UOSA Honor Council Integrity Forum

The UOSA Honor Council hosted its first Integrity Forum Fri., Nov. 13 in Nielson Hall.

"The goal of this event [was] to show our student body that the integrity you learn and apply in your academics as a Sooner is not a temporary ideal, but a lasting virtue that will carry over into your professions upon graduation," said Breea Bacon, co-advisor to the Honor Council and assistant director of Academic Integrity Systems.

To do this, the council invited six professionals involved in a number of fields, such as medicine, engineering, and law, to speak about how they use ethics in their careers and lives.

Zoology senior Elizabeth Knowlton said she enjoyed hearing Dr. Jerry Weber, OU Regents' professor of education and human relations, speak on integrity in school because she wants to be a professor and thought his testimony was most applicable to students.

Weber gave her a better understanding about upholding integrity in real-life scenarios that students are faced with every day, Knowlton said.

In video clip below, Dr. Weber sums up why ethical behavior is important to students.



Video by Kathleen Evans

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For my final project, one of my ideas is to write about The Children's Center, a pediatric hospital in Bethany, Oklahoma. I know that a medical group on campus is having the pediatrician speak about working with children with needs and is having a fundraising event for the Center. Also, another student group is having a drive for Christmas gifts for the children and will make a trip to donate the gifts to the Center.

Baking Cookies

Video by Kathleen Evans

Crisis Press Conference

Video by Kathleen Evans

Alpha Kappa Delta Phi sorority hosts weeklong event for breast cancer awareness

At age 16, most people remember their first cars or getting that coveted driver’s license. However, at age 16, junior Eva Trinh remembers her mom being diagnosed with breast cancer, a disease with which one in seven women are diagnosed, according to breastcancer.org.

“It definitely changed my life,” Trinh said. “My mom has become my hero, and I have found that everything I do, I do for her.”

After she was diagnosed, Trinh said her mom had to get a biopsy of her breast tissue and later a mastectomy of one of her breasts, which is a removal of the infected breast through surgery to prevent the spread of cancer, according to an article on breastcancer.org.

“I remember visiting her in the hospital, and she was always just really tired from all the drugs,” Trinh said.

After her mother came home from the hospital, Trinh said her mother tried to continue her normal household activities, but was unable to do them to her normal extent because chemotherapy and radiation treatments made her weaker and more tired.

Trinh said the hardest part was seeing the side effects of the drugs – the nausea, fatigue, pain, and general sickness.

However, Trinh also let out a big smile when she said her mom is currently a three-year survivor of breast cancer. Now, she has tried to make breast cancer a positive part of her life by going to school to become an oncology nurse.

“I wanted to do breast cancer research for my future career, but I found that pre-med was not for me, so I switched to pre-nursing, and I plan on becoming an oncology nurse,” Trinh said. “I want to work with and help other breast cancer patients, just like my mom.”

Trinh also does a lot of work for breast cancer awareness groups. She is a member of alpha Kappa Delta Phi, an Asian-American sorority whose national philanthropy is the Susan G. Komen Foundation, a breast cancer education and research group. Trinh said the sorority’s philanthropy was a large reason she decided to join.

“I saw how much they worked to raise awareness around the community, and it really appealed to me because it touched me personally,” Trinh said. “I look forward to breast cancer month (October) every year because it is a huge opportunity to spread the word and possibly save more lives and raise money to one day find a cure and rid of us this disease once and for all.”

Alpha Kappa Delta Phi, or aKDPhi, devoted an entire week to their philanthropy, which they affectionately called “Breast Fest” and “Boob-a-Palooza.”

This year, Breast Fest week was Oct. 19 through Oct. 23, said Luanna Vo, akdPhi service chair and OU senior. Last year the sorority earned over $2000 in donations for the Susan G. Komen Foundation and hoped to reach $3000 this year.

As of now, doctors do not know the cause of breast cancer. However, research shows that mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes increase the risk of getting breast cancer, according to information on the Susan G. Komen Web site. Only half of breast cancers related to mutations in these genes are inherited; the other half is the result of a spontaneous mutation in the genes.

Although exact causes are not known, Elizabeth Hart, graduate assistant with the OU Women’s Outreach Center, said she wanted to dispel rumors. For example, mammograms, scented deodorants, and underwire bras do not play a part in causing cancer, despite the fact that they many people believe they do.

To prevent breast cancer, Hart recommended four important steps: knowing your risk, getting screened, knowing what is normal for one’s body, and making healthy choices.

Risk factors one cannot control include family history and ethnicity, Hart said. However, knowing these and getting screened for breast cancer early and regularly can help lessen the risk. Currently, African-American women are most at risk, followed by Asian-American and Hispanic, she said. Women should start getting screened at age 20.

Hart said that it might seen awkward or embarrassing to get a clinical exam from a doctor, but she said she wants to assure women that it is better to get tested in the end and that doctors are professional about testing.

“I’m sure that at the end of the day, boobs are boobs are boobs,” Hart said. “They must all run together, so do not feel embarrassed.”

Other choices women can make include limited alcohol and caffeine intake, exercising regularly, and keeping a healthy weight, Hart said. Warning signs to look for include a hard lump, any changes in size, a scaly rash, discharge, or pain.

Although Trinh said seeing her mom struggle with breast cancer was hard, she has benefitted from it by becoming a more active supporter of breast cancer awareness and by becoming closer to her mom in the end.

“I definitely appreciate my mom more after all that has happened,” Trinh said. “If possible, it made me love her even more. It sounds sappy, I know!”

Above: Senior Sang Nguyen throws a pie at junior and aKDPhi president Tammy Le. photo by Kathleen Evans

Below: Le describes what being pied felt like. audio by Kathleen Evans

MEIDP plans medical mission trip to Honduras

At a meeting on Oct., 6, the Medical Ethics and Issues Discussion Panel planned a trip to Honduras to help at a local clinic. Trip organizers arranged the trip with other universities through the Medical Brigades Program.

Midterm Project Idea

Because October is a big AIDS awareness month, I would like to do my project over what the OU Pre-Med Club is doing to help. I know they are having a booth in the Union all week, followed by a group participating in the AIDS Walk in Oklahoma City.

Practice Audio Clip