TU’s medical advisory committee a USM standout
Group of internal and external experts advise on COVID-19-related actions and protocols
By Cody Boteler on March 26, 2021
Towson University’s COVID-19 Medical Advisory Committee has met every week for months to discuss the latest information about the novel coronavirus, share best practices and make recommendations for actions the university can take.
The group of experts weighed in on topics including TU’s sentinel testing strategy, plans for outdoor graduation ceremonies, return-from-spring-break testing, allowing parents to attend sporting and arts events and everything in between.
“ We're always trying to look to the future a little bit. ”
Insight and expertise from the panel, which includes experts in epidemiology, general medicine and other public health experts, follows one common thread: trusting science.
“We’ve said since last March, ‘Follow the science,’” says Bruce Griffin, TU’s chief risk and compliance officer. “This has been a good solution; find a group of experts, with varied backgrounds, to follow that science.”
Every Friday members engage virtually in open discussion about the latest science and data on handling COVID-19. Griffin says the last agenda item every week is, “What’s next for higher education?”
“We’re always trying to look to the future a little bit,” he says.
The advisory committee has eight members, including Griffin. The others are Kate Tracy, Ph.D, a professor of epidemiology and public health from the University of Maryland (USM) School of Medicine; Dr. Lisa Carey, from GBMC; Dr. Lou Kovacs, from MedStar Sports and TU sports medicine’s lead physician; George Elder, a disease control expert from the Baltimore County Department of Health; Dr. Lisa Murray, from the TU Health Center; Anthony Skevakis, associate vice president for student affairs and dean of students; and Hayley Mark, Ph.D, chair of the Department of Nursing.
“To continue positioning the health and safety of our TU community at the forefront of our response to the pandemic, we convened this medical advisory committee of experts from TU faculty and staff and leading institutions across the medical community,” says President Kim Schatzel. “I'm proud to have this brilliant, dedicated group to advise TU’s leadership team.”
As far as Griffin knows, there is not another school in the USM that has a dedicated medical advisory council set up like the one at TU. Including outside experts demonstrates how seriously the TU administration is taking its commitment to following the science, he says.
Mark says she brings a “boots on the ground” perspective to the committee, because she is always thinking about the classroom perspective.
“My research expertise is in infectious disease. And I’m a nurse, of course,” Mark says. “That’s a background that helps me bring some perspective to COVID-19 issues.”
Elder, who works for Baltimore County, says he was glad to see TU stand up this committee. COVID-19 is always changing, he says, so having a group that works together to navigate the changing conditions has been “wonderful.”
“It’s been extremely beneficial,” he says. “We can speak our minds. We have mutual trust and respect.”
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Tracy, the USM School of Medicine professor, says it was “very wise” for TU to put together the medical advisory council.
She has been advising each of the 12 USM schools. Because of that work, Tracy says, she’s able to bring a system-wide perspective to the conversations happening at TU.
One win, she says, is how Towson University set up its on-campus novel coronavirus testing regimen after the USM made known its desire to improve testing on campuses.
“It was great to see how Towson University embraced that strategy and included facilities people, student affairs people and people from all areas of the university. If you’re looking for a big success between what the University System of Maryland wanted—TU grabbed that. I think TU has done a brilliant job at testing, and deserves a lot of credit for that at many levels,” Tracy says.