Institute for the Study of Integrative Healthcare
What We Do
The Institute partners with integrative healthcare organizations and educational institutions to advance systems change in healthcare; uplift traditional world medicines and indigenous healing systems; expand access and equity in IH for underresourced and vulnerable populations and innovate in education, research and health care delivery to enhance opportunities for students and faculty and enrich campus life.
Made possible through the largest single gift for endowment in the University's history, the anonymous donors sought to invest in Utica University's longstanding record of innovation and responsiveness to the changing landscape of the healthcare delivery system.
The Institute for the Study of Integrative Healthcare provides many opportunities for students and faculty to collaborate in professional research, as well as establish strong partnerships with healthcare providers in the community.
Integrative healthcare acknowledges the varied strategies that individuals choose to keep themselves healthy, including a broad range of evidence-based strategies and cultural and traditional health practices. In short, it is treating the ‘whole’ patient.
Through the Institute, student and faculty researchers learn more about healthcare strategies that may be common to other cultures and traditions (acupuncture, for example), so that they can be integrated into the paradigm of what it means to be healthy. These methods become particularly important in providing healthcare for immigrant and refugee populations and are increasingly sought by the larger population.
The Institute will leverage technology to connect faculty, community members and students to examine the relationship between integrative healthcare, patient health and professional practice. Students in graduate programs such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, nursing and healthcare administration as well as undergraduate programs such as psychology, communication and media, and dietetics and nutrition (to name a few) will engage in meaningful experiences related to their fields of study. Faculty associated with the Institute will take a cross-disciplinary approach to their study to directly prepare students for their intended careers.
Students will benefit from the opportunities provided by the Institute to apply their knowledge in meaningful and relevant ways at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Institute faculty will be charged with connecting their research from the Institute to their teaching with student experiences so that students engage in meaningful ways with their curricula, which will be a means to enhance persistence to graduation.
SAVE THE DATE
FALL ISIH EVENTS:
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 18
2:30 PM | Fireside Chat by Michael Fine
7:00 PM | Film/Panel Discussion: "Heal"
Vision
Healthcare practitioners, educators, researchers and community members will integrate healthcare practices that support health promotion, prevention, well-being, resilience and optimal quality of life for individuals and communities, with a particular focus on IMH for under-resourced and vulnerable populations. We promote equity and access for all patients, all paradigms and all providers who can contribute to optimal patient outcomes and to healing at planet, population, community and individual levels, particularly for those who bear undue disease burden due to social conditions beyond their control.
Mission
ISIH will work with health care providers, researchers, educators, policy makers, faculty, students, and community members to improve access and equity in integrative healthcare and to study and disseminate findings about the integration of health practices that support population wellness. We actively work to enact and enhance greater diversity and inclusion for all patients, all paradigms and all providers and to contribute to an evidence base that empowers patients to engage with collaborative, team-based care that informs systems change in our healthcare delivery landscape. Our work makes clear the connections between planet, population, community and individual levels of health, in ways that uplift the traditional world medicines and ancestral wisdom that informs the best of integrative healthcare.
Values
- We value a collaborative learning process as we teach, research and deliver integrative healthcare practices and the social determinants of health and health inequities.
- We value an openness to all paradigms, providers and practices that inform optimal patient outcomes and support overall health and well-being.
- We value whole-person care that uplifts the values and priorities of integrative healthcare, including patient empowerment and collaborative team-based care.
- We value evidence-based teaching and practice and model-valid research that properly characterizes complex causal mechanisms and multivariate conditions. Our research methods and study designs support investigations that preserve the authenticity of paradigmatic understandings across approaches that comprise integrative healthcare.
- Focus on the REALM of possibility:
- Expand the Reach of Integrative Healthcare
- Expand the Evidence-Base for Integrative health Care
- Support Access and Equity for Under-resourced and Vulnerable Populations
- Disseminate Institute activities in the Integrative Health Care Literature
- Promote appropriate and optimal research Methodologies for the study of Integrative Healthcare
© 2022 Institute for the Study of Integrative Health Care, Utica University
Integrative Health for The People and The Planet™
Advisory Council for The Institute for the Study of Integrative Healthcare
Jennifer Barlow Gagnon, MBA Tri-chair Fundraising WC
Ms. Barlow Gagnon is Senior Vice President of Community Health and Behavioral Services with Upstate Cerebral Palsy where she applies her expertise in healthcare leadership, program development, and grant procurement. She served as a board member for the Mental Health Association of Jefferson County, Watertown Sunrise Rotary, and the New York State Regional Planning Consortium where she also served as Chair of Children and Family Services Subcommittee. And Ms. Barlow Gagnon has performed extensive volunteer activities, including with the Alzheimer’s Association in Watertown, New York and the Harborlights Rescue Mission, Portland Youth Project, and Habitat for Humanity in Oregon.
Ms. Barlow Gagnon holds a Masters in Business Administration, Nonprofit Management Concentration from Marylhurst University and a B.S. Business Management Healthcare Administration from the University of Phoenix. And she was named among the 20 Under 40 by Northern New York Business Magazine in 2016.
Helen Blouet, Ph.D. President and Co-Chair Speakers/ Events WC
Dr. Blouet received her B.A. in anthropology from The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, and her M.A. and Ph.D. in anthropology from Syracuse University in 2006 and 2010 respectively.
Helen’s dissertation research examined the ways in which people in 18th and 19th century Caribbean communities utilized burial practices and commemorated the dead. She is most interested in how, given identities and categories of race, class, and religion, people created commemorative similarities and differences through their access to funerary resources.
At Utica University, Dr. Blouet continues to research death, burial, and commemoration in Caribbean history. In addition, she teaches several courses, including Introduction to Anthropology (ANT 101), Introduction to Archaeology (ANT 267), Caribbean Anthropology (ANT 243), Social Science Research Methods (ANT/SOC 312) and Cultures, Health, and Healing (ANT 415).
Damian Chase-Begay, Ph.D Chair Research WC
Dr. Chase-Begay is Director and Health Officer with the Missoula City-County Health Department in Missoula, Montana. As former Executive Director of the All Nations Health Center and Principal Consultant of The Kishíhene Clan, both in Missoula, as well as the former Executive Director of the National Council of Urban Indian Health in Washington, D.C., Dr. Chase-Begay has expertise and extensive experience in policy and practice related to whole-person health and traditional ceremonial practices among reservation-based and urban Native American populations.
Dr. Chase-Begay holds a Ph.D. in public health from the University of Montana, a M.S. in Healthcare Administration and Interprofessional Leadership from the University of California at San Francisco, and a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Montana. As an adjunct instructor of Native American Studies at the University of Montana and a Faculty Affiliate of Research and Teaching in the School of Public and Community Health Sciences at the University of Montana, Dr. Chase-Begay also has experience both teaching and conducting research.
Sofia Chavez, DNM, DSM
Dr. Chavez is a provider and educator of integrative therapy and cultural based care. She holds a doctorate in natural medicine from Doctor of Natural Medicine (DNM) from the Institute of Bio-energetic Medicine and Board Certified through the American Naturopathic Medical Association. Dr. Chavez also completed a doctorate in spiritual studies and ministry (DSM), a bachelors degree in the promotion of health and wellness in integrative therapies from Metro State University in Denver, Colorado, and an associates degree in applied science in occupational therapy from Arapahoe Community College in Denver, Colorado. She has published research in the Journal of The American Naturopathic Medical Association.
Certificates held by Dr. Chavez include Professional Holistic Health, Advanced Auricular Therapist, National Certified Biofeedback Practitioner, Meso American Healing Techniques, and Aroma Therapy. She is also a Licensed Massage Therapist and Usui Shiki Ryoho Reiki Master as well as a Colorado Registered Psychotherapist who trained at the Institute of Cross Cultural and Archetypal Psychology. Dr. Chavez holds a professional affiliation with the International Collaboration of Indigenous Healers, Curanderos, Sanadores y Shamans at the University of Morelos in Mexico. And she has won several awards, including the Outstanding Woman’s Award for Estara Health Education Classes from Metropolitan State University Denver, the Pillar of The Community Award from Denver Health, and the Ambassador Award for Outstanding Service and Dedication to Institute of Bio-energetic Medicine Students and the Profession of Natural Medicine.
Lucia Everlyn Corriette, DPT, MBA
Dr. Corriette is a physical therapist with over 20 years of experience in providing services to inpatient facilities and home healthcare and licensed both in the Commonwealth of Dominica and the State of New York. Currently owner and physical therapist at Physiotherapist Services in the Commonwealth of Dominica, she previously held positions at Cayman Islands Hospital in the Cayman Islands and Peebles Hospital in the British Virgin Islands. Dr. Corriette received a diploma in physiotherapy from the University of the West Indies in Jamaica, a masters of business administration from the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom, and a doctorate of physical therapy from Utica College (now Utica University).
In addition to her professional practice, Dr. Corriette serves as an adjunct lecturer teaching courses in diagnostic imaging, pharmacology and pathophysiology, prevention and wellness, and global healthcare in the Utica University Physical Therapy graduate program. She also performs many volunteer activities, including providing physical therapy related talks to community groups and writing articles for public news outlets. One such example, an educational article in DaVibes: The Caribbean News Portal explaining the general role of physiotherapists in reducing pain, can be found here http://www.dominicavibes.dm/readers-208548/. Another, about the causes of cerebrovascular accident or stroke and the subsequent role of PT in managing the condition, can be found here http://www.dominicavibes.dm/readers-210906/. In addition to her work in hospitals and home healthcare, Dr. Corriette has an interest and experience working with amateur and professional athletes and particular interests in the study and research of amelioration of back pain and rehabilitation of the hand. You can read her LinkedIn profile at http://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-lucia-corriette-721790b1/?originalSubdomain=dm.
Jean Davis-Hatcher, PhD, DC, PA, MSCR Co-Chair Speakers/Events; Tri-Chair BIPOC/DEI
Dr. Davis-Hatcher is Medical Director/Clinician of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, a Clinician with Dust to Dawn Urgent Care, a Researcher with Charles R Drew University, Integrated Medicine Director with Total Health Matters, and Co-Founder of Integrated Medical and Health Consultants PC. She is also Associate Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine with Charles R Drew University and a former Assistant Professor with the David Geffen School of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine at the University of California at Los Angeles.
Dr. Davis-Hatcher holds doctoral degrees in both preventative medicine and chiropractic medicine as well as a masters degrees in clinical research and as a physicians assistant and a bachelors in psychobiology. Post-graduate awards received by Dr. Davis-Hatcher include research awards from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program Research and Training Award, and a Prevention Cardiology Academic Award from the National Institutes of Health. And Dr. Davis-Hatcher is an active member of numerous medical and health-related professional societies.
Grace Forde, MD Chair Policy Working Committee
Dr. Forde has over 20 years experience working in pain management. She is currently Medical Director of The NeuroPain Care Center in Lake Success, New York and is board certified in Neurology and Pain Management. She holds an MD from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University in Bronx, New York and a BS in from Long Island University in Brooklyn, New York. Dr. Forde’s several post-graduate training experiences include an observership at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, New York, a pain management fellowship at the University of California in San Francisco, California, a neurology residency at the University of California, San Diego, California, and a medicine internship at Montefiore Medical Center in Bronx, New York.
Several academic appointments include work as an Assistant Professor of Neurology at New York University in New York and a Clinical Instructor in the Pain Management Center of the University of California, San Francisco, and Dr. Forde won a teaching award from the University of California, San Diego. She has also held appointments at several hospitals, is a member of and sits on the board for several professional societies related to pain management. Dr. Forde has been a sought after speaker engaged with several speakers bureaus, including Galaxo Smith Klein, Merck, and Lilly and others. And she has been the principal investigator on several large research projects investigating pain management including opioid use and abuse as well as alternative pain management approaches and serves as a research manuscript reviewer for the Clinical Journal of Pain.
Ellen Goldsmith, MSOM, L.Ac., Dip.C.H
Ellen Goldsmith is a nationally board certified, licensed acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist, educator, health and wellness consultant, and author of the book Nutritional Healing with Chinese Medicine: + 175 Recipes for Optimal Health. She co-founded Pearl Natural Health, in 2001 an integrative naturopathic and Chinese medicine out of Portland, Oregon.
She is on faculty at the National University of Natural Medicine’s College of Classical Chinese Medicine, where she teaches graduate students in the study of Chinese Dietetics and its clinical application. She is also on faculty with the Academy of Integrative Health and Medicine teaching integrative medical fellows on the Energetics of Food.
She created the podcast Health Currents Radio to motivate, educate and inspire people to improve their health. She later hosted Healthwatch on Pacifica Radio, a popular weekly show.
Ellen’s expertise and dedication to the advancement of Asian and natural medicine extends to her years of service on the Oregon Medical Board’s Acupuncture Advisory Committee and the National University of Natural Medicine’s board of directors where she served as its chair.
She speaks frequently on the value of understanding food as medicine from a Chinese medicine point of view at conferences and schools. Currently she maintains a consulting and Chinese medicine practice out of Portland, Oregon
Leigh A. Frame, PhD, MHS
Dr. Frame is an Assistant Professor with appointments in both the Department of Clinical Research and Leadership and the Department of Physician Assistant Studies in the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington, DC. She is also Associate Director and Co-founder of the Resiliency & Well-Being Center that works to support resilience and well-being for health care professionals, faculty, and staff of George Washington University, Executive Director of the George Washington University Office of Integrative Medicine and Health, and founded both the George Washington University Integrative Medicine Podcast and the Biomedical Cross-Disciplinary Seminar Series. As Program Director of Integrative Medicine (INTM) at George Washington University, Dr. Frame launched a new Integrative Medicine Master of Science in Health Sciences with a generalist pathway as well as a concentration in each Nutrition and Integrative Pharmacy, and she launched new stand-alone graduate-level certificates in Nutrition and in Integrative Nutrition & Lifestyle Medicine. She has developed a partnership with the George Washington University Integrative Medicine for the Underserved to provided discounted tuition for INTM programs and to develop resources to serve underserved communities.
As co-founder & Chief Medical Officer of Recondite Consulting in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Dr. Frame guides work with the microbiome-targeted pharmaceutical industry to identify dietary and lifestyle factors that modulate pharmaceutical efficacy, safety and, thus, improve clinical outcomes. She holds a PhD in Human Nutrition, International Health and a Master of Health Science, Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, both from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore and a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from Mary Baldwin University in Staunton, Virginia.
Aviad Haramati, PhD
Dr. Haramati is Co-director of the Graduate Program in Integrative Medicine and Health Sciences (MS-IMHS) and Director of the Center for Innovation and Leadership in Education (CENTILE) at Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, DC. He is a member of the Board of Directors for the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and also a Professor in the Division of Integrative Physiology and Departments of Biochemistry, Molecular & Cell Biology and Medicine (Nephrology) at Georgetown.
He holds a Phd in Physiology from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine in Cincinnati, Ohio and served as a Research Fellow at the Mayo Clinic and Foundation in Rochester, Minnesota. Dr. Haramati also completed the Professional Training Program in Mind-Body Medicine at the Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, DC and worked as a Visiting Professor at the Center for Integrative Medicine of the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, MD. Excelling at both research and education, Dr. Haramati is the recipient of several awards, including the Day Memorial Research Award from the National Kidney Foundation, the E. Patrick Finnerty Award for Lifetime Achievement from the International Association of Medical Science Educators, and numerous additional institutional and national teaching awards.
John W. Kepner, M.A., MBA, C-IAYT ,Tri-Chair Fundraising
Mr. Kepner is a yoga therapist certified with the International Association of Yoga Therapists. He is an advisory council member of the Ayurvedic Advisory Commission, a founding board member and former Executive Director of the International Association of Yoga Therapists, and founding member of the Academic Consortium for Integrative Healthcare. And Mr. Kepner has numerous publications and numerous oral presentations in yoga therapy, ayurveda, and other integrative medicine topics.
Mr. Kepner holds an MBA from Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi, an M.A. in economics from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and a B.A. in economics from the University of Texas at Austin. His yoga therapy training was through the American Viniyoga Institute, and he completed a teaching certificate in Yoga and Ayurvedic Dietetics under A. G. Mohan in Chennai, India, an ayurveda certificate through the Ayurvedic Institute, and an advanced certificate in anatomy and physiology through the American Academy of Healing Arts, School of Massage.
Christian S. Kessler, Dr. Med., M.A., M.Sc.
Dr. Kessler is research coordinator and senior physician at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Outpatient Clinic for Complementary and Integrative Medicine at Immanuel Hospital. His expertise is in integration of nonpharmacologic interventions such as diet and lifestyle changes in treatment of patients with chronic diseases. Dr. Kessler is also current Associate Editor at the Journal of Complementary and Integrative Medicine and Board Member of the German Medical Association for Ayurveda Medicine e.V. (DÄGAM) and a former 2019 Board Member of the Ayurveda Dachverband Deutschland e.V. (ADAVED).
Degrees held by Dr.Kessler include a Doctorate in medicine (Dr. med.) at Hanover Medical School, Master of Science (M.Sc.) in Ayurveda from Middlesex University in the United Kingdom, and a Degree of Magister Artium (M.A.) in Indology at Georg-August University Göttingen with also Habilitation at Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin. With extensive research experience conducting randomized trials on prevention and treatment by non-pharmacological therapies, Dr. Kessler has been awarded the Holzschuh Prize for Complementary Medicine of the Karl and Hilde Holzschuh Foundation and the Excellence in Integrative Medicine Research Award of the European Society of Integrative Medicine (ESIM).
Mikhail Kogen, MD Chair, Clinical Innovations
Dr. Kogen has over 20 years experience in geriatric and palliative care and is currently Medical Director of the Center for Integrative Medicine and Director of the Integrative Medicine Track Program of the School of Medicine & Health Sciences at George Washington University. He is also Associate Director of Geriatric Fellowship of the Integrative Medicine Distance Learning Fellowship Program and a faculty member in the George Washington University Institute for Brain Health and Dementia, Institute for Spirituality and Health, Center for Aging, Health & Humanities, and Confucius Institute as well as Faculty Advisor of the Cannabis as Medicine Interest Group and Medicine on the Mat Yoga Interest Group. And Dr. Kogen is Founder and Executive Director of the Access Integrative Medicine (AIM) Health Institute (www.healthaim.org).
In service to the research community, Dr. Kogen serves on the editorial boards of the journals Complementary Therapies in Medicine, The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine: Paradigm, Practice, and Policy Advancing Integrative Health, and the Journal of Integrative Medicine. He was Guest Editor of a Special Issue on Medical Cannabis in Professional Education in the journal Complementary Therapies in Medicine. He served as Co-Chair of the 2023 Annual Consortium of Academic Centers for Integrative Medicine and Healthy Members meeting and the 2021 Annual Patients out of Time Virtual Conference. And he works to disseminate information on integrative healthcare to the broader community as Co-host of GW Integrative Medicine Podcast (http://smhs.gwu.edu/oimh/podcasts).
Dr. Kogen holds a MD from Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a BS in Biochemistry from Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as well as undergraduate degrees in Biology and Botany from the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel and Moscow Agricultural Academy, Moscow, Russia.
Daniel Kuckel, MD
Dr. Kuckel currently serves as an Active Duty Commander and the Director for Medical Services of Naval Hospital Jacksonville (NHJAX) in Florida, leading one of the Navy’s largest medical treatment facilities and teaching in one of the nation’s longest-standing family medicine residency programs, graduating approximately one-third of the Navy’s family physicians. His Navy career began in 2001 upon graduation and commissioning in the Northwestern University Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC), initially serving as a P-3 Orion Naval Flight Officer and Mission Commander. He later served as an ROTC Instructor at North Carolina State University where he earned a Master in Business Administration in bioscience management and entrepreneurship. He transitioned his aviation career while serving at Central Command in Tampa, FL and subsequently earned a Master of Science in Medical Sciences from the University of South Florida. He then went on to complete his Doctorate of Medicine at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, MD, followed by family medicine residency at NHJAX. Subsequent leadership roles have included serving as Chief Medical Officer and Medical Executive Committee Chair at Naval Hospital Beaufort, SC as well as Assistant Program Director for the NHJAX family medicine residency.
Dr. Kuckel is Board Certified in Family Medicine and has earned the degree of Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians, as well as Faculty Development Fellow from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, NC. He currently serves as Assistant Professor of the University Services University and has multiple publications in nationally recognized, peer-reviewed journals. His interest in integrative health has been highlighted by multiple presentations at the Utica Integrative Healthcare Conference, including “Medicine and Music” and “Spiritual Assessment”. In serving on The Advisory Council of the Institute for the Study of Integrative Healthcare at Utica University, Dr. Kuckel’s participation is in a personal capacity and does not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Department of the Navy, Department of Defense or the United States Government.
Gretchen Lefever Watson, PhD
Dr. Gretchen LeFever Watson is a clinical and developmental psychologist with postdoctoral training in pediatric psychology. As the head of psychological assessment services for a world-wide military program and of a pediatric hospital, she has evaluated hundreds of children and families. While serving as a university and medical school professor at multiple institutions, she lectured and published on a wide range of topics, including child development, epidemiology, the overuse of psychotropics, medical ethics, patient safety, and organizational change management. She has been a recipient and principal investigator of multi-million-dollar federal grants and other funded projects, including serving as the Executive Director of a regional school health coalition.
Dr. Watson’s epidemiologic and intervention research, which documented geographic hotspots for excessive use of psychotropic drug use among young children and successful community-based efforts to reduce over-reliance on psychotropics, drew international media and scholarly attention. She experienced ad hominem attacks for reporting such findings, culminating in a false and nefarious allegation of scientific misconduct. Although eventually cleared of all charges in 2006, the lengthy review process, which was repeatedly delayed by external interference after being leaked to the press, derailed her federally funded research projects beyond repair. In 2008, she was vetted by the British Medical Journal as one of 100 international scientists who can be trusted for their unbiased reviews of health research. In 2008, she completed a six-month training course in the science of safety while serving as a corporate director of patient safety and performance excellence for a regional healthcare system. In 2012, Inside Business awarded Dr. Watson the Health Care Hero Award for corporate innovation around patient safety. In 2017, while running a change management consulting firm, Dr. Watson published Your Patient Safety Survival Guide: How to Protect Yourself and Others from Medical Errors.
Today, Dr. Watson works with individuals and healthcare entities, businesses, and community organizations. and runs a private consulting business in Virginia Beach. She continues to publish and speak on the need for healthcare reform, especially mental health reform.
Mark Martens, MD
Dr. Martens is a physician with 45 years of experience teaching and practicing Obstetrics and Gynecology, and he has been Medical Director for Academics and OBGYN Program Director with the Mohawk Valley Health System since July 2022. He holds a doctorate in medicine from George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C. and also pursued graduate studies in microbiology at Roosevelt University and Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois. Dr. Martens spent several years as a professor as well as Vice President, Academic Affairs/Chief Academic Officer and other medical education leadership positions at Drexel University School of Medicine, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, University of Minnesota School of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, and others.
Dr. Martens holds several board certifications, including as a Diplomate of the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine and the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, a Fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and as a NAMS Certified Menopause Practitioner. And he has won several awards, including First Place Awards from the Eastern Pennsylvania Branch of the American Society for Microbiology (EPAASM) and Philadelphia Infection and Immunity, several Outstanding Contribution Awards from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, an APGO Excellence in Teaching – Special Recognition for Outstanding Dedication to Resident Education and Career Development, and a Researcher of the Year Award from the Moroton-Southern Medical Association. He is a member of the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine, and serves on several national advisory committees in service to the protection of women’s health.
Cynthia Love-Williams, RNS, DNS
Dr. Love-Williams is an Associate Professor of Nursing at Utica University. She has worked in nursing education since 1996 and taught in associate and baccalaureate programs. Currently, she teaches at the graduate level in the core curriculum and nursing education classes. Dr. Love-Williams's educational background includes a baccalaureate degree from Mississippi University for Women, a master's degree from Wright State University, and a doctoral degree from Russell Sage Graduate Schools. Her areas of nursing expertise are critical care and medical-surgical nursing. In addition, Dr. Love-Williams is passionate about interprofessional education and integrative medicine and how these areas contribute to the overall health and well-being of the individual or population being served. Her areas of research include interprofessional education and student success. Dr. Love-Willimas is proud to have been a co-chair for the last two Integrative Medicine Conferences held at Utica University.
Angelica Martin, MS, PA-C
Ms. Martin is formerly a Physician Assistant with the Mohawk Valley Health in Primary Care and the System Sleep Disorders Center in Utica, New York and a Physician Assistant with Integrative Medicine of Central New York. She also worked as a Community Habilitation Aide with Upstate Cerebral Palsy and Direct Support Professional with the Arc of Quinebaug Valley. Ms. Martin holds a bachelors degree in biology and masters in liberal studies from Utica College (now Utica University) within which she conducted research on the effects of artificial light at night on the nocturnal activity of juvenile salamanders and research on the perceptions of currently practicing PAs on the expansion of PA programs and its effect on the PA job market, respectively. She has a masters in physician assistant studies from LeMoyne College.
While keeping her PA license current, Ms. Martin is now owner/operator of Madonna a Wass Transformations, LLC. within which she works as a life coach and Reiki & EFT practitioner – self-describing as “science-grounded, spirit led” and explaining that she loves and recommends Reiki but would also recommend antibiotics as needed. As creator and host of the podcast FEMboldened, Ms. Martin and guests try to normalize bold decisions and life changes among female subscribers and clients in the U.S. and internationally, enabling some of them to successfully establish their own businesses and thrive within their family and work relationships. Ms. Martin uses her podcast platform to not only inspire and empower but explains evidence-based medicine and how to assess reputability of sources of health and wellness information on social media. You can listen to her free podcasts at http://www.amazon.com/FEMboldened/dp/B08JJS6JC3.
Jacque Salomon, BA
Ms. Salomon is a Committee Member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and facilitator of their Health Equity Achieved through Lifestyle (HEAL) Medicine Initiative working with individuals with chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, GERD, and obesity. She completed a Certificate in Plant Based Nutrition from Center for Nutrition Studies eCornell, sits on the Board of the non-profit organization Eat for the Earth, is a member of the Food Access Group on T. Colin Campbell and the CNS-Whole communities, and is a PCRM Native Food For Life Facilitator. She is a Founding Board Member SimpleVeg and is an Advisory Board Member of PlantPure Communities. Ms. Salomon is a Lifestyle Medicine Mentor-Coach, Intersectional Activist, and public speaker with the organization Seeds To Inspire Foundation and a Crew (Team) Member with Black Neurodiversity working to build accountable and accessible communities with neurodistinct people.
In addition to study at the Oberlin College, University of Phoenix, and Arizona State University in Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies and Psychology, Ms. Salomon has completed numerous trainings in holistic health through The Weekend University, Cultural Somatics Institute, and the Jung Platform and holds coaching certifications in Humanistic Neuro Linguistic Psychology, the Conscious Parenting Method, the World Peace Diet, Plant-Based Nutrition, Energy Medicine, and Special Education Advocacy.
Sahar Z. Swidan, Pharm.D.
Dr. Swidan is a pharmacist certified by the American Board of Anti-Aging & Regenerative Medicine Certification (ABAAHP) and Board Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist (BCPS) with over 30 years clinical experience in both hospital and pharmacy settings. She is presently Chief Executive Officer of Neuropharm, Inc. and Chief Scientific Officer at SahaRx Skin Care, both in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Swidan is also an Adjunct Associate Professor of Clinical Research and Leadership at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Adjunct Associate Professor of Pharmacy at the Wayne State University College of Pharmacy, and Adjunct Associate Professor of Pharmacy at the Chicago State University, College of Pharmacy. A prolific scholar with 26 peer-reviewed journal articles, 6 book chapters, 9 poster presentations, and numerous awards from professional societies, Dr. Swidan is a highly sought after speaker and has delivered over 100 invited presentations and participated numerous television and radio interviews.
Following undergraduate studies at Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, Michigan, Dr. Swidan obtained a Doctor of Pharmacy degree, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan. And throughout her career, she has won numerous awards, including Pharmacist of the Year, Consultant and Specialty Pharmacist from the Michigan Pharmacists Association, Innovative Pharmacy Practice Award from the Michigan Pharmacists Association, and Life Time Professional Contribution Award from Southeastern Michigan Society of Health-System and was named one of the Most Influential Women in Business Award by the Ann Arbor Business Review Weekly.
Roy Upton, RH, Dip Ayu - CHAIR, 2024 CONFERENCE WC
Roy began studying herbal medicine in 1981 after fulfilling a three-year term in the United States Army, attaining the rank of Sergeant (E-5). His initial study began with Native American Ethnobotany living in various Native American communities and then ethnobotanical traditions of the Caribbean in St. Thomas, United States Virgin Islands with renowned West Indian herbalist Ms. Arona Petersen. Roy went on to complete a three-year California state-approved clinical internship in traditional Chinese medicine with noted herbalist Michael Tierra followed by additional training at the Shanghai College of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Longhua Hospital, Shanghai, China, as well as graduating as an Ayurvedic Health Counselor from the Mt. Madonna Institute of Ayurveda, Watsonville, CA.
Roy founded the American Herbal Pharmacopoeia in 1995 and has served as its director and editor since that time, co-authoring, editing, and publishing more than 40 of the world’s most comprehensive quality documents and technical reviews on botanical ingredients. He serves as an adjunct faculty member of the Ric Scalzo Botanical Research Institute in Phoenix, AZ and the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of California-Santa Cruz, and was former lecturer at University of California School of Pharmacy. Roy has authored or co-authored numerous research articles and books.
In addition to his training as a traditional herbalist, Roy has served as Director of the California-based Planetary Herbals, Scotts Valley, CA and has been a long-standing member of the Standards Committee of the American Herbal Products Association. His work in the early 1990s, was highly influential in ensuring the passage of the dietary supplement health and education act (DSHEA) and he is passionate about protecting and promoting access to herbal medicines and seeing botanical medicines integrated into all aspects of home and institutional care.
Roy serves as an expert advisor for numerous herbal medicine organizations in North America, Mainland China, Hong Kong, and India and is on the editorial board of numerous integrative medicine publications in the US and abroad. He was a co-founder and served as Secretary, Council Member, and President of the American Herbalists Guild for many years. During his career, Roy has received many awards and honors for his work in advancing the cause of herbal medicine. He was the recipient of the James Lind Scientific Achievement Award in 2004, the American Herbal Products Association Herbal Insight Award in 2011 and 2012, the James Duke Excellence in Botanical Literature Award in 2011, the prestigious Varro E. Tyler Excellence in Botanical Research award from the American Society of Pharmacognosy in 2012, the Business Achievement Award from Nutrition Business Journal in 2019, and the Ethnopharmacologist of the Year award from the International Society for Ethnopharmacology in 2020.
Effectiveness and Cost-Effectiveness of Acupuncture for Chronic Neck Pain: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial. Co-principal investigators are Michael Kowalski, A.P., 5 Element Institute, Jacksonville, FL; Paul Mongan, MD, University of Florida College of Medicine, Jacksonville, FL, and Cynthia Love-Williams, RN, DNS, Utica University. This study will measure the effectiveness of “usual care” for chronic neck pain, compared with usual care plus acupuncture for chronic neck pain. The research hypothesis is that combining acupuncture with usual care will show a clinically relevant increase in the effectiveness of the integrated therapies, compared with usual care alone. This study will also measure the cost-effectiveness of acupuncture for chronic neck pain. The hypothesis is that in economic evaluation terms, integrating acupuncture with usual care will not create significant overall costs, relative to the benefits which study patients obtain.
Children, Families, and Integrative Healthcare Practices. Co-principal investigators are Patrice Hallock, Ph.D., Nicole Scienza, Ph.D. (Psychology-Child Life) and Laurah Klepinger, Ph.D. (Anthropology). The goal of this work is to positively impact child health and family well-being by raising awareness of and teaching others about integrative healthcare practices. Families may engage in practices such as yoga and mindfulness already but may not report them to their child care providers and/or healthcare providers because they may not be deemed important. The curriculum and training aimed at families will help families to recognize the importance of their integrative healthcare practices and why they should share these practices with their child care and healthcare providers. Researchers will measure the impact of this training for research purposes. This specific project is aimed at improving the health outcomes of families and young children in Central New York.
Cross-Cultural Study of Herbal Remedy Use. Co-principal investigators are Lucia Corriette, DPT (Physical Therapy), Patrice Hallock, Ph.D., and Maryam Hashemian, M.D., Ph.D. (Biology). Researchers are interested in how herbal remedies are used across cultures and the experience of those who seek herbal remedies, especially among those with cancer and neuro-muscular diagnoses. What are some differences between herbal remedy use in the US, the Caribbean, and Iran? Herbal supplement use in Iran is estimated among 60-70% of the population and in the Caribbean as high as 80-90% of the population. Herbal supplement use in US, however, is estimated at about 20% of the population (with increased use associated with diagnoses; it may be as high as 63% for patients with cancer). This is a cross-cultural study of herbal remedy use in across three diverse environments and healthcare settings.
COVID-19 Impact on P-12 Educators. Investigators for this study are associated with the Intermountain COVID-19 Impact Consortium (ICIC), a collaboration of five research organizations west of the Hudson Valley region: Bassett Research Institute, SUNY Cobleskill, Utica University, SUNY Oneonta, and Zogby Strategics. Utica University faculty researchers are Margaret Hemstrought, M.Ed. (Wellness and Adventure Education) and Patrice Hallock, Ph.D. The consortium organizes research projects that seek to identify broad systemic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in the region, and this specific study is aimed at understanding stressors associated with COVID-19 in our local public schools.
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