Department of Pediatrics

(DECEMBER 28, 2022) Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine Christian Pulcini, M.D., M.Ed., M.P.H., an attending physician in pediatric emergency medicine at the UVM Medical Center and Children’s Hospital, published a commentary titled “We Can Prevent Firearm Tragedies — a Call to Action” in VTDigger.

(December 26, 2022) THINKMD, founded in 2014 by Professor of Pediatrics Barry Finette, M.D., Ph.D., and Professor of Pediatrics Emeritus Barry Heath, M.D., has received a $1.5 million federal grant to further study the effectiveness of its mobile app–based digital “clinical intelligence” tool, WCAX reports.

(DECEMBER 22, 2022) Critical care physician Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, spoke to the Burlington Free Press for an article on Vermont truancy policies in the face of COVID and other sick-day absences.

University of Vermont Professor of Pediatrics Barry Finette, M.D., Ph.D., and Professor of Pediatrics Emeritus Barry Heath, M.D., spent three years developing and testing a mobile app-based digital tool designed to bring physician-based knowledge to the hands of minimally skilled health workers. In 2014, they founded THINKMD™.

Kelly McQueen, M.D., a medical alumna from the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine Class of 1991, recently established the Kelly McQueen, M.D.’91, Endowment for Global Health Education to support international clinical rotations for Larner medical students and the Global Health Program curriculum.

(DECEMBER 16, 2022) A Pfizer RSV vaccine for pregnant women is in phase 3 trial, with the potential to help infants cope with the sometimes serious illness, according to WCAX-TV. “If infants can be born with some immunity,” says pediatric critical care physician Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, “even if it’s short-lived, even if it’s six months or one year, that can make a huge difference in terms of kids’ health.” (Click headline for more.)

(DECEMBER 8, 2022) Associate Professor of Pediatrics Rebecca Bell, M.D., M.P.H., head of the Vermont chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, spoke to the News & Citizen about the importance of getting a seasonal flu shot, and about RSV.

(NOVEMBER 23, 2022) Pediatric critical care physician Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, has a message for people visiting infants over the holidays that is going to be difficult to hear: “Admire the baby from afar,” VTDigger reported.

(NOVEMBER 18, 2022) WVNY-TV interviewed Vermont Health Commissioner Mark Levine, M.D., professor of medicine and associate dean for graduate medical education, and Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, about a "triple threat" of serious viruses that could impact the upcoming holiday season, as the flu, Covid-19, and the respiratory virus RSV can spread easily in close contact. (Click on headline for more.)

(NOVEMBER 14, 2022) UVMMC pediatric critical care physician Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, urges new parents to limit visitors’ contact with their babies in light of surging RSV infections in children, NECN and NBC10 Boston reported.

(NOVEMBER 9, 2022) Vitamin D levels in patients with a deficiency and cystic fibrosis increased with a single high dose, according to a poster presented by Professor of Pediatrics Jillian S. Sullivan, M.D., and colleagues at the North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference held November 3-5 in Philadelphia, Healio News reported.

(NOVEMBER 7, 2022) Associate Professor of Pediatrics Rebecca Bell, M.D., answered RSV-related questions during a Facebook Live event on November 3, the (Plattsburg) Press-Republican reported.

(NOVEMBER 2, 2022) Clinical Professor of Pediatrics Joseph Hagan Jr., M.D., was quoted in an article in the Courier-Tribune and its sister publication Gladstone Dispatch (both based in Liberty, Mo.) about the proper age for young children to begin volunteering.

(NOVEMBER 1, 2022) Pediatric critical care physician Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, commented in the Burlington Free Press on the surge in local hospitalizations due to rhinovirus or respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

(OCTOBER 27, 2022) UVMMC pediatrician and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Michelle Shepard, M.D., Ph.D., spoke to WCAX-TV’s Hailey Morgan about ongoing baby formula supply chain woes affecting Vermont parents.

(OCTOBER 24, 2022) A study co-authored by Benjamin Lee, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics; Beth Kirkpatrick, M.D., professor and chair of microbiology and molecular genetics and professor of medicine; and Mary Cushman, M.D., M.Sc., professor of medicine, along with researchers from Columbia University and Boston University, concluded that post-vaccination symptoms are a good sign, CNN reported.

A study by UVM researchers of nearly 2,000 children found that those who reported playing video games for three hours per day or more performed better on cognitive skills tests involving impulse control and working memory compared to children who had never played video games.

(OCTOBER 4, 2022) Thomas Delaney, Ph.D., associate professor of pediatrics, comments on the rising suicide rates in Vermont in an article in VTDigger about the launch of a new website and education campaign geared toward helping the public understand how to intervene before a suicide attempt.

For students pursuing a degree in medicine, there’s no off-season. During a two-month break between their first and second years, many Larner College of Medicine medical students tackled projects to address unmet health needs, practice clinical skills, and immerse themselves in specialty clerkships with physician preceptors.

Associate Professor of Pediatrics and neonatologist Danielle Ehret, M.D., M.P.H., was invested as the inaugural Asfaw Yemiru Green and Gold Professor in Global Health in a formal ceremony held at the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine on July 28, 2022.