Print Version

For Release: March 19, 2009
Contact: dms.communications@dartmouth.edu, 603-650-1492

Dartmouth Community Medical School Spring Program on the Immune System Opens March 31

Hanover, N.H.—Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) kick off the 11th installment of the highly popular Dartmouth Community Medical School on March 31, with the first of eight weekly Tuesday evening sessions throughout April and May.

This year's program, The Immune System: an Insiders Guide, focuses on different aspects of immunity.

Sessions, tied together thematically by popular movie titles, are:
- March 31, When Harry Met Sally: Introduction to the Immune System
- April 7, Invasion of the Body Snatchers: Infections and the Immune System
- April 14, Betrayal: Autoimmunity within the GI and Nervous Systems
- April 21, Collateral Damage: Autoimmunity - Joints and Connective Tissue
- April 28, Breathless: An Overview of Asthma and Allergic Diseases
- May 5, The Wild Bunch: Allergic Reactions to Foods, Bites, Stings and Skin Contacts
- May 12, Eyes Wide Shut: Cancer and the Immune System
- May 19, Stand By Me: How to Get Your Immune System to Work for You

"What we really want to do is to enhance the public's awareness of the exciting advances that are taking place in human biology and medicine, and to do so in a forum that is interesting, understandable and relevant," says DCMS Director Dr. Donald St. Germain, professor of medicine and of physiology at Dartmouth Medical School and a member of DHMC's Section of Endocrinology. "The opportunity for community members to interact directly with our wonderful physician and scientific faculty is an added bonus for everyone."

"What we really want to do is to enhance the public's awareness of the exciting advances that are taking place in human biology and medicine...

Dr. Donald St. Germain

Since it began in 1998, Dartmouth Community Medical School (DCMS) has offered courses and special events on important scientific and medical topics for regional general public audiences. Session are taught by one or more of Dartmouth's accomplished faculty members, and occasionally guest faculty. Attendees receive a comprehensive syllabus with lecture notes, supplemental materials and suggested reading, as well as a certificate of completion for the series. Enthusiastic participants routinely remain for further questions and discussion with faculty well after each session ends. DCMS courses are open to anyone and everyone, regardless of background or experience, from high schoolers to senior citizens.

"The growth of the Internet has led to an explosion in the availability of medical information available to the public, but it is not always presented in an accurate manner and within an appropriate context, and that is what we try to accomplish through the Dartmouth Community Medical School," St. Germain adds

Pre-registration for Dartmouth Community Medical School is required. A $30 fee covers the cost of materials for all eight sessions. Sessions will be held every Tuesday night from March 31-May 12, 7 to 9 pm at the Kellogg Auditorium at Dartmouth Medical School in Hanover.

For more information, including a list of participating faculty, or to register online, go to http://geiselmed.dartmouth.edu/dcms or call (603) 653-1532.

-DMS-

Return to News Archives