Research

Division of General, Geriatric, Palliative & Hospital Medicine
RESEARCH

Thanks to the Buchanan Endowment and grant funding from organizations such as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), members of the division have been successful in advancing initiatives in areas such as patient safety and quality, chronic illness, wisdom, competency-based education, health policy, humanism, bioethics and palliative medicine.

In collaboration with the Department of Medicine’s divisions of gastroenterology and infectious diseases, the Buchanan Endowment Award has continued to fund the Complicated C. difficile Clinic, one of the nation’s largest fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) programs. Building upon this clinical innovation, in FY 2015 TechLab Inc. funded Laurie Archbald-Pannone, MD, MPH, AGSF, and colleagues with $130,000 over two years to investigate the impact of FMT treatment on inflammation and other important clinical outcomes.

UVA Medical Center, along with four other academic medical centers, received a $1 million sub-award in FY 2015 to implement eConsults and Enhanced Referrals. The programs are aimed at improving quality and efficiency in the ambulatory setting by focusing on the referral process between primary care providers and specialists. The initiatives use electronic medical record (EMR)-based tools and enhanced referrals to create a shift in physician workflow, reduce marginal referrals, improve access to specialists and enhance the patient experience. To date, seven specialties have gone live with eConsults (Endocrinology, Gastroenterology, Hepatology, Rheumatology, Sleep Medicine, Nephrology and Cardiology) with eight additional specialties scheduled to go live by the end of October 2015. Already there have been a great number of successes, with well over 120 eConsults ordered. The model has been met with great enthusiasm from both primary care physicians and specialists, and promises to continue to transform the culture of outpatient care well into the future.

Active research grants in the division for FY 2015 are listed below:

Laurie Archbald-Pannone, MD, MPH, AGSF – PI

• NIH/ NIAID K23 Career Development Award. Evaluation of C. difficile Severity in Epidemiologic Studies and Animal Models. 7/1/2008-9/30/2013

Laurie Archbald-Pannone, MD, MPH, AGSF – Co-PI

• Coulter Translational Partnership (UVA). Fecal Micro Transp. 07/01/2014-06/30/2015
• National Institutes of Health RO3. “Probiotics to Improve Outcomes of Clostridium difficile Infection in Older Adults.” 2012-2014
• Buchanan Endowment (UVA). Fecal Micobiata Transplant Program for recurrent C. difficile infection. 07/01/2013-06/30/2016

Daniel Becker, MD – PI

• Medical Cyberworld, Inc (NIH SBIIR: 9R44 TR000350-02A1). “Modeling Professional Attitudes and Teaching Humanistic Communication in VR.” 09/01/2012-01/31/2015

Leslie Blackhall, MD, and Paul Read, MD – Co-PIs

• CMS. “Rapid Response Supportive and Palliative Care Program For Patients with Advanced Cancer.” 07/01/2012-06/30/2016

Leslie Blackhall, MD – PI

• Josiah Macy Fdn. “Bridging the Gap: Developing, Implementing, and Assessing the Impact of Innovative Undergraduate Interprofessional Education (IPE) Experiences Based on Collaborative Care Best Practice Models.” 09/01/2011-05/31/2014

Jennifer Marks, MD – PI

• ADE. “IPE Pain Management Training Module.” 09/01/2012-08/31/2014

Mohan Nadkarni, MD – PI

• Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation. “Together on Diabetes: Focus on African American Women.” 07/01/2011-12/31/2013nce

Margaret Plews-Ogan, MD – PI

• Emory/Macy Foundation. “Collaborative Faculty Development Project to Enhance Humanism and Professionalism in Medicine.” 05/15/2012-05/14/2014
• Picker Gold Foundation. “Tell Me a Story.” 08/01/2013-07/31/2015

P. Preston Reynolds, MD, PhD – PI

• Gold Foundation. “Enabling Faculty to Prepare as Authentic Healers and Compassionate Professionals.” 12/27/2011-06/30/2014
• NIH R13: 1R13MD003760-01. “Reducing Health Disparities through Transformation of the Learning Environment.” 09/09/2011-09/08/2013

John Voss, MD – PI

• Pfizer (GME). “Quality Initiative.” 09/01/2010-08/31/2014