Around BIDMC

BIDHC-Chelsea Turns 10

On Oct. 27, more than 100 people attended an event celebrating Beth Israel Deaconess HealthCare-Chelsea’s 10-year anniversary, including staff from BIDHC-Chelsea and BIDMC, and Chelsea City Councilor-at-Large Leo Robinson. The Council joined the Massachusetts State Senate in recognizing BIDHC-Chelsea’s decade-long commitment to the community. Last year, more than 8,000 patients visited BIDHC-Chelsea’s providers in primary care, ob/gyn, radiology and physical therapy.

“BIDHC-Chelsea has a mission to deliver high-quality, personalized care,” said Paul Levy, BIDMC’s president and chief executive officer, during the event. “As Chelsea continues to grow, we hope to continue to play a role in the health of
the community.”

Guilt-Free Shopping Just Got Better

BIDMC’s FriendShops have introduced new customer incentives – just in time for the start of holiday shopping!

Both shops now offer a “Frequent Buyer” rewards card that gives regular customers discounts. BIDMC employees can also make purchases through payroll deductions. And the east campus FriendShop has completed renovations that feature new lighting and flooring, along with easier-to-browse merchandise.

The FriendShops are run by the Friends of BIDMC, a non-profit organization that supports the medical center through volunteering and fundraising efforts. They have provided funding for housing for the cancer and solid organ transplant programs, the surgical liaison program and the building of the Shapiro Clinical Center.

“Every time you make a purchase, you can feel good knowing that your money is helping to support services here at BIDMC,” says Patricia McGovern, general counsel and senior vice president, corporate and community affairs.

Information on “Frequent Buyer” cards/payroll deductions:
(66)7-3639 or (63)2-8168

Go Ahead and Ask

BIDMC has begun a new patient-driven hand hygiene program called “Go Ahead and Ask.” A brochure, buttons worn by staff, room placards and other materials encourage patients and family members to ask physicians, nurses and other staff, “Have you cleaned your hands?”

“We want to tell patients that we welcome, and appreciate, their reminders,” says Sharon Wright, MD, MPH, director, infection control/hospital epidemiology unit, noting that each year 2.5 million patients nationwide develop infections that are directly related to poor hand hygiene.

Return to Louisiana: A Hurricane Katrina Update

Last month, BIDMCtoday featured an article on staff participating in Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. Staff members continue to provide assistance in the affected areas -- including Carolyn Acker, MD, HMFP psychiatry, who has volunteered to go to New Orleans over the Christmas holidays to provide support for survivors of Hurricane Katrina.  Her two-week leave from the department is being funded by Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians (HMFP), which is supporting the medical center's mission to help these survivors.

Another staff member, emergency department nurse Dan Nadworny, RN, has just returned from a second, two-week deployment to the Louisiana area. He provides this update:

The fire station Nadworny worked out of during his second deployment to Louisiana. The RV is a mobile medical unit.

Nadworny’s fellow volunteers on Team 1 included a nurse practitioner, two emergency room nurses and an emergency medical technician. Together, they took care of more than 150 patients in 10 days.

Nadworny sutures a patient who had cut his hand with a skill saw. 

Going back to Louisiana after two months, I was very unsure of exactly what I would be doing.  Initially all that I knew was that I was going to be part of a striketeam, or people from different areas put together because of specific specialties.  After our briefing, I was told that we would be going to Grand Isle, Louisiana, the only inhabited barrier island in the state.  The island's population of about 2,500 people had initially been evacuated but was slowly returning to claim their homes.  There was no medical care on the island; the nearest small hospital was well over an hour away, and the nearest Level 1 center was more than two hours away.  In the interim there had been sporadic medical care from the army and a lone medic who was doing all he could.

When we arrived there were about 500 people on the island, most working on their houses.  The first few days we were there, the majority of the care we provided dealt with immunization and minor occupational injuries -- not surprising, as people were basically either pulling their houses apart or trying to dig through the rubble that once was their home.  Working with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and our own guidelines, we developed guidelines and standard dosing for antibiotics that were much higher that we use here in Boston.  As the two weeks went on, our team saw approximately 150 patients. Needless to say it was an unbelievable experience and it amazes me that even after two months the area remains so devastated.  However, the people are so proud of the homes and their spirits have not been marred by this.  So many people said, “You have to come back when we clean this mess up!”

I am proud that we were able to give the community health care that at the time was not available to them.

 

Clinical Investigator Training Program Fellowship: Applications Due Jan. 6

Drs. Anthony Hollenberg and Robert Rubin announce the availability of applications for the two-year Clinical Investigator Training Program (CITP) fellowship, which will begin on July 1, 2006. The application deadline is Jan. 6.

The elements of the Clinical Investigator Training Program include a commitment by the fellow to devote 80 percent of his/her time to the fellowship, including a specific mentor-supervised research project involving human subjects or human samples, 2.5 hours/week of didactic sessions, and a wide range of other educational opportunities available from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology. Entrance requirements include board eligibility in specialty or subspecialty (completion of clinical component of subspecialty training) and a specific faculty mentor and research project.

The program is presented by the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, in collaboration with Pfizer Inc. and Merck & Co.

A detailed description of the program is available on the Internet at http://research.bidmc.harvard.edu/GCRC/CITP.asp

Please contact Linda Bard at (66)7-4816 with any questions about the program or the fellowship application process.

Summer Program in Clinical Effectiveness -- July 5-Aug. 18, 2006

The Program in Clinical Effectiveness, a Joint Program of Harvard Medical School, Harvard School of Public Health, Brigham & Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, is designed for clinicians seeking the quantitative and analytic skills needed for clinical research or who are interested in health care administration.

The Program begins with an intensive seven-week, 15-credit program of summer-long core courses in Introduction to Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics. Participants also select two half-summer courses from offerings in Decision Analysis, Current Issues in Health Policy, Medical Informatics, Health Care Ethics, Quality Improvement in Health Care, Linear and Longitudinal Regression, Survey of Methods and Applications in Health Services Research, Implementing Prevention, and Using Large Databases for Research. Students with previous experience may enroll in second-level courses in Analytic Issues of Clinical Epidemiology, Principles of Clinical Trials, and Survival Methods in Clinical Research.

Students are limited to 15 credits for a single summer but can take additional courses in a second summer. Qualified students may apply to a degree-granting program at the Harvard School of Public Health, before or after completion of the summer program. Accepted students can apply their summer credits to either a Master of Science degree or a Master of Public Health degree.

The application deadline for the 2005 Program in Clinical Effectiveness is Feb. 1. Information and application: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/clineff or Barbara C. Rosen at 617-732-5648 or brosen@partners.org .

Alpha announces a Holiday Loan Special

Alpha Credit Union is helping out medical center employees this holiday season by offering an early holiday loan for $2,525 at 8.25% APY for a term of one year. This special runs until Dec. 25 and is subject to all regular guidelines. For details, stop into the Credit Union in the Baker Basement, or call (63)2-8164.