Multicultural leadership in a changing America

UC Davis supervisors, managers and faculty are invited to attend a diversity program titled "The New Multiculturalism: Leadership in a Changing America," set for presentation Nov. 7 on the main campus and Nov. 8 at the UC Davis Health System.

Organizers said UC Riverside history professor emeritus Carlos Cortes will lead a discussion on California's changing demographics as they apply to UC Davis.

The Nov. 7 presentation is scheduled from 9 to 11 a.m. in Ballrooms A and B at the Activities and Recreation Center, with a continental breakfast set for 8:30 a.m. Later that day, Cortes is scheduled to address the Council of Deans and Vice Chancellors.

The Nov. 8 presentation is scheduled from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the health system's Cancer Center auditorium in Sacramento.

Enrollment for the Nov. 7 presentation can be arranged online through the Staff Development and Professional Services Web site: http://sdps.ucdavis.edu/online.htm (click on Human Resources courses; find the Cortes course under the heading "Equality and Effectiveness Through Diversity"). To sign up for the Nov. 8 presentation at the health system, contact Equal Opportunity and Diversity, (916) 734-5335.

Medical Center in top 50 in quality, safety

UC Davis Medical Center ranked among the nation's top 50 hospitals on the Leapfrog Hospital Quality and Safety Survey, a national rating system that offers a broad assessment of a hospital's quality and safety. Only eight hospitals in California made the list.

The voluntary survey gathered data from more than 1,200 urban, acute-care hospitals regarding their progress toward implementing 30 Leapfrog-recommended safe practices. The practices include staffing intensive care units with intensivists (physicians who have received advanced training in caring for patients in ICUs), following procedures to avoid wrong-site surgery (in which a surgery is performed on the wrong part of the body), and having pharmacists review all medication orders before drugs are given to patients.

The Leapfrog Group, a Washington, D.C.-based health care safety and quality coalition supported by many of the nation's largest corporations, did not rank hospitals in numerical order. Rather, the group reported the top 50 performers in alphabetical order.

Career Catalyst program

Staff Development and Professional Services announced a series of Career Catalyst Brown Bag presentations. All are scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. Thursdays in the Mee Room at the Memorial Union. Here are the dates and topics:

• Nov. 2 — Calling All Baby Boomers
• Jan. 11 — Resume Magic
• Feb. 1 — The UC Davis Employment Process
• Feb. 15 — The Whole Package for the Job Search
• March 1 — Continuing Your Professional Education
• March 15 — Interviewing with Pizzazz
• April 5 — Revving Up Your Job Search Engine
• June 7 — What Does a UC Davis Analyst Do?

Information: call (530) 752-1766 or visit sdps.ucdavis.edu/browse/wl.htm.

Bicycles on exhibit

UC Davis has loaned several antique bicycles to the Folsom History Museum for an exhibit scheduled to open Oct. 28 and run through Jan. 7. The bicycles are from the university's Piece Miller Collection, which does not have a permanent home. The museum exhibit is "Cycling Through History: Bikes, Trails and People," exploring the invention and development of the bicycle as well as the history of the American River Bike Trail. The museum at 823 Sutter St. is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday, and admission is $3 for adults, $2 for youth and free for children under 12.

Nurses contract set

UC nurses ratified a new contract last week, one believed to be among the first public-sector agreements in the nation to include pay for missed rest breaks. The provision takes effect Jan. 1. The contract covers more than 8,500 registered nurses at five university medical centers, including about 2,100 at UC Davis. It also includes salary increases of 5 percent to 9 percent; UC Davis nurses will get a 3 percent hike on the last pay period of October and another 2 percent Jan. 1.