Patrick G. O’Connor, MD, MPH, section chief
Matthew Ellman, MD, clinical chief
Yale General Internal Medicine (GIM) is committed to providing outstanding, compassionate, accessible, and equitable care; the development of new knowledge through rigorous clinical research; and educational training that fosters creativity and critical thinking. GIM also recognizes the profound effects of systemic inequities in health, and centers its work around equity and justice for historically marginalized people and communities.
Clinical Care
Patient care spans both inpatient and outpatient settings across several locations throughout Greater New Haven. There are six inpatient programs and firms, and five ambulatory programs.
Inpatient Care
A new care and educational initiative, the Hospital Medicine Firm at the York Street campus of Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH), was launched in partnership with the Yale School of Medicine (YSM) and Northeast Medical Group (NEMG) in June 2022. Christopher Sankey, MD, co-manages the firm with NEMG’s Anisha Advani, MD. The first of its kind, the new clinical rotation is based on hospital medicine; the research efforts in the Program in Hospital Medicine are led by Sarwat Chaudhry, MD. In addition to the Hospital Medicine and Generalist firms on the YNHH York Street Campus (YSC), faculty members also provide clinical care at the YNHH Saint Raphael Campus (SRC). One of the firms, SLA3, is a 24-bed general medical unit managed by co-chiefs André Sofair, MD, MPH, and Jeremy Schwartz, MD. It focuses on teaching clinical reasoning and point-of-care ultrasound.
Outpatient Care
Yale Internal Medicine Associates (YIMA) has an obesity clinic embedded in its practice. Specialists Janelle Duah, MD, and Jorge Moreno, MD, are board-certified in obesity medicine; they care for patients who have obesity-related medical conditions or are trying to lose weight. Clinicians in the Yale Occupational and Environmental Medicine Program (YOEMP) began evaluating long COVID patients to address work-related issues. Both the New Haven Primary Care Consortium (NHPCC) and the VA Primary Care Practice continue to provide outstanding care and education in primary care.
Research
Research from GIM members has been published widely in such journals as the Annals of Internal Medicine, JAMA, the Journal of General Internal Medicine, The Lancet, and The New England Journal of Medicine. There were nearly 500 research papers published between September 2021 and September 2022. Some examples of GIM research programs include:
The Yale University-Mayo Clinic Center for Excellence in Regulatory Science and Innovation (CERSI)
Led by Joseph S. Ross, MD, MHS, CERSI is a joint effort between Yale University, the Mayo Clinic, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). To date, the center has received more than $20 million to foster collaborative research to address key gaps in knowledge related to medical product regulation, and develop tools to support regulatory decision making.
Yale Program in Addiction Medicine
The Integrative Management of Chronic Pain and Opioid Use Disorder for Whole Recovery-Yale and Organizations United (IMPOWR-YOU) Research Center opened in November 2021. The principal investigators (PIs) of the grant are William Becker, MD; Declan Barry, PhD; and David Fiellin, MD. Read more about Yale GIM’s Program in Addiction Medicine in Program Updates.
Education
GIM is devoted to educating and training the next generation of diverse leaders and clinicians at all levels. In addition to the key leadership roles held by GIM faculty in Dean Nancy Brown’s office, faculty members also provide leadership in such important student programs as the residency training programs, four fellowship programs, and the YSM Physician Associate Program. Below are some examples of GIM education programs:
Asylum Medicine
In 2021, the Society of Asylum Medicine was founded by Katherine McKenzie, MD. McKenzie directs the Yale Center for Asylum Medicine (YCAM), whose mission is to support the field by promoting collaboration; providing mentorship; and sharing resources with the New Haven community to help asylum seekers requiring medical evaluation.
Podcasts
Faculty members have engaged in new ways to deliver educational materials, including through podcasts. Primary Care Pearls is hosted by GIM’s Katie Gielissen, MD, MHS, and YPC chief resident Joshua Onyango, MD, MEd. The Curbsiders Addiction Medicine miniseries was launched under the direction of Carolyn Chan, MD, in collaboration with Kenneth Morford, MD; Shawn Cohen, MD; and YPC Collaborative Behavioral Health and Addiction Medicine in Primary Care (CHAMP) trainees Zina Huxley-Reicher, MD, and Hannah Daneshvar, MD/MPH.
Interprofessional Teaching Program in Addiction Medicine
A new interprofessional training program, the Yale-University of Jordan Joint Training Program in Addiction Medicine, was developed by YSM and the Yale School of Public Health in partnership with the University of Jordan School of Pharmacy in Amman. The program is a bidirectional culturally competent addiction medicine program for health professions students.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
The section is committed to cultivating an inclusive, collaborative, and professional culture that respects individual differences; recognizes and rewards diverse talents; and helps each person reach their full potential and individual goals. Rosana Gonzalez-Colaso, PharmD, MPH, was named deputy director for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) for the Physician Associate Program. Darin Latimore, MD, YSM’s deputy dean and chief diversity officer, launched an online training program to foster people’s ability to build a supportive culture founded on diversity and inclusion. Aba Black, MD, MHS, Yale GIM’s vice chief for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, oversaw the second annual section-wide DEI retreat last year and will lead the third annual retreat in February 2023.
Awards, Recognitions, and Distinctions
- Auguste Fortin VI, MD, retired in June 2022 after 37 years in medicine.
- Cary Gross, MD, and Patrick G. O’Connor, MD, MHS, were elected to the Association of American Physicians (AAP).
- Amy Justice, MD, PhD, was honored with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) William S. Middleton Award.
- Jorge Moreno, MD, appeared on the Telemundo show, “Tu Salud Tu Familia–Cirugía Bariátrica,” which received a 2022 Emmy Award.
- John Moriarty, MD, was awarded the 2022 Rosemarie L. Fisher, MD, Excellence in Graduate Medical Education Award.
- Marcella Nunez-Smith, MD, MHS, was elected to the American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI).
- Lisa Puglisi, MD, was honored with YSM’s Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award.
- Ilana Richman, MD, MHS, was honored with the Society of General Internal Medicine’s SGIM Distinguished Professor of Women’s Health Best Oral Abstract Award.
- Daniel F. Sarpong, PhD, joined GIM as a senior research scientist and executive director of the Office of Health Equity Research (OHER).
- Sarita Soares, MD, won YSM’s Francis Gilman Blake Award for outstanding teaching of the medical sciences.
- Jonathan Weber, MA, PA-C, was recognized as a Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of PAs (AAPA).
- Thilan Wijesekera, MD, MHS, was the recipient of YSM’s 2022 Charles W. Bohmfalk Teaching Prize in Clinical Sciences.
- Donna Windish, MD, MPH, was named associate chair of Educational Scholarship for the Department of Internal Medicine.