If you've ever wondered the boiling point of nitrogen, or how much oxygen a gram of hemoglobin can carry, the Sputum Bowl is the right place to go. Loma Linda University students participated in this respiratory care academic competition April 7 at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center against their peers from five other Inland Empire area schools.
Two LLU teams participated, consisting of juniors and seniors in the bachelor's degree program for respiratory therapy, department of cardiopulmonary sciences, School of Allied Health Professions. Between both teams, LLU won three out of the six rounds it played. One team reached the semi-finals. Those team members were senior students Faisal Biyari, Abdullah Alismail, Joshua Napod, and Joseph Diaz.
"They could have easily gone to the finals if they had won," said Alan Alipoon, instructor in the cardiopulmonary sciences program and manager of education in the department of respiratory care services at Loma Linda University Medical Center.
The members of the other team were junior students Benjamin Peraino, Dan Ngo, Terrell Black, and James Luong.
For more than 10 years, Mr. Alipoon has coordinated the Sputum Bowl for all of Southern California along with Michael Terry, who moderates the competition. Mr. Terry is a manager for research and information systems at LLU Medical Center.
Mr. Alipoon encourages LLU students to compete and has high hopes for next year's senior team, currently juniors.
"As a hiring manager for the medical center, it is good to see students who are motivated and challenge themselves," he said. "When they graduate, I know these students will be good candidates for hire because they have gone a step farther in their knowledge base."
Crafton Hills College won the Inland Empire competition. In May, those students will compete in San Diego in the finals for all of California. Both Mr. Terry and Mr. Alipoon will be on hand to run the competition. In November, the San Diego winners will travel to Tampa, Florida, to compete for the national title.
This story was originally published in the April 27, 2011, edition of Today.