Special Olympics Torch Run

More than a dozen UConn Health fire and police officers took part in the annual Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics Connecticut on June 5. The officers carried the “Flame of Hope” through Farmington to help raise awareness and funds for Special Olympics. Overall, more than 1,500 local law enforcement officers participated in the run and covered more than 530 miles for Special Olympics.

Tom Trutter Wins Construction Institute Annual Award

Tom Trutter, UConn Health’s associate vice president of campus planning, design and construction, is among those being honored at the Construction Institute’s annual awards night June 19. Trutter won the “Distinguished Achievement Award,” which recognizes his impact on Connecticut’s construction industry and contributions to the larger community.

Successful Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Symposium

UConn Health’s federally-funded grant to train people for careers in skeletal, craniofacial and oral biology (SCOB) research sponsored its annual capstone symposium last month. Seventeen trainees presented their research findings on topics including how bone, cartilage, and teeth develop; genetics; biomechanics/biomaterials; and regeneration of diseased or damaged tissues. The SCOB training program is in its 18th year and is the largest training grant at UConn. The program is within the School of Dental Medicine, widely recognized as one of the strongest in the country.

Richard Kamin Wins Quigley Award

Emergency Management Services Medical Director Richard Kamin received the 2014 Mark Quigley Award for “a physician who demonstrates exemplary qualities as a teacher, visionary, and executor of highest quality emergency medical care.” The awards ceremony was held at the state Capitol as part of 2014 EMS Week.

Liisa Kuhn Receives Merit Award

Liisa T. Kuhn, associate professor in the School of Dental Medicine’s Department of Reconstructive Sciences, received the Award of Merit from the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International in Toronto, Canada, in May. The award was established in 1949 by the ASTM International Board of Directors and is the highest society award granted to an individual member for distinguished service and outstanding participation in ASTM International committee activities. Recipients also receive the honorary title of fellow. The plaque inscription reads: “For outstanding leadership and high productivity in fostering the development and promulgation of surgical implant standards in ASTM Committee F04 for Medical and Surgical Materials and Devices.”

Dawn von Mayrhauser Presents at International Conference

Social worker Dawn von Mayrhauser was an invited presenter at the World Federation of Hemophilia conference in Melbourne, Australia, in May. She spoke about sibling issues in families with a child with hemophilia. Von Mayrhauser has been a clinical social worker at UConn Health for 19 years, providing psychosocial supportive services to patients with hemophilia and other bleeding disorders.

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