Podcasts about Allegheny Health Network

In this episode, Laura Mark, Vice President of Pharmacy at Allegheny Health Network, joins the podcast to discuss improving enterprise-wide visibility into medication inventory and navigating ongoing drug shortages. She shares insights on strengthening pharmacy operations, improving inventory management, and building more resilient strategies to ensure medications remain available when patients need them.

One of the most difficult—and least discussed—aspects of building a Consolidated Service Center (CSC) is securing executive support and capital investment.   Success depends on connecting strategy, financial value and patient outcomes to an organization's broader goals. Ganesh Chandran is joined by Dr. Akeem Bale, Vice President, Pharmacy Services at the University of Texas Medical Branch, and Dr. Laura Mark, Vice President of Pharmacy at Allegheny Health Network, to discuss the strategic, financial, and organizational steps that transformed a promising idea into an approved capital investment.  Guest Speakers:  Akeem O. Bale, PharmD, MS, MBA, BCPS, BCSCP Vice President, Pharmacy Services Program Director, PGY1/2 HSPAL Residency Program UTMB Health, Department of Pharmacy Services Laura Mark, MS, MHM, PharmD Vice President of Pharmacy  Allegheny Health Network   Host:   Ganesh Chandran, PharmD, MBA Pharmacy Executive  Vizient Pharmacy Enterprise Support    Show notes: [01:12] How each organization recognized that traditional pharmacy operations could no longer support future growth, expanding ambulatory care, and increasing operational complexity. Why long-term strategic planning, workforce challenges, and enterprise wide support became the driving forces behind pursuing a consolidated service center. [04:39] How successful business cases focus on organizational priorities such as patient access, financial performance, quality outcomes, and total cost of care instead of technology alone. Why demonstrating measurable value through pilots, standardization, and return on investment helps gain executive support for large scale transformation. [08:30] The importance of tailoring proposals to different executive stakeholders while building champions who can advocate for the vision. How early operational improvements and phased implementation can demonstrate value before construction or major capital investments begin. [10:24] Why breaking a consolidated service center strategy into manageable phases creates confidence among executive leaders and improves long term success. How responding to executive questions with refined financial models and scenario planning strengthens both the proposal and organizational trust. [13:12] How creating an enterprise wide pharmacy culture through standardization, trust, and shared leadership prepares teams for organizational change. Why establishing a one team philosophy before opening a new facility creates stronger collaboration and more sustainable operational success. [16:56] Practical advice for pharmacy leaders beginning their own consolidated service center journey, including learning from peer organizations and celebrating incremental progress. Why a consolidated service center should be viewed as an enabler of a broader pharmacy strategy that supports long term growth, scalability, and patient care rather than simply a new building.   Links and Resources: Pharmacy Enterprise Support   Subscribe Today! Apple Podcasts Spotify YouTube RSS Feed  

Welcome to the NeurologyLive® Mind Moments® podcast. Tune in to hear leaders in neurology sound off on topics that impact your clinical practice.In episode 172, “Spinal Muscular Atrophy Awareness Month: Why Multidisciplinary Care Matters,” Sandeep Rana, MD, a neurologist specializing in neuromuscular disorders at Allegheny Health Network, discussed the multidisciplinary care model for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) implemented in his center, in honor of SMA Awareness Month. He described a clinic structure that includes physical and occupational therapists, respiratory therapists, nutritionists, speech therapists, social workers, and collaboration with pulmonologists experienced in neuromuscular disease.Rana also outlined how the advent of disease-modifying therapies has transformed SMA from a largely fatal illness into a more manageable condition. He highlighted key advancements in therapeutics that have shifted priorities toward long-term wellness, including weight management, physical fitness, and emotional health. He noted persistent challenges in organizing and sustaining a specialized multidisciplinary team. Finally, he emphasized the importance of clinician awareness, early identification, and timely referral to tertiary centers, particularly as additional therapies may become available.Looking for more neuromuscular disorder discussions? Check out the NeurologyLive® Neuromuscular Disorders clinical focus page.Episode Breakdown: 1:25 – Professional background and clinic overview 2:55 – What an effective multidisciplinary SMA care team looks like 5:12 – How disease-modifying therapies have changed SMA care 6:28 – Neurology News Minute  9:27 – Organizational and procedural challenges in coordinating care 11:52 – Why raising awareness about SMA is important & advice to clinicians 13:45 – Key message about SMA today  The stories featured in this week's Neurology News Minute, which will give you quick updates on the following developments in neurology, are further detailed here: FDA Accepts SL1009 Resubmission for PDCD, Sets December PDUFA Date FDA Advisory Committee Votes Against Deramiocel for DMD Cardiomyopathy FDA Grants RMAT Designation to Sasineprocel for Parkinson Disease Thanks for listening to the NeurologyLive® Mind Moments® podcast. To support the show, be sure to rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. For more neurology news and expert-driven content, visit neurologylive.com.

Join Digital Education Committee member and podcast host Melissa E. Middeldorp, MPH, PhD, along with this week's guest contributors, Joshua Silverstein MD, FHRS from Allegheny Health Network and Jonathan Ariyaratnam, BChir, MA, MB, CCDS, CEPS-A from the University of Adelaidefor this week's episode. This study by Vad and colleagues examined markers of atrial cardiomyopathy (AtCM) in 26,467 UK Biobank participants without prior atrial fibrillation (AF), heart failure (HF), or stroke, integrating cardiac MRI, ECG, clinical risk factors, and genetic data. AtCM was defined using four markers: left atrial dilation, reduced left atrial emptying fraction (120 ms), and abnormal P-wave terminal force and 15.7% of individuals had at least one marker, while 2.3% had two or more. Over a median follow-up of nearly five years, the presence of AtCM markers showed a dose–response relationship with incident AF, with a HR: 4.59 in those with ≥2 markers and was also strongly associated with HF and ischemic stroke. Adding AtCM markers to clinical and genetic risk models improved AF risk prediction, supporting the concept that atrial cardiomyopathy may represent a common substrate linking AF, HF, and stroke and may help refine future risk stratification strategies. Article for Discussion Learning Objectives Understand how imaging- and ECG-based markers of atrial cardiomyopathy are defined and how they relate to the risk of incident AF, heart failure, and stroke. Evaluate how integrating atrial cardiomyopathy markers with clinical and genetic risk scores may improve risk stratification for AF and related cardiovascular outcomes. Article Authors Oliver B Vad, Nick van Vreeswijk, Ahmed S Yassin, Yuri Blaauw, Christian Paludan-Müller, Jørgen K Kanters, Claus Graff, Ulrich Schotten, Emelia J Benjamin, Jesper H Svendsen, Michiel Rienstra Podcast Contributors Melissa E. Middeldorp, MPH, PhD Joshua R. Silverstein, MD, FHRS Jonathan Ariyaratnam, BChir, MA, MB, CCDS, CEPS-A Host and Contributor Disclosure(s): M. Middeldorp Nothing to disclose. J. Ariyaratnam  Nothing to disclose.   J. Silverstein Honoraria/Speaking/Consulting: Medical Device Business Services, Biosense Webster, Inc., Medtronic Stocks, Privately Held: Heart Rhythm Clinical Solutions/3PH Alliance Staff Disclosure(s) (note: HRS staff are NOT in control of educational content. Disclosures are provided solely for full transparency to the learner): S. Sailor: No relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

In this episode, Imran Qadeer, MD, President and CEO of Allegheny General Hospital, discusses scaling AI driven virtual nursing and ambient listening, advancing population health and specialty service lines, and navigating workforce shortages and financial pressures as part of Allegheny Health Network and Highmark Health.

Dr. Jay Deimel ‘00 is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and Director of Sports Medicine and Hip Preservation Surgery at Allegheny Health Network's Saint Vincent Orthopedic Institute. Dr. Deimel's journey has taken him from the University of Notre Dame to Loyola University Chicago, the University of Chicago Hospitals, and Stanford University where he also served as an assistant team physician for the San Francisco 49ers. Nowadays, he brings that elite-level experience to Erie, caring for athletes and patients of all ages with precision, discipline, and anunwavering commitment to excellence. In this episode of the podcast, we talk about what it truly takes to operate at the highest level from preparation under pressure, continuous learning, leadership in high-stakes environments, and the responsibility that comes with being trusted with someone's health and future. Whether you're an athlete, professional, student, or simply someone striving to be better at what you do, this conversation offers powerful insights into preparation, purpose, and pursuing excellence every day.

Ed Cicale sits down with Frank Velazquez, the Director of Sports Performance for the Allegheny Health Network in Pittsburgh,  at the MLB Winter Meetings to discuss his journey from athletic trainer to director of sports performance, the growth of strength and conditioning in baseball, and his work with the Allegheny Health Network and PBSCCS, The Professional Baseball Strength and Conditioning Coaches Society, where he serves as a Board Advisor. They cover practical advice for high school and professional players during the offseason, the role of nutrition and support staff, and how the PBSCCS advances the profession through events, vendor showcases, and ongoing education.

Jennifer Keeley and Mary Whittenhall, experienced nurse practitioners in the field of pulmonary hypertension, discuss the management of cough in patients receiving inhaled therapies for pulmonary hypertension and interstitial lung disease. #GossamerBioPartner #sponsored This Special Edition episode is sponsored by Gossamer Bio. Jennifer Keeley, DPN: My name's Jennifer Keeley. I'm a nurse practitioner and I practice in a large academic institution in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Allegheny Health Network, specifically Allegheny General Hospital. I am a nurse practitioner there and have been in the clinic over 10 years, and in the PH space as a nurse practitioner for over 15 years, as a registered nurse for almost 20 years. So, I have a lot of experience and I'm really excited to be here today to talk about inhaled therapies and cough. Mary Whittenhall, MSN: My name is Mary Whittenhall. I'm also a nurse practitioner. I am currently an advanced practice provider at Pulmonary and Sleep Associates in East Providence, Rhode Island. I've been in pulmonary hypertension for about 11 years now. In that time, I have worked in a variety of settings, both inpatient and outpatient, managing patients with pulmonary vascular disease, and have also touched upon patients with interstitial lung disease and pulmonary hypertension.  I get very excited when I hear about new opportunities for our PH patients. I think a lot about even when I started in pulmonary hypertension and the therapies that were available to our patients. Many of these therapies had been around for a little bit of time. But also something that I think is extremely exciting is that there's just been a rapid progression in development of therapies. And now, with the focus of looking at these therapies as potentially disease modifying, not necessarily slowing the progression of disease. With the advent of all of these new therapies, there become more options for our patients, as well. Often, patients can't tolerate some of the medications that we have due to side effects and despite lots of work to manage these side effects, the patients are not always successful. One of the great things being involved in an academic center is that we have the ability to help link patients to cutting edge research, particularly looking at a new drug that is an inhaled therapy that has shown significant promise in improving the lives of patients with pulmonary hypertension. As a part of the PH community, we all do quite a bit of networking with each other, as well as with our patients and other colleagues in the space. In that time, we did network regarding the study and have participated in some activities where we're looking at the data from the Phase 2 part of this trial and then also looking at some of the side effect management related to the medication, which seemingly is well tolerated. However, for some patients it may not come extremely easy. I think that's where the role of the nurse or the advanced practice provider really comes in this space is that we have a real strong dedication to helping educate patients about ways to manage these side effects. We want patients to be able to continue with therapies. We don't want them to say, "Well, this isn't working for me, it's time to move on." I think that we have a lot of strategies and a lot of experience with trying to help patients really figure out the best way to manage these things and to be confident that they can continue on with obviously the biggest benefit of improving their pulmonary vascular disease. Jennifer Keeley, DPN: We actually met at an advisory board last year. It was an advisory board consistent of registered nurses and nurse practitioners who, just like Mary and myself, have vast experience with patients and therapies, not just in the inhaled space, but more conventional pulmonary vasodilator medications that have been used in our patients for many, many years. As Mary had suggested before, when we start to think about newer agents, many, many of them are not the conventional pulmonary vasodilator medications, but disease modifying agents. Now, we've acquired an armamentarium of medications. So, inhaled delivery is just a really great option to avoid systemic side effects on top of each other. Our PH patients today, many of them are on more than three therapies, many of them are on four or even more therapies, so the delivery of the medication is just one aspect. When we talk about cough and side effects, I like to think about it and explain to my patient when we talk about side effects, particularly cough, to imagine a Venn diagram with cough being in the middle and what affects cough. You see this outward circle, how we deliver it, what kind of device we deliver it in. The drug, how small, large are the particle size? Is it easy enough to use for our patients? The formulation, is it dry powdered versus inhaled aerosolized? And then finally, just the patient themselves. What's their background? What type of PAH do they have? So, we can talk a little bit more about this, but just to get us started, this is how this developed and we had a lovely advisory board meeting with seralutinib and Gossamer Bio, and this was the outcome of it. We produced a lovely poster. This is a conversation if you will, that Mary and I are going to have based on what we talked about and the poster production, that came out of that wonderful advisory board. Mary Whittenhall, MSN: Inhaled therapies are unique in a way in that they actually have direct access to the lungs. So, when you think of an oral medication, an oral medication needs to be digested in the gut and sometimes that systemic digestion takes a while. Additionally, it's also often that we see patients that have more systemic side effects when we're using an oral formulation. Intravenous or subcutaneous formulations of these medications tend to cause pretty strong systemic side effects for patients, and there tends to be a lot of management that we need to do to help make these side effects more tolerable. For most of our patients, I say to them, "You're going to think I'm cruel because I don't really want these side effects to go away." In a way, we look at them almost as if you have a cup and your cup is full of water and after the top of the water hits the rim of the cup, then the water starts to spill over onto the sides of the cup. I think of other medications that we typically prescribe for patients in that way that when we get that spill over, so to speak, it's an indication that we've actually targeted all of those receptors that we want to help with vasodilation. Now that we're looking at other medications that don't really necessarily look at vasodilation, we're looking more at treating the blood vessels in a different way or affecting the process for which those blood vessels become diseased. I think that the side effects become different and I think they become less. In working with inhaled therapies, as you can imagine, the number one side effect that most patients will complain of is cough. Sometimes we have patients who have an underlying cough already, and that's usually not related to PAH, but in PH-ILD where we now have an FDA indication to use another inhaled therapy, we've seen in treating these patients that baseline cough is something that is extremely problematic for them before they even start therapies. So, trying to find ways to improve that baseline cough, treat any underlying symptoms, things like acid reflux as well, that may cause that, treating seasonal allergies, et cetera, and then, obviously, managing any additional overlapping side effects that may occur because of the new therapy that they're on. Jennifer Keeley, DPN: I think that's a really important part, is to talk with the patient, educate the patient on these inhaled therapies. First and foremost, that cough is almost an expected side effect. These are patients particularly with our interstitial lung disease patients that have PAH, cough is a part of their daily life. It's important to document and ascertain what these patients' baseline cough is. In many, many clinics, particularly pulmonary PAH clinics, and I'm sure much like Mary's, many of my colleagues have recommended using validated cough questionnaires so that we can get a really, really good baseline of what that patient's baseline cough is. Are you coughing at night? Do you have mucus? How long have you been coughing? Does it interfere with the quality of your life? Do you cough at night? Does it keep you up? Does it interrupt your sleep? Those kinds of things that help differentiate acute cough versus chronic cough. Many of these patients cough every day. They also have other inhaled therapies such as our ILD patients that are also on corticosteroids, many of them on inhaled corticosteroid therapy that can thin the oral pharynx, the posterior pharynx, and really affect the degree of nerve innervation in the posterior pharynx in the mouth. So, just really understanding what the patient's baseline cough is and educating them on the fact that cough is likely going to be a side effect with the use of this inhaled therapy. Certainly, as we continue to use the therapy, we would hope that the cough can be mitigated either through some lifestyle modifications, some natural remedies, and even some medical remedies such as bronchodilators. But really teaching the patient about the medication and inherently that this is likely going to induce a cough, but that we have mitigation strategies to help dissipate the cough. I always like to tell my patients also in the clinical trials, particularly the Phase 2 clinical trials that are out there that patients had a lot of cough. The patients on drug that were in most of the Phase 2 clinical trials for seralutinib and even for treprostinil inhaled, 30 to 40% of them experienced cough. But at the same token, the placebo-based patients that did not receive drug in these Phase 2 clinical trials also had a lot of cough. So, what that's telling you is yes, you're going to get probably some more cough, but it's likely not going to be that much or more far advanced than the cough that you're already experiencing. I also think it's important to tell these patients, many, many patients that experienced cough did not stop the medication. Actually, in these Phase 2 clinical trials, very few stop the medication. So, that gives you a really good big picture that we are pretty good at educating our patients how to mitigate cough, and if we aren't, then we should learn how to do so. Mary Whittenhall, MSN: I think it's important for us to set some expectations for patients when we're talking about cough. We've already discussed a bit that cough can happen for people from other things outside of their lung disease, but it's important to also look at what may be causing the cough when we are giving a patient an inhaled therapy. So, any type of inhaled therapy, whether that be a dry powder, a mist, whether that's nebulized or through in actuated inhaler, there are particles inside of that medication as it's going in and those little particles, when your lungs inhale that medication, those particles are penetrating your lungs and your lungs are not accustomed to them being there. It's almost as if your lungs are saying, "I don't recognize this. I don't know why this is here," and it may feel like it's an irritant, so you may start coughing as a result of that, but the cough is not necessarily a bad thing. Those particles are there, and the job is to essentially help deliver the medicine to penetrate that lung tissue and then for your body then to absorb the medicine. Your airways and your blood vessels inside of your lungs are extremely close to each other. So, when you inhale that medication, those little blood vessels are also right next to where those airways are, and then that is how those blood vessels then absorb that medication, because they're so close to the site at which those particles come into your lungs. Jennifer Keeley, DPN: I think this is an important concept to understand. They choose the form of delivery based on the goal of delivering the most medication efficiently to the distal bronchioles. That's where the disease is. It's in the distal arteries. So, trying to formulate how we get these very powerful, oftentimes disease modifying agents into the periphery of the lungs can be very challenging. Dry powdered inhaler is one form that the variability of delivery is not as dispersed as an aerosolized. So, it's more efficient delivery to the place where the medication needs to work the best, and that's in the distal periphery of the lungs. Unfortunately, one thing you have to deal with is that oftentimes these medications, dry powdered medications, not just in the PH space, but there's a lot of other dry powdered inhalers in the COPD space, as well. Oftentimes, what happens is these powdered particles get dispersed extra thoracically. So, they get dispersed in the oral mucosa, in the posterior pharynx, on the way down into the stomach. That's wherein we have to deal with mitigating side effects. The biggest side effect of these particles, even though they're very small, is cough. So, technique comes into play. Mitigating things to coat the posterior pharynx come into play. Re-education comes into play. Show me again how you're doing this inhalation, because I don't think that you're holding this okay. In one instance, I had a patient that was inhaling dry powdered inhaler with the medication right out of the refrigerator. So, the medication was cold. It was clumping at the back of her throat. All of these things really take into consideration how we most efficiently get the medicine to these pulmonary arterial hypertension patients where their disease is oftentimes very difficult to get to, and other forms of medications that are systemic, orals, parenterals that have first pass metabolism, and so you're going to get more side effects from those medications. So, I always teach my patients, "Hey, we're a couple steps ahead because we're bypassing the type of metabolism that you get with orals and even parenterals." Mary Whittenhall, MSN: There are so many challenges that these patients face. Oftentimes, patients have never been sick before they develop this, and now we're putting them on multiple therapies, multiple modalities, telling them that there's going to be side effects and they need to learn how to manage them. It's certainly a lot to handle. But I think one of the best things that we have in our PH community is that we really work so hard to partner with the patients and their loved ones and forming this relationship, fostering that relationship as time goes on, I believe that these patients really do trust us and that what we're telling them is things are going to be okay. We are going to be there by your side. We're not going to give you this medicine and then say, "See you in six months. Hope everything goes well." We're really going to be working with them. In some cases in my specialty clinic, we have nurses, we have a pharmacist, a pharmacy tech, and then our advanced practice providers that check in with these patients quite regularly. We are actually taking the initiative to reach out to them versus the patient who may be having trouble advocating for themselves or feeling like, "Really, I don't want to be a pain, but this is challenging for me." We are really in touch with them, and that connection also helps to keep patients on therapy. So, what are some of the specific techniques to manage or mitigate cough? This is something that was a real hot topic at our last advisory meeting. We put together a bunch of folks in the room who deal with other inhaled therapies and patients that have cough and said, "Well, what do you tell patients to do?" First and foremost is to look at any other potentially underlying conditions that may be causing cough and ensure that treatment of those underlying conditions is optimized. I think cough is actually the number one referral for any type of pulmonary practice, but it is a really, really broad differential when it comes down to it. We obviously look first at things like environmental factors. If this could be seasonal allergies, then we try treating patients with antihistamines. Perhaps some of those are intranasal, as well, that may help with some things like rhinorrhea or post nasal drip. Acid reflux is actually a huge, huge reason for cough. Many patients say, 'Well, I don't get acid reflux. I don't feel that burning in my chest after I eat," but come to find out that it can actually be a silent trigger. So, treating patients with medicines that help to reduce acid or suppress acid will oftentimes help with that cough. On top of that, when we're dealing with patients that are on inhalers and now we're adding another inhaled therapy. I find that for some patients that are on actual inhalers that sometimes they do better with nebulized treatments. The nebulized treatments are slower, and may have a bit of a better penetration into the lungs and the patients tend to like it. It is one of those things that you do need to be compliant with in order to really see the benefits to it. I will say that oftentimes, again, partnering with the patient, giving them specific instructions about how to do all of this, we can really see some improvement to those symptoms. Then, there's just basic over-the counter measures and precautions, things like making sure that when you're eating that you're not laying down at least for 60 minutes after you've been eating. If you do have acid reflux, trying to sleep with two pillows or a wedge pillow, that can help to keep the head of your bed elevated. Some of our patients have those really fancy adjustable beds that are also quite helpful for that. I think that sometimes things like basic cough drops actually can be quite wonderful and helpful. Drinking very cold or very warm water or tea, adding some honey to that if a patient isn't diabetic, things like that tend to really help with cough. We reinforce these measures when we start therapies like this. Jennifer Keeley, DPN: In terms of mitigation, I think it's really important on technique. This is why, as Mary had alluded to, it's so important to follow up closely with these patients, particularly our elderly patients who sometimes don't, if they have connective tissue disease or scleroderma, have a lot of good fine motor coordination. A couple of things that I wanted to touch on with regards to that… One, these inhalers are typically high resistance, low flow. So, these are not the type of patients that need to be taking in very forceful inhalations with these inhalers and thank goodness, because we're talking about patients that have inflammatory interstitial lung disease, as well as pulmonary vascular disease. So their degree of inspiratory effort is actually minimal to disperse that medication to the distal pulmonary bronchials. It's equivalent to them taking a deep breath in when you ask them to auscultate their lungs. So it's not a big forceful breath. The other thing is too, a lot of times, sometimes more variability in the disbursement of the drug is better in compliance with some patients. Dry-powdered inhalers, again, do not take a very big forceful effort, but some of them, because they are powder, some of the medication will actually hit the back of the throat as it goes down and can cause some irritation, whereas the nebulized form does have a variability in disbursement and can be more easily tolerated in some. The other issue is the technique itself. Oftentimes, we ask them in some of the inhaled therapies to lower the device itself so that the tongue doesn't protrude and get in the way, because if medication gets on the tongue, the next swallow that they take, that medication is going to hit their posterior pharynx, and they're going to probably cough pretty aggressively. I always start off by telling my patients, "Cough is not a bad thing. It's actually a protective reflex and it's involuntary. So, if you cough, don't actually negate it. Don't think it's a bad thing." It's actually a very protective mechanism that avoids irritation in most of our patients probably already irritated mucosa. So, that's how I like to start the conversation. There's so many good techniques that we can share with them over time, and I might add that each patient is different. Each patient needs to have a personalized plan. When we talk about giving patients warm tea, typically chamomile, chamomile tea in itself is anti-inflammatory. Then, when you add something like honey, which is also a soothing, anti-inflammatory natural remedy, you have to really think to yourself, "They're getting honey. If they're diabetic, we don't want to give them too much honey." But, you have to make sure that their swallowing technique is good. There's no aspiration there, particularly if we give them cough drops. Then, just simple things that actually numb or anesthetize the back of the throat are very, very helpful for elderly patients who do have very friable tissue and mucosa from previous therapies like inhaled corticosteroids, as I had talked about before. Dairy products, I tend to ask my patients to avoid those. They can produce a lot of mucus, which these coughs that we see in our inhaled therapy patients are typically tend to be dry coughs, but some patients that have concomitant asthma, COPD, along with their ILD that are using these inhaled therapies can actually have more of a congested mucoid cough. So, avoiding dairy before and after use is always very smart. Avoiding alcohol, avoiding acidic drinks like orange juice, also very, very helpful. Mary Whittenhall, MSN: The part about technique I think is so, so important here. Oftentimes, when patients start these therapies, when they are approved in that space, the specialty pharmacy has a nurse educator that will come out to the patient's home and provide education not only about the medication, but about the administration of that medication. In many cases, the patients will take their first dose while the nurse is present so that the nurse can then critique whether or not the patient took it appropriately and how they tolerated it. I'm going to give a shout out to our nurse educators from the specialty pharmacies, because they are also a really crucial set of eyes and ears for us out in the community. They do provide education to the patients in the home. We have had situations where the patient has done well while the nurse is there, and then two weeks later we get a call from the patient saying, "I can't do this. This isn't working for me." And I'll say, "Okay. Well, you have a couple options. We can have you come in to the clinic and I want you to bring your device with you, and I would like to watch you do a treatment, or I can have the nurse come out and see you again and go over that." And they'll say, "I already know what I'm doing. I don't need that." But in many instances, we have found that they have adjusted their technique. They might've gotten into some bad habit since the nurse has left them. So, really reinforcing that is important. The other thing that I wanted to bring up is that some of our patients with connective tissue disease also have thickness in their tongues. So, their tongues become thicker and more sclerotome as their connective tissue disease progresses. For some of those patients, it is actually hard for them to get their tongue flat enough so that they can get the medication down into their lungs. So, working with those patients to find strategies to help rectify that. I will say that it is not impossible, it just takes maybe a little extra work. Jennifer Keeley, DPN: Inhaled therapies in themselves are pretty portable. Mary had alluded to a little bit earlier, our patients with pulmonary vascular disease, PAH, that are on parenteral therapies, delivering the conventional pulmonary vasodilator therapies. As we get into the new disease modifying agents such as seralutinib, which are anti-fibrotic, anti-inflammatory, anti-prolific medications, these are portable therapies that are actually modifying the disease. So they're portable. They're easy to use. They're easy to use for our patients, again, that are elderly or are younger and are still working, they have a professional life, they don't have to wear a pump that's 24/7 oftentimes. They can use these inhaled therapies first to see if they can avoid parenteral therapy with prostacyclins. Their quality of life is improved immensely. When you can take an inhaled therapy two to four times a day and really improve quality of life, decrease cough, decrease dyspnea, or shortness of breath on exertion. Sometimes, these patients that do very, very well can actually reduce their supplemental oxygen needs. Just improving their walk distances without having to stop or have excessive dyspnea, improves their quality of life. More time spent with loved ones and more time spent in social environments rather than sitting at home. These wonderful inhaled portable therapies have significantly changed our patients' lives and improved their quality of lives. Mary Whittenhall, MSN: This community I think is phenomenal. It's made up of so many great people. There are many patients who have been a part of this space for a long time who really want to help other patients who may be newer to the journey than them. I'm a big advocate for support groups. We've had an extremely active support group in our area for a long time, and I often partner some of my patients that have been with me for quite some time with some of the new patients that may need a bit more help. I can tell them things and my colleagues can tell them things. Oftentimes, the same message doesn't resonate. It resonates differently, I think when it comes from a peer, a patient who may have experienced the same thing as them. One of the things that I really try to drive home with our patients is just that sense of empowerment. Connect with these other folks in the community. They want to help you. They remember what it feels like being newly diagnosed or starting a new therapy or transitioning from another therapy. What that change is like. One of the other things I tell my patients is that we all sit at the same table. I'm not better than you. Maybe I have this information, but this information is for you. It's for you to take and to improve your life. If that information doesn't work for you, then you come back to me with some feedback and we come up with something else that's going to be more helpful to you. I really think having an equal playing field with them and having a very open and honest dialogue is what is going to help our patients do the best. If patients don't feel comfortable reaching out to other local patients or connecting with an in-person support group, there are tons of online resources through the PHA, through phaware®, Team Phenomenal Hope, lots of great groups out there that do things virtually. I think in some ways for some patients, anonymity is important, so being able to protect that is an option for them, but to be able to still get what they need so they can become the best advocate for themselves that they can. Jennifer Keeley, DPN: I stress so importantly to my patients, we are here today in this great environment and we have the armamentarium of medications to treat because of patients just like you that have contributed to the science of the disease and implemented themselves and engaged in these clinical trials. Right now we have an ongoing clinical trial for seralutinib called PROSERA, that's enrolling as we speak. Patients are the best advocates, not only for themselves, but for other patients, and they talk. There's a lot of social media out there where patients communicate amongst themselves and they say, "Through the help of my provider and through the help of my family, I was hesitant to start this additional therapy." They do have, at this juncture, and I don't think it's such a bad thing, they do have a little bit of a pharmacy burden now. Again, these aren't our patients that are on one or two therapies. They're on four or more oftentimes. When you take in our ILD patients, they're also on disease modifying agents, as well, for their interstitial lung disease. So again, I think it's really important for patients to communicate amongst themselves and share their ups and downs in the disease, but also share the rewards that come with surviving and living with PAH. I think one thing that we really do have to understand though is like many other chronic diseases, PH is a personalized disease. You need to have a personalized approach for your patients. That's why it's so very important to do a really good history of your patients and understand not only what their baseline cough is, but who they are, what their personal history is. Are they working? Who's helping to care for them? Who's helping to make that chamomile tea with honey? Who's going to the store to get that? A personalized approach is so important for these patients, I can't stress that enough. Mary Whittenhall, MSN: Special thanks to everybody involved in this project. This was extremely exciting. To my co-podcaster, Jennifer Keeley, who is amazing, and all of us in the PH community are extremely lucky to have her. We are all aware that you are all rare, and we are grateful to be able to help you in this journey. Jennifer Keeley, DPN: Thank you so much, Mary, and what a pleasure it's been to speak with you about cough and inhaled therapies, and thank you to Gossamer Bio for this opportunity and for the opportunity that led to this podcast, which was a significant advisory board amongst specialists in our field, advanced practice providers and registered nurses who were able to convene in a great open space and talk about this. I think this moves our science forward. It helps us to talk about the disease and take better care of our patients. Again, my name is Jennifer Keeley. It's been such a pleasure to deal with my good friend Mary Whittenhall today, and we're aware that our patients are very rare. Learn more about pulmonary hypertension trials at www.phaware.global/clinicaltrials. Follow us on instagram, facebook and x.com @phaware. Engage for a cure: www.phaware.global/donate #phaware Share your story: info@phaware.com Like, Subscribe and Follow us: www.phawarepodcast.com. #phawareMD #PHILD @GossamerBio @AHNtoday

On this episode, Joey Seliski, Director of Digital Health Strategy and Operations at Allegheny Health Network, joins the podcast to discuss workplace shortages and burnout, growth and adding value through digital initiatives, and preparing for rapid change in healthcare technology.

On this episode, Joey Seliski, Director of Digital Health Strategy and Operations at Allegheny Health Network, joins the podcast to discuss workplace shortages and burnout, growth and adding value through digital initiatives, and preparing for rapid change in healthcare technology.

“All of these TKIs [tyrosine kinase inhibitors] inhibit BCR-ABL1 in some way, shape, or form. When BCR-ABL1 is mutated, it has uncontrolled tyrosine kinase activity, leading to rapid cell proliferation. When we then inhibit that BCR-ABL1 that's been mutated, we disrupt this abnormal signaling pathway that drives CML [chronic myeloid leukemia] cell proliferation and survival, ultimately leading to decreased cancer cell growth, increased apoptosis or cell death, and potentially inducing a disease remission,” Samantha Maples, PharmD, BCOP, clinical pharmacy specialist supervisor for hematology and cellular therapy at Allegheny Health Network in Pittsburgh, PA, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BS, AOCNS®, manager of oncology nursing practice at ONS, during a conversation about the BCR-ABL1 inhibitor drug class.   Music Credit: “Fireflies and Stardust” by Kevin MacLeod  Licensed under Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0   Earn 0.5 contact hours of nursing continuing professional development (NCPD) by listening to the full recording and completing an evaluation at courses.ons.org by September 5, 2026. The planners and faculty for this episode have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose. ONS is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.  Learning outcome: Learner will report an increase in knowledge related to the use of BCR-ABL1 inhibitors in the treatment of CML. Episode Notes   Complete this evaluation for free NCPD.  ONS Podcast™ episodes: Pharmacology 101 series Episode 322: Nursing Strategies to Reduce Readmission Rates for Patients With Cancer Episode 215: Navigate Updates in Oral Adherence to Cancer Therapies ONS Voice articles: Adherence to Oral Anticancer Medication Combination Therapy Shows Promise for Chronic Myeloid Leukemia The Case of the Medication Modification The Case of the Safety Session ONS course: Safe Handling Basics Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing articles: Targeted Drug Therapies: Beyond Blood Counts and Chemistries Oncology Nursing Forum articles: Adherence and Coping Strategies in Outpatients With Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Receiving Oral Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors Fear of Progression in Outpatients With Chronic Myeloid Leukemia on Oral Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors Other ONS resources: Biomarker Database Financial Toxicity Huddle Card Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors Huddle Card Oral Anticancer Medication Care Compass: Resources for Interprofessional Navigation Oral Anticancer Medication Learning Library National Comprehensive Cancer Network National Comprehensive Cancer Network patient resources To discuss the information in this episode with other oncology nurses, visit the ONS Communities.   To find resources for creating an ONS Podcast club in your chapter or nursing community, visit the ONS Podcast Library.  To provide feedback or otherwise reach ONS about the podcast, email pubONSVoice@ons.org. Highlights From This Episode  “The IRIS study led to the approval of the BCR-ABL1 and TKI, imatinib, for CML in 2001 and completely changed the landscape of CML treatment. Then came the second-generation BCR-ABL1 TKIs: dasatinib in 2006, quickly followed by nilotinib in 2007. Thereafter came our second-generation, bosutinib, and our first approved third-generation TKI, ponatinib, both in 2012, which was a huge milestone as ponatinib overcomes resistance to the T315 I mutation, which no previously approved TKIs worked against.” TS 2:16 “The newest approved TKI, asciminib, is an allosteric inhibitor that binds to a different pocket on the BCR-ABL kinase via allosteric binding to the ABL myristoyl pocket. It's what's called a STAMP inhibitor, where STAMP stands for ‘specifically targeting the ABL myristoyl pocket.' And while all the TKIs target the BCR-ABL1 binding site, they can also inhibit different off-target kinases. And these differences in off-target inhibition are responsible for some of the different toxicities we see among the TKIs.” TS 4:51 “As a class, common toxicities include nausea; vomiting; diarrhea; cardiac toxicities, including cardiac arrhythmias and congestive heart failure; metabolic abnormalities such as hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia; nephrotoxicity; hepatic toxicity; hemorrhaging and bleeding; as well as cytopenia. Individually, some of these agents are more likely to cause certain side effects compared to others, and there are unique toxicities associated with certain TKIs.” TS 8:10 “We've moved to using preemptive loperamide [in our clinic] for the first three days of starting treatment, because it's really hard to get patients to continue to take a medication if they have such severe diarrhea that they end up in the hospital or they're unable to leave their house. A lot of times, we will proactively give patients antiemetics and loperamide to help with the nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. And then we can back off to an as-needed basis once they've been established on treatment. We can also use medications to help manage long-term complications that can require supportive care, such as statin therapy for high cholesterol, levothyroxine for hypothyroidism, anticoagulants for any venous thromboembolism, and antihypertensive medications for managing any new or worsening high blood pressure.” TS 12:44 “We are continually seeing these agents expand their indications to different lines of therapy, as well as more TKIs being approved for acute lymphoblastic leukemia. For example, asciminib just got approved in the frontline setting within the last year, whereas previously it was only approved in relapsed refractory setting. Last year, imatinib was the first BCR-ABL1 TKI to come out with a commercially supplied suspension option as well, which is huge in the pediatric space and [for] our adult patients who are unable to swallow tablets for other clinical reasons.” TS 21:22 “There is more information being published on the safe discontinuation of these medications with treatment-free remissions, and more information is coming out about who would be eligible and who can have the option to stop these treatments instead of having a lifelong chronic condition requiring continuous treatment. We're seeing more patients in clinical practice be able to stop BCR-ABL1 treatment, which has been a great development in CML.” TS 25:29

In this episode, Dr. Allan Klapper, President of Wexford Hospital at Allegheny Health Network, discusses building a patient-centered culture, sustaining operational excellence, and preparing for the future of value-based care. He also highlights workforce strategies, outpatient growth opportunities, and the leadership approaches needed to thrive in a rapidly evolving healthcare environment.

In this episode, Molly Gamble sits down with Dr. Shiv Rao, Founder and CEO of Abridge, to discuss the company's newest breakthrough: a real-time prior authorization solution launched with Highmark and Allegheny Health Network. Dr. Rao shares why this milestone marks a shift from passive to active AI support, how Abridge is reducing clerical burden for clinicians, and what it means for patients, payers, and providers navigating prior authorization challenges.

In this episode, Joey Seliski of Allegheny Health Network and Pritee Subramany of Highmark Health discuss how consistent, accurate provider data is essential for improving care coordination, patient trust, and enabling AI-driven tools like virtual assistants and personalized provider recommendations.This episode is sponsored by Kyruus Health.

In this episode of MedNews Week's Oncology Unplugged, host Chandler Park, MD, a medical oncologist at Norton Cancer Institute in Louisville, Kentucky, was rejoined by Midhun Malla, MD, a gastrointestinal oncologist at Allegheny Health Network in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to discuss treatment personalization in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), with a focus on BRAF V600E–mutant tumors, HER2-altered disease, and the clinical implications of tumor sidedness.

Since June's theme is Post Life I wanted to run a previously recorded episode discussing Hospice Care. Join me Jenny D as I delve into the often misunderstood world of hospice care with bereavement coordinator Rebecca from Allegheny Health Network. In this heartfelt episode, we unpack the true essence of hospice, exploring its roots and importance in providing quality of life rather than focusing solely on the end of life. Listeners will discover how hospice is not about surrendering but shifting the focus of care, and learn about the vast support system that exists to help both patients and their families during challenging times. From the role of volunteers to post-passing bereavement support, they discuss the comprehensive nature of hospice care, highlighting stories of resilience and compassion. Whether you're curious about hospice for a loved one or interested in volunteer opportunities, this episode sheds light on how hospice services are a pivotal part of healthcare, ensuring dignity and comfort in the latter stages of life. AHN Healthcare at Home Hospice 1-878-218-7294 For more information in being a guest or sponsor on Spill with Me Jenny D contact Kelli Komondor at kelli@k2creativellc.com Check out my new website at https://www.spillwithmejennyd.com/ All episodes are available on the major audio platforms. Please follow and Subscribe. 6/25    

Join our team as we discuss Allegheny Health Network's multidisciplinary efforts to prevent workplace violence and build a comprehensive safety program to protect our frontline staff. We will discuss the importance of reporting, tracking, and trending violent events, preparing and educating employees, the integration of police officers into the health care setting, leveraging technology advancements, and how we support staff after a traumatic incident.

In this episode, Duane Mancini interviews Kelly Collier at LifeX on the dynamic life science startup ecosystem thriving in Pittsburgh. We explore the unique synergy between major academic institutions like the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University, and healthcare giants such as UPMC and Allegheny Health Network. Discover Kelly's entrepreneurial journey and learn how LifeX provides crucial support and programming for emerging life science companies. We also discuss the common pitfalls startups face and the specific advantages Pittsburgh offers to innovators. Tune in to understand the key ingredients fueling Pittsburgh's rise as a life science hub.Kelly Collier LinkedInLifeX WebsiteDuane Mancini LinkedInProject Medech WebsiteProject Medtech LinkedIn

Send us a textWhat happens when the players break? Dr. Pat DeMeo takes us into the sacred space of the Pittsburgh Pirates' trainer's room at LECOM Park to reveal the hidden world of Major League Baseball medicine.Growing up as a Yankees fan in 1960s New York, DeMeo never imagined he'd one day become the Pirates' medical director and head of orthopedic surgery at Allegheny Health Network. With remarkable candor, he shares the unexpected path that led him to this rare position – one of only 30 MLB medical directors in the world – and the steep learning curve he faced during his first years with the organization.Behind every pitcher's devastating injury or miraculous comeback lies an intricate dance between medical science and the business of baseball. Dr. DeMeo pulls back the curtain on how these decisions unfold, revealing the seasonal rhythm that dictates his work from spring training physicals to draft preparations and trade deadline medical evaluations. His philosophy remains steadfast through it all: "I don't represent management. I represent the player."The conversation takes a dramatic turn when DeMeo recounts saving a man's life on the field during spring training, performing CPR and using a defibrillator while players watched on bended knee. He describes Jung Ho Kang's catastrophic 2015 knee injury as "the worst baseball injury I've ever seen – worse than anything in football" and details the innovative surgical approach that allowed Kang to return to play when the odds seemed impossible.From AJ Burnett's transformative impact on team chemistry to the emotional challenges of forming bonds with players who might be "here today, gone tomorrow," Dr. DeMeo provides a deeply human perspective on medicine at the highest level of sports. His stories reveal not just the physical demands of baseball, but the mental fortitude required from both players and the medical professionals who care for them.Want more insider baseball stories? Subscribe to Hold My Cutter for conversations with the personalities who make baseball America's most storied game.THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!!!!www.holdmycutter.com

Doug Henry, PhD, Vice President and Medical Director of Enterprise Behavioral Health at Highmark Health, and Mari Vandenburgh, Vice President of Health Programs and Solutions at Highmark Health, join Eric to share Highmark's innovative approaches to transforming care delivery through digital and hybrid solutions. Topics include: Post-Acute Care Innovations: AHN At-Home Care program's multidisciplinary approach integrates mental health support to reduce readmissions and save $600 PMPM in total care costs. Addressing Network and Access Gaps: Highmark's strategic initiatives to expand access through geo-analysis, virtual-first strategies, and enhanced provider partnerships. Virtual Mental Health: A closer look at Highmark's partnership with Spring Health to provide personalized, outcome-driven mental health care, achieving symptom remission in six weeks or less for 70% of patients with moderate to severe conditions. Living Health Strategy: Leveraging personalized nudges and integrated digital platforms to boost member engagement, with 79% receiving their first mental health care through the program. Innovation for Loneliness and Beyond: Doug shares groundbreaking grant projects, such as using technology and social prescriptions to address loneliness and improve senior care outcomes. This episode is packed with actionable insights for health plans seeking to close access gaps, enhance member experience, and drive measurable outcomes in mental health and beyond. Tune in to learn from Highmark's bright spots and discover strategies to replicate their success.   About Doug and Mari Doug is a clinical psychologist licensed in Pennsylvania and California and brings over 20 years of experience in professional applied psychology, including inpatient, outpatient, and administrative assignments. Attracted by the integrated payer-provider model and emphasis on patient-centered treatment, he joined the Allegheny Health Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Institute in 2017 as vice president. In addition to his role at the enterprise, he continues to serve as a leadership dyad for the Institute. Before joining AHN, Dr. Henry served as clinical administrator at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic for UPMC Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health Services, the UPMC Center for Autism and Developmental Disorders, and the UPMC Center for Eating Disorders. Mari is responsible for identifying and managing best-in-class healthcare solutions to improve Quadruple Aim outcomes related to chronic and episodic clinical conditions and validating multi-year business case value drivers and ROI. She has been with Highmark in various roles since 2005. Mari has a Bachelor of Science from Duquesne and a Master of Health Administration from the University of Pittsburgh. About Highmark Health Highmark Health is a $27 billion national, blended health organization with one of America's largest Blue Cross Blue Shield insurers and a growing regional hospital and physician network. Based in Pittsburgh, Pa., Highmark Health's 44,000 employees serve millions of customers nationwide through the nonprofit organization's affiliated businesses, including Highmark Inc., Allegheny Health Network, HM Insurance Group, United Concordia Dental, enGen, and Helion.   We'd love to hear from you! Send your comments, suggestions and ideas to hello@brightspotsinhealthcare.com   Visit our website to learn more about the show! www.brightspotsinhealthcare.com        

In this episode, Leora, co-host of Elevate Care, interviews Laura Griffin, VP of Nursing Operations at ECU Health, on her journey in healthcare, her role in optimizing nursing operations, and the partnership with AMN Healthcare. The conversation covers the challenges faced in staffing post-pandemic, the importance of workforce analysis, and the implementation of a centralized staffing office. Laura emphasizes the significance of building a positive culture, addressing burnout, and leveraging data for informed staffing decisions. She expresses excitement for the future of nursing at ECU Health and the ongoing innovations in healthcare.Chapters00:00 Introduction to ECU Health and Laura Griffin's Background02:52 Laura's Role and Responsibilities at ECU Health06:04 Partnership with AMN Healthcare: Challenges and Solutions08:53 Workforce Analysis and Staffing Strategies11:48 Centralized Staffing Office: A New Approach14:57 Building a Positive Culture and Retention Strategies18:10 The Importance of Data in Staffing Decisions20:58 Future of Nursing Operations and Addressing Burnout23:53 Final Thoughts on Healthcare Innovations and Partnerships About LauraLaura Griffin currently serves as Vice President of System Nursing Operations at ECU Health, a position held since November 2023. Prior to this role, Laura held multiple leadership positions at Allegheny Health Network from May 2012 to July 2023, including Vice President of the Nursing Institute and Vice President of Nursing Operations & Strategy. Laura's early career at Allegheny Health Network included roles such as Director of Network Nursing Operations and Clinical Project Manager at both Allegheny General Hospital and West Penn Hospital, focusing on clinical project design and implementation with a strong emphasis on data analysis. In addition to practical experience, Laura has contributed to academia as an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health from August 2018 to January 2024. Laura holds a Master of Health Administration from the University of Pittsburgh and a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Management from the University of Mount Union. About LeoraAs President of Workforce Strategy & Optimization (WSO) at AMN Healthcare, Leora leads the WSO team in strategy, technology, analytics solutions, and consulting. She has over 15 years of experience in healthcare services, business development, and program management. She holds an MBA from Nova Southeastern University and a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Miami. Connect with Leora: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leorawestbrook/ About The Show: Elevate Care delves into the latest trends, thinking, and best practices shaping the landscape of healthcare. From total talent management to solutions and strategies to expand the reach of care, we discuss methods to enable high quality, flexible workforce and care delivery. We will discuss the latest advancements in technology, the impact of emerging models and settings, physical and virtual, and address strategies to identify and obtain an optimal workforce mix. Tune in to gain valuable insights from thought leaders focused on improving healthcare quality, workforce well-being, and patient outcomes. Find Us On:Website – https://www.amnhealthcare.com/podcast/elevate-care-podcast/YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@ElevateCarePodcastSpotify – https://open.spotify.com/show/5R2oWLZXYfjtPGW7o5KpuoApple – https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/elevate-care/id1710406359Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/amnhealthcare/LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/amn-healthcare/X – https://twitter.com/amnhealthcare/Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/amnhealthcare/ Powered by AMN Healthcare

On this episode of JHLT: The Podcast, the Digital Media Editors have three expert guests to discuss their paper, “Pragmatic approach to temporary mechanical circulatory support in acute right ventricular failure.” You'll hear from first author Anthony Carnicelli, MD, from the Medical University of South Carolina; Alexander Bernhardt, MD, from the University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf; and senior author Manreet Kanwar, MD, of the Cardiovascular Institute at Allegheny Health Network. The episode explores: Parameters that influence deciding when to escalate RV support Determining which device is right for each patient Evaluating a patient for the correct anticoagulants Device-related complications and solutions What's next in research for tMCS and acute RV failure For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you're an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt. Join us again later this month for another MCS study, exploring aortic insufficiency in patients with durable LVADs. Don't already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

In this piece our guest shares her journey from general anesthesiology to focusing exclusively on obstetrics, driven by her training as a sexual assault counselor. She highlights the prevalence of trauma among patients and the need for trauma-informed care practices. Presented by Desiree Chappell with her guest Tracey Vogel, Obstetric Anesthesiologist, Allegheny Health Network and Founder of The Empowerment Equation, LLC. More here: https://www.theempowermentequation.com/

What is a healthy diet and how much does it really matter that we try to eat one as we age?  That's the topic of this week's podcast with three amazing guests: Anna Pleet, Elizabeth Eckstrom, and Emily Johnston. Emily Johnston is a registered dietitian, nutrition researcher, and Assistant professor at NYU.  Anna Pleet is an internal medicine resident at Allegheny Health Network who has a collection of amazing YouTube videos on aging and the Mediterranean diet. Elizabeth Eckstrom is a geriatrician, professor of medicine at OHSU, and author of a new book, the Gift of Aging. I love this podcast as while we talk about the usual topics in a medical podcast, like the role of screening, energy balance, and evidence-based for specific diets, we also talk about what a Mediterranean diet actually looks like on a plate and pepper our guests with questions about their favorite meals to convince Alex and me to eat more like a Sardinian. Eric PS.  NEJM just published a great summary of diets summing up adherence to the Mediterranean diet and the following improved health outcomes: death from any cause, cardiovascular diseases, coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and diabetes    

Charlie Borowicz, manager of trans and gender diverse health at Allegheny Health Network, shares how the program offers comprehensive patient-first care to those in the LGBTQ and gender diverse community.

June 18, 2024: Reid Stephan, VP and CIO of St. Luke's Health System, interviews Dr. Ashis Barad MD, CDIO, and Joey Seliski, Director of Operations and Strategy (Digital Health), from Allegheny Health Network. They discuss the transformative potential of ambient listening technologies like AI scribes, questioning how these tools can improve note quality and diagnosis accuracy without merely increasing clinician workload. What does it mean to truly humanize healthcare through technology, and how can we balance the excitement of digital health innovations with the necessity of practical, ROI-driven implementations? Ashis and Joey share their experiences and predictions, diving into the evolving role of clinicians in an AI-enhanced landscape and the impact of personalized patient engagement on care outcomes.Categories: Digital Health & Emerging TechnologySubscribe: This Week HealthTwitter: This Week HealthLinkedIn: Week HealthDonate: Alex's Lemonade Stand: Foundation for Childhood Cancer

In this interview, we discuss immigrant health with Kheir Mugwaneza, the lead project manager of the Immigrant and Refugee Health Program at Allegheny Health Network.

Tune in to the latest episode of the Becker's Healthcare Podcast, recorded live at our 14th Annual Meeting, where we delve into insightful discussions with industry experts. Join Dr. Margaret Larkins-Pettigrew, SVP & Chief Clinical DEI Officer / Academic Chair of Obstetrics & Gynecology at Allegheny Health Network & Highmark / Drexel University, as they share invaluable insights on leadership, growth strategies, and navigating workforce challenges in healthcare. Gain actionable advice and best practices to elevate your organization's performance in today's dynamic landscape.

In the series debut episode of Frameworks for Advancing Health Equity, Mary Sligh, CRNP, and Chelsea Chappars, of Allegheny Health Network, explain how the Urban Health Outreach program aims to improve health equity for individuals experiencing homelessness.

Join us in this episode as we engage with Dr. Ashis Barad, Chief Digital and Information Officer at Allegheny Health Network. Dr. Barad shares insights on his journey, lessons learned, and the vision he's leading at AHN, providing listeners with a deeper understanding of the healthcare landscape. Tune in for an insightful discussion on healthcare innovation and digital transformation.

Katie Leckenby, SRU assistant professor of special education, and William Davies, founder and director of the Allegheny Health Network's Chill Project, stop by to talk about how their partnership in which pre-service teachers in SRU's education program are acquiring skills to implement mindfulness-based exercises for students in their schools.

Erik Tomalis is a proven fundraising professional and has always been forward thinking, donor and people driven, but most of all results oriented. With 20+ years of professional fundraising experience, Erik made over 4,500 face-to-face donor solicitations where he has raised millions of dollars for many non-profit organizations. He served as a front-line fundraiser, as well as an executive in some transformative organizations focused on generosity, such as St. Jude Children's Hospital, the Boy Scouts of America and the Allegheny Health Network. At Virtuous, Erik is committed to helping nonprofits grow global generosity.  Summary Fundraising and generosity with Erik Tomalis. Erik is passionate about generosity and has raised millions for nonprofits through face-to-face donor solicitations. Declining donor giving and nonprofit trust.  Nonprofit sector responding to decline in donor giving with mixed results, despite increasing number of organizations. Decline of personalized messaging in nonprofit sector.  Nonprofits struggle to personalize communication, leading to disconnection with donors. Charitable giving trends and the role of technology. Younger generations prefer direct support for specific causes, bypassing traditional organizations. Nonprofit fundraising strategies and the importance of communication with donors. Erik emphasizes the importance of communicating with donors and acknowledging their contributions to nonprofit organizations. Erik cites Mr. Rogers as a hero of his, citing his kindness and focus on generosity and love.

Our partners at Obscured captured the insights of our distinguished panelists in two parts, each shedding light on the diverse facets of harm reduction and effective strategies for addressing trauma resulting from interactions with law enforcement. If you have not listened to Part 1, we recommend starting with that episode. Listen here! Continuing the dialogue in the second part of the panel discussion are moderators Stephanie Marudas from Kouvenda Media and Namaijah Faison, MPH from the Pennsylvania Action Coalition. Joining them is Talitha Smith, BSN, RN, a nurse navigator with the Allegheny Health Network's Center for Inclusion Health Clinic, RIvER (Rethinking Incarceration and Empowering Recovery). Following Talitha, we delve into the experiences of Chad Bruckner, a retired police detective who now owns and oversees a private investigator firm, Intercounty Investigations & Solutions, Inc. and is a coach and recovery specialist. Wrapping up the discussion is Laurie A. Corbin, MSS, MLSP, who is the Managing Director for Community Engagement at Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC). She oversees a range of programs that provide social services, prevention, intervention, treatment, and education to at-risk individuals and their families.

In a special collaboration, the Pennsylvania Action Coalition joined forces with Kouvenda Media's Obscured Journalism Initiative last year to host a thought-provoking panel discussion on law enforcement interactions within the community and the implementation of a harm reduction care model. Our partners at Obscured captured the insights of our distinguished panelists in two parts, each shedding light on the diverse facets of harm reduction and effective strategies for addressing trauma resulting from interactions with law enforcement. In this episode, we hear from Talitha Smith, a nurse navigator with the Allegheny Health Network's Center for Inclusion Health Clinic, RIvER (Rethinking Incarceration and Empowering Recovery). Talitha shares her insights about harm reduction and her passion for RIvER's unique programming, which rapidly, effectively, and compassionately addresses the health needs of individuals post-release from incarceration.  Following Talitha's insights, we delve into the experiences of Chad Bruckner, a retired police detective who now owns and oversees a private investigator firm and is a coach and recovery specialist. Closing the discussion is Laurie A. Corbin who is the Managing Director for Community Engagement at Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC). She oversees a range of programs that provide social services, prevention, intervention, treatment, and education to at-risk individuals and their families.

On this episode of DGTL Voices, Ed welcomes Dr. Ashis Barad, Chief Digital and Information Officer at Allegheny Health Network. They cover the first video visit in Epic, formalizing the Chief Digital Officer role at Baylor Scott & White, and his journey to digital health.       

Joyce is excited to start 2024 with the returning champion of competitive employment for Americans with disabilities, David Holmberg, President, and CEO of Highmark Health and Chairman of the Board, Highmark, Inc. Mr. Holmberg launched an initiative in 2020 to hire 30 people with disabilities from Bender Consulting Services to honor the 30th anniversary of the signing of the ADA, called the Highmark 30/30. He and all of Highmark have continued this practice every year since 2020. During the show, Mr. Holmberg will talk about the initiative and how it happened. Additionally, he will discuss how the company plans to continue its unprecedented record of hiring people with disabilities in 2024. Highmark is a $26 billion blended health organization with headquarters in Pittsburgh, PA. Its 42,000 employees serve millions of customers nationwide through the nonprofit organization's affiliated businesses, including Highmark Inc., Allegheny Health Network, HM Insurance Group, United Concordia Dental, and enGen.

Joyce is excited to start 2024 with the returning champion of competitive employment for Americans with disabilities, David Holmberg, President, and CEO of Highmark Health and Chairman of the Board, Highmark, Inc. Mr. Holmberg launched an initiative in 2020 to hire 30 people with disabilities from Bender Consulting Services to honor the 30th anniversary of the signing of the ADA, called the Highmark 30/30. He and all of Highmark have continued this practice every year since 2020. During the show, Mr. Holmberg will talk about the initiative and how it happened. Additionally, he will discuss how the company plans to continue its unprecedented record of hiring people with disabilities in 2024. Highmark is a $26 billion blended health organization with headquarters in Pittsburgh, PA. Its 42,000 employees serve millions of customers nationwide through the nonprofit organization's affiliated businesses, including Highmark Inc., Allegheny Health Network, HM Insurance Group, United Concordia Dental, and enGen.

We speak with James Rohrbaugh, chief financial officer and treasurer of Allegheny Health Network, about the network's recent efforts to help patients understand healthcare costs and simplify the billing experience for patients through revenue cycle technology.

The Allegheny County Jail has one of the highest death rates per capita in the country. Last week, the family of Anthony Talotta, one of 21 men who've died in connection with the jail since April 2020, filed a federal lawsuit against the county, several doctors, and Allegheny Health Network. Lead producer Mallory Falk explains the family's legal case and its chief allegation — a pattern of medical neglect. You can read the federal lawsuit over Talotta's death, along with coverage from the Appeal, the Associated Press, and WESA. Brittany Hailer covered Talotta's death and reported on issues with a jail physician's medical licensing for PINJ. She has appeared on City Cast to discuss the high number of deaths at Allegheny County Jail and her push for more transparencyaround these deaths. Want some more Pittsburgh news?  Make sure to sign up for our daily morning Hey Pittsburgh newsletter. We're also on Instagram @CityCastPgh! Not a fan of social? Then leave us a voicemail at 412-212-8893. Interested in advertising with City Cast? Find more info here.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the mid-90s, little was known about how to effectively treat trauma, especially that trauma that can arise from child sexual abuse. Victims often languished in treatment for years with symptoms that might—or might not—ever improve. Then more research emerged on evidence-based treatments. These effective treatments—with Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) at the fore—were brief, reducing symptoms for many clients swiftly, and therefore swiftly getting kids back to their job of being kids. This has meant reduced suffering and improved healing for kids.The most exciting part of TF-CBT has been its ongoing evolution as applications have been developed for many different populations. What's next for TF-CBT? Take a listen to our conversation with Dr. Tony Mannarino, renowned expert in child trauma and one of the co-developers of TF-CBT.Topics in this episode:Origin story (1:41)The impact of TF-CBT (4:51)Evolving different applications of TF-CBT (9:38)The most used applications (12:16)Up next: Parental substance abuse (20:06)The development process (25:32)Kids fill in the blanks (31:43)See kids as resilient, not broken (36:47)Ukrainian therapists (42:25)For more information (45:04)Links:Anthony P. Mannarino, Ph.D., professor and chair; director, Center for Traumatic Stress In Children and Adolescents, Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Institute, Allegheny Health Network, Drexel University College of Medicine TF-CBT.orgEsther Deblinger, Ph.D.Judith A. Cohen, MDTF-CBT implementation manualsCenter for Traumatic Stress in Children and AdolescentsIsha W. Metzger, Ph.D., has previously been a guest on One in Ten (“The Meaning of Healing for Black Kids and Families”) and will join us on our next episode to discuss the new TF-CBT adaptation    Ashley Dandridge, PsyD.TF-CBT and Racial Socialization Implementation ManualFor more information about National Children's Alliance and the work of Children's Advocacy Centers, visit our website at NationalChildrensAlliance.org. Or visit our podcast website at OneInTenPodcast.org. And join us on Facebook at One in Ten podcast.Support the showDid you like this episode? Please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts.

In this episode, Dr Dante Yeh is joined by Casey Allen, MD, from the Institute of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology, Allegheny Health Network, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They discuss Dr Allen's recent study, which found that widespread adoption of the fecal immunochemical test for noninvasive colorectal cancer screening could lead to substantial cost savings. This carries major value implications for a large population health system.   Disclosure Information: Dr Allen has nothing to disclose. Dr Yeh receives author royalties from UpToDate, advisory panel/training honoraria from Takeda Pharmaceuticals, and advisory panel honoraria from Baxter, Eli Lilly, and Fresenius Kabi.   To earn 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for this episode of the JACS Operative Word Podcast, click here to register for the course and complete the evaluation. Listeners can earn CME credit for this podcast for up to 2 years after the original air date. Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.   #JACSOperativeWord

Pregnancy and birth can be a time of joy and wonder, but it can also leave parents feeling overwhelmed and sad. An estimated one in five birthing parents face anxiety, depression or other mood disorders. Pennsylvania is doing better than average on providing mental health care before and after birth, but there's a long way to go. Dr. Rebecca Brent, a clinical psychologist in Allegheny Health Network's Women's Behavioral Health Program, tells us a few tips to help new parents (or anyone) dealing with stress.  If you're pregnant or a new parent and need help, you can call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline at 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262) for 24/7, free, confidential support before, during and after pregnancy.  Let your voice be heard! We're doing a survey to learn more about our listeners, so we can make City Cast Pittsburgh an even better, more useful podcast for you. We'd be grateful if you took the survey at citycast.fm/survey—it's only 5 minutes long. You'll be doing us a big favor. Plus, anyone who takes the survey will be eligible to win a $250 Visa gift card. Want some more Pittsburgh news? Make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter Hey Pittsburgh. We're also on Twitter @citycastpgh & Instagram @CityCastPgh! Not a fan of social? Then leave us a voicemail at 412-212-8893. Interested in advertising with City Cast? Find more info here.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We dig into Bryce Harper getting hot with the entire Rockies team, dive into the Monster AL East situation, and we have a very special guest.   William C. Davies Ed.D. is the founder and director of the AHN Chill Project, Allegheny Health Network.  He talks us through his AMAZING program that helps students cope with depression, anger, and every other emotion our children need assistance coping with.   His project has already saved many lives with a focus on suicide prevention and overall emotional health.   Everyone should listen to this one whether you are a parent or a kid!     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This live episode from the Becker's Hospital Review 13th Annual Meeting in Chicago features Margaret Larkins-Pettigrew, Senior Vice President & Chief Clinical Diversity Equity Inclusion Officer at Highmark Health Allegheny Health Network. Here, she discusses her career journey, what she is currently most excited about in healthcare, making a difference in the lives of the women who work in healthcare, and more.This episode is sponsored by Insight Global Health.

Dr. Tracey Vogel is a practicing obstetric anesthesiologist in Western Pennsylvania known for her compassionate care. I was lucky enough to rotate with Tracey as a medical student, and I learned so much from her, both from a medical perspective and about how we can go beyond that to really help birthing people feel comfortable and safe in their most vulnerable moments. In this conversation, we discuss birth trauma not just from the perspective of obstetric violence or non-consensual practices but also from the experiences of women who feel unseen or unheard during childbirth. Join us for a thought-provoking conversation on birth trauma and trauma-informed care. I think you're going to love this conversation. (00:12:04) Birth Trauma (00:19:48) The Ultimate Customer Service (00:26:15) Trauma-Informed Care (00:31:43) Trauma Interventions (00:41:31) Healing Through Birth (00:46:58) The Future of Birth Visit the show notes for more: https://www.BelovedHolistics.com/113 Made possible by: FullWell - code BELOVED10 for 10% off the best prenatal vitamins and men's virility vitamins on the planet! BIRTHFIT - code BELOVED to get one month FREE in their B! Community! Immune Intel AHCC - code BELOVED10 for 10% off their incredible immune-boosting product to clear HPV from your body! BiOptimizers - code BELOVED for 10% off the only sleep aid you'll ever need! Organifi - code BELOVED for 20% off their Glow blend! Learn More & Connect with Tracey Vogel, MD Website | TheEmpowermentEquation.com Call the Clinic at Allegheny Health Network at 412-526-9520 Connect with me Instagram @nathanrileyobgyn TikTok @nathanrileyobgyn Beloved Holistics Shop Medical Disclaimer: The Holistic OBGYN Podcast is an educational program. No information conveyed through this podcast should be construed as medical advice. These conversations are available to the public for educational and entertainment purposes only. Music provided by EdvardGaresPremium / Pond5 --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/theholisticobgyn/message

On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we speak with Elizabeth Cuevas, MD, division chief of Allegheny Health Network's Center for Inclusion Health, on prevalent health inequities facing marginalized communities in the Western Pennslyvania region and strategies to identify and address these issues.

Hosts Alan Sardana & Dr. Joshua Liu speak with Dr. Ashis Barad, Chief Digital & Information Officer at Allegheny Health Network, about "Why Healthcare needs to be Designed for Consumers and not just Patients, Using Tech to Scale Trust, Finding Clinical Champions to Win at Digital Health, and more." Find all of our network podcasts on your favorite podcast platforms and be sure to subscribe and like us. Learn more at www.healthcarenowradio.com/listen/

Pittsburgh's local healthcare giants — UPMC and Allegheny Health Network — are investing billions of dollars to expand throughout the city and surrounding counties with several new specialized and neighborhood hospitals. TribLIVE senior reporter Deb Erdley joins us to talk about how these elaborate construction costs could be added to your next hospital bill. You can read Deb's reporting on hospital expansions here. Our newsletter is fresh daily at 6 a.m. Sign up here. We're also on Twitter @citycastpgh & Instagram @CityCastPgh! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There's a giant game of monopoly being played by healthcare providers in our country, and neither you nor I stand to benefit. Sandra Alvarez's latest film, InHospitable, shines a light on two specific players in the game in my hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - a place that's very near and dear to me. Tensions rose when the dominant healthcare provider UPMC created its own insurance company. Patients previously receiving care with UPMC providers and at their hospitals were pushed out unless they switched to UPMC's insurance. In response, Highmark, the dominant insurer, started its medical provider, Allegheny Health Network. The two continue to battle it out for market share. This type of infighting amongst organizations claiming to provide care to the community makes you wonder whose interests they really care about and InHospitable does a great job of clarifying some of these very confronting issues. [06:53] The Secret Hospital War [11:24] Community Impact [14:12] The Insurance Wars: UPMC vs. Highmark [21:01] For-Profit vs. Non-Profit Hospital Models [28:17] Primary Drivers of Hospitalization Costs [38:38] The Cost of Childbirth [45:39] We Need Change Visit the show notes for resources, links mentioned, and more: https://www.BelovedHolistics.com/podcast/sandraalvarez Made possible by: Fit For Birth - use our code BELOVED for 20% off pregnancy and postpartum-specific coaching! Organifi - use our code BELOVED for 20% off their green and red juice for a natural boost to your energy and mood! InHospitable & Sandra Alvarez: Sandra Alvarez on Instagram @SandraSeesAll Website | InHospitableFilm.com Twitter @InHospitableFlm Instagram @InHospitableFilm Facebook | Inhospitable Film Find me: Instagram @nathanrileyobgyn TikTok @nathanrileyobgyn Practice: BelovedHolistics.com Medical Disclaimer: The Holistic OBGYN Podcast is an educational program. No information conveyed through this podcast should be construed as medical advice. These conversations are available to the public for educational and entertainment purposes only. Music provided by EdvardGaresPremium / Pond5 --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/theholisticobgyn/message

Roughly 8,000 patients have been affected by a data breach at Allegheny Health Network. First Hospital in Kingston will close its doors this fall due to staffing shortages. People are abandoning dogs in a wooded area in Philadelphia. And two bear cubs will soon call a Washington County sanctuary their home.