Tel: 23401830 Fax: 23401211; E-mail: healthsciences@um.edu.mt; Website: http://www.um.edu.mt/healthsciences
FHS Monthly Newsletter – January 2011
PAST EVENTS
St Aloysius Sixth Form College
On the 24th January, 2011, the administration of St Aloysius sixth form College organised an
information meeting for students interested in pursuing a career in health care. This was held at
the Jesuit House, Patri Manwel Magri, Tal-Qroqq.
Dr Maria Cassar, from the Nursing Department, gave an overview on FHS courses while Mr Joe
Mark Gatt, Lab Officer showed students round the Labs.
Malta Health Students` Association (MHSA) Annual General Meeting
On 10th December 2010, the MHSA held its first official Annual General
Meeting after two Extraordinary General Meetings, one in September 2010 held
to approve changes to the statute and the first general meeting held in March 2010. During the
AGM, end of year reports were presented by the President, Clinton Schembri Frankalanza; the
General Secretary Christian Ellul and the Treasurer Albert Attard. The financial and
administrative reports were approved unanimously by all the members present for the meeting.
During the AGM, the new 2011 executive board was also elected. All previous board members
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of the 2010 committee retained their positions while new first year students were elected for the
first time.
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President and student representative on Faculty Board, Clinton Schembri Frankalanza,
B.Sc. (Hons.) Pod III Year
Secretary
General
and
student
representative
on
Faculty
Board,
Christian Ellul, B.Sc. (Hons.) Pod III Year
Deputy General Secretary, Michaela Mallia, B.Sc. (Hons.) Nurs II Year
Public Relations Officer, David Martin Chircop, B.Sc. (Hons.) Pod III Year
Departments` Officer, Daniela Attard Previ, B.Sc. (Hons.) Nurs I Year
Leisure Officer, Luke Musu`, B.Sc. (Hons.) Physio III Year
Treasurer, Albert Attard, B.Sc. (Hons.) Pod III Year
Health Officer, Rebecca Gilson, B.Sc. (Hons.) Midwifery III Year
Education Officer, Franco Vella, Dip Nurs I Year
Board Member, David Caruana, B.Sc. (Hons.) Pod III Year
Board Member, Kevin Azzopardi, Dip Nurs I Year
Board Member, Graziella Orsini, B.Sc. (Hons.) Rad I Year
The AGM ended with presentations on the MHSA future plans presented by the founder
members Christian Ellul and Clinton Schembri Frankalanza.
Medical Databases Training Workshops : 27-28 Jan 2011
The University Library Services organised two workshops for academics at the Faculty of Health
Sciences covering the use of the library`s training subscribed online medical databases. The
venue of the workshops was the Faculty of Health Sciences I.T. Lab. These workshops were held
on the 27 and 28 January, 2011. A good number of FHS academic members of staff attended the
training workshop. We would like to thank Mr Silvio Cortis, Head of Reader Services,
University Library Services, for this opportunity.
NEW RECRUITS
Mr Stephen Mizzi qualified as a state registered podiatrist from the University of
Malta in February 1998. He started his working career with the Department of
Health as a Podiatrist and was later awarded the grade of a senior podiatrist in
2001. In 2009, Stephen was appointed to the post of Specialist in Podiatric
Biomechanics with the Department of Health.
During the years working with the Department of Health, Stephen continued his studies abroad
where he was awarded the Bachelor of Science in Podiatry from Queen Margaret University
College, Edinburgh in 2001. Immediately after, in 2001, he commenced a Masters Degree
course at the University of Brighton, United Kingdom, where he obtained a Post Graduate
Certificate in Podiatric Surgery (Theory) in 2002 and was awarded the Masters of Science in
2008. His research was entitled ‘Diabetic foot shape and plantar pressure distribution’.
Presently, Stephen is working on his doctoral research at Canterbury Christ Church University,
United Kingdom.
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Since the commencement of the BSc Podiatry Course in 2005, Stephen has worked in close
liaison with the Podiatry Division, University of Malta. Stephen was engaged with various
responsibilities with students such as clinical education, lecturing, supervision and correction of
dissertations and was also involved as an examiner in various practical sessions.
Apart from academic interest, Stephen was also involved in professional activities, such as his
involvement in the initiation of the Association of Podiatrists of Malta and was one of the
founder committee members of the Association. He was later elected President in 2000, which
post he kept for a year.
REARCH, PUBLICATIONS & PRESENTATIONS
Two publications by Dr Joseph Borg, Applied Biomedical Science Department in Nature
Genetics and in Human Mutation.
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Nature Genetics
Since his last publication in Nature Genetics, Dr. Joseph Borg has been actively
involved in writing another paper which has also been accepted for publication
in Nature Genetics. The paper is entitled, “Systematic documentation and
analysis of human genetic variation in hemoglobinopathies using the
microattribution approach.” Together with foreign collaborators and
Universities, he has developed a series of interrelated locus-specific databases
to store all published and unpublished genetic variation related to
hemoglobinopathies and thalassemia, and then implemented microattribution to encourage
submission of unpublished observations of genetic variation to these public repositories. A total
of 1,901 unique genetic variants in 37 genes, encoding globins and other erythroid proteins are
currently documented in these databases with reciprocal attribution of microcitations to data
contributors. The concept of this project provided the first example of implementing
microattribution to incentivise submission of all known genetic variation in a defined system. It
has demonstrably increased the reporting of human variants leading to a comprehensive online
resource for systematically describing human genetic variation in the globin genes and other
genes contributing to hemoglobinopathies and thalassemias. The principles established with this
publication will serve as a model for other systems and the analysis of other common and/or
complex human genetic diseases. To access the online database repositories, you can visit
http://lovd.bx.psu.edu/home.php.
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Human Mutation
Developing countries have significantly contributed to the elucidation of the genetic basis of
both common and rare disorders, providing an invaluable resource of cases due to large family
sizes, consanguinity, and potential founder effects. Moreover, the recognized depth of genomic
variation in indigenous African populations, reflecting the ancient origins of humanity on the
African continent, and the effect of selection pressures on the genome, will be valuable in
understanding the range of both pathological and non-pathological variations. The involvement
of these populations in accurately documenting the extant genetic heterogeneity is more than
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essential. Developing nations are regarded as key contributors to the Human Variome Project
(HVP; http://www.humanvariomeproject.org), a major effort to systematically collect mutations
that contribute to or cause human disease and create a cyber infrastructure to tie databases
together. However, biomedical research has not been the primary focus in these countries even
though such activities are likely to produce economic and health benefits for all. Several
recommendations and guidelines are being proposed to facilitate participation of developing
countries in genetic variation data documentation, ensuring an accurate and comprehensive
worldwide data collection. A few well-coordinated genetic data collection initiatives are
documented that would serve as paradigms for similar projects. Full access to the online
manuscript
is
available
on http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/humu.21397/
abstract;jsessionid=C16B17F349962 969F4FA1E09A4804283.d03t02
Two publications by Dr Helen Grech, Communication Therapy Department
CHAPTERS IN PEER REVIEWED BOOKS
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“Multilingual Speech & Language Development”, Chapter in Communication Disorders
in Multicultural Populations, Publisher Elsevier, US, Editor: Dolores Battle, Grech, H
& Sharynne McLeod.
In this chapter, an update of the terminology related to bilingual speech language
development and disorders is provided while issues that are still applicable to date are
highlighted. The increasing language diversity is discussed particularly in relation to
various European contexts. Some aspects of bilingual speech and language development
are compared with monolingual development giving some specific contexts as case
studies. This is followed by a view of the challenges related to assessment and differential
diagnosis to distinguish between difference and disorder in case of bilingual children.
Intervention strategies particularly, in the light of which language/s of instruction to
select and whether therapy in one language is generalizable, are also discussed. Finally,
recommendations for future research are provided particularly in relation to the clinical
area.
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“Translation to Practice: Phonological Analysis of the Speech of Multilingual the Speech
of Multilingual Children in Malta”, Chapter in “Multilingual Aspects of Speech Sound
Disorders in Children”, Publisher, Multilingual Matters, Editors: Sharynne McLeod, &
Brian Goldstein , Grech, H.
This chapter includes an introduction about children in Malta, and what languages they
use at home and in educational settings. The chapter also describes the speech-language
pathology services available on the Maltese Islands. A section is dedicated to speech and
language acquision in the Maltese Context and how speech-language pathologists assess
and analyse children's speech
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PEER REVIEWED ARTICLE
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“The development of a literacy diagnostic tool for Maltese Children”, Journal: Clinical
Linguistics & Phonetics, Taylor & Francis, Xuereb, R, Grech, H & Dodd, B.
This paper focuses on the development of a literacy assessment battery for the diagnosis
of Maltese children with specific learning difficulties. It forms part of a wider research
study involving testing a representative sample of the child population in Malta in attempt
to standardize the tool. The novel Maltese assessment battery should provide health and
educational professionals with a comprehensive tool that is as yet unavailable. In
addition, the wider research hopes to inform policy makers within education about the
maximal way to teach children how to read given their linguistic environment; and
provides insight into the ever changing linguistic environment and differentiate between
the various bilingual groups within the Maltese context.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS
Reminder - Research Seminars for Faculty lecturing staff and students undertaking a
doctoral degree
Please find an updated schedule of the Research Seminar to be held in the Staff room between 1
and 2 pm.
Date
Presenter
Study
Department
2nd Feb 2011
Dr Daniela Gatt
PhD
Communication Therapy
23rd Feb 2011
Dr Cynthia Formosa
PhD
Podiatry
9th Mar 2011
Dr Anna McElhatton
PhD
Food Stud. & Env. Health
23rd Mar 2011
Mr Tonio Agius
Physiotherapy
6th Apr 2011
Ms Josephine Attard
4th May 2011
Ms Claire Sillato
Copperstone
18th May 2011
Mr Anthony Scerri
PhD
(in
progress)
PhD
(in progress)
PhD
(in
progress)
MSc
Midwifery
Food Stud. & Env. Health
Nursing/ Health Services Mgt
Michelle and Frank gave excellent presentations on the 12th and 26th January, 2011 respectively.
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
Professor Mehmet Yavas from Florida International University, Miami, Florida, USA
The Department of Communication Therapy will be hosting Professor Mehmet Yavas from
Florida International University, Miami, Florida, USA, during the second semester of this
academic year. His visit will be of great benefit to the Department particularly since he has
ample experience in lecturing and research supervision both at undergraduate and postgraduate
level. Professor Yavas has published extensively. His research interests include Phonetics, First
and Second Language Phonology and Phonological Disorders.
Professor Yavas will be sharing the office (room 23) with Dr Daniela Gatt.
Planned Preventative Maintenance for Laboratory Equipment
Equipment`s reliability is sometimes taken for granted, in certain circumstances we use
equipment until it breaks down after which we choose to, either repair or replace it. This
approach cannot be used when the equipment is being relied upon to provide accuracy, safety or
treatment.
It is for this reason that Mr Joseph-Mark Gatt, Lab Officer, FHS (Tel: 23401856) is going to
meet with the Heads of Department, to discuss which medical equipment qualify to be inserted
into a planned preventive maintenance scheme. At present Joe Mark is in the process of
gathering details regarding all the laboratory equipment. This data will not only be used to
formulate reports for the above-mentioned maintenance scheme but also to catalogue any
upgrades or repairs required. It is hoped that by introducing this maintenance scheme, equipment
reliability, will be increased where it is most needed.
Learning EXPO 2011
The Leaning EXPO 2011 by the Ministry of Education, Employment and the Family will be held
between the 1st and the 5th March, 2011. The Expo will be open to the public. However all Fifth
formers in State, Church and Private School will be invited to attend.
As in previous years, the FHS will have its own stand and members of the academic staff will be
invited to participate.
Seminar and Lecture rooms at FHS/MDH - laptop for lecturing
With effect from 1st March, 2011, and after consultation with University IT Services, it has been agreed that all
lecturers will have to provide their own laptop for lecturing. This is in line with University practice on campus.
However, to facilitate this transition, the Faculty has already purchased five net books on LOAN which can be
availed of from our IT Office provided that a request is submitted at least one day prior to lecture date. Net books
will have to be returned the next day for use by other lecturers.
Heads of Department are kindly requested to ensure that this notice is sent to
university appointment is full time, part time or on occasional basis.
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all their staff, whether their