Team and Innovation Spotlight Series

In a recent article by UMass Memorial Communications, Nikolaos Kakouros, MD, medical director of the Structural Heart Program and associate professor of medicine in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, was highlighted for his work on a minimally invasive heart procedure at UMass

It is a common challenge across primary care—a patient’s primary care provider has moved or retired and they need to make an appointment with a new provider. It seems simple enough but the problem is that PCPs are scheduling new patients out six to twelve months or more in some cases, which can create lapses in regular health screenings, staying on track with medications, and a variety of other issues. 

The Department of Medicine’s Transitional Care Team (TCT) is responsible for tracking the movement of patients between teams, departments, campuses, and other institutions. Most commonly this involves patients pending admission from the Emergency Department. Until now, this has been a manual process using Excel spreadsheets (a system that predates the UMass upgrade to Epic in 2017).

Chemotherapy desensitization procedures at UMass have historically been done in the ICU, but when an ICU bed is used for the procedure, it requires a reservation and the use of the bed for at least 24 hours. With a rapidly growing number of chemotherapy allergy patients being referred to UMass, Geneva Mehta, MD, an assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care, conducted a review of chemotherapy desensitization procedures done at UMass over the last several years and compared her findings to published reports.

Point-of-care technology (POCT) and testing are increasingly important diagnostic and monitoring tools that provide physicians and patients access to rapid assessment and results for a variety of conditions. From at-home COVID-19 and blood glucose tests to small, handheld ultrasound units that can be used by physicians during physical exams, these technologies are changing the way health care is delivered and the patient’s overall experience.   

Like many hospitals, UMass Memorial Medical Center is in the midst of an ongoing capacity crisis which has been particularly burdensome in the intensive care unit (ICU). While the UMass Memorial Health (UMMH) Hospital at Home (HAH) Program, started in August 2021, has periodically cared for patients coming from the ICU, their teams see the potential for greater collaboration.   

In this month's Innovation Spotlight, we are excited to feature Greg Leslie, MD, physician, assistant professor of medicine, clinical and interim division chief, and Michael Devine, DO, physician and assistant professor of medicine, both of Hospital Medicine and their recent initiative to help address patient flow challenges.

In this month’s Innovation Spotlight, we feature Michael Devine, DO, a physician and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine, who is currently leading an innovative initiative to improve discharge orders at UMass. In a new conversation with Dr. Devine, he discusses the drivers of this initiative, results thus far, and goals for future applications. 

The eICU program at UMass Memorial Health is leading exciting new efforts to improve efficiency and patient outcomes in intensive care units across Central Massachusetts.

Frail geriatric patients are vulnerable to acute stressors including hospitalizations. They can become more vulnerable when they transition from one environment to another and need additional support when recovering from acute stressors. When patients go home from the hospital, they usually receive a follow-up telephone call within 48-72 hours of their discharge from the primary care or geriatric clinic as part of transitional care management.