SMJ // February 2021, Volume 114 - Issue 2

Original Article

Percentage of Black Population and Primary Care Shortage Areas Associated with Higher COVID-19 Case and Death Rates in Georgia Counties

Objectives: We hypothesized that the proportion of Black individuals in a county would be associated with higher rates of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases and deaths, even after accounting for other high-risk socioecologic factors such as poverty, population density, and household crowding, and uninsured rates. We also expected that counties…

Original Article

Attended Automated Office Blood Pressure Measurement Versus Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring in a Primary Healthcare Setting in Chile

Objectives: As part of the HEARTS in the Americas initiative, Chilean primary healthcare centers have implemented novel hypertension management strategies, including new diagnostic approaches. This study evaluated the concordance between attended automated office blood pressure (AOBP) measurements with an oscillometric device and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM). Methods: This was…

Original Article

Changes in For-Profit Medication-Assisted Therapy Clinics in an Appalachian City

Objectives: This study is a follow-up to previous research regarding buprenorphine medication-assisted therapy (MAT) in Johnson City, Tennessee. For-profit MAT clinics were surveyed to determine changes in tapering practice patterns and insurance coverage during the last 3 years. Methods: Johnson City for-profit MAT clinics; also called office based opioid treatment…

Original Article

Young Adult Males’ Perspectives of Male Hormonal Contraception

Objective: To evaluate the willingness of young adult males to use male hormonal contraception and to determine the most desirable formulation. Methods: An institutional review board–approved survey measuring the willingness to use MHC was dispersed to two distinct populations: University of Cincinnati postgraduate programs and Cincinnati Health Department clinics. Questions…

Original Article

Improving Fecal Immunochemical Testing Rates for Colon Cancer Screening in the Outpatient Setting

Objectives: The amount of colorectal cancer (CRC) screening using the noninvasive fecal immunochemical test (FIT) at a federally qualified health center, Five Rivers Health Clinic (Dayton, Ohio), has been low historically. Our quality improvement (QI) project aimed to improve CRC screening adherence in eligible patients who opted for FIT. Methods:…

Original Article

Psychiatric Comorbidity and Associated Professional Mental Health Utilization among Students in Recovery from Addiction in Southern Collegiate Recovery Communities

Objectives: This pilot study explores the additional psychiatric problems and their associated professional mental health utilization by students in recovery from addiction in collegiate recovery communities (CRCs) across the US South. The article has three goals: introduce CRCs to a broad medical audience; identify coexisting psychiatric concerns among students in…

Original Article

High Prevalence of Diabetes Mellitus and Mental Illness Among Victims of Sudden Death

Objectives: Diabetes mellitus (DM) increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and is associated with sudden death. Mental illness among individuals with DM may confound medical care. This study assessed the association of mental illness with DM and poorly controlled DM in sudden death victims. Methods: We screened out-of-hospital deaths ages…

Original Article

Maternity Units in Rural Hospitals in North Carolina: Successful Models for Staffing and Structure

Objectives: Almost 15% of all US births occur in rural hospitals, yet rural hospitals are closing at an alarming rate because of shortages of delivering clinicians, nurses, and anesthesia support. We describe maternity staffing patterns in successful rural hospitals across North Carolina. Methods: All of the hospitals in the state…

Original Article

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis: Preoperative Vedolizumab and Postoperative Complications in Patients with IBD

Objectives: The effect of vedolizumab on postoperative outcomes in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) remains unclear. We aimed to determine the relation between preoperative vedolizumab and early postoperative complications in patients with IBD undergoing abdominal surgery. Methods: A search of databases and abstracts from gastroenterology conferences was performed. Primary…

Original Article

Using a Resident-Led School Outreach Program to Improve Knowledge of All-Terrain Vehicle Safety

Background: During the past decade, all-terrain vehicle (ATV)–related injuries treated in US emergency departments decreased by 33%, down to approximately 100,000 injuries in 2016. In comparison, the number of children evaluated for ATV injuries in the Children’s of Alabama emergency department more than doubled between 2006 and 2016, counter to…

Original Article

CME Article: Supporting Trainees by Addressing Inappropriate Behaviors by Patients

Objectives: Physicians in training may be particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of discrimination and inappropriate behaviors by patients. We sought to determine the frequency of inappropriate behaviors by patients toward Internal Medicine (IM) residents, residents’ confidence to manage the behaviors, and differences among demographic characteristics, including race, sex, and…

Original Article

Integrating Women’s Health Education into the Internal Medicine Residency Program Curriculum

Objectives: National guidelines and the American Board of Internal Medicine have highlighted critical areas of women’s health (WH) that are important to the training of Internal Medicine (IM) residents. Our objective was to assess and improve WH education in a large academic community-based IM residency program. Methods: An anonymous online…

Perspectives

Nutrition Education in Family Medicine Residency Training

Roughly half of American adults suffer from preventable, diet-related chronic disease, including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, osteoporosis, and obesity.1 Long-term adverse conditions are associated with obesity,2 but despite a $66 billion weight-loss industry3 and numerous initiatives by both the government and the medical community, obesity remains pervasive. The…

Perspectives

Recovering Critical Curriculum: Hypothesis-Driven Physical Examination as a Method to Increase Clinical Skills Teaching When Bedside Teaching Remains Limited

Medical students have re-entered their clinical training in a milieu that is vastly different from the one familiar to us. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic shifted vital curriculum into the virtual setting; however, some aspects of clinical education are immobile because they are rooted to one thing: bedside teaching….

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