InformER MARCH 2021 Chairman’s Message James Ziadeh, MD Dear Friends and Colleagues, safe, too many people avoided Interim Chair EMERGENCY This past year has been incredibly chal- getting the emergency care they Emergency lenging for all of us in so many ways. needed, creating a unique pandemic Medicine MED ICINE When COVID-19 first hit the shores of within a pandemic. Fortunately, I RESIDENCY the United States, I don’t think anyone believe we have turned the corner quite knew the impact it would have on and we have begun to see our nor- Opioid Partnership grant and in so many facets of our lives. From our mal mix of patients return albeit at a doing so, we are saving lives. lower volume. In reflecting back on personal lives to our professional ca- Our Geriatric Emergency Medicine the earliest days of the pandemic, reers and ultimately how we function as program, funded through a gener- what makes me most proud is how INSIDE THIS a society, this pandemic will fundamen- ous philanthropic gift from the Dan- our physicians, residents, APP’s, ISSUE: tally change how we do things in the tos family, has continued to evolve, nurses, and others pulled together future in ways that we likely can’t fully and in 2020 we achieved Level 2 to support one another through a Chairman’s 1 comprehend quite yet. In Southeastern Geriatric Accreditation through very difficult time. There are still Message Michigan, Beaumont Health was espe- ACEP. Our goal is to continue grow- challenges ahead but with increas- Alumni Update 2 cially hard hit by the pandemic, effec- ing the program and the associated ing vaccine availability, there’s light tively shutting down all aspects of a Geriatric Emergency Medicine Fel- EM Education 3 at the end of the tunnel. normal operation. Hospitals throughout lowship with plans to reach level 1 PEM Fellowship 4 our health system and across south- Despite the clinical challenges that accreditation in the coming year. eastern Michigan were essentially con- the COVID pandemic presented, our Residents & One of the true highlights of this last 5 verted into COVID hospitals. In many Department has continued to focus Fellows year was the naming of our new ways this was predictable considering on all of our missions. We continue Emergency Center, now called the Milestones 6 the rapid spread of the virus. However, to develop new programs that sup- Stuart H. Blanck Emergency Center. the impact on our Emergency Centers port our most vulnerable patients. Through a substantial gift by Mr. was a bit unexpected. While everyone Our national struggle with the opi- Black, a local Michigan business was preparing for our EC’s to become oid epidemic has forced Emergency owner, he was honored with the overwhelmed with high acuity patients, Centers across the country to reex- naming rights to our EC. His gener- what we in fact saw was a dramatic amine how they approach not only ous gift, along with those of many drop in our volumes. Much of this vol- opioid utilization in emergency but others, will allow us to support the ume drop was likely fear driven in the also how to help manage patients clinical and academic missions of early days of the pandemic with pa- who present to our EC struggling our Department for years to come. tients actively avoiding hospitals in with opioid use disorder. I previous- hopes of preventing contact with COVID ly highlighted the work our Depart- Lastly, I want to thank our entire -19. Despite efforts to reassure our ment has done implementing an health care team for their commit- community that EC’s in the region were Alternatives to Opioids (ALTO) pro- ment to one another and to our gram. Through this endeavor, we patients and families who have en- have been successful in decreasing trusted us with their care. Also, opioid usage in the EC while effec- thank you to the Emergency Medi- tively addressing the comfort needs cine residency and faculty alumni of our patients. As an evolution of who have helped build a Depart- our commitment to the national ment with a legacy we can all be opioid epidemic, we recently insti- proud of. tuted a Medication-assisted treat- Regards, Jamie ment program through a Michigan Alumni Update As an EM resident at Beaumont, I devel- as a Public Health Crisis” and “Creating a Culture of Anti- Discrimination in our Emergency Departments and Healthcare oped a deep appreciation for the social and policy factors that influence our pa- Institutions,” both of which were ultimately passed. Through tients’ health. The emergency depart- these resolutions we were excited for ACEP to reaffirm its com- mitment to recognizing and addressing the social determinants ment is the ultimate safety net, and we of health, resolve that ACEP use its voice to support members emergency physicians have the privilege who seek to reform discriminatory systems more broadly, and and the burden of caring for the most recognize that emergency departments and related institutions vulnerable in our society. It isn’t long must integrate frameworks of anti-discrimination. We also co- before we become painfully aware of sponsored “ACEP Membership and Leadership,” which empha- how many of our patient’s problems sizes the importance of diversity in our organizations and in their leadership, and directs ACEP to create a plan to improve James Maloy, MD need more than we can offer as individu- als— when a patient suffers from pov- ACEPs own diversity and to present an annual diversity report Class of 2020 to the council. erty, unstable housing, addiction, vio- lence, food insecurity, lack of health insurance, or a host of oth- I was also proud to personally cosponsor a resolution advo- er factors, so much of our technologically advanced medical care cating for Medicare-for-All (written by and supported by many feels more like a wet band-aid on deeper problems. Further- members of the Michigan local chapter), which generated an more, we emergency physicians find ourselves disempowered important discussion and I believe moves the needle forward by for-profit insurance companies, an economic recession, regu- on that important issue, despite falling short of passing. latory and reimbursement issues, and many other challenges I’m excited for what the next year will bring. Through the sec- that make it harder to care for our patients. Now more than ond year of the fellowship, I’ll finish my Masters Degree in Pub- ever, emergency physicians need to have a seat at the table to lic Health and am currently exploring office placement oppor- shape health policy and advocate for public health. tunities to work with the US Congress, a thinktank, or another That’s why I’m so excited in my current role as a fellow in health advocacy organization. policy at the George Washington University Department of I’m so grateful for my Beaumont education and how it pre- Emergency Medicine in Washington, D.C. It has been a challeng- pared me to advocate for patients, both inside the walls of the ing first several months in Washington with an unstable, ever ED and outside of them. I hope to excite more Beaumont resi- changing political environment. We’ve all had to adapt our lives dents to get more involved in the arenas of health policy and to social distancing requirements and virtual meetings, and the public health! same has held true in the world of policy and advocacy. -James Maloy The 2020 ACEP Council meeting was virtual this year but was very productive. The ACEP council is the legislative body of the American College of Emergency Physicians, and it sets the na- tional agenda for the organization for the coming year. I previ- ously had the honor of participating on the council as a resident as an alternate councilor thanks to the mentorship of two of Beaumont’s many excellent faculty members committed to ad- vocacy and to education, Dr. Michael Gratson and Dr. Bradford Walters. This year, I served as one of four councilors from the local DC chapter. Given the national conversation regarding po- lice brutality and structural racism (with our own back yard often center stage) and the toll those things take on public James Maloy is a current fellow in Health Policy. As a resident, he was highly involved in advocacy efforts to ensure access to personal protective equipment health, we felt ACEP had a responsibility to take a stand. The DC for Emergency Center workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. He is currently chapter authored two resolutions, “Addressing Systemic Racism pursuing a Master of Public Health degree in Health Policy at GWU, while work- ing clinically at the VA Medical Center and United Medical Center in DC. P A G E 2 Emergency Education Updates The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted nearly every aspect of life, and medical education has been no ex- ception. Despite the challenges that this pandemic has brought, our faculty, trainees, and program manag- ers have been nimble to maneuver residency education in our ever-changing world. We recently finished up a completely virtual interview season where recruitment and selection presented a unique challenge for us and our medical students. Without visiting rotations and in-person tours, we relied heavily on online resources, social media, and virtual meet and greets to provide information to prospective applicants. On the upside, without the cost and time burden associated with travel, we conducted a record- breakingThe Department number of ofinterviews. Emergency We continue to attract highly competitive applicants and expect a very suc- cessfulMedicine match at this Beaumont coming Healthweek! continues to rack up educational Throughaccomplishments.