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

(MARCH 6, 2024) Ophthalmologist Jessica McNally, M.D., assistant professor of surgery, emphasized to NBC5 the importance of using the correct protective eyewear when viewing the April 8 solar eclipse.

(MARCH 6, 2024) Assistant Professor of Psychiatry Elias Klemperer, Ph.D., spoke with WCAX-TV about his recent grant to study nicotine-limiting standards across the Northeast; in particular, what works to get smokers to switch to products that use less nicotine.

(MARCH 2, 2024) Infectious disease specialist Tim Lahey, M.D., M.M.Sc., professor of medicine, spoke to WCAX-TV about norovirus, a common virus that comes in waves—especially in the cold, winter months.

(February 29, 2024) Orthopedic surgeon Sara Graves, M.D., M.S., clinical assistant professor of surgery, spoke with WCAX-TV about a new robotic surgery system at the Central Vermont Medical Center.

(FEBRUARY 27, 2024) Newsweek recently reported on a 2020 study building on previous research conducted at the Larner College of Medicine that found that even small amounts of music education could lead to major benefits to children’s development.

(FEBRUARY 23, 2024) Tim Lahey, M.D., M.M.Sc., the medical ethics director at the UVM Medical Center, commented to Vermont Public about a new law in Alabama that states frozen embryos are now considered children.

(FEBRUARY 22, 2024) In a VT Digger opinion piece, Christine Werneke, M.S., and Stephen Leffler, M.D., discussed the effects of Vermont’s severe lack of capacity for patients who need long-term care outside of the hospital.

(FEBRUARY 21, 2024) Brian Cunniff, Ph.D., assistant professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, spoke with WCAX-TV about a promising new treatment for mesothelioma that is being tested at the UVM Cancer Center.

(FEBRUARY 21, 2024) UVMMC President and COO Stephen Leffler, M.D., commented to Vermont Public for a story about health care officials’ statement to lawmakers that a shortage of nursing home beds has forced hospitals to become residential care providers for patients who have nowhere else to go.

(FEBRUARY 20, 2024) Endocrinologist Matthew Gilbert, D.O., M.P.H., joined Vermont Health Commissioner Mark Levine, M.D., and OBGYN Kimberly Sampson, M.D., for a conversation on Vermont Public that included a discussion of how weight-loss drugs work, their health benefits, and their potential shortcomings.

(FEBRUARY 16, 2024) Heidi Schumacher, M.D.’10, assistant professor of pediatrics, commented to The Hill about finding a balance between having sick students stay home from school and the learning-loss consequences of absenteeism.

(FEBRUARY 15, 2024) Heidi Schumacher, M.D.’10, assistant professor of pediatrics, spoke to the Rutland Herald about a bill aimed at protecting children from the harmful effects of social media.

(FEBRUARY 14, 2024) Child and adolescent psychiatrist Jeremiah Dickerson, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry, speaks to Vermont Public about what happens in your brain when you fall in love—and how it reacts when you’re falling out of love.

(FEBRUARY 14, 2024) Cardiologist Jesse Kane, M.D., assistant professor of medicine, served on a panel of fellow experts who discussed no reflow and thrombus in the January/February 2024 issue of Cardiac Interventions Today.

(February 14, 2024) An intriguing study at the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, funded by a $2M National Institutes of Health grant, is set to explore the impacts of screen time on adolescent mental health and brain development, Medriva reports.

(FEBRUARY 8, 2024) In an impassioned opinion piece in VT Digger, four Vermont emergency medicine physicians explain a crisis in our emergency departments known as “boarding” and plead for an increase in skilled nursing and long-term care beds, home health supports, and robust, reliable funding mechanisms to support both.

(FEBRUARY 7, 2024) Catherine Naden, M.D.’11, clinical assistant professor of family medicine, spoke with Vermont Public about mammogram guidance.

(FEBRUARY 6, 2024) UVM Health Network President and CEO Sunny Eappen, M.D., M.B.A., and UVMHN Radiation Oncology Chair H. James Wallace, M.D., associate professor of radiology at the Larner College of Medicine, commented to the Press-Republican about a new initiative to upgrade cancer care services at network hospitals.

(FEBRUARY 2, 2024) Bader Chaarani, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychiatry, spoke with WCAX-TV about a new five-year federal grant supporting research to investigate the impact of screen time on adolescent mental health and brain development.

(FEBRUARY 1, 2024) UVM Medical Center President and Chief Operating Officer Stephen Leffler, M.D.’90, M.H.C.D.S., professor of emergency medicine, commented about a new UVMMC program announced on the first day of Black History Month that’s aimed at closing the patient inequity gap when it comes to patient hair care, NBC5 reported.