The University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) Midtown Campus Inpatient Psychiatry Unit is the site of many internationally renowned studies, stemming from the collaborative expertise of our faculty and diversity of our patients.
The following are a few noteworthy and current research projects:
Deanna Kelly, PharmD
“Clozapine CHAMPION (Center for Help and Assistance for Maryland Prescribers – Intervention Outcomes Network) ECHO Research Study”
Dr. Deanna Kelly of the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center (MPRC) and Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, is currently spearheading a study to increase clinicians’ prescribing rates of the medication clozapine to treat schizophrenia through a telementoring program, Project ECHO (Extension for Community Health Outcomes).
The trial, “Clozapine CHAMPION (Center for Help and Assistance for Maryland Prescribers – Intervention Outcomes Network) ECHO Research Study,” is recruiting 60 clinics in Maryland, including Midtown, and will focus on studying the engagement of physicians. The overarching goal is to increase prescriber knowledge of clozapine in hopes of establishing more effective guidelines for the treatment of schizophrenia.
The Clozapine CHAMPION ECHO is a transdisciplinary collaboration with psychiatrists, psychiatric pharmacists, a hematologist, and cardiologist from the following Institutions:
- University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) School of Medicine
- Maryland Psychiatric Research Center (MPRC)
- UMB School of Pharmacy
- Johns Hopkins University
- Sheppard Pratt Health System
Watch the video below for more information on Dr. Kelly's study!
Melanie Bennett, PhD
"Adapting a Digital Intervention to Improve Smoking Cessation in Persons with Serious Mental Illness”
Dr. Melanie Bennett, Director of the Division of Psychiatric Research Services (DPSR), Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, is the PI of the study, "Adapting a Digital Intervention to Improve Smoking Cessation in Persons with Serious Mental Illness.”
Patients with serious mental illness (SMI), including schizophrenia, have a 10- to 15-year shortened lifespan than the average individual, and smoking is one of the primary associated risk factors. Patients admitted into the hospital are not allowed to smoke and must remain abstinent, which makes the hospital setting the prime launching pad to introduce smoking cessation tactics to patients upon discharge.
Dr. Bennett aims to study the efficacy of digital interventions as a way to bridge the inpatient-to-outpatient gap, including:
- One-on-one coaching via live chat
- Nicotine replacement therapy decision support and delivery
- Personalized cessation plans
- Texting and emailing messaging networks
Midtown is currently serving as the site to recruit subjects with SMI who have been admitted for psychiatric hospitalization. We ultimately hope to shed light on a favorable health impact by increasing smoking cessation programs among persons with SMI.