UMass FMCH Tuesday Talk - March 21, 2023/COMMUNITY

Welcome to the FMCH Tuesday Talk. Please continue to send us your announcements, celebrations, and accomplishments to [email protected]

Table of Contents

Message From the Chair

Upcoming Events

Focus of the Week Community

Announcements

Presentations/Publications

Frankly Speaking Podcast

Clinical Services Spotlight

Message from the Chair

 

Congratulations to the 13 UMass Chan students who matched in Family Medicine programs around the country, including two who are staying with us! We are so proud of you and their mentors.

 

And we were so pleased to announce our outstanding incoming intern classes. Thanks to the Fitchburg and Worcester Residency Program leadership, faculty, residents and staff for all the hard work, resulting in another excellent match!

Upcoming Events


FMCH Grand Rounds

Tuesday, March 21st, 12:00 - 1:00pm"Dysfunctional Uterine Bleeding", presented by Josephine Fowler, MD, MSc, MBA, FAAFP.

Meeting ID: 191 986 273 Passcode: FMCH

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/191986273?pwd=NEtlZmNkdWlSUGwyeTJQU3dCeUs1QT09


Special Seminar

Wednesday, March 22nd, 12:00 - 1:00pm, "Improving Cancer Health Equity in Rural Settings through Participatory Implementation Science", presented by Melinda M. Davis, Ph.D., M.C.R. Dr. Davis is an Associate Professor at Oregon Health & Sciences University, Interim Director of the Oregon Rural Practice-based Research Network and co-Director of the OCTRI Community and Collaboration Core. Dr. Davis conducts participatory implementation science research with patient, community, and health system partners to improve health and enhance health equity in rural settings. Please register in advance for this webinar.

https://umassmed.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_hrdGUagDQuqwEHBBniA_cQ

See flyer for additional information.

 

Psychiatry Grand Rounds

Thursday, March 23rd, 12:00 - 1:00pm"A Candle in the Dark: Preventing Suicide in Black Youth", presented by Suliman S. El-Amin, MD.

Meeting ID: 818 349 233 Passcode: PsychGR1

https://umassmed.zoom.us/j/818349233?pwd=VVRDNUxZZmF4K3NqNXppTHJiVmNSUT09


Career Development Workshop: UMass Cancer Screening Research

Thursday, March 23rd, 12:00 - 1:00pm, Presented by Melinda M. Davis, Ph.D., M.C.R., for early-career researchers and faculty, however, all are welcome.

https://umassmed.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwufumvpzIjGdf54vKqf8zMuvLfMB6uK4GQ

 

FMCH Grand Rounds

Tuesday, March 28th, 12:00 - 1:00pm"Deprescribing in Primary Care", presented by Liam Burke, MD.

Meeting ID: 191 986 273 Passcode: FMCH

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/191986273?pwd=NEtlZmNkdWlSUGwyeTJQU3dCeUs1QT09


Black Maternal Health 6th Annual Conference (BMHC)

Friday, April 7th; "Centering the Role of Nurses and Midwives in Addressing the Black Maternal Health Crisis", this conference is hybrid, with virtual spots remaining, and is free.

You can register here: 

https://www.accelevents.com/e/bmhc2023?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery

Focus of the Week - Community


A few key community health-relevant meetings in the community are shared here in Tuesday Talk. We’ve begun keeping a Community Calendar of such activities for the summer assistantship – feel free to bookmark and follow along! If it’s well-used, we’ll consider making it a year-round feature.  

We’d like to recognize Developmental Disability Awareness Month with a note of appreciation to educators who raise this awareness with our learners. Emily Lauer, PhD, MPH, Deb Dreyfus, MD, and Alixe Bonardi, MHA, OTR/L, and model interprofessional leadership through their Population and Community Health Clerkship team focusing on “People with Developmental and Intellectual Disability: Community Living and Health Care Experience.” They help our learners understand screening, early intervention, school programs and transitions to adulthood, as well as aging and lifespan issues. Their colleague Linda Long-Bellil, PhD, JD, leads “Living with a Disability,” introducing her team to a broader range of experience including developmental disabilities. Thank you all for introducing the next generation of providers to this population. Access resources at https://nacdd.org/ddam1/ 

 

Yesterday, March 20th, was World Oral Health Day. March is National Nutrition Month. This is a great time to think about the impact that nutrition has on overall health and well-being as well as the development and integrity of the oral cavity and the progression of oral diseases. Likewise, oral disease impacts the ability to eat and nutrition status. Nutrition can affect obesity, heart disease, diabetes control. Think about discussing with patients. More resources here


Coalition for a Healthy Greater Worcester (CHNA8) Annual Meeting. 

Tuesday, March 21st, 3:30-5:00pm

Updates on the priority areas of the Community Health Improvement Plan. The Coalition is beginning to lead a new cycle of community health assessment. To suggest specific data inclusion, reach out to Heather-Lyn Haley. Hybrid: In Person at 18 Chestnut Street, Worcester, MA (please RSVP) or Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwvdeytqDkqE9cPCs_ohyx_3Cu6URO_7yxY  


Health Equity Partnership of North Central MA (CHNA9) 8:00-10:30am,

Legislative Breakfast; Friday, March 24th, 11:00am-1:30pm, Community Health Improvement Planning Charette, DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, 99 Erdman Way, Leominster, MA 01453 (RSVP for tickets). Our local North Central Mass legislators are working hard to improve the quality of life for all residents across the region. You'll hear about their efforts and what you can do to advocate for the bills that are most important to you. To be followed by a planning charette seeking public input on the Community Health Improvement Plan for North Central from 11:00am-1:30pm.   


Domestic Violence, Medical Advocacy & Patient Centered Responses

Thursday, March 30th at 11:45am online panel. (RSVP

For some Black women and women of color, visits to the emergency room for injuries related to Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) are a safer option than reporting to police or utilizing the legal system. Research shows that when treatment in the ER is paired with a direct referral to a victim advocacy agency, victims are more likely to use and follow-up with interventions. Two survivors will share their experiences with providers in the emergency room setting. Attendees will hear from representatives of medical providers about their in-house response and discuss the successes and challenges faced with this model of service, how provider responses impact survivors’ willingness to continue to seek medical attention, best practices and benefits, trauma-informed responses to survivors and more. Moderated by Marienelly Vazquez, MSW, LCSW, Director of Clinical Services and Community Outreach, YWCA Central Massachusetts.  


Save the date: Huppert award winning students are preparing presentations for the April 21st Research in Progress noon seminar. Presenters include: 

  • Michael Urbanowski, PhD (SOM), working with mentor Daria L. Szkwarko, DO, MPH on a retrospective program evaluation of latent tuberculosis infection screening and treatment in an urban FQHC and 
  • Samantha Creamer (GSN) and Annie Thornton (SOM), with mentors Linda Cragin, MS, and Janet Hale, RN, PhD, on Operation Conversation: Bridging the Gap between the Veteran Community and Future Health Care Providers. 

Announcements


Past editions of the Tuesday Talk Newsletter are available

at https://www.umassmed.edu/fmch/ under Resources.

The 21st Annual Primary Care Day will be held Wednesday, April 12th, 2023 at the DoubleTree Hotel, 5400 Computer Drive, Westborough, MA 01581, 8:00am-3:00pm. 

You can Register now . This program will provide updates on a wide range of rapidly changing primary care topics and will feature concurrent presentations from which attendees can select their own learning track and is sponsored by the UMass Chan Office of Continuing Medical Education. See flyer for additional information.

 

The UMass Chan Interprofessional Center for Experiential Learning and Simulation (iCELS) is pleased to announce the 1st Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) Basics for Primary Care Hands-on Skills Session, Thursday, April 13th, 2022, 8:00am-12:00pm. The session will cover basic ultrasound skills and several applications geared towards primary care providers.

You can Register now. See flyer for additional information.


Commission on the Health of the Public and Science (CHPS) - please provide your post-Dobbs (and soon to be post-Alliance for Hippcratic Medicine) stories (see link below)!

Background: last week, AAFP President Tochi Iroku-Malize, participated in an event hosted by Vice President Kamala Harris, on the topic of reproductive health. The Vice President's team was interested in learning more about how groups are preparing for a potential decision in the case Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA – which seeks to overturn the 2000 approve of Mifepristone. Dr. Iroku-Malize was joined by the President of ACOG and several other reproductive and legal organizations. The administration is preparing for a decision that could come as soon as today. In a discussion about realities Post-Dobbs – the Vice President was interested in learning more from clinicians about any impact stories we have received from our members. Last year, a link was created where members could offer stories. AAFP is not looking for names or locations beyond the state to protect confidentiality. If you have a story to share, we encourage you to submit it through this survey: Action Center (votervoice.net)


MassAFP 2023 Annual Meeting & Spring Refresher

Manju Mahajan is co-chair of the MassAFP Education Committee. 

Click here for the full conference schedule.

For more details go to: massafp.org. 


Undergraduate Medical Education

Vista Town Hall: Please join us in person or online at the Vista Town Hall. The purpose of our time together is to share new information and collaborate with our community on topics related to Exploration and Horizons planning and development. From time to time, we will share Discovery phase milestones. 

  • Wednesday, April 12th, 12:00-1:00pm (online, physical location TBD)
  • Wednesday, May 10th, 12:00-1:00pm (hybrid), Amp 3

Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://umassmed.zoom.us/j/91713231333?pwd=SGkvUENlN2diTGZaajlDZlY2eGZnZz09&from=addon Password: 890756


Call for Nominations: Standing Committees

It is time for us to initiate the process of determining membership for the Standing Committees for the upcoming Academic Year. If you are interested in self-nominating for any of the committees described below, please submit your name, the committee of interest and the responses to the questions below to [email protected] The deadline for self-nomination is April 14th, 2023.

  • Committee on Equal Opportunity & Diversity
  • Faculty Grievance Committee (elected by faculty-at-large)
  • Information Technology Committee
  • Intellectual Property Committee 
  • Library and Learning Resources Committee
  • Personnel Action Committee (elected by faculty-at-large)
  • Women’s Faculty Committee

With your self-nomination, please include your responses to the questions below.

  1. Briefly describe your position & role at UMass Chan
  2. Why are you interested in serving this committee?
  3. What specific skills or strengths can you bring to this committee?

If you are interested in serving on a departmentally elected committee, as listed below, please contact your department chair:

  • Faculty Council
  • Committee on Scientific and Research Affairs
  • Tenure Committee (if applicable to your department)

School committees are a great opportunity for career development and networking. More information on each of the committees and nomination process can be found here (umassmed.edu access required). Please consider sharing your passion and expertise with the institution.


Announcing the 19th Annual Gerald F. Berlin Prize for Creating Writing

Be sure to tell students and residents you know who like to write about the 19th Annual Gerald F. Berlin Prize for Creative writing. The Gerald F. Berlin Prize is awarded for creative writing, prose or poetry, authored by medical students, nursing students, graduate students, residents, and fellows based at UMass Chan Medical school, Berkshire Medical center, Worcester Medical Center/St. Vincent's or Baystate Medical Center. Submission deadline: April 15th, 2023. Click flyer for details. For guidelines visit Library's website at https://library.umassmed.edu/news-events/lsl-now/berlin-award-2023.


MCSTAP Guideline Update: A Series on Applying the 2022 CDC Clinical Practice Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Pain. The latest CDC Guidelines for Prescribing Opioids for Pain include very important information for prescribers. To support you, MCSTAP is offering a three-part series on applying the Guidelines to managing care for patients with chronic pain. Register for all dates now!  MCSTAP

Dates/Topics:

  • Wednesday, April 19th, 12:00 - 1:00pm, " Assessing Risk of Opioid Therapy: Applying the 2022 DCD Guidelines


The Massachusetts Psychiatric Society is offering Psychiatry for the Primary Care Physician, a virtual program, on Saturday, April 29th from 8:15am-3:45pm. Massachusetts Primary Care Physicians are often the de facto providers of psychiatric care. Compared to the past, PCPs today are often responsible for diagnosing and treating patients with more serious, complicated, and chronic psychiatric disorders. This course was designed to provide PCPs and other clinicians with lectures on salient topics of psychiatric diagnosis and treatment in Primary Care. The course provides 6.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits; 1 credit meets MA BORM for Risk Management and 1 credit for Risk Management/Opioid Education and Pain Management. The course is $150 for MMS members, $15 for fellows and free for students. Register here: https://maps.memberclicks.net/primarycare23

Click flyer for additional information.


Mindfulness and Compassion During Tumultuous Times - Essential Tools to Remain Steady and Whole, presented by Paula Gardiner, MD, MPH, CMMT and Gail Gazelle, MD, MCC, CMMT.

Friday, May 5th, 2023, 9:00 am - 3:30 pm (ET)

At this in-person program, you will acquire practical strategies to quiet your mind and gain mastery over worries and self-doubt. You’ll learn about the neuroscience behind mindfulness and meditation, and practice with a variety of readily accessible tools that will help you attain calm, clarity, and the balance you need to build resilience and avoid physician burnout. Event Info (massmed.org).


Annual Department Retreat

Thursday, May 11th, 12:00-5:00pm, with reception to follow. Please save the date. Registration materials and agenda will be sent by email in the coming week.


Primary Care Bootcamp for NPs and PAs

Jillian Joseph, MPAS, PA-C, Kristin Wickstrom, PA-C, Megan Brochu, PA-C, and former Barre APPs Mariyan Montaque, NP, Andrea Julian, NP, and several other APPs from UMass and GSN collaborated with Pri-Med to create Primary Care Bootcamp for NPs and PAs. The Bootcamp is a digital, on-demand curriculum designed to help early career APPs build confidence and hone skills in primary care. The platform is now live at bootcamp.pri-med.com and open for registration! There are over 20 hours of CME available through the Bootcamp and the courses are organized into two distinct tracks that cover a range of topics, including chronic disease and concern-based sessions, professional development topics, as well as practice management concepts. Any questions can be sent to [email protected].

Click flyer for additional information.

Photo Sessions (FREE headshots!)

Date: Every other Wednesday

Time: 9:00am - 3:00pm

Locations: Sherman Center - 5th floor (near staircase) 

If you are in the need of a faculty headshot or need to update your current one, please sign up via the link below.

Sign Up Link here.

Presentations/Publications


Hugh Silk, MD, MPH, FAAFPwith the Oral Health Incubator/NYU-UMass Collaboration on Oral Health (Yang C, Huang S, Silk H, Moore Simas T, Russell S.) presented The MOHIP-4P: a Concise QoL Measure for Routine Use in Prenatal Care at the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Cranial Facial Research Annual Meeting in Portland OR on March 16th.

Frankly Speaking Podcast


A weekly Podcast series covering newsworthy topics in primary care medicine.

Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frankly-speaking-about-family-medicine/id1194659367.


Please join us for an overview: New evidence points to the efficacy of a simple approach to managing and potentially curing generalized anxiety disorder. Join us to discuss this simple intervention and to review the diagnosis and treatment options for this prevalent disorder. Guest: Susan Feeney, DNP, FNP-BC, NP-C, presents: "CURING Anxiety vs Treating Its Symptoms". - Frankly Speaking Ep 320.

Clinical Services Spotlight:

CLINICAL UPDATES


COVID-19 MA

  • There were 2,612 new cases of COVID in the last 7 days through 3/14/23.
  • The 7-day average of percent positivity is 4.49%.
  • On March 14th, there were 128 patients primarily hospitalized for COVID and 423 total patients hospitalized with COVID.

 

COVID-19 UMMMC

  • Prior 7-day rolling average- 5.6%.
  • Hospitalized patients with COVID – 32 (41% having primarily COVID).
  • Of the 32 patients, 66% are fully vaccinated. Of the 32, in the last 7 days, 6 were in the ICU with 50% fully vaccinated.


Public Health Emergency (PHE) Period Coming to an End

PHE will end on May 11th, 2023. The details of the changes can be found at the link below.

https://www.aha.org/special-bulletin/2023-02-07-public-health-emergency-end-may-11


MA changes with PHE

In alignment with Federal end of PHE, MA will end PHE on May 11th, 2023.

https://www.mass.gov/news/healey-driscoll-administration-announces-end-of-Covid-19-public-health-emergency-in-massachusetts

Wellness Resources


The Caring for the Caregiver Program provides resources such as the Caregiver Support Line (508-334-HELP) and The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) which offers a variety of services and supports (including virtual peer support and wellness tips. EAP can be accessed at 866-263-3525, or www.LiveandWorkWell.com, [company code: UmassMemorial]. 

More information is available on the Caring for the Caregiver page.

Yoga Classes with Dr. Liz Erban

Yoga classes are canceled on March 22nd. 

Classes will resume on Wednesday, March 29th.