Physicians weigh in at WMU conference on business of health care

KALAMAZOO--Physicians will be in the spotlight of an all-day conference on Saturday, Sept. 25, at Western Michigan University that will promote awareness of the importance of health care and overall well-being of Americans while exploring health care's business side.

The Sustaining the Business of Health in America conference, begins at 8:30 a.m. in Schneider Hall's Brown Auditorium and will include remarks by WMU President John M. Dunn. The conference is being offered free of charge and will let doctors and other providers have the floor in discussions about why health care is so expensive in the United States, why its cost is rising so fast and what new legislation passed by Congress will do, legislation that was crafted not by doctors, but by lawyers.

"For the first time, I'm trying to bring to this conference physicians as speakers, to hear the physicians' opinions," says Dr. Andrew Targowski, WMU professor of business information systems, director of the Center for Sustainable Business Practices and conference co-chair. "The public may not know that those bills are designed mostly by lawyers, and physicians are rarely consulted about health care."
Physicians will join others in a rare presentation mix that also includes business leaders, educators and information technology professionals.

Keynote speakers include Dr. Tom George, state senator for the 20th District and a former gubernatorial candidate, who will speak on "Examining the Health Care Reform Bill, 2010," and local family practice physician Dr. Gary Ruoff, who will address "What Is Happening to Caring Physicians?" Dunn will speak on "The Medical School and Revival of Kalamazoo," while Targowski's talk is titled "Well Being, Wisdom and Health Care." Local heart surgeon Dr. Michael Khaghany will be among those serving on a panel of experts.

"Without the input from primary care physicians, any health care program cannot be successful," says Ruoff, a conference co-chair.

Health care is a huge business, Targowski says. At $2.4 trillion each year--three times the budget for the U.S. Department of Defense--it is the largest business in America. But monumental problems with the system remain.

Health care's high cost is exacerbated by large and disproportionate administrative costs, the soaring price of malpractice insurance and unnecessary procedures triggered by the threat of often-groundless lawsuits, Targowski says. Also contributing to the problem are expensive, end-of-life procedures that don't so much save lives as extend the process of dying.

Still another problem involves the inadequate compensation paid by insurers, particularly for primary care physicians, which has resulted in a persistent dwindling of the pool of family doctors, Targowski adds. That trend is sure to become a much larger problem in the years ahead.

"The family physician is disappearing right now," Targowski says. "Only 2 to 3 percent of medical students sign up for family practice specialization because their services are very poorly paid by any kind of insurance company."

The conference also will feature exhibits of medications, products and systems as well as a Best Papers Competition open to business professionals, faculty and students. The event is sponsored by WMU's Haworth College of Business Center for Sustainable Business Practices and the WMU Center of Health IT Advancement.
More information is available online at http://www.wmich.edu/business/healthcare/.

Major Info Night and Business Bash events scheduled for Sept. 21 - 22

The Haworth College of Business invites new and returning students to attend Major Info Night and Business Bash.

Major Info Night will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 21, from 5 to 7 p.m. A brief presentation from each academic department will acquaint students with all five departments and 15 business majors and will be held in Schneider Hall, room 1120. Immediately following the presentations, students, faculty and staff are invited for pizza and refreshments in the Schneider Hall lobby.

Business Bash will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 22 in the Schneider Hall Courtyard from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Students may drop by anytime to meet representatives from business student organizations affiliated with the Haworth College of Business, study abroad and the Career Center, Haworth College of Business. Representatives from event sponsors – Charter One Bank and the Society of Financial Service Professionals will also attend.

According to Student Leadership Advisory Board co-advisors Jan Gabel-Goes and Linda Ickes, “This is an excellent opportunity for new students to become acquainted with business majors and meet faculty and student organization leaders. The goal is to help inform and involve students in a fun venue. Being informed is key for success in making decisions whether it be in choosing a major, signing up for a study abroad trip and/or participating in career center programs.”

Questions about Major Info Night or Business Bash may be directed to the Career Center, Haworth College of Business, (269) 387-2711, or by visiting Schneider Hall, room 3020.

Business dean kicks off Keystone Breakfast Series

The new dean of the Haworth College of Business will discuss “Business Education: Moving Forward While Meeting Today’s Challenges,” when she takes the podium on Friday, Sept. 24, in the first event of the year’s Keystone Community Bank Breakfast Series.

Dr. Kay M. Palan, who took the reins of the College on July 1, will speak at 8 a.m. The event is free and open to the public and begins with breakfast at 7:30 a.m. followed by the presentation. Reservations are required and can be made by calling (269) 387-6059.

Palan comes to WMU from Iowa State University, where she was associate dean for undergraduate programs in the college of business and associate professor of marketing. She has an extensive background in marketing, the health care industry and managing collegiate entrepreneurial programs.

During her 16-year tenure at ISU, Palan managed and coordinated both an undergraduate minor in entrepreneurial studies and a graduate certificate program in the same field. She undertook a number of marketing-related consulting projects with civic, nonprofit and corporate entities throughout the state. Those projects dealt with marketing strategy, market opportunity analysis, feasibility studies, communication branding strategies, marketing plan development and customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Prior to her positions at ISU, she completed her doctoral degree from Texas Tech University in 1994. Palan earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Nursing from Winona State University (Minn.) in 1976 and a Master of Business Administration degree from Minnesota State University – Moorhead (formerly Moorhead State) in 1990.

Palan leads the Haworth College of Business, WMU’s second largest college and the academic home to over 4,500 students studying in six departments. The college is among an elite group of fewer than five percent of business schools worldwide that are accredited by AACSB-International, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. It is among a select two percent of business schools worldwide that have additional specialized accreditation for their accountancy programs.

The Keystone Community Bank Breakfast Series is underwritten through the generosity of Keystone Community Bank. The series provides an opportunity for the local community to hear prominent business leaders, WMU faculty, alumni and friends of the Haworth College of Business discuss current business issues and corporate strategies as well as key information regarding the continuing progress of the college.

WMU conference to study the business of health care

Health care professionals will gather on the campus of Western Michigan University for an all-day conference on “Sustaining the Business of Health Care in America” on Saturday, September 25, 2010.

The conference will begin at 8:30 a.m. in Schneider Hall – Brown Auditorium. Open to the public, the event is designed to promote awareness of the importance of health care and the well-being of Americans in the 21st century.

"There aren’t very many conferences out there that bring together physicians, business leaders and IT professionals who develop a practical and theoretical approach towards the well-being, wisdom and health of Americans," says Dr. Andrew Targowski, WMU professor and director of the Center for Sustainable Business Practices and conference chairman. "Americans need improvement in IQ and mental health predominantly, because without wisdom we cannot have healthy lifestyles.”

The keynote presentations represent the teamwork required from IT and medical professionals. "Without the input from primary care physicians, any health care program cannot be successful," says Dr. Gary Ruoff, a conference co-chair and family health care practitioner.

Schedule of speakers includes:
· 8:30 a.m. - What is Happening to Caring Physicians? – Dr. Gary Ruoff, M.D.
. 9:30 a.m. - Examining the Health Care Reform Bill, 2010 – Dr. Tom George, M.D., Michigan State Rep.
· 10:30 a.m. - Well Being, Wisdom and Health – Dr. Andrew Targowski, WMU Professor
· 12:30 a.m. - The Medical School and Revival of Kalamazoo – Dr. John M. Dunn, WMU President
· 2 p.m. - What Can IT Do for Physicians?

In addition to the speakers, the event will feature an exhibition of medications, products and systems.

A Best Papers Competition is open to business professionals, faculty and students. Visit the conference website for further information at:
http://www.wmich.edu/business/sustainability/documents/healthcare-conference.pdf.

The conference is sponsored by WMU's Haworth College of Business Center for Sustainable Business Practices and the WMU Center of Health IT Advancement.

Admission is free and includes lunch.

Western Michigan University’s SHRM Student Chapter Receives Distinguished Award

The WMU Chapter of the Society for Excellence in Human Resources (SEHR) has received the Superior Merit Award designation from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) in Alexandria, VA, for an exceptional job of providing opportunities for growth and development to its student chapter members.


The WMU student chapter of the Society for Excellence in Human Resources took on a large project this year in hosting the Michigan HR Games 2010. Pictured are Kelsey Reber, Ashley Heckman and Megan Pierce at the jeopardy-style competition. Overall, WMU placed second in the event.

The student chapter receives a specialized plaque to display at the university, and will be recognized in SHRM’s publications and at its conferences. “This is the third year in the row that SEHR has received the Superior Merit Award and has cemented its position as one of the most active student chapters of SHRM in the United States,” says Dr. Satish P. Deshpande, professor of management and faculty advisor to SEHR. "We are all very proud of our student group.”

The SHRM student chapter merit award program, which began in 1972, exists to develop more effective student chapters, and to promote outstanding activities and projects by student chapters in four areas: basic student chapter requirements, chapter programming and professional development of members, support of the human resource profession and partnership with SHRM.

“SHRM is proud to recognize our Superior Merit and Merit Award winning student chapters. They have demonstrated leadership through their proven ability to serve the networking and educational needs of human resources students and the advancement of the human resources profession,” said Chuck Salvetti, SHRM’s student programs manager.

Representing more than 250,000 professional and student members in over 140 countries, SHRM is the world’s largest association devoted to human resource management. The Society serves the needs of HR professionals and advances the interests of the HR profession. Founded in 1948, SHRM has more than 575 affiliated professional chapters and more than 450 student chapters within the United States as well as subsidiary offices in China and India.

Finance professor awarded Fulbright to teach in Moldova

Dr. William McCarty, professor emeritus of commercial law, has been awarded a prestigious Fulbright scholar grant to teach in Moldova.

McCarty, who retired from WMU’s Haworth College of Business in 2006, will be teaching international business and business ethics to students at Moldova State University in Chisnau, Moldova, for the fall, 2010 term.

“This is truly a tribute to McCarty, but also a credit to WMU and the business college,” says Dr. Judy Swisher, chair of the Department of Finance and Commercial Law. “This is the second Fulbright for Bill, who taught and conducted Japanese corporate governance research at Aoyama Gakuin University in Tokyo in 2004. It is also unique in that he is retired.”

“I’ve been interested in international business since my student days when I was an exchange student in the Netherlands,” says McCarty. “Teaching in a country that once was a part of the Soviet Union and now seeking closer ties with the European Union and the west in general should be very interesting and enlightening. I look forward to sharing some of my experiences and academic knowledge while also learning more about the people in that part of the world.”

McCarty earned a law degree from the University of Michigan Law School. Prior to coming to WMU in 1970, he worked in Chicago at the Continental Illinois National Bank and for a small law firm.

McCarty has published numerous articles in legal and international business journals and is also the co-author of several textbooks includng "Modern Business Law" and "The Legal Environment of e-Businesss". His principle teaching areas are legal environment of business, international business law and business ethics. In addition, he has led a number of seminars for college business students abroad in Europe and Asia during his years at WMU.

The grant was made possible through the Council for International Exchange of Scholars. Fulbright grants are made to US citizens and nationals of other countries for a variety of educational activities, primarily university lecturing, advanced research, graduate study and teaching in elementary and secondary schools.

Advertising senior honored by Adcraft Club of Detroit.

A WMU advertising and promotion senior is among just four students statewide to win 2010-11 scholarships from the Adcraft Club of Detroit's Adcraft Foundation.

Kara M. Hensley of Woodhaven, Mich, received a scholarship for $2,500. A senior majoring in advertising and promotion and minoring in psychology, she is an executive board member of the WMU Ad Club. She will be an intern with Biggs|Gilmore Communications in Kalamazoo for the 2010-11 academic year. Hensley was nominated for the scholarship by Dr. JoAnn Atkin, associate professor in marketing.

“I nominated Kara because she's our top student in the program. Plus she's a big thinker - she believes advertising is more than what we buy. She's very socially and ethically minded of the profession. She exemplifies the best of our program, students, and university,” says Atkin.

The Adcraft Club of Detroit is the nation's largest advertising club. Its foundation annually awards cash grants to advertising and marketing students from Michigan universities. Students are nominated by faculty members and must submit an application and transcript, along with an essay demonstrating their knowledge and understanding of the advertising business. Winners and their faculty advisors are honored at a reception and luncheon in Detroit.