Executive Summaries

Potential Synergies Between Bioethics and Health Policy Research

The presentation details the center's activities, which are structured around three pillars: education, clinical ethics, and research, along with two crosscutting programs in health policy and collaboration/outreach. In the area of education, the center is involved in ethics curricula for undergraduate and graduate medical education, including dedicated pathways in medical ethics and health policy.

Their activities also extend to clinical ethics through fellowships, continuing medical education, and ethics consultation services at major healthcare institutions.

Screening, Diagnosis, and Management of Chagas Disease in the United States

This presentation is focused on the epidemiology, clinical aspects, diagnosis, and management of Chagas disease within the United States. The presentation aims to equip healthcare providers with the knowledge necessary for effective screening, diagnosis, and treatment of this often-overlooked parasitic infection.

Dr. Clark emphasizes the importance of understanding risk factors to identify individuals who should be screened and provides detailed information on available diagnostic tools and treatment options.

Molecular Aspects of Fructose Metabolism and Metabolic Disease

This presentation provides a comprehensive overview of the molecular landscape of fructose metabolism and its intricate relationship with metabolic disease. The research highlights the distinct metabolic fate of fructose, the crucial role of intestinal CHRBP in regulating fructose absorption, and the differential susceptibility to fructose-induced metabolic dysfunction across mouse strains, potentially driven by variations in intestinal handling.

These findings underscore the complexity of dietary sugar metabolism and suggest that personalized approaches considering individual differences in nutrient handling may be critical for mitigating the adverse effects of excessive sugar consumption.

Gynecological Health in Women with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

This summary presents a detailed discussion on gynecological care for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID), emphasizing the unique challenges, considerations, and essential aspects of providing comprehensive care to this population.

The speaker, outlines learning objectives that include describing the intersectionality of gynecologic health and common ID conditions, addressing sexual activity and the elevated rates of abuse among women with ID, and providing practical tools for incorporating routine gynecologic review into healthcare visits.

Navigating the Ethical Frontiers of AI in Healthcare

This document presents excerpts from a panel discussion titled "Navigating the Ethical Frontiers of AI in Healthcare," the sixth session of an eight-week virtual series on AI in healthcare. The speakers share an academic article focusing on policies, screening, and disease management strategies that ensure equitable healthcare access and quality improvement.The central theme revolves around the increasing integration of AI in clinical care and the crucial ethical challenges that arise from its use.

Care Management in Value-Based Care: Overview of Clinical Programs

This document outlines the concept of care management within a value-based care system. The discussion emphasizes the transition from the traditional fee-for-service model to value-based care, a shift necessitated by escalating healthcare costs and the imperative to enhance patient outcomes. Value-based care prioritizes the long-term health of patients, particularly those with complex chronic conditions, and incentivizes providers for delivering high-quality care and efficient resource utilization.

Physician Enterprise Academic Excellence Paper Presentations

This document provides an executive summary of presentations focusing on crucial aspects of healthcare improvement: enhancing the patient experience during medical procedures, addressing cardiovascular disease risk factors in women with an emphasis on racial and ethnic disparities, and promoting healthcare worker well-being through contemplative medicine. The presentations, followed by a discussion, underscore an overarching theme of valuing the human spirit in healthcare across patient care and the well-being of healthcare professionals.

Tackling Climate Change, Our Apex Predator

In in this presentation, Dr. Mark Shapiro discusses the impacts of climate change on human health, how heat and air quality affect overall public health in Houston and elsewhere, and what opportunities exist for physicians and other healthcare workers to affect change. The presenter framed climate change not merely as an environmental issue, but as an "apex predator" threatening the health and well-being of every individual and community. He highlighted that no person, organization, city, region, or country is immune from its impacts.

Improving Ambulatory Quality, Equity, and Collaboration for the Pregnant and Postpartum Patient

In this presentation, Dr. Christina Davidson, Dr. Catherine "Carey" Eppes, and Dr. Jamie Morgan examine the state of maternal health in the United States and review postpartum tools, care transitions, and strategies to improve health equity and patient-centered care in ambulatory obstetrics.

Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Cardiotoxicity

This executive summary highlights Dr. Nicolás Palaskas’ research in cardio-oncology, focusing on the cardiovascular complications of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs).

Dr. Palaskas explores the critical role of immune checkpoints in maintaining immune homeostasis and examines how ICI therapy, while revolutionary in cancer treatment, can disrupt this balance, leading to adverse effects such as myocarditis.