HJAR Jul/Aug 2020

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS I  JUL / AUG 2020 31 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalAR.com receive guidance as they participate in science fairs and competition. “We’re continuing to engage with our first class, and we’re looking forward to building relation- ships with another group of students to guide and encourage them,” Rajnarayanan said. “It’s an ongoing program that is mutually beneficially to NYITCOM and the students.” Samar Qedan, APRN, JoinsWalker Heart Cardiovascular Clinic Samar Qedan, APRN, recently joined Washing- ton Regional Walker Heart Cardiovascular Clinic, where she provides care to patients with acute and chronic cardiovascular conditions. Qedan earned a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sci- ences and a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Arkansas. Qedan is an adult geron- tology acute care nurse practitioner and has more than five years of cardiology experience in hospi- tal and ambulatory settings. BioVentures, UAMS Commit to COVID-19 Technology Licensing Principles, Maximizing Access to UAMS Innovations BioVentures and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) have committed to a set of technology licensing principles that will allow for broad and equitable access to UAMS discoveries during the Global COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 Technology Framework was developed and established through a cooperative effort by Stanford University, Har- vard University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This framework provides a model by which critically important technologies that may help prevent, diagnose, or treat COVID-19 may be deployed for the greatest public benefit in the shortest period of time. “Consistent with UAMS’s mission to improve the health, healthcare, and well-being of Arkan- sans and of others in the region, nation, and world, BioVentures is committed to translating and accelerating UAMS innovations into health improvements,” said Nancy Gray, PhD, BioVen- tures president. “The seriousness and urgency of the COVID-19 public health crisis means that today we cannot wait for tomorrow. We need to help now in every way we can.” Gray said that with the best interests of the public in mind, BioVentures is glad to join in this cooperative effort with Stanford, Harvard, and MIT and to commit to the guidelines stated in the framework below. COVID-19 Technology Access Framework “We strongly believe that while intellectual property rights can often serve to incentivize the creation of new products, such rights should not become a barrier to addressing widespread, urgent, and essential health-related needs. “To address the global COVID-19 pandemic, we are implementing technology transfer strate- gies to allow for and incentivize rapid utilization of our available technologies that may be useful for preventing, diagnosing, and treating COVID- 19 infection during the pandemic. “To achieve our goal, we commit to the follow- ing guidelines: 1. We are committed to implementing COVID- 19 patenting and licensing strategies that are consistent with our goal of facilitating rapid global access. For most types of technolo- gies, this includes the use of rapidly executable non-exclusive royalty-free licenses to intellec- tual property rights that we have the right to license, for the purpose of making and distrib- uting products to prevent, diagnose, and treat COVID-19 infection during the pandemic and for a short period thereafter. In return for these royalty-free licenses, we are asking the licens- ees for a commitment to distribute the result- ing products as widely as possible and at a low cost that allows broad accessibility during the term of the license. 2. We are committed to making vigorous efforts to achieve alignment among all stakeholders in our intellectual property, including research sponsors, to facilitate broad and rapid access to technologies that have been requested to address the COVID-19 pandemic. 3. We are committed to making any technol- ogy transfer transactions related to address- ing the COVID-19 pandemic our first priority, and to minimize any associated administrative burdens.” BioVentures is a technology commercialization organization and startup incubator focused on promoting a biomedical technology industry for Arkansas and translating research into products that benefit human health. UAMS Graduates 914 Healthcare Professionals Degrees and certificates were conferred to 914 graduates of the University of Arkansas Medi- cal Sciences’ (UAMS) five colleges and graduate school. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, no commencement ceremony was held. Degrees were awarded to 165 in the College of Medicine, 255 in the College of Nursing, 112 in the College of Pharmacy, 67 in the Fay W. Booz- man College of Public Health, 257 in the Col- lege of Health Professions, and 58 in the Grad- uate School. NYITCOMat A-State Celebrates Commencement of Inaugural Class For the first time in the state’s 184-year history, a medical student has earned a doctor of osteo- pathic medicine degree in Arkansas. New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine at Arkansas State Univer- sity, which became the first osteopathic medical school in the state when it opened its doors in 2016, celebrated the commencement and hood- ing of its inaugural class in a virtual ceremony held recently. Shane Speights, DO, campus dean of NYIT- COM at A-State, noted that the Class of 2020 entered medical school under unique circum- stances as the first class of a new campus and Samar Qedan, APRN