A mammogram is not known for being a relaxing, comfortable or pleasant experience, but it is a necessary annual preventive measure to ensure well-being for all women. UM Shore Regional Health is taking steps to ensure the experience is as comfortable as possible by offering patients a new option in mammograms: The GE Senographe Pristina™ with Dueta. The machine is available at the Diagnostics and Imaging Center at UM Shore Medical Pavilion at Queenstown, 125 Shoreway Drive.

A mammogram screening is appropriate for all at-risk women and any woman over age 40. Using an X-ray to take pictures of the breast, the screening is used to detect the presence of breast cancer in women, even those who have no sign or symptom of the disease. Getting a routine breast exam and mammogram can help detect cancer early, improving the chance it can be treated successfully.

Designed by women and for women, the Senographe Pristina with Dueta, a patient-assisted compression device, offers simplified, more comfortable positioning and compression, and improved image quality. Proper positioning and better image quality can reduce the need for repeat scans. And the patient-assisted compression device puts the patient in control of breast compression, reducing pain and anxiety surrounding mammogram screenings.

Photo: Holly Daly, mammography technologist at UM Shore Medical Pavilion at Queenstown’s Diagnostic and Imaging Center, is pictured with the GE Senographe Pristina™ with Dueta. 

“We know the amount of breast compression applied during the mammogram directly influences image quality and radiation dose to the patient,” said Holly Daly, mammography technologist at UM Shore Medical Pavilion at Queenstown’s Diagnostics and Imaging Center. “With the Pristina Dueta remote control device and the assistance of the technologist, patients can now be in control of the finishing compression adjustments, which in turn leads to more comfortable mammograms, clearer mammogram images, less radiation dose to breast tissue, and a reduction of repeat exposures and call-backs.”

Daly said studies with the Pristina Dueta have shown that patients are able to tolerate more breast compression than with previous mammograms and patient satisfaction is improved.

Additionally, with the Senographe Pristina, UM SRH can now bring 3D technology to our patients. This technology, also known as digital breast tomosynthesis, delivers superior diagnostic accuracy at the same low dose as a 2D mammography exam, the lowest patient dose of all FDA-approved 3D mammography systems. The technology uses a low-dose short X-ray “sweep” around the positioned breast with nine exposures acquired with a “step-and-shoot” method. This helps remove any movement of the x-ray tube, reducing blur and increasing image sharpness.

“The exam will be more comfortable and accurate, and the patient can be confident the images will remain high quality, even with their assistance with compression,” Daly said. “I am excited we can now offer this technology to our patients and give them the opportunity to participate in their care.”

For more information about scheduling a mammogram at the Diagnostics and Imaging Center at UM Shore Medical Pavilion at Queenstown, patients should contact their primary care physician or call the UM SRH Central Scheduling line, 410-822-1000, ext. 2600, and ask to schedule a mammogram at that location. Directions and scheduling information is also available by visiting umshoreregional.org.

About University of Maryland Shore Regional Health

As part of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), University of Maryland Shore Regional Health is the principal provider of comprehensive health care services for more than 170,000 residents of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. UM Shore Regional Health’s team of more than 2,200 employees, medical staff, board members and volunteers works with various community partners to fulfill the organization’s mission of Creating Healthier Communities Together.

About the University of Maryland Medical System

The University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) is a university-based regional health care system focused on serving the health care needs of Maryland, bringing innovation, discovery and research to the care we provide and educating the state’s future physician and health care professionals through our partnership with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and University of Maryland, Baltimore professional schools (Nursing, Pharmacy, Social Work and Dentistry) in Baltimore. As one of the largest private employers in the State, the health system’s more than 29,500 employees and 4,000 affiliated physicians provide primary and specialty care in more than 150 locations, including 13 hospitals and 9 University of Maryland Urgent Care centers. The UMMS flagship academic campus, the University of Maryland Medical Center in downtown Baltimore, is recognized regionally and nationally for excellence and innovation in specialized care.  Our acute care and specialty rehabilitation hospitals serve urban, suburban and rural communities and are located in 13 counties across the State. For more information, visit www.umms.org.

University of Maryland Shore Regional Health celebrated April as National Donate Life Month with a virtual flag-raising at UM Shore Medical Center at Easton on April 16. Members of the Donor Council of UM Shore Regional Health met in the front circle to honor the families and donors who chose to give the gift of life to those in need.

Created by Donate Life America in 2003, Donate Life Month is observed annually to honor organ donors and their families’ choice to save lives. During the COVID-19 pandemic, The Living Legacy Foundation of Maryland worked with hospitals, transplant centers and healthcare partners to ensure organ transplant safety for recipients and the community. In 2020, over 39,000 lives were saved in the United States. Of these, an all-time high of 33,000 lives were saved were from deceased donors.

Photo: Shown are Trish Ebner, UM Shore Regional Health’s liaison to the Living Legacy Foundation (LLF); Jessica Fluharty, director, Critical Care and Emergency Services, UM Shore Medical Center at Easton; and Chris Wright, LLF hospital services coordinator.

“Thanks to the generosity of donors and their families, and the dedication of healthcare and transplant professionals, lives were able to be saved through donation and transplantation throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Chris Wright, hospital services coordinator for The Living Legacy Foundation of Maryland and UM Shore Regional Health.

The Donor Council of UM Shore Regional Health and The Living Legacy Foundation of Maryland educate the community about organ donation through information sessions about the donation process as well as awareness tables located in the cafeteria for hospital staff.

The education of hospital staff about the organ donation process is vital to encourage organ donation registration. Maryland registered more than 180,000 new organ donors in 2020. While half of all Marylanders are registered organ donors, more people support organ donation than registration records show.

“Educating staff enables education to the public, getting them talking and encouraging organ donation outside of work,” says Trish Ebner, UM Shore Regional Health’s liaison to The Living Legacy Foundation of Maryland. “Members of our Shore community who have experienced organ donation from the giving side have expressed a sense of comfort that even in death, their loved one was still helping others.”

To register as an organ donor, visit the Maryland Vehicle Association while obtaining or renewing a driver’s license or state ID or visit The Living Legacy Foundation online at www.thellf.org.

About University of Maryland Shore Regional Health

As part of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), University of Maryland Shore Regional Health is the principal provider of comprehensive health care services for more than 170,000 residents of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. UM Shore Regional Health’s team of more than 2,200 employees, medical staff, board members and volunteers works with various community partners to fulfill the organization’s mission of Creating Healthier Communities Together.

About the University of Maryland Medical System

The University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) is a university-based regional health care system focused on serving the health care needs of Maryland, bringing innovation, discovery and research to the care we provide and educating the state’s future physician and health care professionals through our partnership with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and the UM Schools of Nursing, Pharmacy, Social Work and Dentistry in Baltimore. As one of the largest private employers in the State, the health system’s 28,000 employees and 4,000 affiliated physicians provide primary and specialty care in more than 150 locations and at 13 hospitals. UMMS’ flagship academic campus, the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore is partnered with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and is recognized regionally and nationally for excellence and innovation in specialized care.  Our acute care and specialty rehabilitation hospitals serve urban, suburban and rural communities and are located in 13 counties across the State. For more information, visit www.umms.org.

As vaccine supply to Maryland’s Eastern Shore has increased, so have vaccination opportunities around the Mid-Shore.

“Our vaccine clinics at Chesapeake College and Shore Medical Center at Dorchester are going extremely well, and we’re especially pleased to see more than 150 teens signed up for the Pfizer vaccine,” said UM Shore Regional Health’s regional pharmacy director, Kevin Chapple. “Pfizer is currently the only vaccine approved for 16- and 17-year olds with parental or guardian consent as well as for adults. We’re hopeful that as they get vaccinated, more of their peers will follow suit.”

Photo: David Lumb getting his COVID-19 vaccination from Chesapeake College nursing instructor Nancy Henry and nursing students Arlene Brown and Ayah Alhashim.

Chapple noted that in the first six days of the clinic at Chesapeake College, 615 people were vaccinated. David Lumb, of Stevensville, was one of the first locals to receive the vaccine at the college. “It was quick and easy,” Lumb said. “Getting vaccinated was important for me so I can be protected. I can protect my friends and family, and then finally start going out again whenever we’re able to.”

UM Shore Regional Health also offers vaccinations at UM Shore Medical Pavilion at Easton, but those appointments tend to fill up quickly. Detailed information about local vaccination sites and registration can be found online at www.umms.org/shore/coronavirus/get-vaccine.

Including vaccines provided to the regional health care network’s employees, providers and volunteers, and those offered through mobile vaccination clinics at employment sites and community organizations around the Mid-Shore region, the UM SRH vaccination team has administered more than 11,000 vaccines (including first and second doses) since January 2021.

“I am both proud of and grateful to our pharmacy team and our outstanding volunteers for their amazing work in helping to protect the health of our community,” said William H. Huffner, MD, UM SRH’s Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President for Medical Affairs. “With the incidence of COVID-19 on the rise again in Maryland, we are encouraging everyone in our region who has so far been reluctant to get themselves vaccinated to register online, roll up their sleeve and get the shots.”

About University of Maryland Shore Regional Health

As part of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), University of Maryland Shore Regional Health is the principal provider of comprehensive health care services for more than 170,000 residents of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. UM Shore Regional Health’s team of more than 2,200 employees, medical staff, board members and volunteers works with various community partners to fulfill the organization’s mission of Creating Healthier Communities Together.

About the University of Maryland Medical System

The University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) is a university-based regional health care system focused on serving the health care needs of Maryland, bringing innovation, discovery and research to the care we provide and educating the state’s future physician and health care professionals through our partnership with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and University of Maryland, Baltimore professional schools (Nursing, Pharmacy, Social Work and Dentistry) in Baltimore. As one of the largest private employers in the State, the health system’s more than 29,500 employees and 4,000 affiliated physicians provide primary and specialty care in more than 150 locations, including 13 hospitals and 9 University of Maryland Urgent Care centers. The UMMS flagship academic campus, the University of Maryland Medical Center in downtown Baltimore, is recognized regionally and nationally for excellence and innovation in specialized care. Our acute care and specialty rehabilitation hospitals serve urban, suburban and rural communities and are located in 13 counties across the State. For more information, visit www.umms.org.

University of Maryland Memorial Hospital Foundation will host “Advance Directives-Who Needs One and Why” on Wednesday, April 28, 2021 from 3p.m.to 4 p.m. via Zoom.

The webinar will discuss the difference between Maryland Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment (MOLST) and advance directives, and how to ensure your advance directive communicates your wishes to health care providers. The program will also include an update on UM Shore Regional Health’s Palliative Care program.

Lakshmi Vaidyanathan, MD, MBA, Medical Director, UM Shore Regional Health Palliative Care, and Maddie Steffens, BSN, RN, CHPN, Program Coordinator UM Shore Regional Health Palliative Care, will lead the webinar.

This seminar is free and open to the public; pre-registration is required. For more information or to register, please contact Janet Andrews,410-822-1000, ext. 5792, or [email protected].

About UM Shore Regional Health: As part of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), University of Maryland Shore Regional Health is the principal provider of comprehensive health care services for more than 170,000 residents of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. UM Shore Regional Health’s team of more than 2,600 employees, medical staff, board members and volunteers work with various community partners to fulfill the organization’s mission of Creating Healthier Communities Together.

UM Memorial Hospital Foundation is a private, nonprofit organization serving the fundraising needs of UM Shore Medical Center at Easton and UM Shore Regional Health. Through its philanthropic efforts, the Foundation supports UM Shore Regional Health’s ability to provide quality healthcare to the local community by contributing to hospital programs and services.

University of Maryland Shore Regional Health (UM SRH) will host two virtual town halls this month. The sessions will focus on UM SRH’s unique opportunity to reimagine and reinvent how Marylanderson the Upper Shore access and receive healthcare.

UM SRH, backed by the University of Maryland Medical System, is proposing an approach that would see its Chestertown hospital leverage the state’s designation as a Maryland Rural Hospital as the anchor point to hospital-based care, while bringing more aging and wellness services to Kent County, making access to care even easier.

Please join us for one of two planned webinars which will include an in-depth discussion about the bright future of health care in Kent and Northern Queen Anne’s counties.

The first virtual town hall will take place at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 21, and the second listening session will take place at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 29.

To register for either session, please visit umshoreregional.org/townhall and fill out the registration forms online.

UM SRH is excited to share its vision for the future and welcomes your feedback by participating in one of the virtual town hall sessions, or by filling out and submitting the feedback form online. To access this feedback form or for more information about UM SRH’s work in Kent and Queen Anne’s counties, please visit umshoreregional.org/Chestertown.

About UM Shore Regional Health: As part of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), University of Maryland Shore Regional Health is the principal provider of comprehensive health care services for more than 170,000 residents of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. UM Shore Regional Health’s team of more than 2,600 employees, medical staff, board members and volunteers work with various community partners to fulfill the organization’s mission of Creating Healthier Communities Together.

Dennis Welsh has been named vice president, Rural Health Transformation and executive director, Shore Medical Center at Chestertown, and joined the UM Shore Regional Health (UM SRH) leadership team in early April 2021. Supporting Welsh in leading rural health transformation initiatives for UM SRH is Lara Wilson, who has been named director, Rural Health Care Transformation, UM Shore Medical Center at Chestertown, will begin in her new role in May 2021.

Welsh brings two decades of senior leadership experience in rural health care settings, including strategic planning, operations management, organizational transformation, change management, technology implementation, lean management, corporate compliance, data security/privacy, grant/capital funding and healthcare consulting.

Welsh served three years as president and chief executive officer of Down East Community Hospital, a full-service, independent rural hospital located in Machias, Maine. During his tenure, the hospital enjoyed significant growth in several areas, including family practice and laboratory services. He also planned and led a multimillion-dollar upgrade of the Emergency Department and implemented effective, long-term strategic plans for the hospital.

Previously, Welsh spent 13 years at Eastern Maine Health Care Systems’ Charles A. Dean Memorial Hospital, a full-service critical access hospital with off-site rural health clinics in Greenville, Maine, including nine years as executive vice president and chief operating officer.

Welsh’s educational credentials include a Master of Health Care Administration from St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia and a bachelor’s degree from Point Park College in Pittsburgh. He is a Fellow of the American College of Health Care Executives, and holds multiple health care specialty certifications.

Wilson also is a proven health leader, bringing experience in the non-profit, hospital and community health industries to her role. She comes to UM SRH after serving six years as executive director of the Maryland Rural Health Association, based in Centreville, Maryland. In that capacity, with the goal of improving the health of Maryland’s rural communities, Wilson provided leadership and advocacy, program and strategic planning, financial management and personnel management, communications and marketing, and membership development and services.

Since 2017, Wilson also has served as an independent consultant for Merchant McIntyre in Washington, D.C., providing grant support to rural hospitals and health care organizations across the country and strategizing with top rural health care organization leadership to brainstorm new ways to increase funding for the rural communities.

Wilson’s prior experience includes two years as senior director, Grant Development, and administrator for Hospital Owned Physician Practices at Garrett Regional Medical Center in Oakland, Maryland; three years as practice manager, Maryland Primary Care Physicians, based in Annapolis; and four years as project director for the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

Wilson holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of Maryland, an M.S. in Health Systems Administration from Georgetown University and multiple, specialized certifications, including Lean Six Sigma – Yellow Belt.

“Dennis Welsh and Lara Wilson are a fantastic team who will lead the development and implementation of a new model of rural health care for the region,” said Ken Kozel, president and CEO, UM SRH. “Dennis brings two decades of experience leading critical access hospitals and has a real passion for rural health care. His expertise will be complemented by Lara’s skills in working with community partners to build the programs in the Aging & Wellness Center of Excellence and her in-depth knowledge of the Maryland health care landscape, our key community partners and our legislators. I am so grateful to have them joining our team.”

University of Maryland Shore Regional Health (UM SRH) is operating a new Infusion Center at Shore Medical Center at Easton to provide monoclonal antibody (mAb) treatment for certain individuals with COVID-19.

When administered within 10 days of the onset of symptoms, mAb treatment has been shown to reduce severe illness related to COVID-19 and an increased risk of patients’ hospitalization and death. The new COVID Infusion Center at UM Shore Medical Center at Easton provides Ab treatment to eligible COVID-19 patients over age 18 with mild-to-moderate symptoms who are deemed to be at high risk for progressing to severe COVID-19 and/or the need for hospitalization, and who are referred as possible candidates for infusion by a physician or other provider.

All referrals are reviewed and evaluated by Rosa Mateo, MD, infectious disease specialist.“We recommend referrals be made as soon as possible – and definitely within seven days of symptom onset –to allow time for review and scheduling before the patient reaches the 10-day ‘time out’ for receiving the treatment,” said Dr. William Huffner, MD, chief medical officer and senior vice president for Medical Affairs at UM SRH.

Photo: Shown in UM Shore Regional Health’s Monoclonal Antibody Infusion Center are (front) infusion nurses Mary Scott and Stacy Dion, and (back) Debbie Henson, infection prevention nurse, and Ron Lewis, director, Security/Emergency Management.

The Infusion Center is operating on Wednesday and Friday mornings by appointment only, and referred patients who meet the eligibility criteria are contacted and scheduled for the infusion treatment based on timeliness of treatment, the availability of medications, and other logistics.

In addition to being over 18 and within 10 days of symptom onset, patients likely to be eligible for monoclonal antibody infusion treatment include those who are high-risk, meaning 65 years of age or older and/or with certain chronic medical conditions. High-risk patients include those who have conditions such as obesity (body mass index greater than 35); chronic kidney disease; diabetes;or immunosuppressive disease (with or without treatment). Patients over age 55 with cardiovascular disease, hypertension or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or other chronic respiratory disease also are considered high risk.

Monoclonal antibody treatment is not authorized for use in patients who are hospitalized due to COVID-19, require oxygen therapy due to COVID-19, or for those who are on chronic oxygen therapy due to an underlying non-COVID-19 comorbidity and require an increase in baseline oxygen flow rate due to COVID-19.

UM SRH is authorized by the Maryland Department of Health to administer the EUA approved mAb treatment for COVID-19. These investigational treatments are authorized for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) and currently include products made by Eli Lilly and Regeneron.

“While there is continued focus on access to the COVID-19 vaccines for people in our communities, it is critical that we keep utilizing all available tools in our COVID-19 response,” said Dr. Huffner. “Offering mAb treatment to patients is an important part of our plan to continue providing patients with the most appropriate and effective care, and also to alleviate additional strain on our hospitals.”

Healthcare providers and county health department officials throughout the five county region served by UM SRHhave been informed of the treatment availability, eligibility criteria and the referral process. Individuals with COVID-19 or their caregivers interested in seeking monoclonal antibody treatment are encouraged to contact their primary care or urgent care provider to request a referral.

The Infusion Center is located at 219 South Washington Street, in the advanced medical tent building behind the Emergency Department, Patient parking is available adjacent to the medical tent. Before arrival, patients will be given detailed instructions related to parking and a number to call upon arrival; someone will escort patients to the medical tent for the treatment. Only patients and Infusion Center staff are allowed inside the Center.

The National Association of Social Work (NASW) honors the 700,000-plus social workers nationwide during of March as National Social Work Month. This year’s theme, Social Workers Are Essential, emphasizes the important role social work professionals play in community wellbeing. Trained to help people address personal and systemic barriers to optimal living, their mission is to effect positive change with individuals, families, groups and entire communities.

University of Maryland Shore Regional Health’s medical social workers help patients and caregivers during their most vulnerable times through effective communication skills and a holistic approach to patient care needs.

Deserving special recognition and appreciation this month are a host of social workers in several departments. They include: in Behavioral Health – Katey Carroll, Pam Young, Chelsea Slacum, Kirby Meredith, Audra Cherbonnier, Tyler Betz, Christina Acree, FaundaCrowson, Robert Martin, Jr., and Susan Ingersoll; at the Cancer Center – Patty Plaskon and Jennifer Buckler; in Home Care, April Sharp (Chester River Home Care) and Alice Ofano (Shore Home Care); Palliative Care – Monick Conway and Sarah Hopkins; and in Transitional Care Coordination / Population Health — Michelle Matthews, Stacey Kuhn, Melissa Kleppinger, Sarah Demers, Brittni Conn and Angela Meekins.

Photo: Shown celebrating National Social Work Month are UM Shore Regional Health social work care coordinators Stacey Kuhn, Sarah Demers, Melissa Kleppinger, Brittni Conn and Angela Meekins.

Among several determinants of successful patient outcomes are access to adequate food supply and housing. During the past year, in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Shore’s medical social workers saw higher numbers of patients whose post-discharge plans were made more complicated by deficient housing and food access. They addressed these challenges by getting to know each patient, gaining his or her trust during consultations with effective listening and compassion, and by having the knowledge of community resources and support that can be enlisted once the patient is discharged to home.

As Brittni Conn, who works in telemetry in UM Shore Medical Center at Easton, explains, “Hospital social work is meaningful to me because during a very stressful time in their lives, I get to help patients and their families navigate the health system and connect them to resources to help simplify their next steps. Social work is a work of heart.”

Being a medical social worker means also means being a voice for patients who lack adequate resources to manage their health conditions after leaving the hospital. “To me, being a social worker means being an advocate for all patients, especially those who are vulnerable and/or oppressed,” says Sarah Demers, who works in the Requard Center for Acute Rehabilitation. “It means speaking up for patients who need support during difficult times, helping patient’s meet their needs, and also linking patients with resources so that they may succeed.”