Alumnus Profile: John M. Brinkman, '77 and Faculty Profile: Subhashini Ganapathy, '01, '06

Alumnus Profile

John M. Brinkman,
'77 B.S.N. College of Nursing and Health

John Brinkman received his Bachelor of Science degree in 1977 from Wright State’s College of Nursing and Health. He also holds a master’s degree from Central Michigan University with a concentration in health care administration.

John is currently the administrator for licensed services at Bethany Village in Centerville, where he is responsible for six departments and all services provided to a 252-bed long-term care facility and 72 assisted-living beds. John has worked at Grandview Hospital and Medical Center in numerous roles. Prior to becoming the administrator, he served as the director of nursing services, with total responsibility for nursing care of the 750 resident campus. Prior to Bethany Village, John served as the director of critical care services, director of special care, the nurse manager on the Medical Intensive Care Unit, and was a hemodialysis and intensive care nurse at Grandview Hospital and Medical Center. He also worked at Jewish Hospital as an intensive care nurse and St. Elizabeth Hospital on the acute care floor.

John, a licensed nursing home administrator, is a member of the Dayton Organization of Nurse Executives, National Organization of Directors of Nursing, American Association of Nurse Executives, and a member of the American College of Health Care Executives. He holds certification in gerontology as a nurse executive and is a certified director of nursing in long-term care.

Aside from all John’s career accomplishments, he still is a bedside nurse at heart. With his strong faith, his quiet demeanor, and his kind and gentle approach, John still relishes taking care of people. He is truly an asset to the nursing profession and a well-deserving alumnus.

Faculty Profile

Subhashini Ganapathy, '01 M.S., '06 Ph.D.
Department of Biomedical, Industrial, and Human Factors Engineering, College of Engineering and Computer Science

Subhashini Ganapathy, Ph.D., is all about the human-computer connection. Her research has been a driving force in the transformation of the field of human factors engineering.

An assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical, Industrial, and Human Factors Engineering, Ganapathy has established high-quality multidisciplinary, independent research in the area of human-computer interaction that has garnered more $350,000 in external funding. She directs the Interactions, Design, and Modeling Laboratory. She also has a secondary faculty appointment in the Department of Surgery.

Ganapathy is an expert in bridging the gap between academic research and industry needs by understanding technology landscape. Her breadth of research in human factors in mobile communications technology, ranging from collaborations with VA hospitals to the use of mobile technology in engineering education, places her at the forefront in the College of Engineering and Computer Science.

“Dr. Ganapathy is already becoming a leader in teaching, research, and service, despite just over two years in her faculty appointment,” said Nathan Klingbeil, dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science.

In the classroom, Ganapathy has incorporated many creative techniques for teaching concepts related to human factors engineering. She has also introduced two new courses relevant to current research needs: Human Factors in Mobile Computing and Computational Neuroergonomics and Health Care Applications.

With these and other courses, Ganapathy tirelessly tries to prepare the next generation of students in fostering strategic thinking and applying new methods towards human-computer interaction. She wants to drive innovation and transform education by making it more accessible to students.

Ganapathy is also a prolific scholar, producing more 40 papers for peer-reviewed journals, book chapters, and conferences and has three filed patents in the area of mobile augmented reality.

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