Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Provider Perspectives On Implementation Of Cdc Guidelines For Opioid Maintenance Therapy, Anayis M. Antanesian

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

The opioid epidemic remains a complex and significant public health crisis in the United States, impacting millions with opioid use disorder (OUD). Despite efforts to raise awareness and address individual risks, high rates of opioid overdose persist, underscoring the need for more extensive and integrated prevention and management approaches. Primary care providers play a pivotal role in lowering opioid-related mortality and improving patient outcomes through office-based treatments; however they face numerous challenges in prescribing opioids. To explore these barriers, a survey was distributed to providers, aiming to assess their views, comfort levels in prescribing opioids for chronic pain, and perceived …

Health Impacts Of Remote Work, Tin Nhan Nguyen

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Remote work has increased in frequency in the past few years with a notable rise in Connecticut. While working from home has certain benefits, it can also increase the risk of certain physical and mental health issues. An educational pamphlet on the health impacts of remote work with suggestions to reduce negative effects was developed and distributed to community members.

Barbershop Based Hypertension Intervention, Dhiraj Patel

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Barbershop based hypertension screening and treatment interventions have been substantiated across prior literature as cost-effective and highly efficacious interventions for reducing overall blood pressure in the African American community. Researchers have also begun to explore the applicability of such an intervention to another high risk ethnic group for hypertension: Hispanic and Latino communities. With >30% of Danbury, CT's population being comprised of Hispanic and Latino populations and barbershop interventions for hypertension having already been established in the nearby city of New Haven, CT via Yale Health, this community engagement project aims to take the first step towards establishing similar services …

Safer Prescription Opioid Use In The Greater Danbury Area, Ying K. Loo

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Opioid use disorder continues to be a major public health concern worldwide, with over 16 million people affected, and is associated with increased health care costs, reduced quality of life, lost productivity, and loss of life due to opioid overdose deaths. The neurobiology and susceptibility for opioid dependence and addiction is not well-understood by patients, and the lack of understanding of the safe use of prescription opioid regarding its intended effect of pain-relief versus other potential side effects and withdrawal symptoms may lead to misuse. This community health improvement project aims to empower patients and their family members to better …

Weighty Words: Addressing Weight Bias In Primary Care, Jharna Jahnavi

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Weight bias in healthcare impacts a great proportion of patients. ­In some ways, weight bias often goes unaddressed compared to other forms of discrimination and spans across diverse groups of people resulting a double burden of bias in patients with intersecting marginalized identities. It is essential that providers and healthcare workers are better trained in building inclusivity for patients of all weights and body types to improve healthcare access and acceptance. Patients who experience weight bias in the office are less likely to return for routine preventative care and less likely to feel safe and comfortable with their providers. This …

Nutritional Literacy: Enhancing Community Health Through Pamphlet Education, Jordan Franco

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Research suggests that individuals with limited nutritional literacy may struggle to make informed decisions about their food choices. Such individuals could derive benefits from targeted interventions aimed at enhancing their comprehension and utilization of nutrition label information. This project addresses this issue by enhancing the nutritional literacy of local food pantry clients through the distribution of an informative pamphlet designed to improve their understanding of nutrition.

Improving Healthcare For Coptic Egyptian Migrants, Lorena Ayoub

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

There is very little known about Coptic Egyptian migrant health in the current literature. Exploring health beliefs and behaviors in regard to seeking medical care is important. Additionally, understanding how the Coptic church plays a role in healthcare is essential as many Coptic individuals believe spirituality influences physical health.

Alcohol Cessation Resources In Greater Danbury, Ct, Rachel M. Thompson

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

There is an abundance of resources available to residents of the greater Danbury, CT area looking to reduce their alcohol consumption. However, a central repository of this information is lacking, and individuals seeking local services report feeling overwhelmed and confused by their search. This project aims to simplify the journey to getting help by providing patients at New Fairfield Primary Care with a brief physical pamphlet and extensive virtual database describing alcohol abuse and the variety of services available in their region. Supports detailed include medical providers, counselors, holistic therapies, hotlines, lifestyle changes, peer support groups, treatment centers, self-assessment quizzes, …

A Healthier Diet For Weight Loss, Hannah White

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Many patients presenting to clinic have the goal of weight loss to improve their health as obesity has many comorbidities. Many patients have multiple health concerns like Diabetes Mellitus, Hypertension, Hyperlipidemia, PCOS, or joint pain. Part of the management of their conditions include weight loss, but many patients struggle, for years, to lose weight. A referral to the Metabolic Weight Loss clinic in Newtown, which will provide patients with nutritional information, evidence based diets, medications, exercises, and more, can take up to 1 year to get an appointment. The goal of this project is to provide information to patients in …

Aging And Exercising Gracefully, Karena P. Nguyen

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Exercise and physical therapy are concerns among patients experiencing menopause and patients who near the age of menopause. Newtown Primary Care serves a population, whose census indicates an aging population. An interdisciplinary pamphlet on weight-bearing exercises and community resources for the peri- and postmenopausal population was developed with input from physical therapists and doctors.

Caring For Caregivers, Lily Deng

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Aging populations and chronic conditions have shifted care from hospital settings to community and family settings, caregiver burden is increasing. This project was focused on understanding the factors that impact the wellbeing of caregivers of patients with chronic conditions/cancer. Focus is also on identifying barriers to accessing support and increasing awareness of available community support resources.

Healthcare Against Exploitation: Empowering Clinics To Identify And Support Human Trafficking Survivors, Daniel Mitchell

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

No abstract provided.

Handout To Promote Diabetes Education In Spanish Speaking Patients, Javier Rincon

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Hispanic adults are 70 percent more likely than non-Hispanic white adults to be diagnosed with diabetes by a physician. In 2017, Hispanics were twice as likely to be hospitalized for treatment of end-stage renal disease related to diabetes, as compared to non-Hispanic whites. In 2018, Hispanics were 1.3 times more likely than non-Hispanic whites to die from diabetes. Lack of readily accessible educational material in different languages can lead to educational deficits in non-English speaking patients.

Pamphlet For Identifying Anxiety And Initial Coping Strategies, William Hsu

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Anxiety affects up to 1/3 of the population in their lifetime. The geriatric population is especially susceptible to anxiety due to comorbid conditions and limitations in mobility. Anxiety is also difficult to identify, with mental health literacy with regards to anxiety being limited. This project aims to education patients on common symptoms of anxiety and at home interventions that can be initiated with helping to manage anxiety.

Improving The Assessment Of Patient Dietary Choices, Jiayi Luo

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Asking about a patient's diet has always been a critical part of primary care wellness visits, as well as in managing chronic medical problems like hypertension, obesity, and diabetes. However, patient responses when asked to recall their diet is time-consuming, subjective, and can even be uncomfortable. This project aims to create a qualitative and objective tool for patients to report back their dietary habits. This project will 1) create a short dietary questionnaire for patients in Newtown Primary care and 2) assess for patient receptiveness to sharing dietary habits through said questionnaire.

Implementing A Patient Resource Guide On Intimate Partner Violence (Ipv) At A Connecticut Primary Care Practice, Mahima R. Poreddy

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Intimate partner violence is an ongoing public health crisis in the United States. According to the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence, nearly 39,000 victims were served in 2021, which was a 5% increase from the year prior. As intimate partner violence continues to affect numerous lives in Connecticut and across the nation, the risks of seeking assistance in these situations prevent those experiencing domestic violence from accessing support services. The cost of intimate partner violence can range from an increase in health care utilization to restricted access to safe housing. The Ridgefield Primary Care practice does not currently have educational …

Managing Constipation: A Community-Level Intervention In Newtown, Ct, Weida Ma

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

The prevalence of chronic constipation in adults is 10-15%. Constipation is associated with a lower quality of life and poorer psychological well-being. This goal of this project was to perform a community-level intervention by creating a pamphlet detailing first-line lifestyle modification and over-the-counter laxatives for the treatment of consitpation to be handed out at a primary care office in Newtown, CT.

Accurate At-Home Blood Pressure Readings, Shivani Mathur, Shivani Mathur

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Blood pressure follow-ups are some of the most common reasons for clinic visits. Patients are told to monitor their blood pressures at home and medication dosages are adjusted in clinic to reflect their blood pressure readings at home. However, many patients are not aware of proper blood pressure measurement techniques, which could lead to inaccurate readings and therefore, inaccurate treatment. This project will provide a simple infographic to increase compliance with accurate blood pressure measurements.

A Mobile App To Improve Patient Education In The Management Of Chronic Lbp, Cole Lutz

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

The purpose of this project is to educate patients about the treatment of CLBP through an interactive mobile app, with the goal of improving transparency regarding the risks and benefits of various interventions. Most patients with CLBP lack the time and knowledge to perform a thorough literature review to determine the rates of efficacy and complications associated with their treatment. A mobile app that summarizes this data and translates it in a way that patients can understand would facilitate clearer communication and expectations between patients and providers. With improved patient education, patients would presumably be more likely to participate in …

Patient Education: Otc Medications For Upper Respiratory Infection, Lauren A. Okamoto

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Upper respiratory infection (URI) is among the top three diagnoses in the outpatient setting. Symptomatic relief is the reason for the most visits related to this diagnosis in the first couple of weeks after the onset of illness. Patient education on OTC medications for this use is often a component of these visits. The goal of this project is to create a standardized tool for patient education and reference to improve efficiency of education as well as patient understanding and future use of resources.

Community Services For Patient Referral Document, Jett Choquette

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Patients have a need for referral to a variety of services that directly relate to their health and wellbeing that are not generally included in the traditional referral system of healthcare networks. These services include (but are not limited to) social work support, pandemic support, elderly services, LQBTQ+ services, intimate partner violence services, functional medicine, and substance use disorder and mental health support and treatment. Because these services are not part of the traditional healthcare referral system, healthcare providers may not have an up-to-date list of organizations and programs in the community that could provide these needed services. This is …

The File Of Life: A Lifeline For First Responders In Fairfield County, Ct, Brittany Gilmore

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

During a medical emergency, it can be difficult for first responders to obtain crucial medical information about their patients for a variety of reasons. The patient may be unconscious, have an altered mental status, or simply not know their medical history. This project aimed to increase awareness of the File of Life program, which many local Fire and EMS departments are implementing to improve their ability to deliver life-saving care.

Basic At-Home Exercises For Common Areas Of Pain, Willie Dong

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Physical Therapy (PT) is often the first-line management for subacute MSK pain seen in the primary care setting. For various reasons patients may be opposed going to PT. For patients that are interested, there is often a latent period before an appointment can be made. Providing resources, including a pamphlet, with all-inclusive, simple at-home exercises may help to accelerate recovery.

Addressing Maladaptive Coping Mechanisms In Response To External Stressors And Negative Affective States In Primary Care Settings, Matthew C. Hanna

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Individuals respond to negative affective states, including depression and bipolar disorder, and external stressful events with a wide variety of adaptive and maladaptive coping mechanisms or a mixture of both. Maladaptive coping mechanisms include substance use and binge eating, as well as avoidance or withdrawal behaviors. Understanding how patients respond to external stressors and adapt to negative affective states, including depression and hypomania, via questionnaires seeking to elucidate coping mechanisms is of utmost importance to recognize patients at risk of substance use, binge-eating, and other maladaptive behaviors. Only through explicit identification of these mechanisms can providers work with patients to …

Referred By Your Pcp, Lud H. Eyasu

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

A complication of a small or new primary care office is difficulty in providing additional support for patients outside of the office visit. Some referral center do not assist patients referrals for mental health providers and services. This project set out to create a list of in-network psychiatrists that can be distributed to patients at a New Canaan, CT primary care office to facilitate these patients' quest to find a mental health provider.

Accessibility And Normalization Of Wearable Pronoun Identification In Healthcare Professionals, Dinukie-Chantal Perera

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Healthcare can be an incredibly intimidating machine to all demographics of patients. One uniquely challenged group are patients who are gender diverse, trans, and/or gender nonconforming. This group of patients experiences systemic discrimination through institutional practices embedded in healthcare.

Gender affirming care can be improved on many levels, but one straightforward and actionable way to support gender diversity and demonstrate enthusiasm and awareness for the community is to encourage the use of pronoun pins/ labels in individuals willing to use them.

Colorectal Cancer Screening Options, Juwairiyyah Fatima

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Colorectal cancer is a leading cause of mortality in the United States. The USPTF recommends screening starting at age 45. Many options exist for colorectal cancer screening. This project explores the use of a handout explaining the various screening tests available to patients as a means of improving screening rate in one primary care clinic population.

Accessibility Of Nutritious And Healthy Foods To Older Adults, Kristen Wright

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Food insecurity rates are high among older adults who have chronic conditions and/or are homebound. These patients have functional limitations, comorbidities limiting their mobility, and often are socially isolated or live alone, all of which impact their ability to access or make healthy meals. As food insecurity rises, so do the health care costs related to inaccessibility to healthy food, involving the increased risk or prevalence of chronic conditions like hypertension, diabetes, and cancer. This project aimed to understand the barriers older adults face in accessing and making healthy meals, and to educate health care providers and patients on recognizing …

Resources For Lgbtq+ Patients, Elie Kaadi

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Many LGBTQ+ patients face issues when seeking care from their primary care providers as well as specialists. This could be due to lack of information that is taught during medical education as well as lack of information that is available to the public.

This project aims to provide helpful information for both physicians and patients that is relevant for the care of LGBTQ+ patients.

Health Care Delivery To The Homeless Population In The Greater Danbury Community: A Needs Assessment, Ariella Yazdani

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

• The Greater Danbury Region has substantial health resources; two hospitals, community health centers and health clinics. Residents who lack health insurance struggle to access the full continuum of care, especially outpatient and preventative care. Although a vast majority of people in Danbury have health insurance, it is unclear if individuals living with homelessness are amongst this insured population and have equitable access to healthcare. Two transitional housing programs in Danbury were identified and interviewed directly. A qualitative assessment of healthcare delivery to members of these programs was then performed.