Dear Colleagues,

Wow didn’t that go fast! Hard to believe summer is nearly over and everyone will be back to school next week. Best of all, it's football season!

I want to thank every that helped make our first annual Department of OBGYN and Von Voigtlander Birth Center picnic a resounding success. A special shout out to Kelly Berch, Missy Knudsen, Anita Malone and CareyLynn Flaugher for the great food, face painting, bouncy houses and so much more. 

Over 200 faculty, staff, families and pets attended. It was a great time to welcome new faculty, staff and residents and to visit with colleagues from different divisions and units. Coming together outside of work and getting to know each other as parents, partners, and friends, helps us to know each other on a different level and strengthens our community. It was really a fun time and I hope to see everyone there next year.   


Best,
Dee Fenner, MD
Congratulations, Drs. Horner & Pleasant!
Dr. Whitney Horner successfully matched in Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery with the Michigan Medicine Department of OBGYN.
Dr. Versha Pleasant has been selected as the Cancer Genetics & Breast Health Fellow starting July, 2020. 
Welcome to LaTeesa James!
LaTeesa James, MLIS , is the new Taubman Health Sciences Informationist for the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. 

LaTeesa is eager to connect our faculty, residents, and fellows to the health information resources available on campus. 

In addition to her expertise in Taubman's many specialized databases, thousands of electronic journals, mobile resources, and information management tools, Lateesa can offer a range of training opportunities, from demonstrations and hands-on workshops, to information packets tailored to faculty needs.  Be sure to reach out to LaTeesa for your research and health services information needs! 
Dr. Anderson on Eliminating Preventable Maternal Mortality in Sub-Saharan Africa
Check out this quick video with Frank Anderson's pitch to the MacArthur Foundation to support his efforts to eliminate preventable maternal morbidity and mortality in Africa through Capacity Building Partnerships.
2019 RSP/OBGYN Anita Payne & John Randolph Lecture Speakers
Women's Health Division at the Quality Month Symposium
Quality Month is a yearly celebration of the hard work that Michigan Medicine faculty and staff demonstrate toward continuous improvement and enhancing quality and safety of care provided to our patients. 

This year, two posters from the Women's Health Division will be showcased at Michigan Medicine's Quality Symposium on October 22nd (at the North Campus Research Complex).

  • Depression Screening in Pregnancy and Postpartum - Carrie Bell, MD, Roger Smith, MD and Danielle Wilson, MHSA

  • Improving Chlamydia Screening Rates in Ob/Gyn Clinics – Brighton Health Center – Alice Chi, MD, Rosalyn Maben-Feaster, MD, MPH, Christine Kantola, Stephanie Weaver, and Christine Franco 

Staff Spotlight!: Alli Novara
We’re excited to spotlight Alli Novara’s projects in this month’s newsletter. She’s been leading our Prenatal Education Team, which is a large, multidisciplinary stakeholder group whose purpose is to standardize patient education across all obstetric care sites and the inpatient setting from the intake appointment through the 6-week postpartum visit. Through this process we’ve identified new prenatal education materials, both in print and on-line, which will be available to patients next calendar year.

Alli is also leading the Patient and Family Advisory Council. This newly formed council include patients, staff and providers who meet every other month. The mission of this group is to enhance the patient experience, support the highest quality of care, and improve patient safety. 
Provider Profile Updates - We're Getting There!
One of the Department of OBGYN's goals for the upcoming year is to enhance our online presence,  both to increase the visibility of our faculty and their innovative work , and  to increase functionality for our patients . 

Our first step is to create more robust, standardized faculty profiles across the department.

Don't worry - our team has created a form to make this process as painless as possible! This faculty profile update form will allow our team to quickly collect new content and make updates to your profile page located within UofMHealth.org.

We greatly appreciate you taking the time to complete this form and improve our web presence. To fill out the form, click the yellow button below:
To see your current faculty profile, search for your name at " Find a Doctor. "
Dr. Admon Receives 100K HRSA Grant
Congratulations to Dr. Lindsay Admon, MSc and team for receiving $100,000 from the Health Resources & Service Administration (HRSA) to fund their project entitled, " Does Perinatal Insurance Churn Impact Birth Outcomes? An Analysis of 2012-2017 Data from The Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System."

Dr. Admon's Co-I nvestigators are Vanessa Dalton, MD MPH and Tyler Winkelman MD MSc . Additional collaborators include Kara Zivin, PhD , Jamie Daw, PhD, and Katy Kozhimannil, PhD . 

The study team will examine the relationship between distinct patterns of insurance coverage across the preconception, antenatal, and postpartum periods and key maternal and child health outcomes. The goal of this work is to inform clinical and policy solutions for advancing maternal health equity in the US.  
Kara Zivin Awarded an RO1
Kara Zivin, PhD, and her Co-Investigators, Drs. Vanessa Dalton and Lindsay Admon have been awarded an R01 from the National Institute for Mental Health for their project entitled, " Relationship between mental health coverage and outcomes for privately insured women with perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMAD)."

Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMAD), which includes depression and/or anxiety in the year before or after delivery, are common complications of pregnancy, affecting up to one in five women. PMAD treatment can improve maternal and neonatal health outcomes, yet mental health services are rarely used. This study will take advantage of the natural experiments of federal mental health policy changes. The study team proposes to study the impact of mental health policy changes in a large and diverse national sample of women during the perinatal period enrolled in employer-based insurance. 
New OBGYN Staff Members:

  • Sarah Evilsizer, Clinical Information Analyst Senior, Obstetrics Initiative

Visiting Fellows:

  • Jasmine Abdulcadir, Vulva Clinic
Region 9 Town Hall Meeting: September 18, 2019
Date: September 18, 2019
Time: 5:30-7:30pm
Location: Washtenaw Intermediate School District. 1819 S. Wagner, Ann Arbor, MI. Vogel B and C.


Attend this Town Hall to learn more about the Maternal Infant Health Equity Plan and next steps as Michigan moves forward with the Regional 9 Perinatal Quality Collaborative. 


25th Anniversary of the UM Reproductive Sciences Program and OBGYN Research Forum
Date: October 4, 2019
Time: TBD
Location: Towsley Center

Founded in 1986 as the Anita Payne Research Day, the 25th Annual RSP/OBGYN Research Forum highlights ongoing scientific and educational activities within the laboratories of the Reproductive Sciences Program and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

The Research Forum will feature a research showcase, poster presentations, & the annual Anita Payne & John Randolph lectures.
Norman F. Miller University of Michigan Alumni Society
Annual Meeting
The Norman F. Miller University of Michigan Alumni Society Meeting will be held in conjunction with the RSP Research Day on Friday, October 4, 2019 at the Towsley Center.

Please join us for dinner on Friday evening ( RSVP to Jane Juckno by September 28). Faculty, fellows and residents are also encouraged to attend the football tailgate on Saturday, October 5th, at noon.
Active U Autumn 2019: Register by September 16th!
Active U returns September 17th, and you are invited to join the department team, The Gyno-Mites! 

To join our team in this 12-week physical activity challenge (and earn a free T-shirt!), search for the Gyno-Mites under the Michigan Medicine Three division.
Questions? Contact your MHealthy Co-Champions,  Natalie Gulau and Sarah Block (Active U Team Captain)
2019 OBGYN Department Picnic
Thank you to everyone who made the 2019 OBGYN Department picnic a success!

We had perfect weather, great food, and a lot of fun! The bouncy houses, face painting, and Kona Ice truck were a hit with all of the families.

The picnic was such a blast, we are already planning for next year. Mark your calendars for August 8th, 2020!
Want to see more photos from the picnic? Have photos to share?
Have something to include in our next newsletter?