Dear Faculty, Trainees, and Staff:
As the pandemic winds down, the weather warms, and we have more light, things are opening up and we are getting back to normal. Cross your fingers it sticks! Education, research, and clinical operations should be back to regular operations, although we are still wearing masks in all clinical areas. Elsewhere they are optional. We have been given permission to meet in larger groups and have meals together. Reporting to work is also getting back to pre-pandemic states.
Over the past two years, we have become accustomed to working remotely, having meetings via Zoom, and remaining isolated. This has not come without a cost and has particularly affected the sense of connectedness and work as a team when planning and problem solving. The silver lining is that we have had robust attendance at Grand Rounds, faculty and staff meetings, and various Departmental committees. We will selectively decide which meetings to continue in a remote format to facilitate access and participation. Smaller meetings will return to in-person.
Finally, I want to recognize that the month of March is Women’s History Month, Social Work Month, and Problem Gambling Awareness month. All of these individuals are integral to our Department, and I would like to thank all women, social workers, and our very own Center of Excellence on Problem Gambling for the work that you do every day.
Sincerely,
Jill A. RachBeisel, MD
Dr. Irving J. Taylor Professor and Chair, Department of Psychiatry
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The Department of Psychiatry Diversity Committee
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Please remember to visit our Hub!
The Diversity Committee has been hard at work on Implementation -- the stage of organizational change where we use our awareness, knowledge, and interest to put plans of action into place to support change through DEI initiatives. It is important as we move into the final quarter of this academic year that everyone stop and take stock of where we are in our change initiative.
Please see the graphic below from our July 2021 annual update as a reminder. If you have thoughts and input regarding our change initiatives, we would love to hear from you.
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The next Diversity Committee meeting will be held on the 5th Thursday of the month on March 31 at 4pm. Click here to join.
We encourage everyone to contact Dr. Forrester at aforrest@som.umaryland.edu to share success stories regarding their DEI efforts or personal stories about individual engagement.
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21st Biannual Taylor Lectureship |
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Date: March 17
Time: 12-1:30 pm
Speaker: Daniel Weintraub, MD
Title: "Parkinson Disease: The Interface of Psychiatry & Neurology"
Hybrid format: RSVP to Tamiara Thompson (tthompso@som.umaryland.edu or 410-328-6735) by COB Friday, March 11, to attend in person (we need 50 attendees to sign up, so please consider) at the SMC, Room 351. Grab-and-go lunch will be provided.
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Mark your calendars for the next Department of Psychiatry Faculty meeting, where Dean Reece will be joining us:
Date: March 10
Time: 12-1:30 pm
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Clinical Psychopharmacology Seminar |
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Date: March 22
Every month on the fourth Tuesday (until July 26, 2022)
Time: 12-1pm
Audience: Attendings, residents, NP post-grads, and students at MTC are required to attend. Nursing staff and social workers are encouraged to attend.
Topic: Join us for the latest research and updates on psychopharmological topics, as well as information on new releases and guidance on prescribing psychotropic medications. We also feature guest lecturers and presentations.
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Annual Telemental Health Meeting |
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Date: April 21
Time: 12-1:30pm
Speaker: Sunny Levine
Title: "The Current Telemental Health Landscape: A national and local perspective"
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Date: April 28
Format:
8:30-11 am: In-person morning poster session at the Student Union
11 am-12 pm: Lunch
12-1 pm: Virtual Grand Rounds
Abstracts will be due on March 22 -- please check the internal email sent on 2/4 for details and forms.
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Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health |
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Date: October 13-24, 2022
Each year, the Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health, hosted by the National Center for School Mental Health (NCSMH), brings together leaders, practitioners, researchers, family members, advocates, and other stakeholders in the school mental health field to share the latest research, best practice, and innovation. This year, the conference will focus on The Three Rs: Reflect, Recover, Renew.
Registration -- along with information on speakers, exhibitors, awardees, and more -- are available through the NCSMH website and listserv.
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PROBLEM GAMBLING AWARENESS MONTH |
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Each March, the Maryland Center of Excellence on Problem Gambling (the Center) actively promotes Problem Gambling Awareness Month, a grassroots public awareness and outreach campaign established by the National Council on Problem Gambling to educate the general public and healthcare professionals about the warning signs of problem gambling and to raise awareness about the help and resources available.
This year, the Center again received a Proclamation from the Governor’s Office, recognizing March as Problem Gambling Awareness Month as well as a Proclamation from Somerset County. The Maryland Alliance for Responsible Gambling (MARG), of which the Center is a part, also received a Proclamation from the Maryland State Senate.
Awareness activities will include community events, media campaigns, and outreach to Maryland casinos. For help with a gambling problem call
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Patrick Jung, MD, was appointed to Medical Director of 6 South, the Adult Inpatient Psychiatry Unit at UMMC Midtown Campus, effective December 1, 2021. In this position, he will report directly to Dr. Stephanie Knight, Chief of Psychiatry for UMMC Midtown Campus, and will be involved in a variety of clinical and administrative responsibilities.
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Jamie Fields, DO, was appointed to Medical Director for the Adult Inpatient Psychiatry Unit, 6 North at UMMC Midtown Campus, effective December 1, 2021. In this position, she will report directly to Dr. Stephanie Knight, Chief of Psychiatry for UMMC Midtown Campus, and will be involved in a variety of clinical and administrative responsibilities.
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Elliot Hong, MD, and Xiaoming Michael Du, PhD, received a 3-year NIDA-funded UH3 grant, entitled: "Circuitry-guided smoking cessation in schizophrenia."
The award will enable their team to examine a novel transcranial magnetic stimulation strategy to aid smoking cessation in patients with schizophrenia and to gain better understanding on the brain circuitries underlying the often-entrenched smoking behaviors in some patients.
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Joan Han, DO, PGY4 Resident, received the American Psychiatric Association (APA) Resident and Fellow Member Recognition Award.
The award is given to a Resident who exemplifies the core values of the APA, including compassion, leadership, community service, and more.
Congratulations, Dr. Han!
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Hannah Paulding, MD, a PGY2 Resident, was inducted into the Gold Humanism Society.
Dr. Paulding was one of only six residents selected for induction by the graduating medical school class of 2022 for making a deeply positive and lasting impact on their education.
Thank you Dr. Paulding for your service and work!
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The Eastern Shore Mobile Care Collaborative (ESMCC) was recently featured in the Talbot Spy for the team's expansion into the St. Michaels and Bay Hundred areas. The ESMCC will provide mobile Medication Assisted Treatment services to those with Opioid Use Disorder, increasing equitable access to care via telemedicine to those in underserved, rural areas.
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Christopher Welsh, MD, recently co-authored the article, "Patients with substance use disorders receiving continued care in skilled nursing facilities following hospitalization," in Substance Abuse. The article detailed the use of skilled nursing facilities for treating patients with substance use disorder, as well as the pros and cons. For the full read (access required), click here.
Dr. Welsh also co-authored "Opioid agonist treatment initiation and linkage for hospitalized patients seen by a substance use disorder consultation service," for Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports. Highlights include the importance of hospitalization to initiate opioid agonist treatment, treatment within specific demographics, and more. Read more here.
Finally, Dr. Welsh co-authored "Methadone exposures reported to poison control centers in the United States following the COVID-19-related loosening of federal methadone regulations," in the International Journal of Drug Policy. Click here for the full read.
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The National Center for School Mental Health recently published Associations Between School Mental Health Team Membership and Impact on Service Provision in the journal School Mental Health. This paper investigates the composition and effectiveness of school mental health teams across a multi-tiered system of supports and services. Sam Reaves, PhD, was the lead author with Jill Bohnenkamp, PhD, Elizabeth Connors, PhD, Nancy Lever, PhD, and Sharon Hoover, PhD, as co-authors.
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This intervention development involved a collaborative partnership between the CBITS development team and the National Native Children’s Trauma Center.
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FACULTY & STAFF SPOTLIGHT |
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The Department of Psychiatry would like to welcome Tyeisha Johnson, who joined our team as the Practice Manager for our PA Practice at our 701 building, 4th floor. Tyeisha is replacing Pam Fodel, who recently retired.
Tyeisha has more than 15 years of clinic experience at Hopkins and Maryland-based systems. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology, a chemical dependency counseling certificate, and recently completed her master’s degree in health administration. Outside of work, she is a proud dance mom.
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Luke Mwaura, the son of our Director of Business Operations Winny Mwaura, PhD, was recently awarded the "Department of Psychiatry MVP" for being such a cool kid.
Dr. Jill RachBeisel, along with Comfort K-9 Officer Chip and Sergeant Cheatem, gathered with a small group of staff for a COVID-safe birthday celebration in honor of Luke’s 7th birthday.
Happy birthday, Luke -- and thanks for being our Department MVP!
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