Leading the Communications division at VCOM, Cindy has been with the College since 2006. She brings over 40 years of experience with award-winning communications in higher education including Washington University in St. Louis, newspaper and magazine publishing corporations, printing industry, and international marketing and design experience at two global corporate positions including Bridge Information Systems (now part of Reuters), and Cardinal Health, a Fortune 20 company.
The skills she has brought to VCOM are built on a foundation of extensive experience and education in marketing, graphic design, web design/development, communications, and public relations.
Dr. Sahhar received his medical degree from the University of Mosul in Mosul, Iraq. He completed his Pediatric residency and Pediatric Critical Care fellowship at Advocate Hope Children's Hospital in Oak Lawn, IL. He is board certified in both general pediatrics and the subspecialty of pediatric critical care medicine. Dr. Sahhar also holds certification in Pediatric Flexible Fiberoptic Bronchoscopy. He is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Council on Medical Student Education in Pediatrics (COMSEP), and American College of Osteopathic Pediatricians (ACOP). Dr. Sahhar is currently the Medical Director of Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and the Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System. Dr. Sahhar holds an academic degree as Professor of Pediatrics at the Medical University of South Carolina AHEC and is a Discipline Chair of Pediatrics at Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine - Carolinas Campus.
As an active researcher and investigator for the last 21 years, my focus is always on translational clinical research and projects. From a single case report of discovering an association between a virus and a disease to observational large number of patients studied for many years to evaluate efficacy and safety of treatment or therapy modality. My research categories are: Single Case Reports/rare and unique case presentation (e.g. hMPV and Pertussis-Like Syndrome); Multiple Case Studies/Descriptive Research (e.g. Silver Russell Syndrome); Retrospective/Chart Review/Quantitative Research (e.g. Diabetic Ketoacidosis); and Prospective/Randomized Control Trials (e.g. Heliox Therapy). Other research studies include Community focus/health promotion (e.g. PLAY Program); Medical innovation (e.g. Lumbar Puncture Assist Tool); and Educational studies (e.g. Pre-Clinical Experience).
My main role in any project is being a mentor to the medical students. Every project starts with an idea; a thesis to be examined and investigated. The assigned students will research the thesis and perform the literature review. When the thesis is deemed valuable and applicable, then a purpose of the research will be defined with the main aim to answer the main research question. I put together the main frame for the study design and the students initiate the study starting with the Institutional Review Board (IRB) application when required. Once approved, the study will be launched starting with data collection performed by the students. Once completed, a biostatistician will input the data and produce the results. A team meeting, including myself, the students and the biostatistician, will be convened to review the results and analyze its reproducibility. Once valid, the study abstract and poster will be generated and presented by the students at the college annual research meeting as well at a national conference, such as ACOP and AOA/OMED. Feedback from the experts will be summarized and the final study manuscript will be prepared for submission to a scientific journal for final publication.
Research is rewarding, but it requires patience, dedication, and time allocation. As an example, in one calendar year I conducted 15 pediatric clinical research projects involving more than 20 VCOM medical students. The average amount of time I invested at the different steps of those projects was 15 hours per week. I have completed 100 research projects since the 2012 opening of the VCOM Carolinas campus, and I am currently mentoring 34 VCOM students across 19 active research projects.
Raymond V. Romano, DO attended Fairfield University where he received his BS in Business in 1995. After working for an international IT consulting firm for six years, he attended Nova Southeastern University College of Osteopathic Medicine where he received his Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine in 2007. After completing his family medicine residency at Spartanburg Regional Medical Center in Spartanburg, SC, he entered private practice where he also served as an assistant clinical professor for the Carolinas Campus of the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM-Carolinas).
In 2020, Dr. Romano joined VCOM-Carolinas full time and was named the Discipline Chair for Family Medicine and the director for the Principles of Primary Care course at the Carolinas campus. He continues to see patients, accompanied by VCOM students, at his practice in Simpsonville, SC.
