On Monday, April 30, nearly 900 investigators, educators, innovators, and associates came together at the 7th annual MedStar Health Research Symposium. Nearly 350 research posters and abstracts were presented by MedStar investigators and residents in eleven research areas. This event was also the second system-wide Resident Research Day, bringing residents and fellows from all of MedStar Health’s graduate medical education training programs.
The day opened with Pre-Symposium Professional Development and Advancement Sessions in the early afternoon. Each session focuses on a specific academic topic. Topics spanned the MedStar Health research environment, from navigating the IRB process to joining the Georgetown University Medical Center as a faculty member to a review of the most commonly utilized statistical tests for research. These sessions were led by experts from the MedStar research team.
Following the engaging educational sessions, top scoring residents and fellows presented their research in the White Flint Amphitheatre, with the presentations live-streamed to the main ballroom. Moderated by Munish Goyal, MD, FACEP, 2018 Symposium Vice Chair, the selected residents presented their research to a packed room. Resident and fellow presenters were:
- Aline Camargo, MD
Sepsis and Altered Mental Status—the Value of CT Head Imaging
- Mausam Kuvadia, MD
Infection Prevention in the Anesthesia Work Environment
- John Burkett, MD
The Use of Sphenopalatine Ganglion Block as a Treatment for Primary Headache Disorders—a Survey of the American Headache Society Membership
- Sumit Kunwar, MD
Efficacy and Safety of Baricitinib in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis—a Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
- Elizabeth Coviello, DO
Blood Loss by Technique that Predicts Postpartum Transfusion in Women With Postpartum Hemorrhage
Research at MedStar was on full display in the ballroom, showcasing high-caliber research from across the spectrum of healthcare. Each of the presented abstracts in the main ballroom was blind peer-reviewed by two members of the Scientific Committee prior to presentation. For the first year, the Symposium also included moderated poster sessions for the top 20% of resident submissions.
The Research Symposium also included exhibits the MedStar Institute for Innovation (MI2), MedStar Philanthropy, the Georgetown-Howard Universities Center for Clinical and Translational Sciences (GHUCCTS), and the MedStar Health Research Institute (MHRI). MI2 presented their interactive MATCH (Matching Abstracts To Catalyze Healthcare) to connect researchers with potential collaborators through their poster submissions. The MedStar Philanthropy team reminded attendees that “Gratitude Matters” for research. From MHRI, the Office of Research Development, Office of Research Integrity, the Department of Biostatistics and Biomedical Informatics were among those on site to discuss how they can support research.
On the main stage in the ballroom, Stephen Evans, MD, Executive Vice President, Medical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer, MedStar Health, welcomed all the attendees to the event and reminded attendees of the importance of research. Edward B. Healton, MD, Executive Vice President, Health Sciences and Executive Dean, Georgetown University School of Medicine, highlighted the great work of residents and the impact of the MedStar Health partnership with Georgetown University.
Neil J.Weissman, MD, Chief Scientific Officer, MedStar Health and President, MedStar Health Research Institute, introduced the “Gratitude Matters” video, which highlighted two MedStar Health research patients, their treatments and the impact that research has had on their lives. We were honored to have one of the patients and his family at the event, along with all the clinicians who are a part of the two research programs highlighted in attendance.
Dr. Weissman also presented awards to the top three outstanding faculty abstracts to Anna Day, Tracy Kim and Natalie Shammas. Learn more about their research here.
Jamie S. Padmore, DM, MSc, Vice President, Academic Affairs, MedStar Health, presented awards to the top scoring residents & fellows for their research abstracts. She also presented the 2018 Scholarly Excellence in Leadership Education Curriculum and Training (SELECT) grants to five educators to support their research into physician wellness and well-being.
2018 Research Symposium was made possible under the leadership of the 2018 Committee Chair, Ana Barac, MD, PhD and Vice Chair, Munish Goyal, MD. The Symposium would not have been possible without the support of MedStar Health Research Institute and Academic Affairs associates who planned, prepared and staffed the event. The Pre-Symposium Professional Development and Advancement Sessions were facilitated by Emily Paku, PMP. The moderated poster session was facilitated by Cathy Gurgol.
The 2018 Symposium was live-tweeted on both the @MedStarHealth and @MedStarResearch accounts. View the #MedStarResearch18 tag on Twitter to see all the posts from the event. To see more photos of the event, please visit Notes from Neil.
If you have any questions about research or would like to be connected to an investigator or other resources, please contact research@medstar.net.
