Issue 20 | December 7, 2020 |
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Dear Faculty, Trainees, and Staff:
As we come to the close of another year, I find myself pausing and contemplating where we have been, what we have experienced, what we have gained, and the direction we are heading. 2020 has been an unprecedented year with a pandemic, the likes of which none of us have ever experienced, in addition to the social uprising that has been extremely disturbing and a political landscape that has been divisive and unsettling for many -- if not all of us. The isolation from our extended families, friends, and coworkers has been costly. We have all made considerable sacrifices and find ourselves asking: “When is this going to end?” and, “Will we survive?”
As we enter the second surge, the challenges and losses that everyone has experienced in one way or another continue to accumulate. Some have lost jobs, stability, and security. Others have lost loved ones, resulting in heart break that cannot be described. Yet through all of this I have been overwhelmed by the endurance, perseverance, and commitment from all of you. It is also important to acknowledge that, despite the pain and suffering that have been endured, we have also gained. We as a Department have risen to meet the challenge, have continued to work as a united team, and have successfully not only survived but have thrived as our devoted faculty and staff use creativity and intelligence, along with our collective commitment to sustain our programs, treat our patients, and continue to contribute to the science of medicine. More than at any other time in my career at the University of Maryland, I have witnessed fight, determination, and sacrifice to do right by our community, our colleagues, our families, and ourselves. Never before have we worked so successfully as a united team to meet the challenges we face and keep our momentum moving in order to do the right thing. I have never been prouder of being a member of the Department of Psychiatry. Every day, when I pull into my driveway, the sign I posted back in March, "Home of the Brave," remains firmly in place and reminds me that, yes, we are the Home of the Brave.
I look forward to moving together into 2021, where clearly the end is in sight and the solutions will continue to unfold. And as a very strong Department, we will continue to grow together and succeed. “Will we survive?” one might ask. Oh yes! We will survive.
I wish each and every one of you and your family a restful holiday and a healthy and peaceful New Year!
Sincerely,
Jill RachBeisel, MD
Interim Chair, Department of Psychiatry
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THE DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY
DIVERSITY COMMITTEE & INITIATIVES
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The Diversity Committee would like to highlight the Department of Psychiatry Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Grand Rounds Series.
Starting this July, with Dr. Chuck Callahan, we have created a lecture series focused on issues related to D/E/I. The second lecture featuring historian Steven Ragsdale occurred on Nov. 19th and the third lecture featuring Dr. Nhia-Ha Trinh will occur on Dec 17th. Special thanks to the Social Justice Education/Curriculum sub-committee for their hard work in coordinating these events.
Mr. Ragsdale’s lecture on the history of medical racism in Baltimore was enthralling and educational. He has provided additional readings and resources as a supplemental guide for all who are interested in learning more.
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Dr. Nhia-Ha Trinh will be joining us on Thurs., Dec. 17th. Her lecture is titled: “Centering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in 2020: Cultural Humility and Anti-Racism in Psychiatry."
Diversity Committee Meeting
The next Diversity Committee meeting will occur on Thurs., Dec. 17th at 4pm. All are invited to attend our monthly meetings:
We will resume our fourth Thursday meetings in 2021; the first meeting date of the new year is January 22nd, 2021.
Please email Dr. Anique Forrester, MD,
at aforrest@som.umaryland.edu for more information.
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Crystal Han, MD, had the honor of being selected as an APA SAMHSA Minority fellow and, as part of that, she has organized a project to engage Asian American students in monthly meetings (virtually) to create a safe space and community for exploring the impact of culture, identity, and heritage on mental health and wellness.
She hopes these meetings can connect people and foster stronger communities, and she would also be happy to use her training to discuss various CBT, DBT skills, etc., if need be.
Congratulations, and thank you for all of your hard work and diversity-based efforts within the Department!
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DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY
DIVERSITY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE EDUCATION RESOURCE LIST
The Department has been continually updating our Diversity and Social Justice Education Resource List.
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A CALL FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE
Our clients at Harbor City Unlimited (HCU), our Psychiatry Rehabilitation Program, have recently created powerful posters around the current civil unrest, political climate, and ongoing pandemic.
We'd like to thank our HCU team for helping to coordinate this initiative, and thanks for sharing the work of our community members.
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PSYCHIATRY UPDATES
The Department of Psychiatry would like to update you on our awards, presentations, special recognition & more!
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RECOGNITION TO SARAH EDWARDS, DO |
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Sarah Edwards, DO, was recently recognized by a grateful family for her advisement on residency programs for their son.
To highlight their gratitude, a generous donation was made to Child & Adolescent Psychiatry in honor of Dr. Edwards for her random acts of kindness. A donation was also made to the Department in general.
Thank you Dr. Edwards for your time -- and for your always insightful and kind guidance.
We appreciate your continued work on behalf of the Department of Psychiatry and beyond.
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The Department welcomes Nhi-Ha Trinh, MD, MPH, for our next Grand Rounds!
Date: December 17, 2020
Time: 12:00-1:30pm - VIRTUAL
Title: “Centering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in 2020: Cultural Humility and Anti-Racism in Psychiatry"
Dr. Trinh’s talk is being sponsored by Crystal Han, MD, and the APA SAMSHA Fellowship. Dr. Han is a Child and Adolescent Psychiatry fellow and a current APA SAMSHA Fellow.
Biography:
Dr. Nhi-Ha Trinh serves as the Director for the Department of Psychiatry Center for Diversity at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Trinh is committed to fostering a more diverse and inclusive academic community and is devoted to educating students, trainees, staff, and faculty in cultural sensitivity and humility to both improve patient care, the hospital workplace culture, and the medical learning environment. Dr. Trinh completed residency training in Adult Psychiatry at the Mass General/McLean Adult Psychiatry Training Program and a clinical fellowship in Geriatric Psychiatry at McLean Hospital, and has served as faculty at MGH since 2007.
Meeting link:
Meeting number: 120 255 5269
Meeting password: iaJjRwPj243
Join by video system
Dial 1202555269@umaryland.webex.com
You can also dial 173.243.2.68 and enter your meeting number.
Join by phone
+1-202-860-2110 United States Toll (Washington D.C.)
+1-415-655-0001 US Toll
Access code: 120 255 5269
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Dr. Christopher W. T. Miller received his medical degree from the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, in Florianópolis, Brazil.
After completing two years of Internal Medicine residency at East Tennessee State University, he transferred to the University of Maryland / Sheppard Pratt psychiatry residency program, from which he graduated in 2012. In the Department of Psychiatry, he is the Associate Training Director for the residency program, as well as Associate Medical Director of the Psychiatric Emergency Services (PES).
He completed training in adult psychoanalysis at the Washington Baltimore Center for Psychoanalysis and was appointed the Director of Psychotherapy Education for the residency program. His interests include integration of neuroscience and psychotherapy, developing teaching strategies to educate residents on psychodynamic theory and practice, and interdisciplinary explorations between psychotherapy and the Humanities.
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Rachel Dillinger, MD, was recently nominated for the George Ginsberg Fellowship Award of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training.
Each institution is only allowed to submit one nomination, and fellowships are awarded to a total of five applicants. Nominations are issued to those interested in education and teaching or in a subspecialty residency.
Best of luck Dr. Dillinger!
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Lace Riggs, MA, of the Gould Lab, recently received The Elaine Miye Otani Memorial Award.
The award commemorates Elaine Miye Otani and recognizes an individual who demonstrates outstanding promise to develop into an independent investigator. Moreover, in commemorating Elaine Miye Otani, Riggs also encompasses the overall spirit of the award to improve the quality of academic studies, as well as maintaining positive, esteemed relationships with her peers and faculty. Congratulations!
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Mark Kvarta, MD, PhD, was selected as the recipient of one of the 2021 Society of Biological Psychiatry Domestic Travel Fellowship Awards for the 2021 annual meeting of the Society of Biological Psychiatry.
The Society of Biological Psychiatry selected Dr. Kvarta for his past excellence in scholarly work, potential for scholarly growth in biological psychiatry and clinical neuroscience, and overall excellence.
Dr. Kvarta will also be matched with a mentor and will be participating in the Society’s Early Career Investigator Program throughout the 2021 meeting. Congratulations, and thank you for your work!
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CONFERENCES & PRESENTATIONS |
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25th Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health
The 2020 Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health held its first year as a virtual conference. Thousands of attendees from all 50 states and 20 countries attended the live conference on October 29. Recordings from the live conference in addition to over 250 pre-recorded sessions are available on SchoolMentalHealth.org.
The conference was hosted by the National Center for School Mental Health’s conference leadership team of Sylvia McCree-Huntley, EdD, Christina Walker, MS, Taneisha Carter, BA, Perrin Robinson, MS, Sharon Hoover, PhD, and Nancy Lever, PhD, Kris Scardamalia, PhD, and Tiffany Beason, PhD, were featured plenary speakers at the conference, covering Supporting Educator Well-Being and Looking Forward in School Mental Health, respectively.
NCSMH staff hosted a Youth Leadership Summit on November 14, coordinated by Taneisha Carter, Sylvia McCree-Huntley, Christina Walker, and Te’a Brown. This national summit welcomed youth from across the country and was hosted in collaboration with national leaders on youth engagement in school mental health. Participating youth gained new skills for advocacy engagement, discussed school and community health services in their region, and networked with like-minded peers. Youth and adult leaders will continue working together as they plan action steps at local and state levels.
Additionally, the National Center for Safe Supportive Schools (NCS3) hosted three pre-conference trainings for 96 participants representing 24 school districts across the U.S. and Canada on school-based group interventions for youth impacted by adversity and trauma. Trainings were provided on the Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS), Bounce Back, as well as Supporting Transition Resilience of Newcomer Groups (STRONG), an intervention co-developed by Dr. Sharon Hoover to support immigrant and refugee children as they transition to new schools and communities.
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On October 23, 2020, Dr. Jill Bohnenkamp presented Be Well for the Montgomery County Public Schools.
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In October, Dr. Sharon Hoover was also interviewed for this FOX45 Morning News story, discussing mental health and stress among children and adults during COVID.
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The Division of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry would like to share resources from their colleagues from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, with whom the Department shares three grants.
These include downloadable tips for:
Please feel free to download and disseminate further!
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COVID COLLABORATIONS & RESOURCES |
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Drs. Mimi Belcher, Aaron Greenblatt, and Eric Weintraub, along with Thomas Cole, were recently highlighted by the University of Maryland for their collaboration with the UMD Department of Psychology and Dr. Jessica Magidson, who is co-leading the study.
The team is currently studying the effect and sustainability of telemedicine on opioid use treatment programs as well as the outcomes of the distribution of methadone in the midst of COVID and in a less restrictive setting. Their study is supported by a supplemental grant awarded by the NIH HEAL Initiative.
This same collaborative team has also received a supplemental grant to evaluate peer interventions and reduced stigma of patients with substance use. Further, these grants support collaborations with UMD and the Center for Substance Abuse Research (CESAR), led by Professor Eric Wish.
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School Mental Health Ambulatory Trends Conference
On November 13, Drs. Nancy Lever and Dana Cunningham of the National Center for School Mental Health, and Ashley Woods, LSCW-C, of the School Mental Health Program, presented “Impact of COVID-19 and Inequities on School Mental Health Services and Supports.”
They discussed challenges and opportunities related to the impact of COVID-19 on school mental health and discussed how disproportionality and racism impacts students. The presentation also included a panel of two students who shared their perspectives on COVID-19 and racism.
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The Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts (FORE) recently recognized grantees Drs. Eric Weintraub and Annabelle (Mimi) Belcher, along with their team, for their FORE award and work designed to provide telemedicine-based medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD).
A recent article from the foundation, which can be found here, discusses their work in implementing COVID-safe MOUD programs within four county jails on the Eastern Shore. In specific, the team is providing guidance on telemedicine consults within the facilities, as well as guidance for continuing relationships for treatment upon release.
The team hopes this initiative will serve as the model for correctional facilities across the state, and we applaud you for your work in this important area; thank you for your continued endeavors!
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Thanks to all for your contributions, and please email Lisa Cleary at lcleary@som.umaryland.edu with submissions. Our suggested categories include:
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- Clinical trials and studies
- Community service
- Education
- Events, lectures, panels, & workshops
- Faculty appointments
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- Grants and contracts, and collaborative opportunities
- Honors and awards
- IT news
- Media press
- Publications
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