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Ways a Maternal Child Health Professional Can Engage in Policy
Felina M. Ortiz DNP, CNM, RN, FACNM and Tammy L. Thomas PhD, MSW, MPH
Presentation about how maternal child health professionals can engage in policy.
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A Recreational Sport to Promote Interprofessional Education Among Health Science Center Student-Learners
Isabella Bernino, Cameron Samrai, Dylan Werner, Alyssa West, and Vinh Tran
This work seeks to disseminate the results of a series of interprofessional education (IPE) events focused around the team sport of spikeball held at the University of New Mexico Health Science Center. Physical therapy student-learners organized and implemented a bimonthly event over the course of two scholastic semesters to bring together other graduate learners from various health profession programs including medicine, nursing, emergency medical technician, dental hygienists, and others. The events offered an opportunity for peer-to-peer education among the various student-learners in an informal environment. The peer-to-peer format of the event is novel and significant, demonstrating a method to promote IPE without the need for formal instruction. Three events were hosted with approximately 8 health science disciplines and 25 students in attendance at each event. This work will detail the event planning process, challenges, and opportunities this interactive method of IPE provided.
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College of Nursing and Dietetic Intern NG Tube Placement Training and Nutrition Assessment/Formula Selection Interprofessional Education Activity - A Student Perspective
Kimberly Jaramillo, Josephine Titus, Amanda Dunn, and Diana Gonzales-Pacheco
Introduction
University of New Mexico College of Nursing (CON) students and College of Education and Health Sciences (COEHS) dietetic interns (DI) participated in an IPE activity to fulfill the Dietetic Internship (DI) competency for (NG) tube placement and CON clinical objectives.
Methods
Fourteen pre-licensure BSN students and seven DI graduate students participated in the IPE activity. CON students presented nursing roles during NG tube placement and answered questions regarding clinical experiences. In small groups, nursing students demonstrated NG tube placement procedures using simulation mannequins, which the dietetic interns then practiced.
The dietetic interns presented the role of registered dietitian nutritionists. Their presentations included assessment, enteral feeding criteria, and types of formulas.
Results
Student feedback revealed that the IPE activity significantly emphasized the importance of interprofessional collaboration, particularly in optimal patient care regarding enteral feeding.
The IPE activity was a catalyst for fostering mutual respect and appreciation among the students. Nursing students expressed gratitude for the knowledge shared by the dietetic interns, specifically in determining enteral feeding recommendations. In contrast, the dietetic interns appreciated the feedback and hands-on experience provided by the nursing students.
Conclusion
The IPE activity successfully met the objectives and was a beneficial experience for all. Students consistently expressed the need to include other professions, such as Speech Language Pathologists, as we continue this successful IPE activity, further highlighting its effectiveness and potential for future implementation.
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Diagnostic Evaluation of Dizziness in Obstetric Triage
Annslee J. Lowe and Anna Shields
Dizziness is a non-specific term used to describe various sensations of spinning, disequilibrium, imbalance, or near-syncope. The differential diagnosis for this symptom is rather extensive and includes potentially dangerous etiologies, which contributes to the significance of diagnostic evaluation. Dizziness is a frequent concern prompting pregnant patients to seek medical care, and the hemodynamic changes that occur in pregnancy further complicate clinical assessment in obstetric (OB) triage. While often familiar with dizziness as a symptom of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, many OB triage providers experience uncertainty in working up other causes of dizziness. Root causes for uncertainty and the potential for adverse outcomes at University of New Mexico Hospital (UNMH) OB Triage were examined and found to include the lack of a centralized workflow. To address the complexities of evaluating dizziness in pregnant patients, we propose a revised workflow using a formalized decision tree. This clinical tool integrates current diagnostic recommendations with special consideration for pregnant populations, highlights when to consult specialists, and is adjusted for specific hospital policies at UNMH. This initiative aims to enhance interprofessional collaboration by streamlining the initial history-taking, laboratory investigation, and management responsibilities shared among the OB Triage care team. Overall, this project introduces a proactive interprofessional approach to the diagnostic evaluation of dizziness, aiming to prevent adverse health outcomes in pregnant patients at UNMH OB Triage.
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Diagnostic Evaluation of Palpitations in Obstetric Triage
Annslee J. Lowe and Anna Shields
Palpitations are a common reason for pregnant patients to pursue medical evaluation. The range of etiologies that can contribute to palpitations is broad and includes life-threatening causes, while the physiologic changes in systemic hemodynamics that occur in pregnancy add further complexity to medical decision making in obstetric (OB) triage. While the literature suggests that diagnostic evaluation of palpitations in pregnant patients does not meaningfully differ from that of non-pregnant patients, many OB triage providers experience uncertainty in working up palpitations in pregnancy. Within University of New Mexico Hospital (UNMH) OB Triage, underlying causes for uncertainty were assessed and found to include the lack of a centralized workflow, which can contribute to adverse outcomes. To address the challenges that exist in working up palpitations in pregnant patients at UNMH OB Triage, we propose a change to workflow using a formalized decision tree to be made available to triage clinicians. Our decision tree compiles current diagnostic recommendations, focuses on when to escalate care, and is includes special consideration for pregnant patients. This clinical resource intends to optimize interprofessional workflow, as initial history-taking, laboratory investigation, and management is a shared responsibility amongst the OB Triage care team. Ultimately, this project proposes an upstream interprofessional intervention in the diagnostic evaluation of palpitations to prevent adverse health outcomes in pregnant populations at UNMH OB Triage.
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Equitable Care During Incarceration
Lisa M. Taylor and Clarissa Spiro
There are over 2 million people in the varied US detention centers including state and federal prisons, local jails, juvenile detention facilities, Indian Country jails, military prisons, immigration detention facilities, and civil commitment centers., with an estimated 9% living with diabetes where the US average is 10% (ADA position statement, 2021). The Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) is the largest behavioral health provider in Albuquerque, outside of the corrections facilities, but this jail also has acute and chronic care access for inmates, as well as addiction medicine. The population is vulnerable to gaps in care and poor health outcomes due to the nature of care available in a jail setting vs. a prison setting. One example is those patients living with diabetes (T1 or T2). The American Diabetes Association’ 2024 clinical guidelines outline the appropriate medications to begin when a patient is not meeting blood glucose level (BGL ) targets. The two classes of medications are known as SGLT-2’s and GLP1-RA’s, neither of which is available in MDC. What is critical is how to best manage those not meeting BGL targets with limited resources. How is evidence-grounded diabetes care to be delivered in a setting where the guidelines are not completely in place due to budget and other restrictions?
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Institution-wide Strategy for Increasing Diversity in Healthcare Professions
Rhudovic Ramos, Anna Lee, and Amy Greene
The goal of this study is to describe and evaluate the federally funded health professions program at the University of New Mexico (UNM), the Undergraduate Student Scholars Program (USSP), which aims to support educationally or economically disadvantaged students interested in pursuing healthcare professions and working with medically underserved populations. The USSP is a yearly program that aims to support students with monthly career development workshops. Enrollment into the program requires an application process that includes short essay responses demonstrating their interests in healthcare. A post-program survey was sent to all participants in the 2023–2024 academic year upon completion of the program evaluating student satisfaction with the program and sociocultural competence before and after the program using a Likert scale of low, medium, and high. Twenty students enrolled at UNM, NM Highlands University, San Juan College, and Santa Fe Community College are participating in the USSP program. Out of the 20 participants, 18 (90%) responded to the post-program survey. At the end of the program, students demonstrated increased confidence in developing a mindset of cultural humility. Key program improvements based on participant feedback include implementing a more accommodating schedule for workshops, diversifying the selection of presenters to cater to various interests, and organizing team-building activities. The need to diversify the healthcare workforce becomes imperative in mitigating sociocultural barriers to health equity. The implementation of an academic enrichment program, Undergraduate Student Scholars Program, at UNM is effective in fostering healthcare career interests and providing institutional support for economically and educationally disadvantaged students.
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Interprofessional Activities of the Clinical Dietetics Club of UNM: Presentations on Disease and Cooking for Therapy
Arlin Diaz Torres, Jenelle Audrienne Torres, Sergei Smishko, Izabelle Chavez, and Diana Gonzales-Pacheco
The Clinical Dietetics Club of UNM (CDCU) is a student-run organization that offers interprofessional educational activities to help close the gap in nutrition education, often lacking in medical professional training. The CDCU organized two educational presentations led by UNM faculty dietitians on critical topics, including cardiovascular disease (CVD), celiac disease, gout, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). These sessions had between 13 - 21 participants and offered informational credit. The sessions also received positive feedback, with 80% of participants in the CVD and Celiac Disease presentation and 87% in the Gout and NAFLD presentation rating the sessions as or higher than "quite well" regarding communication. The CDCU organized and performed two hands-on cooking classes for interactive credit that engaged students from various non-dietetic professions on nutrition therapy for the critical topics covered in the presentations. These classes had between 17 - 24 participants and provided a platform for future healthcare professionals to grasp the practical application of nutrition therapy in disease management. Feedback from the cooking classes was positive, with 100% of participants in the CVD and Celiac Disease class and 84% in the Gout and NAFLD class rating the sessions as or higher than "quite well" regarding collaboration. The CDCU prepares future healthcare providers to incorporate nutrition therapy into clinical practice by integrating didactic and experiential learning. This approach enhances nutrition knowledge and promotes community engagement through interprofessional collaboration, which may be crucial for improving patient outcomes and addressing diet-sensitive chronic diseases.
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Offering a Handshake in the Post-COVID World
Konstantin N. Konstantinov, Antonios H. Tzamaloukas, and Nikifor K. Konstantinov
Keynote Presentation
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Quality Improvement: Supporting Vulnerable Patients in Medicaid Enrollment
Annslee J. Lowe, Sahana Ummadi, and Riana R. Wurzburger
Many patients experiencing homelessness also lack health insurance. These patients are often eligible for federal insurance programs, but lack the resources needed to enroll. Well-meaning clinicians and social workers generally do not have the time or resources to address these disparities. The lack of a centralized process for Medicaid enrollment for patients experiencing homelessness perpetuates adverse health outcomes due to multiple factors. 1) Lack of care: avoidance of seeking health care and minimal preventative care; 2) poor quality care: compared to patients with more resources; 3) lack of follow-up: in part due to unreliable contact information; and 4) “non-adherence”: often due to a lack of financial resources. To mitigate these factors, root causes for adverse outcomes at UNMH were examined and found to include a lack of a centralized process to guide patients in Medicare/ Medicaid enrollment, as well as a lack of clear roles within the care team. Through a quality improvement lens, we propose a patient instruction guide paired with an updated discharge-planning process which includes addressing concerns about insurance status. This process includes specific role delineation within care teams to concomitantly bolster interprofessional collaboration. Overall, this quality improvement project proposes an upstream intervention to prevent adverse health outcomes in under-resourced and uninsured populations experiencing homelessness.
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Script Your Future 2024
Alexander Nihart, Nicholas Olivas, Kaitlyn Zbylut, Amy Bachyrycz, and Melissa Martinez
Script Your Future (SYF) is an annual campaign run by the National Consumers League (NCL) which promotes health outreach by health professions students. A number of focus areas are established each year, with the foundation being the promotion of medication adherence. The UNM College of Pharmacy student leaders, with assistance from the IPE office, called for students from all programs on the Health Science Center (HSC) campus to come together as a part of SYF.
This is extremely important because, as the NCL states, medication adherence is a cornerstone of effective disease treatment, with non-adherence being the cause of an estimated 25% of hospitalizations and 3 out of 4 Americans not taking their medications as directed. The core leaders team for SYF reached out to all UNM HSC students for their participation in this initiative. The SYF team included representation from many health professional programs on campus, such as College of Pharmacy, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, Physician Assistant Program, Physical Therapy Program, Occupational Therapy Program, and College of Population Health.
Two main events were conducted this year, with each being multidisciplinary and advertised to the entire HSC student body. The first event took place at the Los Ranchos Growers Market, in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, New Mexico where the team provided education for both childhood and adult vaccines to the general public and local communities, in cooperation with the New Mexico Department of Health. The second event was at the Broadmoor Senior Center in Rio Rancho, New Mexico where we performed medication histories & assessments, cognitive screenings, and fall risk screenings.
The SYF goals for this year included vaccine confidence and medication adherence directives. Additional goals included prescription and over-the-counter medication safety. Taking medications as prescribed and by the patient’s provider is essential to improve health outcomes and appropriately manage disease states for our patients. During the SYF communication, we also used our outreach platform to encourage people to remember to use reputable online vendors and only take medications that have been prescribed or recommended to them by their provider.
Script your Future sets a solid framework for all of the UNM HSC students to take our existing skills, learned knowledge, communication techniques, and ongoing outreach efforts to expand levels of interprofessional education and collaboration. These events accomplish better integration for our patients, application for our students, improve patient outcomes, and enhance comprehensive patient care.
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Students Exploring Careers in Occupational Therapy
Shayna Kymes and Mary Thelander
To engage students from rural and underserved communities, the Occupational Therapy Graduate Program participated in a Students Exploring Careers in Health (SECiH) event. We introduced the students to Occupational Therapy (OT) during the morning and provided three examples of assessments during the afternoon portion. We chose to have them explore one handed baby dressing, name as many animals as they can in 60 seconds per the Animal Naming Test (ANT) and the Minnesota Spatial Relations Test. We chose these assessments as the ANT is an equipment free test that can be given bedside to test for minimal or covert hepatic encephalopathy (MHE), the Minnesota Spatial Relations Test has the individual fit many irregularly shaped blocks into a form board, and baby dressing techniques as many people experience single sided injuries and have to perform activities of daily living (ADLs) such as child care. Students were able to successfully complete all activities and were provided with a broader understanding of why OT is valuable in the healthcare profession and the many different ways in which OT implements assessments to better understand how to help people given their physical and cognitive abilities.
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The Intersection of COVID-19 and Rural Health Infrastructure: Evidence from Rural New Mexicans
Maria Gaboldon-Parish and Kate Cartwright
Rural communities experience notable health disparities compared to urban areas. These include an aging population with higher illness rates, worsened by inadequate healthcare infrastructure. Shortages in healthcare facilities, supplies, testing sites, and medical personnel further exacerbate these disparities, especially in remote areas. Addressing these challenges is crucial for equitable healthcare delivery and improving health outcomes statewide. Our goal is to analyze rural New Mexican residents’ perceptions of their community’s infrastructure and its interconnection with health. Key themes include (1) the disparities in community and public resources available, (2) limited access to healthcare facilities due to distance, staff shortages, and limited specialty care, and (3) the critical role of family networks and social infrastructure. In 2020 and 2021, we conducted and analyzed 67 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with adults living in rural New Mexican counties which covered a range of topics related to the pandemic including health infrastructure challenges. Findings from our study provide insight into rural NM health care infrastructure challenges and in addition add the perspective of how rural community infrastructure including transportation, internet accessibility, support for economic, employment, and educational stability also impact health care and health outcomes.
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UNM HSC Students Address Low Rate Childhood COVID Vaccination via Podcasts
Taylor Russell, Anna Pounds, Cat Tally, Amy Bachyrycz, Melissa Martinez, and Melissa Mason
The rates of COVID vaccination in children are alarmingly low in New Mexico. Medical, Pharmacy, and Nursing Students at UNM HSC joined with the New Mexico Pediatric Society to address the root causes of low immunizations rates in two podcasts. In a series of meetings, those involved, learned about and discussed low vaccine COVID vaccine rates in children and brainstormed reasons why rates may be low. Two podcasts were created, researched, and scripted. The podcasts each had a different focus, with one podcast specific for parents and guardians and the other podcast made more towards health care workers. Each twenty-minute podcast focused on presenting the most up-to-date information to answer frequently asked questions surrounding vaccine safety, hesitancy, NM vaccination rates, and other significant topics. Both podcasts are available for listening on all streaming platforms as episodes of the PedX podcast. This was truly an interdisciplinary team effort, intended to provide current information and education about COVID-19 vaccines to help families, physicians, pharmacists, nurses, and all other health care providers, to make informed decisions regarding COVID vaccinations in children.
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An Interprofessional Case-Based Activity on Transgender Health Care: A Multi-Program Student-Faculty Collaboration to Promote Interprofessional Education for Addressing Gender Minority Health Disparities
Jonathan Hulse, Tk King, Lucia Vulcan, Pamela Gonzales, Jada Gooden, Molly McClain, Miranda Aragon, Kelsea Aragon, Heidi H. Rogers, and Ann Morrison
The LGBTQ+ community experiences unique health needs that many healthcare providers do not possess adequate training to address. This critical barrier to promoting the health of the LGBTQ+ population contributes to health disparities and discrimination. This is particularly salient for the transgender population who experience high rates of discrimination and have difficulty accessing gender affirming care (GAC). The World Professional Association for Transgender Health recommends an interprofessional team-based approach to providing GAC to gender diverse patients. Unfortunately, the siloed approach to training healthcare providers in their respective fields stifles interprofessional collaborative learning and hinders this necessary team-based approach to caring for transgender patients. To address this need, we developed a three-hour case-based activity implemented through the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Office for Interprofessional Education (IPE) that included students from the UNM School of Medicine and Physician Assistant Program, College of Nursing, and College of Pharmacy. The session included a lecture from a physician specialist in GAC, small-group discussions working through a case involving a transgender adolescent seeking GAC services across the lifespan, and a large group Q-&-A discussion with a panel of experts including healthcare providers and social workers with experience serving the transgender community. A voluntary retrospective pre-post-survey instrument was administered to assess how well the session objectives were met and provide opportunity for feedback. An additional survey was provided for students using the activity to get IPE Honors Credit to assess how well the session facilitated interprofessional learning. Students reported self-rated improvements in each of the objective domains that were assessed and scored the activity highly in several domains of the Interprofessional Collaborative Competencies Attainment Survey.
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Assessing the Impact of a Shinrin-Yoku (Forest Bathing) Intervention on Physician/Healthcare Professional Burnout: A Randomized, Controlled Trial
John Kavanaugh, Mark E. Hardison, Heidi Honegger Rogers, Crystal White, and Jessica Gross
The practice of Shinrin-Yoku (Forest Bathing) is a specific evidence-based practice which research has shown can improve an individual’s mental health. We investigated the impact of a guided Shinrin-Yoku (Forest Bathing) nature-based intervention on burnout symptoms among physicians and other healthcare workers by using a randomized, controlled trial. Ultimately, no statistically significant differences were detected between the pre-test and post-test scores for the intervention group or between the post-test scores of the intervention group compared to the control group. However, the subjective responses collected from participants after participating in the Shinrin-Yoku walk overwhelmingly reported decreased feelings of stress and increased mental wellbeing. This raises important questions about the difference between symptoms of burnout and other aspects of mental health, as well as the limitations of a one-time nature-based intervention on levels of chronic burnout symptoms. Thus, further research on the effects of engaging healthcare providers in an ongoing practice of Shinrin-Yoku is warranted. The research study for this grant was published here: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/21/14505
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Office of Interprofessional Education: IPE HONORS Program
Heidi Rogers and Patricia Marshik
To assist the HSC Colleges in meeting their Interprofessional Education accreditation requirements, and prepare students for effective patient centered practice, the HSC Office of Interprofessional Education designed and implemented an innovative interprofessional education (IPE) Honors program (the first in the United States) in the Summer of 2019. The standard definition of IPE is, “Interprofessional Education happens when two or more professionals learn with, and from each other to enable effective collaboration and improve health outcomes.” (WHO, 2010) This program was built through a dynamic and responsive partnership with health professions students from multiple programs. The program was piloted in the 2019/2020 academic year and by May 2020, the first twenty students were awarded a certificate of IPE Honors upon graduation. There have been 54 students who have earned IPE Honors and currently 650 students are enrolled in the program. The certificate’s seven requirement categories were built on the IPEC Core Competencies: Teamwork, Communication, Values and Ethics, Roles and Responsibilities. The IPE Office supports IPE by offering seminars, IPEP elective courses, research opportunities, and other programming highlighting the benefits of interprofessionalism and interprofessional practice. This poster will show program history, results, and provide attendees information about how to be involved in the program.
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Perspectives on Rural Maternity Care in New Mexico
Felina Mychelle Ortiz, Tammy Thomas, and Laura Migliaccio
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The Human Gut Microbiome
Tammy J. Ladue
Although the gut microbiome has been known for many years, it wasn’t until the mid-1970’s that a relationship was hypothesized in medical journals. With the advent of the Human Genome Project in 2001 (Adak & Khan, 2019) further investigation into the types and relationship of the microbes in the GI tract were seriously studied.
Utilizing DNA & RNA tracking and culture techniques found during the Genome Project, more information was found on the Gut Microbiome. It was as of 2017 that the knowledge on the Microbiome began to show promise. It has been speculated that the GI tract has approximately 10 times more bacterial cells that the human body itself, and 100 times more DNA & RNA than the human genome although this has been recently revised to a 1:1 ratio (Thursby & Jug, 2017).
The microbiota of the GI tract has a high degree of redundancy in their functions of immunity, structure, energy, and protection which are due to location and the environment of where they are in the GI tract as well as external factors that may affect the biome.
The following presentation is an introduction to the Human Gut Microbiome.
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The UNM School of Law and HSC Office of Interprofessional Education 4th Annual Values, Ethics, and Shared Decision-Making Conference on The New Autonomy, Access to Reproductive Health Services, and Gender Affirming Care
University of New Mexico and University of New Mexico - School of Law
The UNM School of Law and HSC Office of Interprofessional Education 4th Annual Values, Ethics, and Shared Decision-Making Conference on The New Autonomy, Access to Reproductive Health Services, and Gender Affirming Care.
Conversations on Law Perspective Autonomy and the Law
Rob Schwartz - 25 minutes
Maryam Ahranjani 10 minutes
John Banzhaf - 5 minutes
Q and A - 5 minutes
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The UNM School of Law and HSC Office of Interprofessional Education 4th Annual Values, Ethics, and Shared Decision-Making Conference on The New Autonomy, Access to Reproductive Health Services, and Gender Affirming Care
University of New Mexico and University of New Mexico - School of Law
The UNM School of Law and HSC Office of Interprofessional Education 4th Annual Values, Ethics, and Shared Decision-Making Conference on The New Autonomy, Access to Reproductive Health Services, and Gender Affirming Care
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