it, I will admit it at first. I just think that people who work at Vail Resorts and those who are engaged in real estate development will not be considered commissioners by the Democratic Party."

Davidson was elected to the county committee summit in 2007 to fill a vacancy left by Bill Wallace, who stepped down to become the county treasurer. After fourteen years and three election cycles, Davidson and his colleague Karn Stiegelmeier (Karn Stiegelmeier) have completed the full term of the board.

On Tuesday, January 12, the newly elected commissioners Tamara Borg and Josh Blanchard will be sworn in to replace Davidson and Stiegelmeier.

For Stigmeier, joining the board of directors in 2009 was a natural step. At that time, she was a director of the Friends of the Lower Blue River, chairman of the Sierra Club Blue River Group, a member of the board of directors of the Continental Demarcation Land Trust Fund of the United States, and a mountain representative of the I-70 Corridor Collaborative Work Group. She has also served as a volunteer for many other environmentally focused community groups.

She said: "I have been involved in a number of non-profit organizations. These matters have allowed me to work with commissioners and plan commissions and ask for things." "When I have the opportunity, I find,'Oh, being commissioners is better than letting them do what I want It’s much easier to do.’”

Together with commissioner Dan Gibbs and later Elisabeth Lawrence, Stiegelmeier and Davidson used their expertise in many areas to achieve their goals.

Stiegmeier’s knowledge of water rights and fire protection has helped the county move towards

The agreement helped resolve a long-standing dispute over the waters between the Denver Water Company and the Clinton Ditch and Reservoir Company. It also provides more water to Summit County and other areas of the Colorado River Basin.

Stegmeier said: "My main position when I started in this county was water, which was the lifeblood of Summit County." "I still believe this is true, whether it is snowflakes or water for development or entertainment. "

Davidson (Stevegelmeier) and Davidson (Gibbs) have made great strides throughout their tenure on the board to protect land in the state and provide more affordable housing. Davidson pointed out that for

As an example of the commissioner’s political will.

He said: "Without Kahn Stigmeier and Dan Gibbs, Hushan would not have happened."

The county was able to obtain the land through Stegmeier’s negotiation skills with the local environmental community and Gibbs’s connection with former Washington Senator Mark Udel. Eventually, former President Barack Obama signed the "Affordable Housing Act" in 2014.

Gibbs said: "We were able to obtain a bill through Congress and actually purchased land from the U.S. Forest Service to one day provide labor housing in that specific area." "In Summit County, when 80% of the When the land is federal land, it is not easy to take out the land (for housing)."

The Lake Hill project is expected to bring more than 430 affordable housing to a piece of land near Dillon Dam Road.

The project is

, Working in Summit County and Frisco Town to

And solve the problems related to the infrastructure.

Gibbs, who has worked with Stigmeier and Davidson for eight years, said that even after he became the executive director of the state's Department of Natural Resources, he still rarely saw politicians like the two outgoing commissioners.

He said: "They are the most dedicated civil servants I have ever seen." "They know Summit County very well... I think they are very, very useful in their position as Commissioner of Summit County."

Davidson and Stiegelmeier are also committed to solving social problems.

In 2015, the state’s first openly gay commissioner, Davidson, formulated a set of policies to protect transgender employees in the county and implement transgender health insurance.

Davidson said that because people suspected transgender employees at the time, some people questioned the county's decision to make this effort. Then, in 2017, Lesley Mumford, the then-Summit County Sheriff’s Office Operations Commander and SWAT team leader, was born as a transgender woman.

In an article in "Summit Daily News," Mumford said that the county's policy decisions kept her in Summit County when she was preparing to resign.

"When they announced the news, I went back to Sara and said,'You won't believe this, see what the county has done,'"

"I am ready to get rid of all this, but this move by the county forces us to stay here and become part of this community."

For Davidson, the fact that he is gay basically does not exist in Summit County. The county has a history of supporting gay rights even though it was not popular at the time. In 1992, the state passed Amendment 2 prohibiting cities, counties, and towns from enacting anti-discrimination policies against LGBTQ communities. Summit County was one of the three counties in the state that publicly opposed the amendment at the time.

Davidson said that although it doesn't seem like a big deal now, he and Blanchard, who is also gay, are paving the way for young people.

“If you talk to young people who are trying to drive a car, it is very useful to know their community. This can make people become judges, commissioners or leadership roles, not just being accepted or tolerated, or even celebrating.” He said.

Neither Stegmeier nor Davidson expected their wish to come true during the past year of their decades-long tenure.

For Stigmeier, the job of being a commissioner during the pandemic can be described in one word: "hell." Commissioners must participate in the bi-weekly meetings of the health committee, which previously only held three to four meetings per month. They have a say in local restrictions and have become the target of scrutiny of these decisions.

"I've been getting complaints from people all the time, and it's all because'You haven't done enough. You have done too much," Stigmeier said.

Starting Tuesday, Stigmeier and Davidson will no longer handle these complaints. Knowing that his time on the board is nearing the end, members of both parties have made an effort to let Lawrence, who was elected in November, lead the way in working against COVID-19.

Lawrence said: "When I start the next semester, I really appreciate that I can continue all the COVID experience, there is a certain continuity in the community." "Thomas and Kahn have been very supportive throughout the process. I."

Lawrence added that if it were not for the work of Stigmeier and Davidson to establish the county's emergency reserve fund, the county would not be able to fund business and rent relief efforts.

When Davidson joined the board of directors in 2007, the reserve was approximately $6 million. Since then, it has grown to more than $30 million.

Lawrence said: "During their tenure, they provided such an excellent service to the community through financial management." "In their time, they saved a lot of money, and it has now proven to be helpful."

Ten and a half years of public service can exhaust anyone.

Stigmeier plans to spend some time relaxing in the next few months before he starts participating in local environmental organizations.

She said: "I made a promise to myself. I will not say'yes' to anything until a few months after I retire."

Davidson will serve as the first executive manager of "County and Commissioner Acting Together", an organization established to help commissioners lobby the state government for reforms to benefit their communities.

Davidson said he will continue to live in Summit County and will spend a lot of time in Denver, where he will work closely with state leaders on oil and gas, housing, healthcare and other issues. Cooperation.

He said: "The (organization) concerns are the unbelievable problems in my heart, and the things I am actively working on as a commissioner in Summit County.

When Davidson and Stiegelmeier embark on a new adventure, they will feel happy to leave Lawrence, Pogue and Blanchard.

Davidson said: "The three of them have come to Summit County and must really fight for survival." "They are all incredible hard work and hard work. Once they enter here, they make me look like a lazy person. ."

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Senator Chuck Winder will speak in the Senate of the Idaho State Capitol on Wednesday, August 26, 2020.

Members of Congress gathered in the House of Representatives at a special meeting held in the capital of Idaho on Monday, August 24, 2020.

Members of Congress gathered in the House of Representatives at a special meeting held in the capital of Idaho on Monday, August 24, 2020.

Idaho's 2021 legislative session will begin on Monday, when Governor Brad Little will deliver his State of the Union address. This photo of the Capitol was taken early last year.

A huge Idaho flag hangs in the rotunda of the State Capitol of the Idaho Legislative Assembly in 2021.

Rep. Brent Crane addresses a group of lawmakers at a self-described "special meeting" in the Idaho State Capitol on Tuesday, June 23, 2020.

The Idaho State Capitol, Tuesday, January 7, 2020. Governor Brad Little will speak at the State State Speech in 2021 on January 11, the day the legislative session begins. 

Ilana Rubel

Scott Bedeck

Boise-Idaho Legislative Assembly members will meet in person at the first regular meeting of the 66th Idaho Legislature on Monday. In the pandemic that has claimed the lives of more than 1,500 Idaho people, their top priority is to reduce the governor’s ability to respond to pandemics or other disasters.

R-Boise Senate President Pro-Tem Chuck Winder said: "This has been going on for almost a year, and I think people just feel that the legislature is not playing its due role."

He said: "There are some things we might suggest that the executive branch dislikes, but we think that in this case, there will be enough support to veto the veto."

The Speaker of the R-Oakley House of Representatives Scott Bedke said: “There is no second guess that can explain the decision that the governor must make.” “Some people agree, some people disagree. But the most important thing here is that Who makes the decision."

Bedek said: "Our government system is based on checks and balances." "Also, because you are in a disaster or emergency situation, now is not the time to abandon this historic system. In fact, I can present a case, That's when you need it most."

Not surprisingly, cutting one's own executive power is not among the priorities implied by Governor Brad Little. On Monday, he will use his state and budget information to set the initial agenda for the meeting for members of Congress. Republican governors recently focused their discussion on how to use record state surpluses to invest in infrastructure, including education, transportation, and broadband; and provide some form of tax relief, and many lawmakers have also focused on the latter.

Governor Brad Little will present the State of the State and Budget Report at 1pm on Monday in the Lincoln Auditorium. The lecture hall will be open to the public during the lecture, in line with the second phase of the Idaho rebound plan, but the audience can watch

.

House Minority Leader Boise (I-Boise) MP Ilana Rubel said reducing executive power is not on her core agenda. She said: "We really think this will not benefit working families." "We just don't know that seizing power is how we should use our time in the Legislative Council now."

At the special meeting in August, Republican leaders in the House and Senate used it as a template for the "balance of power" between the Idaho legislature and the executive branch. Wendell said he hopes to introduce a package of bills in the first week of the meeting.

The resolution calls for all measures to be taken, from ending the current state of emergency for COVID-19, to requiring lawmakers to agree whether any emergency declarations will exceed a certain period of time, to constitutional amendments to allow the legislature to convene special meetings instead of waiting for the governor Speech. Wendell pointed out that the constitutional amendment will not be approved by voters in the 2022 general election until both houses are passed by a two-thirds advantage.

Rubel said: "This will require some serious sideboards, because we may be trapped in a legislature for a whole year, which will cost taxpayers a huge price, and will only lead to endless invincibility. ."

Idaho legislators hold regular meetings in January each year, usually working for about three months, although there is no set end time. In recent years, there were only 75 days of meetings in 2020 and 2016, and the historical record in 2003 was 118 days, which almost matched the 117 days in 2009.

Rep. Greg Chaney, the chairman of the House of Representatives Judiciary (R-Caldwell), said: "I think emergency power will be the focus of the entire conference." "This really seems to be the most anxious thing for everyone. thing."

Rep. Brent Crane, R-Nampa, chairman of the newly installed House State Affairs Committee, said: "This will be a struggle between the executive and the legislative branch for rebalancing power.... I think it will be in the legislative session. It’s the dominant position, I do."

Here are some other issues that lawmakers will face when they meet in the State Capitol on Monday:

After the chaos during the special meeting in August, including an unruly crowd led by Ammon Bundy, they smashed the glass door leading to the House of Representatives gallery and then filled the gallery ignoring the rules of social evacuations. The Idaho State Conference of the Year for Safety Measures included other state police officers. The meeting was also held during the COVID-19 pandemic, although both Boise and Ada counties had requirements for masks and social distancing, and the second phase of the emergency order limited the attendance of all government meetings across the state to 10. The legislature will not abide by these rules.

It is expected that 70 members of the House of Representatives and 35 senators will gather in their chamber. Seating in the committee meeting room will be restricted to maintain distance.

The legislature formulates its own operating rules in its conference halls, committee rooms and offices. Both Bedek and Wind said that neither legislators nor the public need to wear masks. Wend said, however, anyone who enters the Senate is required to wear a mask. According to the opinion of the Idaho Attorney General, public areas (including corridors) in the Capitol must comply with local requirements.

Wend said: "This will be a challenge." "Our goal is to stay as normal as possible, but if people can't come here in Boise, or even if they come here and are in poor health, it can give people a chance to testify and Participate. Want to enter the building or be exposed in this way.” The legislature has upgraded the technology in the past year to allow remote public testimony, but Bedke said that the use in the House committee will be entirely up to each The chairman of the committee decides for himself. Wind said the Senate is committed to allowing all committees to do so.

He said: "In reviewing these very important decisions, we will do everything possible to involve the public and become part of the decision-making process."

Colonel Kendrick Wells, Commissioner of the Idaho Police Department, said: "The essence of our democracy lies in citizen participation in this process, so our role is to ensure that people feel safe and comfortable when they are there."

Wells said that Internet service providers have three major goals: to safeguard the constitutional rights of everyone; to ensure that government affairs can continue; and to “resolve acts of violence or civil disturbances that occur.” He said this may include arrests and criminal charges.

Although Idaho has been hit by the pandemic and business closures in the past year, the state’s economy has been soaring, housing construction has developed rapidly, and thousands of new residents have poured in.

Rep. Rick Youngblood, co-chair of the Joint Financial Appropriations Committee, R-Nampa, said last week after hearing a hearing on the state of Idaho’s economy: "Our growth is crazy. "But he said the state has long delayed urgent infrastructure needs, including transportation investments.

This is also the top priority of Little’s agenda, and both parties support investments in long-term transportation improvements. A study by Boise State University found that the state’s current annual transportation funding gap is $242 million. This is only to maintain the current transportation system; it cannot solve the cost of growth.

Few people and lawmakers have been talking about investing in other infrastructure needs in Idaho, including the needs of schools. Statewide broadband services; water conservancy projects, etc.

Bedke pointed out that the state’s budget surplus reached a record $600 million. He said: "If we use part of our surplus to invest there, it will save us a lot of money."

The Idaho School Board Association is vigorously promoting the approval of school development impact fees this year. Idaho has allowed the project to fund roads, parks and other public facilities, but has excluded schools. This will shift some of the burden of school expansion to serve the new growth to new immigrants, rather than hitting existing residents by increasing property taxes.

The fast-growing property tax, especially the collection of residential property in fast-growing areas, has caused concerns throughout the state. The Legislative Interim Committee proposed:

People are also interested in legislation passed by an overwhelming majority in the Senate last year, but never heard of it in the House of Representatives to increase circuit breakers. This is the main state Idaho offers to low-income seniors, the disabled, and veterans. Property tax relief measures. Since 2006, there has been no adjustment for inflation.

Minority Democrats announced the following bill:

Rubell said these proposals would reduce property taxes for homeowners while still "keeping important services intact."

The new statewide reporting system will cost $1.7 million in the first year and $1.3 million each year thereafter, and it will require four new state employees, but the idea has been supported to find a way to really boost property tax increases. Bedek said: "I don't think it is enough to repair by itself, but it must be done to get started."

One of the basic tasks that the legislature must complete is to develop a balanced budget for the state before the start of the new fiscal year on July 1. It is expected that due to the spring pandemic and statewide closures, state taxes will fall sharply, and almost no reduction of 5 percent of all state budgets this year has been implemented, but it depends on the effectiveness of lawmakers. Since then, state tax revenue has not decreased, but has soared, and the state is now expected to achieve a record surplus of $600 million by the end of the current fiscal year.

The state’s budget stabilization fund is Idaho’s main rain fund with a balance of more than $423.4 million. Legislative budget director Paul Headlee told lawmakers last week: "This is the largest balance we have in the fund since it was established in 1984." "This accounted for 10.5% of general fund revenue last year." This does not include other reserves, including the Public Education Stability Fund, the state's disaster contingency fund and tax relief fund, and online sales tax revenue has been deposited in the fund. Headlee reports that the current total balance of various reserves is $588 million, accounting for 14.6% of last year's revenue.

At the same time, functional departments in states ranging from schools to prisons to health care have reported huge demand, including increased costs due to changes caused by the pandemic. Hundreds of millions of dollars in federal aid has met some of these needs, but it cannot be expected to continue in the future.

Bedek said: "We need to find effective and ineffective methods this year." "If we are to rely more on the Internet to provide education, then we need to ensure that the Internet can work properly."

Little and the Republican-led legislature (86 of the 105 seats occupied by Republicans) are both interested in providing tax relief to Idaho because the state has a budget surplus. In addition, approximately $135 million sits in the "tax cut fund", which is accumulating because legislators used online sales tax revenue in 2019 to anticipate future tax cuts, but never allocated any money. Generally, business tax revenues mainly flow to the state general fund and provide funds for local government operations throughout the state.

Bedek said he is in favor of increasing the grocery tax credit to provide tax relief. He said: "This is immediate relief for this year. Don't wait for the a-drop effect, don't wait for bureaucrats to define food, and don't establish an audit system." Newly returned Rep. Ron Nate, R-Rexburg and Senator Christy Zito, R-Hammett The leading group of conservative Republicans is advocating a "conservative agenda" calling for the elimination of grocery sales taxes. Reduce or eliminate property taxes, which are the main source of funding for local government services; and other tax reduction measures. Some Republican lawmakers called for further cuts in state income taxes, which further intensified the cuts enacted in 2018.

Rubel said: "I think the first thing we should do is to consider the core needs of citizens before considering tax cuts. Tax cuts have always been mainly funded and closely related.... I am willing to accept that it can actually help working families. Tax cuts, but we have never really seen any interest in any of them."

there are more. In a typical legislative meeting, legislators proposed more than 500 bills, and eventually more than 300 became new laws.

Recommendations under consideration include:

Legislative Democrats are seeking to "at least begin discussions about medical marijuana," which is now allowed in most states, including five of Idaho's six neighbors.

"I know this situation has been raised in the elderly community," Rubel said. "This is not young people who want to go to the party. This is brought to us by elderly people and cancer patients who really suffer from pain. They are now forced to take opioids and have serious side effects. They are looking for a better one. A safe way to manage pain."

Even if neighboring countries have taken steps to liberalize cannabis laws, the Idaho state legislature firmly opposes any such moves, and even rejects the legalization of industrial hemp that has taken effect at the federal level and is strongly supported by Idaho agriculture.

In 2013, the legislature overwhelmingly passed SCR 112, announcing that the Idaho legislature opposed "efforts to legalize marijuana for any purpose in Idaho." Wind, the main sponsor of the resolution, is currently the leader of the Senate of Idaho.

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After Eric Young, a nurse in the emergency department, received his COVID-19 vaccine at 6:15 on Wednesday morning, there was a noticeable pause in the Pennsylvania Hospital auditorium. Except for the photographer's camera flash, the room was silent.

This is because, in most cases, it is not particularly important to shoot two seconds of Yang's arm. He said: "It feels like other vaccines."

Then, as if collectively aware of the seriousness of the occasion, 20 onlookers in the room began to applaud. 

"Eric went to the nursing school with me!" Joanne Ruggiero, clinical director of women's health and behavioral health at Pennsylvania Hospital, shouted the vaccinated nurse. "We are research partners."

"Poor Eric!" a colleague shouted. Everyone laughed. Nervous, broken.

Although the moment passed in an instant, but for

And the hospital with a history of 264 years: Young was the first hospital to receive COVID vaccine in the health system. This marked the "beginning" of what many experts call an unprecedented health crisis, which has infected nearly a nationwide 17 million people killed 13,000 Pennsylvanians. 

It’s worth noting that this is an mRNA study conducted in Penn, which was created by

, Professor of Infectious Diseases and Katalin Karikó,

As an associate professor, he paved the way for the development of Pfizer BioNTech and Moderna COVID vaccine. 

"It is very appropriate to be the first hospital in the country to take the lead in bringing Penn State medicine to a new era of anti-COVID."

Chief Medical Officer of the University of Pennsylvania Health System. "The development and sale of this vaccine will become one of the most important biomedical achievements in the world. It will be a long history in history, and it is an exciting milestone to begin deploying this vaccine to protect our own workforce."

By this weekend, the health system is expected to receive approximately 9,275 doses of Pfizer vaccine for its front-line team. The vaccines are distributed under an emergency use authorization, which is granted to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to provide unapproved medical products during a health crisis.  

Based on recommendations from local, state, and federal agencies, Penn Medicine has established a priority order to guide how the COVID-19 vaccine is distributed within the health system. The vaccine will first be provided to front-line employees who directly deal with patients in an emergency, as well as to those who are exposed to high-risk groups of unknown COVID-19 status. After FDA approval, as the supply of vaccines increases, the health system will begin to manage more people, and eventually patients other than Penn Medicine employees.

At the Pennsylvania Hospital, Chief Human Resources Officer Christine Tierney quickly sent "on-duty calls" to administrative and other non-clinical nurses to staff the hospital's COVID-19 vaccine clinic. Within an hour, she received more than 100 responses. Among those who answered the call was Ruggerio, who woke up at 3:30 on Wednesday morning, feeling like it was Christmas morning.

She said: "I almost don't need the alarm." "I think there will be a lot of uncertainty and ambiguity here today, but so far, people have been asking to take pictures with them, and they are applauding and cheering. So excited. Up."

The vaccine arrived at Pennsylvania Hospital at 2 pm on Tuesday, and CEO Theresa Larivee and Vice President of Operations Daniel Wilson were waiting to greet the truck. The vial must be kept at a very low temperature (-112° to -76°F), but it can be stored in the refrigerator for 5 days. When they arrived in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, the vials had melted, so the clock started ticking, which allowed the hospital to vaccinate exactly five days and vaccinate 510 people. 

Throughout the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, five other hospital institutions will adopt similar procedures. The first batch of vaccines arrived at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital on Wednesday morning, and the vaccines subsequently delivered were then delivered to the Penn State Presbyterian Medical Center. Chester County Hospital, University of Pennsylvania Lancaster General Hospital and University of Pennsylvania Princeton Health Hospital are also planning to accept delivery this week.

Back at the Pennsylvania Hospital on Wednesday morning, pharmacist Shadaria Shuler was also busy at work because she took out the vaccine vial from the refrigerator and started preparing for management. Each vial must be placed at room temperature for 30 minutes, then carefully inverted 10 times, diluted with a saline solution, then inverted 10 times, and then the dose is drawn into the syringe. The diluted vaccine can only last six hours at room temperature, while the undiluted vaccine will expire after two hours, so Schuler needs to schedule the time correctly.

Schuler said: "We have been prescribing medicine, so this is nothing new."

As employees began lining up to receive vaccines in the lobby of the Pennsylvania Hospital on Wednesday, the scene inside the Zubro Auditorium was vibrant but organized, because each workbench was made up of staff who understood the role of the assembly line.

Employees entered through the side of the auditorium, registered, were instructed to sign a consent form, and then walked onto the stage to accept the shooting. After that, they arranged an appointment time for the second vaccination (21 to 28 days after the first vaccination) and arranged a timer. Then, instruct them to sit in a chair and wait for 15 minutes, during which time the nurse will monitor them for any symptoms or adverse reactions to the vaccine. In the next three weeks, they will continue to receive SMS check-ins from the health system. 

"I feel great. It does less harm than the flu vaccine." said Michael Ireland, a nurse at the Crisis Response Center. 

For most nurses, doctors, and other necessary personnel who receive the vaccine on Wednesday, the message they want to convey to the public is simple: "If I did this, you should do the same."

Chris Lee was originally an internal medicine resident in Cork, Ireland. He said that he called his family that morning to tell them the good news. He hopes that getting the vaccine will encourage his family and Phillies to do the same. "I think we are ambassadors for all people to move forward. All residents are really reviewing vaccine research, looking for side effects and trying to understand the data." Lee said. "It looks safe indeed."

For Christine Preblick, the decision on the vaccine was not so clear-the doctor in the emergency department received a kidney transplant at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital two years ago and she is not sure whether the COVID-19 vaccine It is safe to use her. But earlier this week, her transplant team approved her decision. 

She believes that the risk of contracting the coronavirus is greater than the risk of vaccine side effects. She looks forward to returning to her normal life-and knows that vaccines are a key part of ensuring that the entire world can do this. She said: "For transplant patients, there must be uncertainty." "But this is a leap of faith."

The story of Lauren Ingeno. read more

. 

Health science

Many Pennsylvania experts are considering this as an ethical issue. They say that one fact is certain: distribution must not exacerbate disparities and inequalities in healthcare.

Campus and community

For many people, 2020 is a difficult year. Nevertheless, the community has found a way to surpass itself in its own backyard and around the world.

Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

Students of the Master of Fine Arts at the University of Pennsylvania not only have to adapt to the challenges of this year, but also continue to paint, paint, sculpt, photograph, and photograph during the pandemic, thus moving their work in different directions.

The Krios G3i electron microscope at the Singer Center can study samples at extremely low temperatures, allowing researchers to observe cells, proteins and nanoparticles like never before.

If Penn has news, you will find it here. We strive to bring you personal information, research updates, and the latest developments in the campus of the college, faculty, staff, and students.

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Islamic and Medical Initiative

Professor Aasim Padela, MD, the new research and scholarship vice chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin, has a history of hiking in uncharted territory. He is the scholar Daniel Boone (Daniel Boone), he explored areas of research that did not yet exist.

Dr. Padela's interdisciplinary research has opened up new areas that combine ethics, medicine, and religious studies. He is a skilled researcher who uses a variety of tools, from community surveys to assessing healthcare gaps, to narrative discourse analysis to consider how to portray Muslims.

Padella explained in his "Elevator Speech": "I took Muslim Americans and Islam as an example to study how religious identity affects health behaviors and healthcare experience, as well as the professional identity and practice of doctors. I will also explore the bioethical guidance of Islam to patients, providers, policy makers and religious leaders."

Padela is now 40 years old, with a hint of gray on his beard, and now it is time to lead others into the clearing where he is setting out in the wilderness. He joined MCW in September, marking this shift in his career.

Padela was the son of an immigrant who came to the United States from Pakistan in the 1970s to study for graduate school. He was born in New York, the second of four siblings. In May 2001, at the age of 20, Padela graduated from the University of Rochester with a double degree in biomedical engineering and classical Arabic language and literature.

He recalled: "Our family is very religious." As a young man, "I am very satisfied with my Muslim status. I got a degree in classical Arabic literature. I did some seminary studies and studied in Egypt. I I lived in Pakistan for a while. I have a long beard and always wear kufi."

Padela called 9/11 the "turning point" of his life. "Let me tell you this story," Padra said. "I am a first-year medical student at Weill Cornell Medical College and I am looking forward to becoming a doctor. I have been trained as an EMT nurse. I am at Cornell University on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

"After the first class, we rested. So, I went outside and someone said that a plane hit the World Trade Center. We started class after nine o'clock. The deans of the medical school walked into the auditorium. We didn’t know. Why. We didn't have cell phones at that time. Some people said that the second plane just hit the second tower and the first building collapsed. The dean said to go home and call his family. The class was cancelled.

"I immediately went to my friend’s dormitory to watch TV, and we saw the second tower collapsed. What I thought I should do? I could pray and serve. I went to the emergency room and asked, can I help? They queued us up. Good team and put us in different teams. But in four hours, only two people came in.

"I chatted with my friend and said,'Let's go to the Chelsea Piers to sort.' I tried to get on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) bus, but the door did not open. When I tried another MTA bus, the door did not Open. Then it clicked. I realized that everyone was worried because I was obviously a Muslim. Only then did I know that the identity of Muslims in this society will change forever.

"The next morning, the dean of the medical school called a town hall meeting just to hear people say that they were traumatized. I remember sitting in that class with about 110 medical students and someone commented:" Americans now know how Israelis feel about Muslim terrorists trying to destroy peace every day. "

"I am one of two Muslim students in the class. I got up and left the room in front of the auditorium. Later that day, the dean said to me: "Asim, you need to know that the doctor-patient relationship is something you can understand. A good doctor needs to understand his patients, and a good patient needs to understand their doctors. There are two worldviews. You can decide whether to use it to build a bridge of understanding between who you are and what your faith means. "

"This directly leads to what I want to do now. My entire academic career started that day."

He said that the medical school is the first stop of Padela's difficult journey, "it is a log for everyone." A highlight is his one-month course in the fourth grade.

Cornell founded a medical school in Qatar. I want to go there to do research on Islamic medical ethics. I will be in a Gulf Muslim country and they are considering how to adopt medical vows that respect Muslim culture and religious traditions. But going there to study elective courses is another matter. Both sides are sensitive.

Padra said: "After a hard fight, I was able to move forward."

As part of his research elective, Padela wrote a thesis on Islamic medical ethics. "I read all the English content about Islamic medical ethics, almost everything.

"My idea is that I want to help medical students there feel that what they traditionally say is safe. I strive to become a cultural liaison in the context of traditional Islamic culture."

Padela graduated in 2005 and obtained a residency in emergency medicine at the University of Rochester.

"Fast forward to my second year of residence, when you started thinking about whether you wanted to be a fellowship or to specialize in a certain profession. That year, I did a research project and interviewed Muslim doctors to understand their beliefs. How identities intersect with medical practice. I want to see the conflict points."

The two research teachers let Padela know that he wrote "a very good paper." They suggested that he consider doing a degree program with his scholarship, which would enable him to conduct his own research.

Later, another professor introduced him to the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar Program. "He said that if you want to acquire research skills, which is the most important program in the world, they will fund your research. I haven't sold the research results completely, but I don't think the application will be hurt." "I recommend research. Health differences between Muslim patients and Muslim providers."

"In an interview, someone asked me what I think is the biggest obstacle to entering the program. Everyone has good grades, letters and project ideas. I said the biggest obstacle will be whether they want to fund a Muslim American, Especially because I want to conduct research on Muslim Americans, and no one can do it. Padela was admitted at the University of Michigan where I was interviewed.

Two years later, the chairman of the committee who chose Padela pulled him aside at a meeting and told him: "'I have to insist that you accept it because you are doing original work. No one else in this country is like this. do.'"

Padela studied at the University of Michigan for three years and received a master's degree in health and wellness studies. "I did all these projects for Muslim Americans. It was a great knowledge environment, and my emergency medicine chairperson got along well with me." Padela was offered a faculty position but was offered a position by the University of Chicago (University of Chicago) hired, "I am fascinated by the idea that I have a place in seminary, ethics center and medical school, and have the ability to create a program."

Along the way, Padela married and had four children. He met his future wife when he was in college in Rochester. They got married when he was in medical school and gave birth to his first child when he lived in the second year. A teacher and his wife decided to continue studying for a doctorate. "So when we moved, she was continuing to study. In Michigan, we had another child. She completed her degree. It took her 10 years, but she can do it no matter where we are. "He said. Now their children are 13, 11, 7 and 5 years old, and his wife is engaged in education consulting.

During his nine years as an associate professor of emergency medicine at the University of Chicago

Padela has joined a research group in the fields of medicine and religious studies, and they are deeply exploring the intersection of religion, ethics and medicine. As the director of the Medicine and Religious Program, he enjoyed the multidisciplinary opportunities that he could create, and he established an interdisciplinary platform for research, dialogue and education, Islamic and Medical Initiatives.

"The most important thing is that my interest is the intersection of the two fields of Islam and traditional medicine. That is the scholarship I have pursued for about 15 years."

Photo © Medical College of Wisconsin

In more than 100 peer-reviewed research articles and book chapters, Padela has studied organ donation, healing, genetic engineering, and the withdrawal of life support through an Islamic perspective. At the same time, he has been evaluating health disparities in Muslim communities by considering topics such as the impact of Muslim executive orders or the use of humble beliefs on healthcare. Or based on the effectiveness of medical education in mosques. His works have been published in the "New York Times", "USA Today", "Chicago Tribune", "Washington Post", National Public Radio, BBC and CNN. He even attended a lecture with Dr. Oz, a celebrity doctor.

The challenge has always been funding. Padra said: "If you don't have money, you have no mission." "The current reality is that if you are an academician in the medical field, you can get funding in two ways: you can engage in clinical work, or you can make grants and Donate to pay for your research and education business."

"If you are doing research on Muslim health in this field, you have almost no money. My attention is focused on two areas: I study the differences in Muslim health and healthcare, and I study Islamic bioethics. No institution wants to pay attention. Differences in Muslim healthcare itself. No foundation has made Muslims a strategically focused group.

"The way the U.S. looks at gaps is race, race, and sexual orientation. We don’t look at gaps between religious groups. This is what I have been trying to make people understand. There are differences, and we have to study them. But they are not funded. First, second, third, fourth or fifth priority.

"Islamic bioethics does not exist in the academic field. When you think of the bioethics centers in the Western world and even the Muslim world, they all focus on secular bioethics. Religious bioethics is sometimes allowed, but When religion enters the dialogue, it is mainly the way of thinking of Christians and Catholics. There is no center of Muslim bioethics in the world.

"So even in my current academic career, I must prove why I write information about the Muslim population or why I use Islamic teachings."

"Our Muslim community has not yet realized that we must build an academic foundation to meet our own healthcare needs, or let academic companies analyze problems from a Muslim perspective, such as the problems we just saw from the COVID vaccine. We need Let those scholars who can do this speak up. We need to merge centers and institutions, funders and research centers around this."

Padela has been responsible for this work and is the co-editor of two upcoming books on the subject. He said, but there is a problem. "Every few years, the challenge will be to get the next grant, and then get the next. As gray-haired as I am now, I can't live like that forever."

Since moving to the Medical College of Wisconsin in September, Padela's focus has shifted from burning roads to building roads.

He said: "Research is part of my life, but it is not the only thing I have to do." "I have crossed that bridge and achieved success. I will continue my research, but I also want to do other things in the college. jobs."

In order to train the next generation of researchers who can study American Muslim communities or Islamic bioethics, he is committed to creating opportunities for academic enterprises through emergency medicine research and the MCW Bioethics and Medical Humanities Center. Becoming an administrator brings "new challenges and use of new skills. That's also part of the attraction."

At MCW, Padela is mentoring five medical students to "raise their awareness of doing this work." I have deployed some models in Chicago and other places, hoping to help junior researchers implement these models.

"I think I am more in the role of thought leader and mentor. When we open up, I will conduct my own research in the community and will provide opportunities for others to collaborate with. They will learn skills and be able to be themselves Project. I look forward to becoming a coach, mentor and consultant.

"In the field of Islamic bioethics, I will publish two books in the next two months. I am writing another one. I hope to complete these projects to serve the academic community and the next generation of people in this field. That is The job I want to pursue."

Ultimately, these efforts will serve the larger community. "It helps raise awareness of the healthcare gap and consider how we can help the healthcare system be more culturally sensitive, and how to better accommodate and accommodate religious identities.

"I am in school because I want to accumulate new knowledge. Hope it will be beneficial."

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