Research Matters is a monthly newsletter dedicated to sharing BMC research stories with our communities - BMC and BU faculty, staff, partners, collaborators, and beyond. Please email communications@bmc.org for questions on being featured in an upcoming newsletter.
Help other people learn about Research at BMC – share this email with your colleagues!
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December 2, 2024
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New Research Course Developed by BMC Health System Empowers Medical Interpreters
and Patients Alike
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BMC Health System is creating a new training
course for medical interpreters to help reduce barriers to clinical trials for patients with limited English proficiency. The free accredited course aims to strengthen interpreters’ familiarity and expertise of research terminology and bolster understanding of medical research regulations, patient rights, and the complexities of medical mistrust in marginalized communities.
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Head and Neck Cancer Clinical Trials May be Becoming Less Diverse, But
BMC Created Initiatives to Improve Access
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Although a new study, led by Heather Ann Edwards, MD, FACS, FRCSC, Director of the Head and Neck Surgery Program at BMC, suggests that head and neck cancer clinical trials are becoming
less racially and ethnically diverse over time on a national scale, BMC created initiatives to improve access to clinical trials for patients from historically underrepresented populations. This has resulted in 58% of head and neck cancer clinical trial participants being underrepresented groups in medicine, compared to national data that suggests only 7-12% of cancer trial participants are Black or Hispanic.
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Minimizing Disparities in Hepatitis C Care for Reproductive-Aged Women
Through BMC Research
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A new study led by Rachel Epstein, MD, MScE, infectious disease clinician-scientist at BMC, found national disparities in hepatitis C care for reproductive-aged women with opioid use
disorder. But at BMC, researchers and clinicians are working to minimize these disparities through innovative programs.
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BMC Researchers Estimate the Effectiveness of Statewide Shelter-Based
Opioid Use Disorder Treatment
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Avik Chatterjee, MD, MPH, addiction specialist at BMC, estimated the effects of a strategy to support people experiencing homelessness with opioid use disorder -- expanding access to
treatment statewide in Massachusetts through shelters.
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Name: Pablo Buitron de la Vega, MD
Department: Adult Primary Care
Research Focus:I study how to better connect patients that we have identified as having unmet social needs with services and support to address these factors.
Why BMC: I like how much BMC, in practice and as a community, aligns with my values of achieving equity and social justice and helping communities that have been marginalized.
Favorite Song: Immigrants (We Get the Job Done) – The Hamilton Mixtape
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Selected Research Publications
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Campbell, J. I., Tolliver, D. G., He, Y., Wang, R. Y., Shapiro, J., Shanahan, K., Mell, A., Luercio, M., Shah, S. N., Hall, M., Goel, A. K., Melvin, P., Ward, V. L., & Berry, J. (2024). Leaving Against Medical Advice From Children's Hospitals. Pediatrics.
Chatterjee, A., Stewart, E. A., Assoumou, S. A., Chrysanthopoulou, S. A., Zwick, H., Harris, R. A., O'Dea, R., Schackman, B. R., White, L. F., & Linas, B. P. (2024). Health and Economic Outcomes of Offering Buprenorphine in Homeless Shelters in Massachusetts. JAMA Network Open.
Freeman, P. R., et al. (2024). Effect of the Communities That HEAL Intervention on Overdose Education and Naloxone Distribution: A Cluster-Randomized, Wait-List Controlled Trial. American Journal of Public Health.
Freisthler, Bridget et al. (2024). Communities That HEAL Intervention and Mortality Including Polysubstance Overdose Deaths: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Network Open.
Gbadegesin, Rasheed A et al. (2024). APOL1 Bi- and Monoallelic Variants and Chronic Kidney Disease in West Africans. The New England Journal of Medicine.
Gojanovich, A. D., Le, N. T. T., Mercer, R. C. C., Park, S., Wu, B., Anane, A., Vultaggio, J. S., Mostoslavsky, G., & Harris, D. A. (2024). Abnormal synaptic architecture in iPSC-derived neurons from a multi-generational family with genetic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Stem Cell Reports.
Sperring, H., Ruiz-Mercado, G., Yun, B. J., Twitchell, D., Shah, B., & Schechter-Perkins, E. M. (2024). Automated Opt-Out Hepatitis C Testing to Reduce Missed Screening Opportunities in the Emergency Department. American Journal of Public Health.
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Local & National Public Events of Interest
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Substance Use Disorder Modeling Meeting
Saturday, June 14th 2025 in Ann Arbor, MI
The Substance Use Disorder Modeling Meeting aims to improve upon simulation modeling efforts to reduce fatal overdoses and infectious complications of substance use. The meeting is an opportunity to engage community members with researchers to better understand the needs of the communities being impacted by this type of work and develop better strategies to improve our research processes.
For more information, please visit the Syndemics Lab website or reach out to Jocelyn Vititow at Jocelyn.Vititow@bmc.org with questions.
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