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Department News and Highlights

ENT 

  • Congratulations to Andrea Lewis and Wendy Marino, MSN, AGP-CNP who are the first providers in Mississippi to achieve Inspire’s “Provider of Excellence” achievement level. 
  • Thank you to the residents, students, and clinical and office team who participated in the Oral Cancer Screening on April 16 at the JMM—a part of Head and Neck Cancer month. Together, the team screened 127 individuals- a record number for this annual screening! We were thankful to have the participation from Onyx Care, a mobile clinic who provided HPV vaccines, and the ACT Center. Several team members gave media interviews leading up to and at the event.
  • A huge congratulations to Dr. Mark Reed on 30 years of services to UMMC.
  • Gina Jeffersonserved as one of the keynote speakers for ENT graduation at University of Illinois Chicago. She discussed “Utilization of APPs in Otolaryngology Practice, an Opportunity”.
  • Dr. Randy Jordan was honored with the Laura D. Schoenrock, MD Distinguished Service Award at the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery annual meeting in LA. This award recognizes outstanding contributions to the integrity of facial plastic & reconstructive surgery certification. Congratulations, Dr. Jordan!
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Reserach
  • The basic science research team presented 16 abstracts/posters at the Association for Research in Otolaryngology (ARO) Midwinter Meeting in Orlando, FL February 22-26.
  • Congratulations to Dr. Sarah Faucette received $485,491 for a randomized trial on telehealth vs. conventional hearing care delivery, part of the ACHIEVE study, from the National Institutes of Health and Johns Hopkins University.Three students representing the Yee/Vetter Labs presented their research at the Mid-Winter Conference for the Association for Research in Otolaryngology in Orlando, FL, February 22-26, 2025:
      • Walter Thomas Moore (MS3) presented his research entitled ‘Localization of Perineuronal Nets in the Contralateral Cochlea Following Unilateral Cochlear Ablation’ - co-authors Lauren Kate Storm (MS3), Drs. Douglas Vetter and Kathleen Yee. 
      • Sarah J. Hayek (MS3) presented her research entitled ‘Developmental Expression of Membrane Bound and Secreted Corticotropin Releasing Factor Receptors in the Cochlea’ - co-authors Drs. Douglas Vetter and Kathleen Yee. 
      • Alka Ghadiyaram (MS2) presented her research entitled ‘Cochlear expression of Orexin Signaling Molecules and their Role in Hearing’ - co-authors Drs. Douglas Vetter and Kathleen Yee.

Audiology

    • Sarah Faucette, AuD, PhD presented “Hearing Loss and Cognition: Implications of Intervention on Brain Morphology and Function” at the 2024 ASHA Convention in Seattle, WA.
    • Charles Bishop, AuD, PhDand Mary Frances Johnson, AuD served as Topic Chairs for Hearing, Tinnitus, and Vestibular Research on the 2024 ASHA Convention Program Committee.
      • Chris Spankovich, AuD, PhD gave two lectures at the American Academy of Audiology Annual Conference in New Orleans March 26-29: 
        • Pure Tone Audiometry for Audiology Assistants
        • A Forensic Audiology Airbag Case: Presentation and Role Play
    • Beth King, AuDis now an Associate Professor. 
    • Alex Elkins, AuD - Acute Vestibular Loss and Central Compensation
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    • Congratulations to the MSHA team a successful conference!
    • Audiology Grand Rounds
      • Mary Frances Johnson, AuD - Moderator
      • Ashley Grillis, AuD - Pediatrics: Difficult to Test Populations
      • Vicki Gonzalez, AuD, PhD - Hear’s the Time: When to Refer for a Cochlear Implant Evaluation
  • Dr. Mary Frances Johnson served as a panelist for a session on the importance of health screenings at the 30th Annual Mississippi Rural Health Annual Conference in November. 

Speech

  • Kelsey Murray received IRB approval for her study in collaboration with James Madison University : Oral Sensation and Perception in Oropharyngeal Dysphagia.
  • Lollie Robinsonconducted an invited presentation for national Praxis review on Adult Acquired Neurolinguistic Disorders on Jan. 15th.
  • Dr. Kelsey Murray completed a lecture in February on clinical swallow assessment for the graduate students at Widner University. She is also presenting two posters at Dysphagia Research Society at the end of this month:
    • Survey: Exploring hyolaryngeal excursion assessment during a clinical swallow evaluation in the United States
  • Tammy Wigginton, MS-CCC, SLP presented on Head & Neck Cancer: Evaluations and Treatment of Swallowing Disorders to the Graduate level dysphagia class at Widener University in Chester, PA in February. 
  • Congratulations to Emma Olsen, SLP who was awarded the Distinguished Early Career Professional certificate from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)!
  • Congratulations to Jenna Nassar, SLP, for receiving the Honors of the Association award from the Mississippi Speech-Language-Hearing Association (MHSA)! This prestigious honor recognizes her outstanding contributions to speech-language pathology in Mississippi. 
  • Congratulations to the MSHA team a successful conference! MSHA 2025 was the 2nd highest ever attendance with 400 attendees. Led by Jenna Nasser, her team included other UMMC SLPs and Audiologists: Mary Frances Johnson, Alyssa Sobiesk, Mallory Upchurch, Marie Josey, Krissy Beattie, Whitney Wallace, Emma Grace Olsen, Mary Campbell, Amy Walker Dixon, Rachel Tyrone, and Past President Josie Alston.  The department was well represented with presentations, including: 
    • Jenna Nassar, MS & Krissy Beattie, MS: SLP-ing like a Pro: How to Thrive outside the Classroom
    • Amy Walker Dixon, MS: SLP’s Role in Helping to Treat ARFID and PFD
    • Mary Gunn Prewitt, AuD, Amy Walker Dixon, MS, Jenna Nassar, MS & Krissy Beattie , MS: Speak, Hear, Connect: A Look into SLP and Audiology Careers
    • Alyssa Sobiesk, MS, Whitney Wallace, MS, Mary Campbell, MS and Megan Allen, MS: Developmental Feeding: NICU & Beyond
    • Lollie Vaughan-Robinson, PhD: Praxis Prep: Strategies and Specifics for Success and ABCs of ALS for SLPs
    • O. Marie Josey, MS:  Fiberoptic Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing (FEES): Overview from Beginning to End
    • Rachel Tyrone, PhD & Torrey R. Robinson: To Be or Not to Be, Pursuing a Research or Clinical Doctorate? and Now Playing: Wall-E, Prelinguistic Skills, and Systems Science
    • Emma Grace Olsen, MS: Pediatric Resonance Disorders
    • Jelesia Stokes, MS & Ashlie Steproe, MS: Acute Care: What Really Happens before Patients Arrive on your Caseload
    • Tammy Wigginton, MS: Evaluation and Treatment of Swallowing Difficulty: Head and Neck Cancer
    • Kelsey Murray, PhD: Palpation During a CSE: Does it Predict Hyolaryngeal Excursion? 
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