Beginning in 2007, UNMC will host six bimonthly Schwartz Center Rounds.
That’s welcome news for many at UNMC, who find value in discussing the non-medical facts of patient care, including team work and decision-making choices.
“The Schwartz Center Rounds are addressing one of the most persistent stresses for the health professional today — the integration of the social and emotional aspects of healing into the delivery of quality care,” John Gollan, M.D., Ph.D., dean of the College of Medicine, said earlier this year.
The Schwartz Center Rounds strengthens the patient-caregiver relationship by providing a safe inter-professional forum where caregivers — doctors, nurses, technicians, therapists, clergy and other allied health professionals — discuss emotional and social issues that arise in caring for patients.
The next Schwartz Center Rounds will take place Tuesday, Aug. 29, from noon to 1 p.m. in the Private Dining Rooms. The Pediatric Department will present and discuss: “The Difficulty of Maintaining the Big Picture during Times of Crisis: Multiple Congenital Anomalies at Birth.”
Panelists include: Sharon Stoolman, M.D., pediatrics; Ann Haskins Olney, M.D., pediatrics genetics, MMI; Michelle Sgourkis, nurse practitioner; Lynda Stangl, Cares Program; and Iris Moore, M.D., Central Plains ENT /Audiology Center.
Continuing Education credit for the Schwartz Center Rounds is now available, funded by the alumni associations. In addition, the Kenneth B. Schwartz Center in Boston has committed $23,000 for lunch for six events held annually for the next three years.
“The Rounds are part of our Professionalism Initiative, which supports the inter-professional approach applied by the Rounds, and is a great opportunity to lead open and sincere discussions. In addition, we are one of only two locations in the Midwest that were recognized and funded by the Schwartz Center for this activity,” said Ruth Margalit, M.D., assistant professor in UNMC’s Department of Preventive and Societal Medicine who was instrumental in bringing the Schwartz Center Rounds to UNMC.
UNMC has hosted two Schwartz Center Rounds since February with approximately 300 people attending. The audience gave excellent reviews for this activity, which has attracted a cross-section of the major demographic groups on campus: 36 percent physicians, 28 percent social workers, and the remaining 46 percent a mixture of chaplains, nurses, and other interested groups.
This year’s final Schwartz Center Rounds will be Nov. 8 with the psychiatry department presenting. Plans are underway for six additional rounds beginning in 2007. If you are interested in presenting, e-mail Dr. Ruth Margalit at rmargalit@unmc.edu.