Research News

Physician-scientists are uniquely positioned to transfer clinical insights to research discoveries, to return a better understanding of human disease to the clinic. A new initiative led by Laura Loehr, MD, PhD, MS, associate professor in general medicine and clinical epidemiology, and Susan Hogan, PhD, MPH, associate professor in nephrology, will help junior faculty in the … Read more

The Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, and its affiliated Center for Gastrointestinal Biology and Disease, is a national leader in gastrointestinal and liver disease research. In 2018, the Division received more than $23 million in research awards, one of the largest funding bases in UNC’s School of Medicine, including both basic and clinical departments. Remarkably, … Read more

Seth A. Berkowitz investigates ways to address food insecurity in vulnerable patients. Seth A. Berkowitz, MD, MPH, is investigating programs that address food insecurity, for patients with limited or uncertain access to nutritious food because of cost, to consider how they might improve health and healthcare utilization. In one project, Berkowitz is working with Community … Read more

Hospitalist medicine is the fastest growing medicine specialty and it continues to lead the way in transforming healthcare and revolutionizing patient care.  UNC faculty physicians from the division of hospital medicine had a strong presence at the national meeting of the Society of Hospital Medicine (SHM) in March, held in Washington, DC, representing the UNC … Read more

Joe Eron, MD, and Brian Kuhlman, PhD (Republished from the UNC Health Care and UNC School of Medicine Newsroom.) The UNC School of Medicine has selected Joe Eron, MD, professor of medicine and vice chief for the division of infectious diseases, and Brian Kuhlman, PhD, professor of biochemistry and biophysics, as Oliver Smithies Investigators, an … Read more

UNC School of Medicine doctors enlisted a network of health care professionals from small primary care practices and used data analytics to help identify North Carolinians at risk for cardiovascular disease. Primary care doctors could use this approach to dramatically reduce heart disease risk for tens of thousands of people across the state.

Examining the role of dietary fatty acids – Eric Klett, MD Not only does actin (green) form the structuring scaffold of the cell, it provides a road on which insulin granules travel to be released. Dr. Eric Klett is a physician-scientist whose research interest is in the role of dietary fatty acids, specifically polyunsaturated fatty … Read more

Handing Off the Older Patients: Improved Documentation of Geriatrics Assessment in Transitions of Care – Maureen C. Dale, MD Older adults, particularly frail elders, are at an increased risk for poor health outcomes and avoidable re-hospitalization during transitions of care. Nearly one of five older adults are re-hospitalized within 30 days of The Geriatric Medicine … Read more

Complex Care Committee Develops Individualized Care Plans – Beth Ann Brubaker, MD   Five of the highest utilizing patients were compared in 2017 and 2018. After an ICP, a dramatic reduction in ED and hospital days was evident: EC: 68 vs 0; RG: 67 vs 0; MB: 56 vs 2; XW: 74 vs 1; and … Read more

Medicine hospitalists have recognized unnecessary practices for low-risk chest pain in an article recently published in the Journal of Hospital Medicine.

Anil Gehi, MD, Streamlining Triage for AFib Patients to Increase Care Coordination and Prevent Hospitalizations Dr. Anil Gehi’s research focus is on innovative approaches to atrial fibrillation (AFib), from detailed understanding of patient symptomatology, techniques of ablation, processes of care in AFib management, and outcomes research through complex analyses of big data. In 2017, Dr. … Read more

Mina Hosseinipour Women compromised 59 percent of adults living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa in 2014 according to the World Health Organization. Creating HIV prevention efforts that target women is critical to stopping new infections. Mina Hosseinipour, MD, MPH, is scientific director of UNC Project-Malawi in Lilongwe, Malawi, and a professor of medicine at UNC. … Read more