FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, contact:

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Sheila Champlin - (901) 448-4957, schampli@uthsc.edu or

Suzanne Thompson - (901) 448-4072, sthompson@uthsc.edu

Margaret T. Hartig Named Assistant Vice Chancellor for

Community Engagement, Interprofessional Initiatives for

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

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Memphis, Tenn. (October 18, 2012) - Cheryl R. Scheid, PhD, vice chancellor for Academic, Faculty and Student Affairs, at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), has appointed Margaret "Peg" T. Hartig, PhD, FNP-BC, APRN, FAANP, assistant vice chancellor for Community Engagement and Interprofessional Initiatives. Dr. Hartig will begin the half-time position on Nov. 1, reporting to Alicia Dorsey, PhD, associate vice chancellor for Academic Affairs.

In her new role, Dr. Hartig will serve as the primary program coordinator and facilitator for Interprofessional education occurring in community settings. She will coordinate the development, implementation and evaluation of community-based education activities involving students from across UTHSC; serve as the liaison with community agencies and organizations requesting UTHSC student or faculty health screenings (or health fairs) and; assist in the overall coordination and evaluation of interprofessional activities developed and sponsored by the Office of Interprofessional Education and Clinical Simulation.

Dr. Hartig will also identify opportunities for community-based interprofessional learning experiences that engage students across programs and level of learner and; foster quality improvement by gathering and interpreting data in community-based or campus-wide interprofessional initiatives.

"We are pleased to welcome Dr. Hartig to this newly created position in our department," said Dr. Scheid. "Peg brings more than 30 years of health care experience to this position as well as in-depth knowledge of the UTHSC and Memphis communities. We look forward to her work as a community liaison for health-related activities involving UTHSC faculty and students. We are certain she will play a significant role in our efforts to sustain and expand community and university partnerships."

Previously, Dr. Hartig served as a professor and chair in the Department of Primary Care and Public Health in the UTHSC College of Nursing. She is a graduate of the University of Kansas (BSN) and UTHSC (MS and PhD). She joined the UT College of Nursing faculty in 1987, bringing with her some 10 years of experience as a family nurse practitioner.

As a member of the Academic Nursing Center Special Interest Group and Faculty Development Committee of the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties, Dr. Hartig has worked on several projects to define the scholarship and quality associated with faculty practice. She is also active in several health-related organizations in the Memphis area.

Dr. Hartig is serving on the Planning and Advisory Committees for Project Better Care. This program was implemented by Healthy Memphis Common Table and sponsored by Memphis and Bluff City Medical Societies with funding from BlueCross/Blue Shield Foundation. The goal of the program is to influence primary care practice changes that promote delivery of high-quality primary care in the Memphis area.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service. In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrated its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care. Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy. The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit. In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit. Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state. For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu.

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