INFORMATICS GRAND ROUNDS: Claims data in Vermont

"VHCURES CLAIMS DATA PROGRAM: FUELING DATA SYNERGY"

Speakers:

Dian Kahn, MPA, Director of Analysis and Data Management, Vermont Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities and Health Care Administration (BISHCA)
Indra Neil Sarkar, PhD, MLIS, Director of Biomedical Informatics, Center for Clinical and Translational Science, University of Vermont

Date/Time: 

Tuesday, April 12th, 2011 

4:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Location:

Medical Education Center Room 300 (Reardon Classroom)

For remote attendees: https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/uvmcom/join?id=3946Q7&role=attend

(Requirements: Microsoft Office Live Meeting Client. Computer audio conferencing is not available to participants using Web Clients.).

Abstract:

This presentation will focus on the value argument that supports the addition of healthcare claims data to the inventory of administrative, clinical and surveillance data needed to measure and monitor the Vermont health care system and Vermonters’ need for and use of health care services. There will be an overview of the state claims data collection program including current and potential uses of claims data that will contribute to the synergy to be gained from combining multiple health and population data sources to support public health, health services, and health policy research.

Speaker Bios:

Dian Kahn is Director of Analysis and Data Management in the Vermont Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities and Health Care Administration (BISHCA) where she has been employed for 15 years. Ms. Kahn directs programs in partnership with other agencies and health care organizations in health data collection, analysis and reporting that include the Vermont Healthcare Claims Uniform Reporting & Evaluation System (VHCURES), the Vermont Uniform Hospital Discharge Data Set (VUHDDS), the Health Resource Allocation Plan (HRAP), and the Vermont Household Health Insurance Survey (VHHIS).
    Prior to working at BISHCA, Ms. Kahn worked on a grant-funded project in Vermont exploring public-private business models for electronic health records and a health information exchange in Vermont, as director of analysis for a public sector health insurance purchasing cooperative, as a health policy analyst, and as a nurse clinician in diabetes education and critical care. Ms. Kahn has a Baccalaureate in the Science of Nursing from the University of Kentucky and a master's degree in public administration and policy studies from Florida State University.
 Indra Neil Sarkar is Director of Biomedical Informatics at the Center for Clinical and Translational Science, Assistant Professor of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics, and Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the University of Vermont. His work is dedicated to furthering a biomedical informatics research agenda across the entire spectrum of biomedicine, from molecules to populations. Specific research involves the development and use of a range of computational techniques (including knowledge gathering and discovery methods, phylogenetics, information theory, ontology development, semantic indexing, and natural language processing) to facilitate the analysis and linking of molecular and public health data. Ultimately, Dr. Sarkar’s research aims to enable the creation of testable models of disease and provide a framework to enable the assessment of comparative hypotheses across the spectrum of biomedicine and health care.

Informatics Grand Rounds is a joint initiative between the University of Vermont (Center for Clinical and Translational Science Biomedical Informatics Unit, Continuing Education, and Dana Medical Library), Fletcher Allen Health Care, and the State of Vermont.

http://ccts.uvm.edu/web/informatics/grandrounds

An Essential Time Management Technique

Dan Ariely has a nice blog posting about the virtues of deadlines that might be useful to those of us with too much to do and not enough time to do it in. I particularly like the example from grant submissions.

http://danariely.com/2011/03/25/benefits-of-deadlines/

Fwd: Bloomberg School of Public Health 2011 Summer Institute in Mental Health Research

--Benjamin Littenberg

Forwarded conversation
Subject: Bloomberg School of Public Health 2011 Summer Institute in Mental Health Research
------------------------

From: Summer Institute MH Research <mhinstitute_jhsph.ed@jhsph.edu>
Date: Wed, Mar 23, 2011 at 11:06 AM
To: "littenbl@gmail.com" <littenbl@gmail.com>



       [cid:image003.jpg@01CBE94A.4D707B20]







2011 Summer Institu2222te in Mental Health Research
2011 Sum2011 Sum2020mer Institute in Mental Health Research
2011 Summer Institute in Mental Health Research

Department of Mental Health
 Institute in Mental Health Research
June 13 – 23, 2011

REGISTER NOW!!!!

The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Department of Mental Health is offering the 2011 Summer Institute in Mental Health Research<http://www.jhsph.edu/dept/mh/summer_institute> this June 13 - 23.  The summer institute focuses on methodological and substantive topics of importance in mental health and substance use research and services from a public health framework.  It is intended for working professionals or students engaged in research, clinical practice, and/or services administration.  Courses cover a range of topics including the epidemiology and genetics of mental health and substance use disorders, the implementation and evaluation of mental health services and interventions, and/or the methodological issues encountered in mental health research in the population.

For more information, please visit: http://www.jhsph.edu/dept/mh/summer_institute.

Program Director
William W. Eaton, PhD

Deputy Director
Peter Zandi, PhD, MPH, MHS

Contact information:
mhinstitute@jhsph.edu<mailto:mhinstitute@jhsph.edu>
Patty Scott
410.955.1906
pscott@jhsph.edu<mailto:pscott@jhsph.edu>


For disability access information or listening devices, please contact the Office of Support Services at 410.955.1197, or on the web at www.jhsph.edu/SupportServices<http://www.jhsph.edu/SupportServices>.
EO/AA

11 Sum2011 Sum2020mer Institute in Mental Health Research

Examples of AHRQ-funded dissertation projects

AHRQ's Health Services Research Dissertation Grant Program: New Starts

Fiscal Year 2010 This fact sheet presents information about AHRQ's research dissertation grant program and briefly describes the 16 dissertation grant awards funded by the Agency in Fiscal Year 2010. Select to download print version (PDF File, 280 KB). PDF Help. Contents Introduction Project Descriptions More Information Introduction The mission of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality is to improve the safety, quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care for all Americans. To help achieve the Agency's mission, AHRQ supports extramural research grants and contracts, research training, conference grants, and intramural activities. AHRQ is committed to fostering the next generation of health services researchers who will focus their time and expertise on some of the most important problems facing our Nation's health care system. An important component of this effort is the Agency's dissertation research grant program, which provides 1-year awards to full-time predoctoral students enrolled in accredited research doctoral programs in the United States, including Puerto Rico and other U.S. Territories and possessions. To qualify for dissertation awards, students must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents by the time of the grant award and must have completed all of their doctoral requirements by the time they submit a dissertation grant application. This fact sheet provides brief descriptions of the 16 dissertation grant awards funded by AHRQ in fiscal year 2010. Each entry includes the project title, grantee's name and institution, his or her area of focus, the grant number and project period, and a short description of the project. Return to Contents Project Descriptions The Anticipatory Effects of Medicare Part D on Drug Utilization. Abby Elizabeth Alpert, doctoral candidate in Economics, University of Maryland, College Park. AHRQ grant HS019681; project period August 1, 2010-September 29, 2011. This research will examine the effects on beneficiary behavior of the announcement in 2003 of forthcoming changes in the Medicare Part D program for prescription medication benefits for the elderly, given that the actual program did not begin until 3 years later. The goal of the project is to estimate the causal anticipatory effects of Part D on drug utilization. Estimating the utilization effect of Part D is important for evaluating whether the primary aims of the policy—expanding access to prescription drugs—were achieved and for assessing the program's future financial solvency. An Evaluation of the Effectiveness and Process of a Rapid Response Team Tanya Elise Lord, doctoral candidate in Clinical and Population Health Research, University of Massachusetts Medical School. AHRQ grant HS019118; project period June 1, 2010-August 30, 2011. This research will evaluate the effectiveness of a rapid response system (RRS) using a before and after study designed to measure changes in rates of cardiac arrest, unanticipated intensive care unit (ICU) admission from the floors, hospital mortality, and code calls to the floor. The goal is to provide valid measures of the effectiveness of the intervention and inform the ongoing national discussion about the benefits and costs of RRS. The findings ultimately may contribute to a more efficient allocation of the relevant public health resources. Central Venous Catheter (CVC)-Related Bloodstream Infections in Pediatric Oncology Patients Rita Secola, doctoral candidate in Nursing, University of California, Los Angeles. AHRQ grant HS019103; project period June 1, 2010-May 31, 2011. The purpose of this study is to determine if a specialized central venous catheter (CVC) team intervention will reduce CVC-related bloodstream infections in pediatric oncology patients. The goal is to improve a nursing model of care and outcomes for pediatric oncology patients. Creating a Foundation for the Design of Culturally Informed Health Information Technology Rupa Valdez, doctoral candidate in Industrial and Systems Engineering, University of Wisconsin at Madison. AHRQ grant HS018809; project period February 1, 2010-January 31, 2011. This research will generate design considerations to guide the development of consumer health information technology (IT) that will facilitate interaction between culturally diverse patients and members of their social networks. This project seeks to create a foundation for a design strategy that leads to culturally informed consumer health IT. Consumer health IT shows great promise to engage patients and members of their social network and promote their active participation in improving patients' health. Exploring the Intersection Between Patient Safety Culture and Hospital Nursing Practice Patricia Groves, doctoral candidate in Nursing, University of Missouri, Columbia. AHRQ grant HS018725; project period March 1, 2010-April 30, 2011. This research will examine how organizational context (communicated structures of rules and resources) constrain and enhance the ability of individual hospital staff nurses to keep patients safe. The project seeks to advance knowledge about safety and safety culture in hospitals. This study will provide information about how hospitals might improve or strengthen their safety culture to enhance the ability of nurses to keep patients safe. Exploring Organizational Mechanisms for Success in Quality Improvement Sean O'Neill, doctoral candidate in Policy Analysis, RAND Corporation. AHRQ grant HS018799; project period March 1, 2010-February 28, 2011. This research will explore the fundamental mechanisms leading to success in quality improvement (QI) that, if better understood, could help in the effort to make successful QI replicable and scalable. The project represents an important first step in discovering and exploring the decisionmaking processes of quality improvement intervention (QII) teams over the entire course of a QII. A General Mechanism for Explaining Physician's Responses to Patients' Requests Matthew Test-Wojteczko, doctoral candidate in Health Services Research and Policy, University of Rochester. AHRQ grant HS018797; project period September 30, 2010-June 30, 2011. This research will explore why physicians' responses to patients' requests persistently vary, even under controlled experimental conditions. The project seeks to expand the Healthy 2020 goal of increasing satisfaction with health care providers' communication skills in interactions with elderly populations. The Impact of Medical Inflation on Guaranteed Renewable Health Insurance Robert Dan Lieberthal, doctoral candidate in Economics, University of Pennsylvania. AHRQ grant HS018835; project period March 1, 2010-March 31, 2011. This research will examine the impact of medical inflation on the premiums and solvency of guaranteed renewable individual health insurance. The project seeks to improve health insurance practices for health insurance payers. This study will determine the optimal investment policy for guaranteed renewable individual health insurance. The Impact of Nursing Workforce Organization on Outcomes of Hospitalized Children Heather Tubbs-Cooley, doctoral candidate in Nursing, University of Pennsylvania. AHRQ grant HS018802; project period June 1, 2010-May 31, 2011. This research will explore the relationship between hospital nursing organization and patient outcomes for children hospitalized with common conditions; examine the differences in outcomes between children's and general hospitals; and explore the joint effects of hospital nursing organization and hospital type (children versus general) on pediatric outcomes. The project seeks to provide information about relationships between nursing care and pediatric patient outcomes to enhance the safety of hospital care for this population. The Magnet Journey: Understanding the Role of Unit Culture in EBP Adoptions Kim M. Schippits, doctoral candidate in Economics, Emory University. AHRQ grant HS018233; project period February 1, 2010-April 30, 2011. The purpose of this exploratory study is to understand how nursing unit culture affects the emergence and maintenance of evidence-based nursing practices in the hospital setting. Evidence-based practice (EBP) has been identified as a cornerstone of safe and effective health care and has been related to recent improvements in several critical outcomes, including ventilator associated pneumonia, central line-associated infections, and surgical site infections. This study will begin to identify how the magnet culture affects the emergence and maintenance of EBP implementation that will improve the quality, safety, and effectiveness of care provided. Nursing Home Compare: Predictors and Impact of Differing Organization Response Jennifer Meagher, doctoral candidate in Social Policy/Health Policy, Brandeis University. AHRQ grant HS018836; project period June 1, 2010-May 31, 2011. This research will explore the effects and consequences of the public reporting of nursing home quality in order to build knowledge about these types of market-based health care quality improvement policies. The project will seek to evaluate the long-term effects of a policy intended to improve nursing home quality. Patient Handoffs Between Emergency Department and Inpatient Physicians Phillip Brian Hilligoss, doctoral candidate in Information Sciences, University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. AHRQ grant HS018758; project period May 1, 2010-April 30, 2011. This research will follow a grounded research theory methodology involving semi-structured interviews and ethnography to examine admission handoffs between physicians in the emergency department (ED) and various inpatient services of a large U.S. tertiary teaching hospital. The project seeks to contribute to the growing discourse on the standardization of patient handoffs in hospitals by examining the sources and nature of variation in the transitions of patients from the ED to inpatient services in a tertiary teaching hospital. This study will provide a conceptual framework that will guide practitioners as they look for ways to improve handoff practices within their own services and institutions. Pharmacists of Conscience: Ethical Decisionmaking and Consistency of Care Elizabeth Chiarello, doctoral candidate in Sociology, University of California at Irvine. AHRQ grant HS019703; project period September 30, 2010-August 31, 2011. This research will examine how pharmacists make challenging ethical decisions in their work. Pharmacists who work in settings with different laws, organizational policies, and political communities help determine how these dimensions influence decisionmaking. The goal is to understand how pharmacists make choices and the effects of their decisionmaking processes on patient safety and access to care. Providing Hospice Care for Children: An Organizational Study Lisa Lindley, doctoral candidate in Nursing, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. AHRQ grant HS020164; project period September 30, 2010-September 29, 2011. The goal of this study is to describe the provision of hospice care to children and examine the effects of institutional forces and financial performance on provision of hospice care to children while controlling for organizational and market factors. The project seeks to inform the development of policies aimed at expanding access and delivery of hospice care for children. Understanding and improving access to hospice care will offer terminally ill children and their families the opportunity to receive comprehensive and individualized care that promotes comfort, peace, and dignity at the end of life. Understanding Processes of Care and Patient Safety Outcomes in Nursing Homes Kali Thomas, doctoral candidate in Gerontology, University of South Florida. AHRQ grant HS019671; project period September 1, 2010-August 31, 2011. This research will examine the relationships between top management's ratings of nursing home patient safety culture (a structural attribute) and objective measures of safe processes of care and resident outcomes. The goal is to understand the relationships that exist among patient safety culture, processes of care, and patient safety outcomes. Where the Rubber Meets the Road: Middle Managers Role in Innovation Sarah Abigail Birken, doctoral candidate in Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. AHRQ grant HS19107; project period June 1, 2010-May 31, 2011. This research will assess the role of middle managers in innovation implementation in health care organizations. Theory suggests that middle managers in organizations that provide job resources may reciprocate with increased commitment to innovation implementation. The project seeks to identify high-leverage ways for health care organizations to facilitate the translation of evidence into practice and contribute to a growing body of literature on implementation effectiveness. Return to Contents More Information For more information about the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, please visit the AHRQ Web site at http://www.ahrq.gov. For more specific information on funding for dissertation grants and other training programs, including answers to commonly asked questions, please visit http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/training/trainix.htm. For specific programmatic questions, please contact: Brenda A. Harding, MA Health Scientist Administrator Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) 540 Gaither Road, Suite 2006 Rockville, Maryland 20850 301-427-1527 brenda.harding@ahrq.hhs.gov Return to Contents AHRQ Publication No. 11-P009-EF Current as of March 2011

Clinical Research Oriented Workshop (CROW) Meeting: March 17, 2011

Present: Abby Crocker, Amanda Kennedy, Rodger Kessler, Ben Littenberg, Connie van Eeghen

Guest: John Senders

1. Check In:

a. On the likelihood of finding redheads in Cambridge

2. John Sender’s as guest

a. Defining “translational science” – not just a matter of the providers doing what they’re supposed to do, but a question about how to bridge the gap between what they know and what they do

i. Education (insufficient)

ii. Guided instruction (limited)

iii. Academic detailing (effects are modest, at best)

iv. Default settings for known situations, e.g. standard order sets upon admission, resulting, for example, in fewer insulin overdoses

v. Skinnerian theory: positive reinforcement, using rewards

vi. Regulatory requirements

b. What are the barriers, in general

i. Human behavior

ii. Clinical complexity of treatment (e.g. how to prescribe insulin) and side effects

iii. Scientific uncertainty – when is there enough information to know what is the right thing to do

iv. Organizational complexity, including social complexity (e.g. regulations)

v. Economic incentives, including nefarious alternatives created out of greed

vi. Barriers will differ in the level of “translation” undertaken (T1 – T4)

c. How to characterize barriers:

i. Structural: addressed by JCAHO standards, which could include something like the number of candlefeet in pharmacies and the amount of background noise in taking phone orders

ii. Process barriers?

d. Relevant examples we played with to derive translational schemes:

i. Provider and patient behavior affecting treatment of addicted pregnant women

ii. Health Behavior cancer studies and the VT cancer center

iii. Diabetic patient letters from provider practices to their patients

e. Closing question: what translational strategies would result in better lighting in FAHC pharmacies? See article: http://ajhp.highwire.org/content/48/10/2137.abstract by Buchanan, et al., 1991: Illumination and Errors in Dispensing

3. Next Workshop Meeting(s): Thursday, 2:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., at Given Courtyard Level 4

a. March 24: Rodger: NCQA survey data (no Connie)

b. March 31: Rodger: State wide mental health in Blueprint evaluation design (no Amanda)

c. April 7: (no Connie or Ben)

d. April 14: (no Connie)

e. Future agenda to consider:

i. Rodger: Mixed methods article; article on Behavior’s Influence on Medical Conditions (unpublished)

ii. Future: Review of different types of journal articles (lit review, case study, original article, letter to editor…), when each is appropriate, tips on planning/writing (Abby)

Recorder: Connie van Eeghen

2012 Kroepsch-Maurice Excellence in Teaching Awards

2012 Kroepsch-Maurice Excellence in Teaching Awards

Faculty Nominations Requested!

The deadline for nominations is April 27, 2011

If you know of a faculty member who has shown excellence in the classroom, let us know!  The Kroepsch-Maurice Committee depends on you to help identify faculty whom you believe qualify for this award.  Students, faculty, staff and alumni/ae are urged to forward nominations. You are welcome to submit more than one nomination per category or submit nominations in more than one category.

Each recipient will receive $1000.  Nominations are accepted in the following faculty categories:

• Professor
• Associate Professor
• Assistant Professor
• Lecturer (Including Senior Lecturer and Continuing Education Instructor)

Nomination forms are available online at http://www.uvm.edu/ctl/km/

Areas to be considered for selection include:

• Excellence in instruction (including learning experiences outside the traditional classroom)
• Capacity to animate students and engage them in the pursuit of knowledge and understanding
• Innovation in teaching methods and/or curriculum development
• Demonstrated commitment to cultural diversity
• Ability to motivate and challenge students
• Evidence of excellent advising

Addressing Health Disparities: Reducing Inequalities in the Healthiest State

On April 7^th the Vermont Public Health Association (VtPHA) will be hosting an open forum “Addressing Health Disparities: Reducing Inequalities in the Healthiest State” from 5:30 – 8:00 at the Capital Plaza in Montpelier.

The newly released state and county health rankings place Vermont again as one of the healthiest states.  A closer look however, shows that health is not equally shared in all parts of the state with persistent health inequities that are largely preventable.  We hope you will join us and spread the word to others who might be interested in taking a closer look at the problem and the actions necessary to address this inequity.

The forum is free to VtPHA members and $15 for others.  To register http://www.vtpha.org/index.shtml

Audra Jenkins

Vermont Public Health Association

http://www.vtpha.org 

http://www.vtpha.org/facebook

Fwd: Talk on Vermont Health Care Reform by Paul Herrington, Executive VP of the VMS, THIS Friday ~ On Behalf of Associate Dean Jan Carney

The UVM AMSA Chapter and the UVM Health Care Policy Medical Student Interest Group present a discussion on:

Vermont Health Care Reform
Paul Harrington, Executive Vice President, Vermont Medical Society
Noon
Friday, March 18th
Med Ed 200
UVM College of Medicine

Executive Vice President Paul Harrington has worked at VMS since April 2002.  Previously, Paul was the majority health policy director for the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions under the chairmanship of Senator James M. Jeffords. He has also served as deputy commissioner of the Vermont Department of Labor and Industry, a board member of the Vermont Health Care Authority and as the chair of the Commerce Committee in the Vermont House of Representatives, where he served three terms. In addition to his duties at VMS, Paul is the treasurer of Vermont Information Technology Leaders, Inc., serves on the AMA's State Technical Advisory Team and is on the executive committee of the Governor's Vermont Chronic Care Initiative. He also serves on the boards of the Vermont Program for Quality in Health Care and The Physicians' Foundation. Paul is a graduate of the University of Vermont.

Clinical Research Oriented Workshop (CROW) Meeting: March 10, 2011

Present: Abby Crocker, Amanda Kennedy, Ben Littenberg, Charlie MacLean, Connie van Eeghen

1. Check In:

a. Consumer testing new health care names – we like “P1 Works!” (Careful, though; it has an odd acronym.)

b. Ben showed off his Galaxy 1 (an Android phone without the phone); designed to fit into a suit pocket but is large enough to see and type on (think of it as “Mama Bear”)

2. Abby’s Update: Plan for tomorrow’s presentation

a. Research domain: substance abuse during pregnancy; treatment of newborns; many issues; hard to pick one focus

i. Keep candidate “new ideas” for later harvesting

ii. Balance number and focus of questions with ability to derive a response

iii. Future data sources: primary chart review (500 paper only records to collect the actual NAS scores and total dose of Methadone administered to infants; may currently be found in EPIC for past 2 years); Medicaid claims

iv. Other data desired: other illicit substances, clinical dose of therapeutic treatment, infant head circumference

v. “What is the effect of opiod management in pregnant women?” Many ways to answer this question; it is not possible to take every angle. OK to identify which will be taken and which not, or may be taken in the future.

b. Goal for tomorrow:

i. Present PhD objectives, domain, mentors, initial overview, literature synopsis, and initial question

1. “An Exploratory Analysis: Predictors of medication required for NAS symptoms in infants born to mothers treated with Methadone or Buprenorphine during pregnancy at FAHC (2006-10)” (with no hypothesis presented)

2. Univariate results of four variables in handout where p value is <= .10:

a. Birth weight, z-score

b. Maternal age at delivery

c. Maternal treatment = Buprenorphine %

d. Estimated Gestational Age at initial Ante Partum Visit

3. Include NAS definition, how determined, and inclusion details

4. This study does not include mothers whose treatment program was unknown and mothers not in a treatment program (70 people in total) but these are clinically relevant populations to study

ii. Plan for next steps:

1. Complete data collection

2. Conduct multi-variate regression

3. Goal: develop a model of what drives NAS

a. Develop a predictive scoring system

b. Test via a RCT or against another data set

3. Next Workshop Meeting(s): Thursday, 2:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., at Given Courtyard Level 4

a. March 17: John Senders - engineer and psychologist with deep expertise in human error and an international authority on medical errors; Ben as host

b. March 24: Rodger: NCQA survey data (no Connie)

c. March 31: Rodger: State wide mental health in Blueprint evaluation design (no Amanda)

d. April 7: (no Connie)

e. April 14: (no Connie)

f. zz: Rodger - discuss a research design for evaluating mental health contribution in BP PCMH practices; Craig Jones and Beth Tanzman (new member of his team) will be guests

g. Future agenda to consider:

i. Rodger: Mixed methods article; article on Behavior’s Influence on Medical Conditions (unpublished)

ii. Future: Review of different types of journal articles (lit review, case study, original article, letter to editor…), when each is appropriate, tips on planning/writing (Abby)

Recorder: Connie van Eeghen

Fwd: NIH Scoring System analysis ~ On Behalf of Sr Associate Dean Ira Bernstein

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Randall, Maura L" <Maura.Randall@uvm.edu>
Date: Mar 11, 2011 12:02 PM
Subject: NIH Scoring System analysis ~ On Behalf of Sr Associate Dean Ira Bernstein
To: "COM Faculty List" <AllCOMFaculty@med.uvm.edu>, "COM Staff List" <AllCOMStaff@med.uvm.edu>, "MEDDEAN-Announcements" <MEDDEAN-Announcements@med22.med.uvm.edu>

Colleagues,



The site below outlines interesting analyses that examine the current NIH scoring systems as well as insights into funding practices and patterns.

Dr. Sally Rockey, NIH Deputy Director for Extramural Research, has posted on her blog a discussion of the "Correlation Between Overall Impact Scores and Criterion Scores." Recent changes in peer review make this discussion of particular interest to grant applicants.
http://nexus.od.nih.gov/all/rock-talk/<http://lists.aamc.org/t/113305/191428/9561/0/>


Ira



Ira Bernstein, MD

Senior Associate Dean for Research

Award for Sara Gillett

CTS MD/PhD candidate Sarah Gillet has been awarded a prestigious 2011 Epidemiology and Prevention Early Career Travel Grant to attend the American Heart Association’s Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention 2011 Scientific Sessions in Atlanta in March.

Congratulations to Sarah and her mentor Mary Cushman, MD, MSc, Professor of Medicine!

Clinical Research Oriented Workshop (CROW) Meeting: March 3, 2011

Present: Abby Crocker, Amanda Kennedy, Ben Littenberg, Charlie MacLean, Connie van Eeghen

1. Check In:

a. Abby just finished a univariate study

b. Ben went to National Kidney Foundation (patient advocacy group); very interested in primary care early management of kidney disease and the opportunity offered to create guidelines for primary care that work through Boolean logic. NKF is looking for ways to connect their educational content in support of computerized programs that assist providers in primary care settings. Other opportunities noted in chronic disease management software that link to primary care EMRs.

c. Connie is working with a faculty member on an interesting class management issue.

2. Connie’s and Rodger’s Draft Intro & Description/Article

a. Totally deconstructed; ready to start again with a new outline:

i. Brief presentation of collaborative care and PCMH

ii. Challenge presented by merging medicine and psychology

iii. QI overview

iv. A3 specifically

v. Instructive, with example

b. Stay tuned; more coming

3. Next Workshop Meeting(s): Thursday, 2:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., at Given Courtyard Level 4

a. March 10: Abby update (no Rodger)

b. March 17: John Senders - engineer and psychologist with deep expertise in human error and an international authority on medical errors; Ben as host

c. March 24: Rodger: NCQA survey data (no Connie)

d. March 31: Rodger: State wide mental health in Blueprint evaluation design (no Amanda)

e. April 7: (no Connie)

f. April 14: (no Connie)

g. Future agenda to consider:

i. Rodger: Mixed methods article; article on Behavior’s Influence on Medical Conditions (unpublished)

ii. Future: Review of different types of journal articles (lit review, case study, original article, letter to editor…), when each is appropriate, tips on planning/writing (Abby)

Recorder: Connie van Eeghen