News Archive

Columbia, MD (December 17, 2018) —The Coverys Community Healthcare Foundation, Inc. (Foundation) put out a call to action and distributed a request for proposals for projects focused on improving diagnostic accuracy. The Foundation put aside $3 million in funding for approved projects. The Foundation received an overwhelming response to the request for proposals and MedStar Health’s…

Washington, D.C., (December 4, 2018) —MedStar Heart in partnership with CardioCell has been approved to conduct an investigational new drug clinical trial, called STEMVAD at MedStar Heart & Vascular Institute. The goal of this study is to determine whether stem cell therapy improves myocardial function in patients with severe heart failure. “Innovative therapies to improve…

Washington, D.C. (November 20, 2018)—Researchers from MedStar Washington Hospital Center and MedStar Health Research Institute will begin an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) trial on full- thickness burn wounds using Kerecis Omega3 Burn. The Kerecis fish-skin product is currently FDA cleared to treat second-degree burn wounds, which extend into some of the underlying skin layer. The…

Raj M. Ratwani, PhD, in collaboration with other researchers, has identified five recommendations to the federal government in developing a certification program for electronic health records that will aid in addressing challenges clinicians face when providing pediatric patient care. The study team hopes that their efforts will improve safer and high-quality care for the pediatric…

Two Winners Receive Nearly $2 Million Total Over Two Years Hyattsville, MD —MedStar Health’s National Center for Human Factors in Healthcare is one of two winners nationally to be awarded nearly $2 million of combined funding over two years by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator (ONC)…

Researchers from MedStar-Georgetown Surgical Outcomes Research Center, under senior investigator, Waddah B. Al-Refaie, MD, FACS, found that the Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion did not increase use of complex surgical procedures at high volume hospitals for low-income/minority patients. Al- Refaie and his collaborators have proposed a number of concerns that may have an effect on…

The researchers from MedStar Heart & Vascular Institute, led by Ron Waksman, MD, found, in their first-of-its-kind trial, that transcatheter aortic valve replacement in patients with low surgical risk showed no deaths or disabling strokes within 30 days of undergoing the procedure. This is a “strong signal” that it is safe for these patients as…

A new report by The Pew Charitable Trusts, MedStar Health’s National Center for Human Factors in Healthcare, and the American Medical Association drafts a framework of recommendations for improvements in the usability and safety of electronic health records (EHRs). The report includes suggested best practices for development and implementation of EHRs. Read more.  Contact: Eva…

Hyattsville, MD (August 21, 2018)—Researchers from MedStar Health will investigate the implementation and efficacy of shareable clinical decision support resources as part of healthcare team communications through a one-year contract award from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Jointly led by Kristen Miller, DrPH, CPPS, and Zach Hettinger, MD, MS, from the National…

Published online ahead of print in The Journal of Nursing Care Quality, the study sought to identify barriers to implementing a technology-based system to deliver diabetes survival skills education while patients are in the hospital. The educational system helps to send patients home with needed skills to manage their diabetes. The research team is Kelly…