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Addressing Diaper Need in Southern Maine: A Qualitative Study
Annie Batten MD and Amy Buczkowski
Overview
• Diaper insecurity (DI) is a prevalent and underrecognized need for patients
• Few studies have explored the systems that address DI
• Our study seeks to explore the landscape of DI mitigation in Southern Maine to identify opportunities for improved diaper access
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Physical Activity Programming to Improve QoL in Pediatric IBD Patients
Anna Briley, George Russell, Anya K. Cutler, Anna Furr, Julia Fritz, Kevin Sztam, Birgitta Polson, Rebecca Edwards, and Noah Hoffman
This work contributes to limited literature supporting the positive impact of PA in a target population and provides novel guidelines to implement an accessible PA program proven to be effective and well-liked by patients & families. Findings support incorporation of PA into the holistic care of pediatric patients with IBD.
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Shift in Perspective: Fostering Empathy Through Medical Student Immersion in Emergency Nursing Role
Alison Bryant MD; Lauren Wendell MD; Anne Huyler MD; Sara Nelson MD, MHPE; Sadie Robinson MD; Heather Currier RN; and Nicole Robillard RN
Medical Education Experience Designed to Improve the Nurse-Doctor Relationship
● Expose medical students to skillset and knowledge base of the emergency department nurse
● Acquisition of a small subset of nursing skills
● Increase empathy and respect for the emergency department nurse
● Improve interprofessional communication
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Patient Education Before Total Shoulder Arthroplasty Is Associated with Reduced Early Postoperative Opioid Use
Catherine M. Call, Kamli Faour, Zoë A Walsh, Diane Jeselskis, Ryan Mountjoy, Adam Rana, Jonathan Watling, and Joseph Kahan
The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether completion of a single preoperative patient education class prior to TSA was associated with reduced opioid consumption in the early postoperative period. Secondary aims included assessing healthcare utilization, opioid refill requests, and patient-reported outcomes.
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Attainment of Substantial Clinical Benefit Following Primary Total Knee Arthroplasty Is Impacted by Preoperative Patient-Reported Outcome Measures
Catherine M. Call, Zoë A Walsh, Johanna Mackenzie, George Babikian, Brian J. McGrory, and Adam Rana
Our study evaluated pre-operative characteristics among patients who did or did not meet SCB to help surgeons maximize patient outcomes and comply with CMS policies following TKA.
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Spinal Anesthesia and Pediatric Circumcision: Fast, Effective, and Cheap
Adam Cole MD, Emma Harwood MD, Raeann Dalton DO, Madeleine Powers BS, Evelyn James, David Chalmers MD, and Lily C. Wang
Aim: To evaluate and compare perioperative times, costs, and medication use between spinal and general anesthesia used for pediatric circumcisions.
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Effects of Oral Care in the NICU
Emily Elie BSN, RN; Molly Ryan BSN, RN; Samantha LePage BSN, RN; Libby Fortin BSN, RN; Olivia Smith BSN, RN; and Kayla Conley BSN, RN
Background Oral care is often not a standardized practice in the NICU. Oral/lip care is documented at each care time, even if it is sometimes not performed in the same way. There is confusion about what oral/lip care entails. The focus of this project is to clarify oral care and hygiene procedures and make them a standard inclusion in care times, especially for neonates on respiratory support who can't PO feed.
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Identifying Delays in Time to Lung Cancer Diagnosis
Jessica Evans MD, Emily Cathey DO, Stephanie Quoss DO, and Nicholas Pozzessere DO
This project seeks to identify barriers to timely lung cancer diagnosis and treatment.
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Individualized Post-shift Performance Snapshots Are Associated with Reduced Emergency Department Relative Night Shift Burden
Andrew Fried, Samir Haydar, David C. Mackenzie, Tania D. Strout, and Keana Reed MS
Research Question: Do automated, individualized post-shift snapshots reduce night shift workload burden?
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Improving Healthcare Transition (Pediatric to Adult) Documentation in Med-Peds Primary Care
Alexander Gaito, Johathan Oswald MD, Jillian Gregory, Leah M. Seften, and Kathryn Diamond-Falk
Global Aim: To increase frequency of healthcare transition conversations with adolescents to prepare for transition from pediatric to adult mentality of care.
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Characteristics of Pediatric Catatonia
Melissa Johnnidis DO; Shadia Kawkabani DO; Matthew Nilsson MD; Roslyn Gerwin DO; and Anya Cutler MS, MPH
Background:
•Serious neuropsychiatric condition characterized by motor, behavior, and affective abnormalities.
• It can arise in the context of various disorders including mood, psychotic, and neurodevelopmental conditions.
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Optimizing Intermittent Compression Device Use to Reduce VTE in Surgical Patients: A Process Improvement Project
Allison Jones, Sonja Orff, Stephanie Verwys, Nora Fagan, and Scott Statman
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Implementation of an Electromagnetic Enteral Access System to Expand Small-Bore Feeding Tube Access in an Academic Medical Center
Tom Mellette and Amy Stafford
This quality improvement initiative aimed to implement an electromagnetic enteral access system (EAS) to streamline SBFT placement in the inpatient setting. Additional goals included reducing reliance on procedural areas and expanding the clinical roles of Registered Nurses (RNs) and Registered Dietitians (RDs).
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Achieving TARGET: STROKE PHASE 3 Time Goals for Administration of Thrombolysis for Acute Stroke at a Comprehensive Stroke Center
Jane Morris MD and Madeleine Puissant
In 2019 the American Heart Association (AHA) released updated and more aggressive goals for door-to-needle (DTN) times as part of their Target: Stroke initiative. Target: Stroke Phase 3 challenged stroke centers to administer intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) within 30 minutes of arrival to the ED in at least 50% of eligible patients. This target became a goal for the Maine Medical Center, Portland Campus (MMC–POR) Stroke Program in FY2020. Through detailed case review, data analysis, process reforms and provider education including EMS, we achieved our goal in FY2025.
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A Two-Stage, Stakeholder-Integrated Model for Developing and Piloting Summative OSCE Cases
Sara Nelson MD, MHPE; Laura K. Snydman; Christine Mallar; Mike Shepherd BS, CHSE; Michael Carver-Simmons; and Laura Baecher-Lind
Goal: To design an efficient, reproducible, and evidence-informed process to develop summative EOB OSCE cases for Internal Medicine, Obstetrics & Gynecology, and Psychiatry clerkships.
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Air Pollution and Your Heart at Bedside: A Fellows Clinic Infographic Experience
Cashel O'Brien DO, Maria A. Khalil MD, Darcy Chandler RN, Robert Bolster MA, Maxwell Afari MD, Laura Onderko MD, Wendy Craig PhD, and Colin Phillips MD
Introduction
• Many patients remain uninformed to the link between air pollution & cardiovascular disease
• American College of Cardiology (ACC) designed infographic to communicate health risks & offer mitigation strategies
• We sought to integrate this infographic into clinical care within Cardiology Fellows Clinic
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Allergy/Immunology Care Among Pediatric Patients with Food and Drug Allergy
Liana Osgood, Anya K. Cutler, and James C. Bohnhoff
Specialty care was low overall for food and drug allergy patients: Food allergy: 48.2% children seeing an allergist/immunologist within one year of recorded diagnosis.
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Subjective Versus Objective Assessment of Back Pressure in Tracheostomy Care
Sara Penrod and Dory Forgit
Background:
• Timely and safe decannulation is best practice following placement.
• Readiness for decannulation is assessed by tolerance for tracheostomy occlusion with a speaking valve and cap.
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Quantifying Clinical Encounters for Orthopaedic Hip and Knee Surgeries: A Retrospective Analysis of Provider Workload
Adam Rana, Zoë A Walsh, Janel Sewell MS, Amanda Sirisoma, Kamli Faour, and Brian J. McGrory
Care delivery for total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA) has evolved substantially over the past decade, with major reductions in hospital length of stay (LOS) and a shift toward discharge to home.
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Low Grade Inflammation and Subtle Metabolic Changes Detected in Long COVID
SJ Sahagun, Kathryn Stevens, Joanne dekay, Sergey Ryzhov, Lindsey Gower, Shinya U. Amano, Benjamin Langer, Ivette Emery, and Clifford J. Rosen
• Long Covid is characterized by persistent symptoms lasting 3+ months after initial SARS-CoV-2 viral infection.
• Over 200 symptoms are associated with Long COVID; the most common complaints include: fatigue, brain fog, shortness of breath, and post-exertional malaise.
• To date, there is no definitive understanding of its pathophysiology, which is needed to guide therapy development.
• The PROMIS (Pathobiology in RECOVER Of Metabolic and Immune Systems) study sought to better understand the role of chronic metabolic inflammation, insulin resistance, and T cell dysfunction in patients with Long COVID when compared to control patients with previous COVID-19 infection but without Long COVID symptoms.
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Evaluation of a Training on Psychosocial Oncology for Mental Health Practitioners in Maine
Kevin Stein, Kathryn Burnham PhD, Lori Travis, Jamil Mouehia BS, and Dani Searle
To address this identified gap, Maine Impact Cancer Network (MICN) Rehabilitation & Survivorship Task Force hosted a full day, in-person training for mental health practitioners across the state with the goal of enhancing attendees understanding of and confidence in managing the psychosocial issues of individuals affected by cancer.
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Improving Melanoma Detection Through Dermoscopy and Skin Biopsy Training for Primary Care Practitioners in Maine
Kathryn Stevens, Madeleine Puissant, Madison Fairfield, Elizabeth Seiverling, Emogene Miller, Leopold Laufer MD, and Peggy Cyr
Background: Maine has a rising incidence of melanoma with 746 cases reported in 2013, 984 cases in 2018, and 1130 cases in 2022. At the same time, Maine faces a shortage of dermatology providers, limiting access to timely care. Early detection and prompt treatment are critical, as they are strongly associated with improved melanoma survival rates. Partnerships between dermatology and primary care are important to bridging this gap.
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A Multi-Site, Descriptive Survey Evaluating Clinician Knowledge and Attitudes on Use of a Shared Decision Making Tool for Prescribing Antimicrobials to Hospitalized People Who Use Drugs
Kinna Thakarar, Wendy Craig, Darby Glenn, Michael Madaio, and Emily Zarookian
In this study, we refined the conversation guide &implemented conversation guide trainings at multiple sites to determine if use of a structured conversation guide would improve clinician knowledge, attitudes, &practices in using SDM principles and caring for hospitalized PWUD.
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CTHRC1 and Immune Cell Interactions
Barbara Toomey, Ville Vikki, Haylee Duval, Christian Potts, Edward Jachimowicz, Sergey Ryzhov, and Volkhard Lindner
Introduction: CTHRC1 Induces T Cell Proliferation Future Directions Conclusions Methods CTHRC1 Binds Immune Cells RNA Sequencing Identifies Macrophages Collagen triple helix repeat containing 1 (CTHRC1) is a secreted protein with a role in cellular metabolism that is expressed during tissue repair and remodeling and during pathological conditions including cancer and fibrosis.
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Innovating Postgraduate Physical Therapy Training: Development and Implementation of New England’s First Acute Care Physical Therapy Residency Program in a Large Academic Medical Center
Abigail L. True PT, DPT, NCS
The purpose of this study is to describe the development, delivery, and initial outcomes of a newly established Acute Care Physical Therapy Residency Program at MaineHealth Maine Medical Center Portland with a focus on educational design principles.
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Patients with Opioid Use Disorder Report Compassionate Care but Missed Support Opportunity
Chloe Veilleux, William Dykes, J Richard, Wendy Craig, Liz Scharnetzki, A Wurcel, and Aurora Quaye
Introduction: Results Hospitalizations involving opioid use disorder (OUD) have risen steadily over the past five years. Patients with OUD experience higher rates of self-directed discharge, readmission, and post-discharge mortality than those without OUD. These disparities are often driven by stigma and inadequate management of pain and withdrawal, which can lead to continued substance use following discharge.
This annual research retreat brings together more than 200 physicians, nurses, scientists and trainees from MaineHealth for a two day-long, multi-disciplinary, biomedical research symposium. The event gives basic and clinical researchers – and those who support them – the opportunity to catch up on each other’s work, to ask questions, to create new collaborations, and to discuss research in more depth.
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