| NMQF's first webinar of 2022 is packed with the information you need to know about the COVID-19 Omicron variant now!
Tackling COVID in 2022 features 3 NMQF 40 Under 40 honorees having a candid conversation about why infections spiked so quickly and the importance of understandable, trustworthy health communication.
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January 28th Webinar Vaccines and Beyond: Promote and Protect Your Health in 2022 |
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Health Champions Twitter! |
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Health Champions' Twitter officially has more than 15,000 followers (15.9 thousand and growing to be exact)! Join us on Twitter at @JoinHCs. |
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NMQF Welcomes New Clinical & Social Research Staff |
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Dr. Vikki Mata McMurry and Christina Edwards joined the NMQF team in January to continue clinical trial program research. "In the past year, we have seen incredible strides towards improving diversity in clinical trial participants, but there is still important work to be done," said Dr. Gary Puckrein, President and CEO of NMQF. "We are excited to have the diverse backgrounds of a bilingual medical doctor and experienced clinical trial program manager to aid our efforts to decrease inequities across the health care system."
Read more about their professional experience below. |
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 | Dr. Vikki Mata-McMurry trained and graduated as a general practitioner from the Universidad de Cuenca in Ecuador. While in Ecuador, she served as Medical Director of a Public Health Post for the Ministry of Health, overseeing the health care of 400 families in an underserved, rural community of Sageo.
After her appointment with the Ministry of Health, in 2011 Dr. Mata-McMurry transitioned into a research fellowship position with the International Trauma System Development Program (ITSDP) at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. As research fellow and later research coordinator for ITSDP, she helped develop and implement an international trauma registry in different Latin American countries such as Colombia, Panama, and Bolivia. The trauma registry project aimed to assess the true burden of injury, support quality improvement efforts with aims of improving the overall quality of care in low and middle income countries.
In 2019, Dr. Mata-McMurry relocated to Colorado and served as Program Manager and Research Associate for the C3 Global Trauma Network at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. At C3, she managed and oversaw research activities for a large Department of Defense funded prospective multicenter study on the Epidemiology and Outcomes of Combat-Relevant Prolonged Trauma Care in the Western Cape Province of South Africa.
As of January 2022, Dr. Mata-McMurry joined NMQF as Vice President of Clinical & Social Research and Development. She will be responsible for the oversight and implementation of research projects and programs focused on reducing patient risk and identifying optimal care to reduce health disparities and bring about health equity. |
| | | Christina Edwards is a Brooklyn, New York native. She began her academic career at Howard University, earning a Bachelor of Science. She later received a Master of Health Administration from George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health.
A research coordinator position at an NYC research clinic would offset her career into the clinical research field. Years later, Ms. Edwards ventured into academic research at Weill Cornell Medicine, managing a multisite, NIH funded pediatric study for children with Crohn’s disease. She later transitioned to the New York–Presbyterian Health System coordinating industry sponsored clinical trials for the Department of Medicine-Pulmonary and Critical Care.
Now serving as the Clinical Trial Director for NMQF, Ms. Edwards aims to increase research trial participation among minority populations. “I am excited to work alongside my colleagues to curate a substantial network of community-based Investigators who will engage minority participants in the clinical research experience, thereby improving overall health outcomes for minorities.” |
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Pseudobulbar Affect (PBA) |
NMQF’s Policy and Program established the National Alliance for Brain Health and Awareness (NABHA) to increase awareness and understanding of brain diseases in communities and population cohorts throughout the country while advocating for policies that serve to advance the adoption of precision medicine to treat brain disease to maintain brain health. NABHA has commenced Pseudobulbar Affect (PBA) as one of its core projects. NABHA initiated engaging in this project in recognition that PBA-just as most other brain diseases, has disproportionate impact on minority communities. PBA is a neurological condition characterized by uncontrolled or involuntary, sudden, and frequent episodes of laughing and/or crying. PBA occurs secondary to multiple neurological conditions which include, stroke, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis (MS), traumatic brain injury (TBI), Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s Disease (PD).1 It is estimated that up to 2 million people in the United States have this condition. Some sources indicate that there are 7 million people living with PBA--this variation in the prevalence number is the result of it being misdiagnosed, under--recognized and undertreated often. 1 PBA being under-recognized and undertreated is one of the challenges revolving around PBA and its treatment. And this is the result of lack of awareness in the general population as well as clinicians. The second challenge is, when PBA symptoms are evaluated, the symptoms are often mischaracterized as mood disorders such as depression although PBA is clinically distinct from mood disorders in terms of duration, character or context. What makes the clinical recognition of PBA even more complicated is the fact that PBA is commonly comorbid with depression and depressive disorders. 1 Describing the effects of PBA on individuals affected by it and the community, the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences highlights the fact that depending on its severity, PBA can be highly disruptive to everyday life causing distress, embarrassment, social isolation, and in some cases, it may cause the inability to work.2
Discussing the treatment options of PBA, the American Journal of Managed Care (AJMC) notes that currently, the only FDA approved drug for the treatment of PBA is Nuedexta.3 Other medication options are antidepressants used to alleviate episodes of PBA.4
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Please direct any questions about the PBA project or the National Alliance for Brain Health and Awareness to Gretchen C. Wartman, NMQF’s Vice President for Policy and Program and Director of the Institute for Equity in Health Policy and Practice at gwartman@nmqf.org. |
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New York Asthma Roundtable |
NMQF Chief Operating Officer Brandon Garrett joined New York State Senate Committee on Health Chairman Gustavo Rivera and New York State Senate Committee on Environmental Conservation Chairman Todd Kaminsky for their 2021 New York Asthma Roundtable. Brandon presented data from NMQF's Asthma Index, providing information on the number of asthma patients and costs of care in New York State as compared to other states.
Participants discussed the impact of COVID-19 on asthma and causes, prevention, and treatment of the disease. Finally, the Chairman would take several policy solutions that were discussed back to colleagues in Albany to make substantive changes. |
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NMQF COO Brandon Garrett and 2017 40 Under 40 honoree Dr. Vanessa Salcedo. |
| The event took place at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx. Participants included officials from the New York State Department of Health, the New York City Department of Health and Hygiene, Montefiore Medicine, Boston Children's Health Physicians, American Lung Association, Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, Northwest Bronx Community Clergy Coalition, South Bronx Unite, and Unity Community Health Center, which was |
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Churches Leading the Way in National Influenza Vaccination Week |
The Center for Sustainable Health Care Quality and Equity (SHC) supports 8 churches, who are members of SHC Faith Health Alliance, in educating their communities about the importance of flu vaccination. The spiraling rates of COVID, combined with with rising flu cases and growing racial disparities in vaccination, highlights the need for this community alliance. Led by Faith Health Alliance co-chairs Bishop Dr. J. L. Carter and Rev. Dr. Terris King, we believe the participants in this growing network of churches hold the key to improving health equity.
We are welcoming new members to the Faith Health Alliance! For more information, click here. |
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| Mary Stober Murray Presenting at the 2022 Scope Summit |
A lack of Diversity in Clinical Trials is a critical public health issue. Thought leaders in clinical research and health equity are taking action with innovative, collaborative outreach and communication strategies.
Join NMQF's Mary Stober Murray, VP of Collaborative Action Networks, at #SCOPE22 in Orlando, February 7-10. Mary will be presenting on improving digital outreach and community engagement with hi-tech and hi-touch.
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| | | An SHC Toolkit to Improve Stroke Prevention in Atrial Fibrillation in People of Color |
SHC has developed a toolkit to help at-risk patients and clinicians in primary care settings help manage atrial fibrillation in people of color. While atrial fibrillation appears less prevalent in African Americans, access to treatment and outcomes is poorer.
The toolkit provides clinician and patient education materials and a one-of-a-kind library of activities a primary clinic can implement. |
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Engaging the Medicaid Population |
The Clinical Treatment Act (2020; 116th Congress S. 4742) takes effect in January 2022, requiring Medicaid to cover routine care costs associated with clinical trial participation.
View this webinar featuring NMQF's CEO Dr. Gary Puckrein and Tammy Boyd, Chief Policy Officer & Senior Counsel for Black Women’s Health Imperative, discuss the legislation and implications for engaging the Medicaid population in clinical research. Moderated by Mary Stober Murray, NMQF's VP of Collaborative Action Networks and Chair of the Diverse Cancer Communities Working Group. |
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HAIR Wellness Warriors in the News! |
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The SHC has partnered with Dr. Stephen Thomas at UMD to expand his Health Advocates in-Reach and Research (HAIR) program across the country. These HAIR Wellness Warriors are barbers, stylists, and experts in their own rights. They will be leading the charge to implement flu vaccination activities over the coming months for their clients. The team was recently featured in the Washington Post!
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| Health Champion Helen Arteaga Landaverde Featured in Healthcare Business Today |
SHC partner and Health Champion Helen Arteaga Landaverde was recently featured in Healthcare Business Today where she discussed the critical role of community engagement in improving health outcomes and vaccine confidence.
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| | | Plaza del Sol Diabetes Education Project |
The SHC has partnered with Plaza del Sol Family Health Center in Queens, NY to educate their patients with uncontrolled diabetes on diabetes management and lifestyle changes.
Out of their eligible population pool, a total of 57 patients have taken a pre-test, attended a virtual diabetes education course, and taken a post-test to assess improvement in diabetes management knowledge. While some barriers exist--including the busy work schedules of the patients, access to telehealth services, and working late hours--the project has shown some success.
Pre-test scores have averaged at approximately 68.64% correct answers, while post-test scores have averaged at approximately 83.1% correct answers. |
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NMQF Submits Comment to CDC ACIP on High Dose Vaccines for Seniors |
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| NMQF submitted a public comment to the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), urging action be taken to address inequities in seasonal influenza vaccine uptake.
In the comment, NMQF notes that for seniors, science shows high-dose vaccines are superior to trivalent standard dose vaccines, and requests immediate review of evidence to determine whether there are inequities in high-dose vaccine uptake in communities of color and less affluent whites.
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| Cancer Support Community Shares COVID Diary |
NMQF is committed to equity and reducing patient risk in cancer care, with particular emphasis on addressing the needs of cancer patients during the pandemic.
Cancer Support Community (CSC) sat down with NMQF's AI HealthNet team to shares the steps they have taken to serve cancer patients during the pandemic.
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| | | Champion CoLab Listening Session |
In December 2021, several members of the Champion CoLab met during a Listening Session to give objective recommendations for the social media resources available in the current
The participating members represented the Black and Latinx populations and noted that, in general, useful tools depicted genuine images of real people with a specific and pointed message. |
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| | | | NMQF Corporate Roundtable |
NMQF convenes a Corporate Roundtable to address critical challenges in the era of health care reform. The Corporate Roundtable works to advise NMQF with federal, state, and local government through partnerships on events and activities.
In addition to the Annual Summit on Health Disparities, NMQF works with Corporate Roundtable members on a variety of events including the Annual Legislative Conference Fall Health Braintrust, Community Health Clinics and Festivals, as well as various policy reports and research. If you are interested in joining the Corporate Roundtable, please contact Brandon Garrett at bgarrett@nmqf.org. |
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Nominations for the 2022 40 Under 40 Leaders in Health Awards are Now Open! |
All nominees must be under 40 years of age by April 27, 2022.
Nominations must be submitted by:
8:00 pm EST on February 7, 2021. |
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