February... Its all about the Heart

Warning to any future M1 that may come across this post.. Don't under estimate the heart. Who knew there was so much involved in what seemed like a pretty straight forward organ. You've got 4 chambers, a lot of muscle, and a pretty neat set of wiring to move stuff around. More or less thats it right? No. No. No. This unit seemed like a 3 week sprint from day 1. Do not miss a beat in this unit or you might just go into some fibrillation over the enormous load your going to have. (insert pre-load joke here).

I wonder if it was a coincidence that cardio is so strategically placed near Valentines Day. A holiday dedicated to the heart. The M1 class officers (the male ones at least) got together and secretly collected money from all the guys and on the day of the exam, presented each of the girls with a carnation. Now 1..2..3... awwww!! True Virginian Gentlemen live on in the class of 2012.


But it doesnt end there! The pun continues. Not only did we have an entire 3 weeks devoted to Cardiology. Not only was there a valentines day celebration. BUT we also had two of our very own classmates get ENGAGED!

Sharleen Grewal was proposed to by Adam Mulliken on early Feb. weekend in Boston (where they met). She had no idea. The story of how they met and how he proposed will make you want to run out to the closest blockbuster and rent a romantic comedy. If you don't know already, Sharleen is hilarious. If you want to hear it though you will have to ask her. Unless of course she lets me post it on the blog. Maybe we should start a petition? Possible Big day: Summer 2010.


Erik Loken proposed to his boo Elliot Neal on Valentines Day itself. A lot of us already know her actually since she comes out all the time to our class socials. In fact, I met Elliot before I met Erik my first night out during orientation week. Remember Cha Cha's after the M4 potluck?

Anyway, Erik and Elliot met at UVA. They were both choral singers (she was in the Virginia Women's Chorus, and he was in the Glee Club). Why now do you ask? Did it just feel like the right time? Yup. Thats exactly it. If anything, Erik says, he would've liked to do it sooner. Elliot is going to be going back to law school this fall at William and Mary. Erik probably wasn't winning any arguments before this. I'm sure he won't be after he gets married. Possible big day: Summer 2010.

VCU: A Clinician-Powered Approach to EMRs

Virginia is a nationally recognized leader in health IT, and the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Medical Center’s adoption of HIT is an impressive example of the state’s innovation in transforming the way health care is delivered (1). The Office of Clinical Transformation (OCT), led by Dr. Alistair Erskine, was set up as a dynamic council in charge of implementing electronic medical records (EMRs) at the VCU Medical Center. For a 780-bed hospital with outpatient clinics, this is no easy task (2).

The successes so far with VCU’s EMR adoption can be mostly attributed to the unique structure of the OCT and the high level of communication within it. The OCT is made up of 5 councils: Documentation, Orders and Caresets, Rules and Alerts, Data Retrieval and Interface, and Communication. Each council is led by an MD informaticist, Nurse informaticist, Clinical Transformation Specialist, Analyst, and Training Team Specialist, and is staffed by specific people from the hospital who can give input on the process and work flow as it pertains to that council. The leaders of each of the 5 councils make up the OCT council, which provides feedback to each of the councils and also discusses integration points between the councils. In the future, the OCT also hopes to involve patients to promote family-centered healthcare, as well as to involve residents and medical students.

The VCU Medical Center will soon be at a level 6 on the HIMSS EMR criteria, and Dr. Sean McKenna, MD Informaticist for the Documentation Council, has some key insights into the success of their EMR adoption so far. He believes that it is extremely helpful to have a hospital administration that embraces the core concepts of the EMR and that provides a positive environment for EMR adoption. Also, organizing a project of this magnitude is a daunting task on an organizational level, and Dr. McKenna suggests making good use of the hospital’s project management team to help design and effectively execute goals.

The most unique aspect of the OCT strategy is putting clinicians in HIT leadership roles. It may be hard to be decisive in this new territory of HIT, but input from the individuals using these tools in the hospital is significantly beneficial to the success of an EMR adoption. These clinicians feel the pulse of the hospital, and they know what will work and not work. Physicians and nurses have invaluable insights and this source of input should not be underestimated. A final piece of advice from Dr. McKenna is not to get caught up in “paralysis by analysis,” have the ability and confidence as an informed council to make decisions and move on.

By: Hannah Rose

(1) Pegram, Tristen. Virginia Names Health IT Advisor. Published: 9/15/08. Accessed: 2/13/09. http://www.governor.virginia.gov/MediaRelations/NewsReleases/viewRelease.cfm?id=778

(2) Lepley, Pamela D. State’s only Critical Care Hospital Dedicated at VCU Medical Center. Published: 10/8/08. Accessed: 2/13/09. http://www.news.vcu.edu/news.aspx?v=detail&nid=2651

Originally written for the HIMSS Digital Office eNewsletter:

http://www.himss.org/digital_office/DigitalOffice.asp?date=20090224

Feb. M1 Officer Meeting Minutes

M1 Class Officers Meeting
2/23/09 2pm-3pm Sanger 4-033

In attendance: Craig Anthony, Nijhu Bhowmik, Kate DiPasquale, Ashton Goldman, Mai Grant, Alex Janovski, Michael Joyce, Andrew Junkin, Ran Lee, Nana Ohene-Baah, Sarah Shafer, JT Stranix

Not present: Maravet Baig, Aditi Hendi, Parth Modi, Beth Morehouse, Aceela Muqri, Charley Nottingham, Justin Richey, Steve Spivey, Luke Sponholz, Pat Turner, Travis Wilson, Kate Zedler

Agenda
I. President (Andrew Junkin)
A. Foodbank: M3 President says food bank not getting enough help; Potential service opportunity
B. Next Liver rounds 3/20/09: wine and cheese at Hunton is a possibility; Hunton is open for social events Fri and Sat night now
C. Sholley retirement party in the works
D. Staff excellence award: check your email, and nominate a staff member!
E. Survey results: class cohesion is needed, and all class officers need to go beyond our written responsibilities to promote events and activities

II. Vice-Presidents (Sarah Shafer and JT Stranix)
A. Mardi Gras Masquerade Ball at Blackfinn, Tuesday 2/24/09 7-10pm
i. Side room reserved from 7-10, but at 8pm the party will be open to the public
ii. Drink specials from 7-9 include $2 Domestics and $3 Imported/Wine/Rail; Drink specials all night include $2 Coors Light drafts and $3 MCV Shooters [aka kamikazees]
B. Orientation planning meeting for future M1s, next Tuesday 3/3/09
i. Will bring up integrating different activities around Richmond, e.g. Poetry Slam, Art Museum, Carytown, etc.; events that could possibly be coordinated by Tour Guides; More to report once plans are solidified
C. Foxfields!
i. Currently, a package for bus transportation/ticket/plot space is around $75/person
ii. We’ll be selling to M1s exclusively first, then opening it up to other med students
iii. Look for announcements from Sarah and JT
D. Meet the 1st years event: SGA-sponsored event in the works for a more formal gathering of 1st years from all the MCV professional schools
E. Classmates: get involved in community service!

III. Secretary (Ran Lee)
A. Minutes to be sent out to officers and posted to MCV Blog (http://mcv2012.blogspot.com)
B. Announcements and emails will precede every class meeting so students are more aware of open meetings and student government; come by next time!

IV. Treasurer (Ashton Goldman)
A. $1181.23 in the class bank account
B. Hoodies ($35): still a few left in each size, so contact JT or Ashton if you want to purchase
C. System for money appropriation will be formulated soon and distributed; contact Ashton or executive board if you need legitimate class funds

V. Curriculum Reps (Nijhu Bhowmik, Nana Ohene-Baah)
A. Course Reviews finished for FCM, Anatomy/Embryo, and Behavioral Sciences
B. FCM: not enough time to practice PE in small group; Dr. Peel hopes designated practice times will help
i. Suggestion to switch Cardio and Chest/Lung PEs in the syllabus, so students actually do Cardio PE before the Cardio Phys test
ii. Read the E-Board for important announcements; they will try their best to email as well
C. Anatomy: 67% response on evals; praise for faculty enthusiasm and dedication to students; praise for HTT and practice practicals
i. Concerns: Unequal student:M4 distribution ratio needs to be addressed, as well as M4 accountability in coming to class to help out
ii. Dr. Krieg will be hosting a student panel for next year’s M1s, in the first week of class, to help M1s get a better sense of anatomy and what to be prepared for
iii. Better coordinated syllabus and powerpoints for next year; get better pictures in the syllabus esp. now that we have Pay-For-Printing
D. BEHS: 38% response rate, but quality responses
i. Syllabus was readable, we had engaging professors and guest speakers
ii. Concerns: Need to improve the background to certain lectures, e.g. brain development can use a better neurology introduction
iii. Med Student Problems lecture could use less emphasis on sexual harassment, more on emotional problems
iv. More sample questions needed on the E-board; Dr. Sonenklar apologizes for his lack of presence on the E-board – there was miscommunication regarding email notifications to his account
E. Physiology update with Dr. Costanzo: tests won’t be scheduled in the future on the same day as FCM

VI. Community Service (Kate DiPasquale)
A. James River Park System’s Ralph White says we can commit to work on the North Bank Trail; There is a Pump House that is maintained by volunteer work; Collectively, we can help its maintenance and also use the space for social functions (nothing too rowdy)
B. Monthly community service opportunities are not getting much participation; if we keep coming up with ideas, we’ll publicize more on E-board and Email
C. How do we increase the class’s community service activities? Integrate the service with a learning opportunity as well, e.g. Clinic work that will allow students to learn as well as help out

VII. Wellness Committee (Beth Morehouse by proxy)
A. Day of Community Service (DOCS) planning underway with Cathy Howard of VCU Community Involvement
i. Multiple sites of service are set up for students to donate their efforts to; hope to make this day one of the Class of 2012’s legacies in the MCV community
ii. Potential dates are April 4th and 25th
iii. Site options currently: Habitat for Humanity, James River Park Service, Girls/Boy Scouts of America, Boys/Girls’ Club, VA Food Bank, etc.
iv. Site leaders will be appointed soon; general class announcement will be made as well
B. Upcoming Races for anyone interested
i. Monument Ave 10K on March 29th; $30 registration until Feb. 28th, $35 between Mar 1-24; http://www.sportsbackers.org/events/10k/10k_sign_up.htm
ii. DC National Marathon/Half Marathon on March 21st; $80 sign-up, http://www.nationalmarathon.com/home.asp

VIII. WIMSO (Mai Grant)
A. $125 made in 10 minutes at Geriatrics Forum Bake Sale
B. In March: lunch lecture on women’s health residency, from MCV; maybe 3/25?

IX. Honor Council Reps (Maravet Baig/Charley Nottingham/Luke Sponholz By Proxy)
A. Nothing new to report

X. SGA Reps (Craig Anthony, Alex Janovski)
A. Winter Ball was a great time on 2/13/09
B. Received Thank You Cards from CHAT, for our donations
C. Health Fair March 21st at Armstrong High School
i. All the MCV professional schools will be participating
ii. Medical students hopefully will be able to treat this as a clinic; M1 and M2 paired with M4 to do medical interviewing, PE, differential diagnoses, and presentation to a Family Medicine Physician

XI. Historian (Parth Modi, by proxy)
A. MCV 2012 Blog: http://mcv2012.blogspot.com; contact Parth to become an author and contribute; Submit pictures, notes, etc.

XII. Webmaster (Michael Joyce)
A. No changes to report

XIII. Athletic Rep (Justin Richey, by proxy)
A. Sign-up for Ultimate Frisbee starting March 9-24; 7-player teams, $15 per person
B. Contact at richeyjd@vcu.edu if anybody wants to play any other IM sports