"The News" for August 2011  

Duty Hours Reminder

August is Duty Hours month! ALL RESIDENTS, PLEASE make sure to log all of your duty hours in E*value. This is critical for our continued accreditation. If you have any questions about how to do this, please don't hesitate to stop by the central office.

In-Training Exam and Resident Evaluations  

The Annual ABFM In-Training Exam is being held on Friday, October 28th for all Family Medicine residents in Knowles Hall at Memorial Campus.

The two session times will be: 7:30-11:30 am and 12:30-4:30 pm with breakfast and lunch served beforehand.

 
Dates for residents' "6-Month Evaluations" have been scheduled: 

Nov. 1 -  Hahnemann
Nov. 8  - Barre 
Nov. 15 - Family Health
 

All evaluations are conducted on Jaquith-2 and take about 30 minutes.        

Foundations Swing
Our Worcester interns along with our first-year psychology fellow joined Dr. James Broadhurst on July 25 for the second annual Foundations Block swing. The day's stops began at Family Medicine Associates in Shrewsbury before stopping at Plumley Village Health Services, Edward Kennedy Health Center, Hahnemann Family Health Center of Worcester, Barre Family Health Center
and Family Health Center of  Worcester.
  

Dr. Katherine Barnard, Medical Director
at Plumley Village, with our residents   

 

New Residency Advancement Criteria Approved

The recently approved Advancement Criteria have been sent out to all residents to view as well as sent to education directors to share with faculty. This is an effort to create transparency about the expectations of residents as they advance from one PGY level to the next. Transparency is intended for both residents and faculty members.  

While many elements of the criteria have been in place for years, they have not been written down in one place for residents to read. There are some new additions that have been added that coincide with trends in Family Medicine nationally as we seek to be on board with ACGME requirements. These changes include the addition of an EKG and fetal monitoring module, as well as involvement in Family Medicine at a local, regional or national level.

Please familiarize yourself with the contents of the document. If you have any specific questions, please contact Dr. Gilchrist at david.gilchrist3@umassmemorial.org

Procedures Consult

Beginning in August, the Procedures Consult has been rolled out to residents in an effort to improve procedural training. Residents should have received an email with instructions of how to access their account. Please click here for the Procedures Consult website. 
  

Recruitment Update

Our UMass contingent attended the annual AAFP Conference in Kansas City from July 28-30. Our three chief residents (below) joined Dr. Stacy Potts, Dr. Jim Ledwith, Michael Smith, seven UMass students and our Fitchburg residents at the conference this year. Dozens of applicants visited our exhibit booths with our friends from the Lawrence Family Medicine Residency joining us for our annual UMass dinner on Friday night. ERAS opens on September 1 and let the games begin for the coming year!                    

Our chief residents at the July 2011 AAFP Conference in Kansas City
                (from left):  Kristin Mallett, MD (Hahnemann); Ginny Van Duyne, MD
(Family Health) and Kylee Eagles, DO (Barre)

PGY-3:
                 9/13: Resident Meeting and Understanding Recruitment
                              and Interview Preparation

 WFMR Spotlight
Barre Family Health Center "Wellness Garden"

by Marco Cornelio, PGY-2

In an effort to promote healthy eating in the community and amongst its staff members, the Barre Family Health Center recently created an organic "Wellness Garden" on its property.

Back in May, a local community member dug up a 40x30 foot area next to the health center and filled it with donated loom. The loom was mixed with cow manure that was donated from a dairy farm owned by one of the nurses.  In the beginning of June, several residents and staff members spent the day together planting seedlings & seeds. Some of the vegetables now growing include tomatoes, lettuce, eggplant, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, string beans, squash, corn, pumpkins, spinach, and herbs.

Vegetables from the garden are now available for staff members to consume during work hours and are given to patients when they attend their appointments. The garden is also being used to teach healthy eating during the health center's group visits for patents with diabetes. 

As the garden grows, the health center plans to incorporate the community more into the project and offer public activities that will encourage healthy eating throughout the year.  Activities already being planned include workshops on canning & preserving vegetables, as well as how to start home gardens.

For more information and pictures search the "Barre Family Health Center Wellness Garden" on Facebook.