Office of Primary Care and Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program

(November 15, 2023) The UVMHN’s communications department is spearheading a public awareness campaign to address an alarming escalation in workplace violence aimed at health care providers, Seven Days reports.

(November 13, 2023) A new study by Eric Ross, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry, and colleagues found no benefit from hospitalization for some suicidal veterans, U.S. Medicine reported.

(NOVEMBER 10, 2023) Daniel Wolfson, M.D., associate professor of emergency medicine, commented to WCAX-TV for a story on a pre-pandemic addiction treatment program that embedded peer recovery coaches in the UVM Medical Center emergency department—now it’s back, after an extended pandemic pause.

(NOVEMBER 10, 2023) A lyophilized whole-cell mix of 10 bacterial species customized by Scott Tighe, technical director at the University of Vermont’s advanced genomics lab, and colleagues, was sent to the International Space Station aboard the SpaceX CRS-29 Cargo Dragon Resupply Craft mission on November 9.

(NOVEMBER 9, 2023) Thanks to a grant from the University of Vermont’s Center on Rural Addiction (CORA), the Johnson Health Center has a vending machine that dispenses free boxes of the life-saving overdose reversal drug naloxone—the first of its kind in the state—the (Whitesburg, Kentucky) Daily Yonder reports.

(NOVEMBER 9, 2023) Neonatologist Roger Soll, M.D., professor of pediatrics, commented in the journal Pediatrics on a randomized controlled trial showing that umbilical cord milking appeared to be a safe alternative to delayed cord clamping in very premature infants, according to MedPage Today.

(NOVEMBER 8, 2023) Ophthalmologist Jessica McNally, M.D., assistant professor of surgery, was interviewed by WCAX-TV for a story about lawmakers looking to extend some surgical permission to optometrists, in response to a shortage of fully trained eye surgeons.

(NOVEMBER 8, 2023) Vermont Medicaid is partnering with the UVM Medical Center in a pilot program that will allow Medicaid members with chronic pain to participate in integrative, holistic treatment through the Osher Center for Integrative Health’s Comprehensive Pain Program, according to the Rutland Herald.

(NOVEMBER 7, 2023) Timothy Plante, M.D., M.H.S., assistant professor of medicine, is a co-author of a study offering critical insights into the assessment of orthostatic hypotension among older adults, according to News Medical.

(NOVEMBER 7, 2023) A study by rheumatologist Brendan Thoms, M.B.B.S., assistant professor of medicine, and colleagues shows that key details of patients’ inflammatory arthritis were often missing from rheumatology referral letters, and that only a minority of these patients were seen within the target of six weeks, Healio reports.

(NOVEMBER 6, 2023) Christian Pulcini, M.D., M.Ed., M.P.H., assistant professor of emergency medicine, was interviewed by STAT for an article about a new study on the lasting effects of gun violence on young survivors.

(NOVEMBER 6, 2023) Vermont Health Access and the UVM Medical Center announced that Vermont Medicaid is entering a pilot program that will allow its members to participate in the Partners Aligned in Transformative Healing program at UVMMC’s Comprehensive Pain Program, according to WCAX-TV.

(NOVEMBER 2, 2023) The University of Vermont Medical Center is the number one hospital in the state, according to data collected by Newsweek, in partnership with Statista, which published its ranking of America’s Best-in-State Hospitals for 2024.

(OCTOBER 31, 2023) Steven Schlozman, M.D., associate professor of psychiatry, spoke with WCAX-TV about what parents should know about fun vs. fear when it comes to trick-or-treating—and scary things in general.

(OCTOBER 29, 2023) Lewis First, M.D., M.S., professor and chair of pediatrics at Larner College of Medicine and chief of pediatrics at the UVM Medical Center, was interviewed by ABC22 for a story on trick or treating. Inclusivity—for kids with allergies or special needs—is one consideration health experts are highlighting.

(OCTOBER 27, 2023) Julie Vieth, M.D., assistant professor of emergency medicine and assistant medical director of the Emergency Department at the University of Vermont Medical Center, was featured in a story on WCAX-TV about a UVM Health Network project spotlighting violence against frontline health care staff.

(OCTOBER 24, 2023) Michael Hehir, M.D., professor of neurological sciences, spoke to Nicholas Silvestri, M.D., host of Medscape’s In Discussion: Myasthenia Gravis podcast, in an episode titled “Managing Myasthenia Gravis in Primary Care: Best Practices.”

(OCTOBER 24, 2023) A powerful video on violence in the Emergency Department at the University of Vermont Medical Center by Roland Kielman and Ryan Mercer, communications specialists with the University of Vermont Health Network, with text by Helen Ouyang, M.D., M.P.H., associate professor at Columbia University, was featured in the New York Times Opinion section.

(OCTOBER 20, 2023) Rachel Lee Cummings, M.P.H.’20, executive director of Counseling Service of Addison County, spoke to VT Digger about a new “living room” model of mental health urgent care that aims to reroute as many people as possible from the emergency room and link them directly to organizations that provide counseling and psychiatric services.

(OCTOBER 16, 2023) Karen George, M.D., M.P.H., associate dean for students at the Larner College of Medicine, contributed to a Physician’s Weekly article on what residents and program directors think is needed for a successful transition to residency.