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Showing posts from July, 2015

877-MED-0229

Want to guess what that phone number is from?

A few months ago, MedStar Health launched new websites across the system to move each hospital and entity onto a unified platform that can serve the many needs of our organization. While we continue to build research content for the MHRI website (www.MedStarResearch.org) which connects to all the other MedStar hospital and corporate website (www.MedStarHealth.org) through the tab 'Our Research', we have already received a lot of positive feedback.

On of the things on all the websites, which we did not think would apply for research, is an 800 helpline.  Our general email (research@medstar.net) is very popular but we were less enthusiastic about the need for a toll free 'need assistance' phone number for research, nonetheless that was the format for these websites (see below with the added red circle to direct you to area we are discussing):
 Well, to our surprise, this number has resulted in over 200 calls in the first months since the launch so we will certainly keep it!

If you have not yet had the chance to check out the website, please do.  Since we are continuing to refine it (and the clinical trials section is not yet alive), we welcome feedback and suggestions.  Please send comments to research@medstar.net.


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MedStar 2020 Performance Transformation


The world is changing quickly around us and we need to always be thinking several steps ahead if we want to stay ahead of the changes.  That is, in large part, why research is so important to the future of patient care.

Just as research helps create the future of healthcare, performance transformation will help MedStar reinvent and reposition our care delivery systems and business operations to achieve ongoing efficiency and effectiveness.  

MedStar has undertaken a large, system wide initiative to transform HOW we deliver care so that it enhances systemness, supports large scale system wide 'transformations' and builds a sustainable culture to drive excellence, adaptability and change. To start, 57 'value opportunities' (identified from190 vetted ideas) are being worked on across broad areas like care management, clinical services, admin/support services and supply chain. These efforts involved more than 150 leaders in our organization and will result in a position of strength and sustainability for MedStar.  It is exciting to see MedStar undertake these initiatives and reassuring we, as an organization, are planning for the future.

MedStar Health Research Institute Investigator is a Rock Star for a Night!

Guest Blogger: Christine Alhambra, Marketing and Communications Coordinator at MHRI


Talk about MedStar going viral! A recent video of MHRI Investigator, Lew Schon, MD, Orthopaedic Surgeon at MedStar Union Memorial Hospital, performing on stage with David Grohl of the Foo Fighters has hit headlines this week! MTV.com, Huffington Post, Time, even the UK's Daily Mirror covered the video along with many, many others. 

The foot and ankle surgeon (who was Grohl's surgeon after a recent leg break) was invited onstage by the Foo Fighters to sing at their Fenway Park concert this past weekend. Wearing his trademark bowtie, Dr. Schon rocked out to "Seven Nation Army" by the White Stripes. Way to knock it out of the park, Dr. Schon! 

Check out the video here and below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qktooW8xxyc



MedStar 'Academics this Week'

At MHRI, we are well-versed in newsletters – we have Important Things to Know, Wellness, and Manager’s newsletters to keep us abreast of everything happening within our organization.

Recently, you may have noticed a new e-newsletter – Academics This Week, authored by my good friend and colleague, Jamie Padmore and sent out every Monday.


For those of you who don’t know her, Jamie Padmore is the Vice President of Academic Affairs at MedStar and the Associate Dean of Education for Georgetown University Medical Center. She lives and breathes education  – whether it’s through our graduate medical education program (the residents and fellows in our hospitals) or continuing medical education (the learning opportunities we provide clinician faculty to enhance their knowledge).

Her job is an important one because it completes the third prong of MedStar's vision to advance health. If you recall, MedStar Health’s “combines the best aspects of academic medicine, research and innovation with a complete spectrum of clinical services to advance patient care.” Academic medicine includes a broad range of activities and communities, and lately Jamie has been helping to bring them together from across the system and university. 

Did you know that when we look at all our residents and fellows at MedStar, we are the 11th largest GME program in the entire country with approximately 1,100 residents/fellows?

Jamie’s newly launched newsletter, Academics This Week, aims to keep that community engaged, as well as make the rest of MedStar aware of the plethora of education activities and opportunities happening within our organization.
Academics This Week also serves to highlight our partnership with our academic partner, Georgetown University Medical School, which is why you may have noticed some guest posts from the Dean of the School of Medicine, Dean Ray Mitchell.




I invite you to read Jamie’s newsletter, dive into the world of academia and feel free to make suggestions for topics you’d like to know more about.  If you aren't currently receiving this newsletter, please email Sara Ellis at sara.e.ellis@medstar.net


Video Collaboration Open House: Friday July 17th

Guest Blogger: Clark Bean, Director, Office of Information Technology, MHRI

Video conferencing is here!!

MedStar has undertaken a system wide effort to provide videoconferencing capabilities for our associates. We recognize that some of the best interactions come from diverse teams across our facilities but travel can be difficult.  To overcome that logistic barrier, MedStar is investing in videoconferencing capabilities.

Information Services will be holding an Open House for staff to learn about MedStar’s new video collaboration equipment and see it in action.  This new technology is designed to support knowledge sharing, collaboration and the productivity of virtual teams across MedStar.  Video collaboration can be used for both clinical and administrative purposes such as collaborative research meetings, Grand Rounds or any project team meeting that normally would require travel.
  
This open house will be held on Friday, July 17th from 9am till 12 noon.  The open house will be broken into six, half hour sessions where the End Users can visit the integrated rooms at CCO or one of our hospitals listed below.  For the first 20 minutes of the half hour the “trainers” will demonstrate the StarPort VC page (http://starport.medstar.net/msh/IS/Pages/Video-Collaboration.aspx) to show the prepared support aids, the scheduling process, demonstrate the system, answer questions, etc.  

There will be a system wide conference during the last 10 minutes of each half hour session.  Mobile Carts will also be included in the demonstration.  Locations, rooms and demonstration times are shown in the chart below.   


*************Rooms Involved and timeframes*****************************

Site
Room
Timeslot
MGUH 
S131
9am to noon
MGSH
Parker 4/3
9am to 11:00am
MWHC
6D10 & 6D8
9am to noon
MUMH
Hand Center Conference Room
9am to noon
MHH
Baum Teleconference
9am to noon
CCO
Conference Room A
9am to noon
MMMC
3rd Floor Conference Room
9am to noon
MSMHC
Library Conference Room
9am to noon
MSMH
Boardroom
9am to 10am
MSHM
Admin Conference Room
10am to Noon
MNRN
2nd Floor Conference Room
9am to noon
MFSMC
Conference Room G
9am to noon

Good Catch Monday Summer Wellness

Today's 'Good Catch Monday' has an important message from Dr. David Mayer, VP of Quality and Safety for MedStar Health, that is good advice for all of our wellness so I thought I would share it with you:



Today's Associate Safety Tip Comes from the MedStar Health Systems Office
Being an avid runner who enjoys running outside, one of the safety tips I wanted to pass on has to do with remaining safe while exercising in the summer months. Exercise is an important part of our work-life balance, and the summer heat presents the need for additional precautions while exercising-such as a focus on hydration, wearing workout clothes built to wick away sweat versus trap it next to the skin, and moving exercise routines to early morning or later in evening. 

Following is a link to a webinar sponsored by our EAP next Monday, July 20th that covers additional tips for exercising when the outdoor temperatures begin to rise. Tune in to learn more!

Webinar: Exercise Safety for the Summer
Presented by: Molly Reitz, M.S., ACSM EP-C, BHS Wellness Coach
When: Monday, July 20th @ 1:30 p.m. EST
  • Register by logging onto our EAP website: http://www.bhsonline.com/
  •  Username is: medstar
  • Scroll to the middle of the page and click on "Click here to register for the Cafe Series!"
Thank you all for constantly working to keep our patients safe!

Academics and Research Come Together to Award Georgetown Medical Students

MedStar Health Academic Affairs and MedStar Health Research Institute have partnered once again  to provide summer research experiences for Georgetown medical students.  This research experience pairs up a student to do research incorporating 'real world' medical issues.

On Thursday, July 9, students who were awarded the Pellegrini Scholarships in Quality & Patient Safety, and the Pines-Kleinman Scholarship in Mental and Behavioral Health, had the chance to meet with those who created the scholarship and their faculty mentors to share how this summer experience is shaping their medical education. 

MedStar has awarded the Pellegrini Scholarship for 8 years and the Pines-Kleinman Scholarship is in its 3rd year. The summer research internships are designed for rising second year medical students at Georgetown who will work with an experienced investigator to gain greater understanding and experience in research.




What do FOCUS and Cosmo have in common?

For the regular readers of FOCUS, the MedStar Health Research eNewsletter, you often find many interesting articles about new research and activity occurring throughout our system.  However, as pointed out to me, the issue that came out yesterday was a first - the lead story about facial plastic surgery recently published in a JAMA journal was also highlighted in a recent issue of Cosmopolitan , the magazine! 

Now that is truly bringing research and the real world together - who knows, maybe we should start putting FOCUS at the checkout counter in grocery stores?

OR
   

MedStar Honors Independence Day 2015


MedStar Partners with AARP for Healthy Aging

MedStar has become the newest Founding Member of AARP's "Project Catalyst: The Power of We". The idea behind the program gives developers of popular and emerging products insight into how Americans age 50+ use technology in order to improve devices for mature consumers. 


Through this alliance, MedStar will support independent research and testing of new and emerging products with findings and insights being shared publicly through Project Catalyst to help product developers and businesses better meet the needs of 50-plus consumers.

MedStar joins UnitedHealthcare and Pfizer as Founding Members, and will collaborate with Georgia Tech’s HomeLab, the project’s lead Insight Partner. Project Catalyst’s first study, which was announced in April 2015, is focused on sleep and activity trackers. Results of this study and future areas of focus will be reported in the coming weeks.

It will be exciting to follow this collaboration as we work toward the shared goal of advancing health.