Office of Primary Care and Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program

(AUGUST 30, 2023) With a small uptick in new cases recently, epidemiologist Timothy Plante, M.D., assistant professor of medicine, spoke with Vermont Public about COVID-19 in Vermont this fall: its current state, a new vaccine expected in about six weeks, prevention tips, and information about testing.

(AUGUST 28, 2023) Jan Carney, M.D., M.P.H., professor of medicine and associate dean of public health and health policy, was interviewed by The Hill for a story about “heat days” that, similar to their winter counterpart—snow days—cause school closings due to excessive weather conditions.

(AUGUST 26, 2023) In an article in Cannabis.net about the therapeutic advantages of low-THC high-CBD cannabis strains, Monique McHenry, Ph.D., assistant professor of pharmacology and director of the Medical Cannabis Center for Research and Education, says the perception that THC is predominantly linked with the induction of psychoactive effects is a “significant misconception.”

(AUGUST 26, 2023) A promising single-dose dengue fever vaccine created by the University of Vermont Vaccine Testing Center, the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and Johns Hopkins University is undergoing a clinical trial in Bangladesh, VOA News reports.

(AUGUST 25, 2023) Findings from a new study conducted by the University of Vermont’s Conversation Lab and therapeutics cancer firm Sunstone Therapies show the feasibility of trained human coders to identify observable markers of therapeutic connection during psilocybin administration within Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy (PAT), Benzinga reports.

(AUGUST 18, 2023) In a study on medicinal cannabis use and reporting, Larner researchers Nicole Wershoven, Amanda Kennedy, Pharm.D., and Charles MacLean, M.D., found that just 18 percent of patients thought their provider was a “good source of information regarding cannabis” and cannabis-related health issues, according to Labroots.

(AUGUST 17, 2023) Brady Heward, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry, spoke to WCAX-TV about an integrated approach by the University of Vermont Medical Center (UVMMC) to make addiction treatment more accessible.

(AUGUST 17, 2023) Epidemiologist Timothy Plante ’06, M.D.’10, M.H.S., assistant professor of medicine, spoke with Vermont Public for a story focusing on the recent uptick in the number of COVID cases and a new, updated vaccine booster that is expected to be available in the fall.

(AUGUST 16, 2023) UVM Medical Center has again earned a 5-star quality rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), which announced its annual hospital ratings in late July, according to the Barre–Montpelier Times Argus.

(AUGUST 16, 2023) Hematologist Chris Holmes, M.D., Ph.D., professor of medicine, helped write a recent study that found an anticoagulant pill was just as effective as self-administered blood thinner injections at preventing deadly blood clots in cancer patients, according to WCAX-TV.

On August 7, 2023, the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont welcomed 124 new medical students in the Class of 2027 to campus. Students in the Class of 2027 were selected from a pool of more than 8,500 applicants. Just over a quarter of the new med students are Vermonters and 24 percent identify as LGBTQ+. In addition, 24 percent of UVM’s newest medical students are people underrepresented in medicine—referred to in higher education as “URiM”—a category that includes African American/Black, Hispanic/Latino/a, and Native American/Alaskan Native. The student body draws from 26 states, excluding Vermont, and two Canadian provinces.

(AUGUST 11, 2023) Sherrie Khadanga, M.D., assistant professor of medicine and director of cardiac rehabilitation at the University of Vermont Medical Center, commented to In Profile Daily on an article about the health benefits of walking.

(AUGUST 10, 2023) A study led by principal investigator Elias Klemperer, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology and psychiatry, found that Vermont’s medication program for incarcerated people with opioid use disorder has helped reduce overdoses after release, according to VTDigger.

(AUGUST 8, 2023) Research by Mark Nelson, Ph.D., chair and University Distinguished Professor of pharmacology and professor of molecular physiology and biophysics, and colleagues shines a light on the mechanism behind vascular dementia in a mouse model, which the investigators hope will lead to better treatments being developed for the neurodegenerative condition, according to Inside Precision Medicine.

(AUGUST 7, 2023) Pulmonologist David Kaminsky, M.D., professor of medicine, says it’s probably best to avoid breathing in polluted air during the cleanup following July’s record-setting flooding, according to WCAX-TV.

(AUGUST 4, 2023) Suresh Garimella, Ph.D., president of the University of Vermont, has achieved an H-index of 100 — meaning he has at least 100 papers cited a minimum of 100 times each, New India Abroad reports.

(AUGUST 3, 2023) At the 2023 International Mesothelioma Interest Group (iMig) conference in June, Brian Cunniff, Ph.D., assistant professor of pathology, presented early experience with “an exciting new therapeutic option for patients suffering with mesothelioma” to a global audience of clinicians, scientists, and allied professionals, according to Business Wire.

(JULY 31, 2023) Professor of Medicine Jan Carney, M.D., M.P.H., associate dean of public health and health policy, was interviewed by Darsh Shah, D.O., and Altamash Raja, D.O., CSCS, for their Medicine Redefined podcast series in an episode about ‘Establishing Public Health and Policy: Rewriting Medical Education.’

(JULY 28, 2023) In an opinion piece in VTDigger, W. Kemper Alston, M.D., M.P.H., chief of infectious disease at the UVM Medical Center and professor of medicine at the Larner College of Medicine, cautioned that climate change could hasten the spread of antibiotic-resistant “superbug” infections. (Click headline for more.)

(JULY 27, 2023) The Supreme Court’s rejection of considering race in college admissions leaves academic leaders — including at the Larner College of Medicine — worried about how to maintain their commitment to racial diversity among their students and, subsequently, in the medical field, according to an article in AAMC News. (Click on headline for more.)