Family Medicine Research Day

Care of the female athlete has come to the forefront of the Sports Medicine Field as of late for many reasons. One of the areas is related to the impact the menstrual cycle has on athletic performance in the biologically female athlete. The Sports Performance team at a Division I University organized a Female Athlete Summit aimed at educating their scholar athletes about the female specific physical and mental aspects of sport. Our goal was to establish a baseline of knowledge in the body of female athletes about the effects of the menstrual cycle has on athletic performance. 46 completed the pre-summit survey, and 37 completed the post-summit. De-identified data was reviewed and demonstrated an average pre-summit knowledge base of 5.065, and a post-summit knowledge base of 8.838 out of a scale of 0 to 10, 0 being having no knowledge, and 10 being having all the knowledge. Another survey demonstrated an average period length of 4.069 days, the most common symptoms experienced during menses to be cramping (31/41) and mood changes (27/41), and a concern of the menstrual cycle effecting energy level (30/41) and strength (20/41) as the top two concerns about the effect the menstrual cycle has on athletic performance. The significance of this study lies in identifying the knowledge gaps in understanding the needs of female athletes. By identifying the gaps this study aims to pave the way for evidence-based interventions that can enhance performance, mitigate potential challenges, and promote optimal health outcomes for the female athlete.

Research Question: The goal of this study is to assess the impact of a required, quarter-long preparatory course on medical students’ ability to effectively participate in a student-run free clinic and grapple with its ethical nuances. Methods: A one-time, cross-sectional survey was administered to all 55 students in the UCSD Student-Run Free Clinic Project’s (SRFCP) quarter-long introductory course. A Linkert 5-point scale was used to survey student’s impressions of how the course impacted 1) clinical skills, 2) understanding of ethics, 3) social and community issues, 4) sense of community, and 5) future motivation to work with the underserved. Mean scores (with standard deviations) were generated for each topic. Results: Students found the course useful for building a variety of clinical skills (3.97), including newly designed sessions such as working with interpreters (4.18) or effectively pre-charting (3.95). The course also deepened students’ awareness of social issues (4.08) and connectedness to peers (3.76), particularly through an MS1-MS4 teaching model (4.38). Students had mixed perceptions (3.55) on the ethical nuances of SRFCP. A majority felt prepared to work with SRFCP (4.16) and underserved groups (4.29) in the future. Significance: This required didactic helped students feel more prepared to work in SRFCP and strengthened long-term motivation to work with the underserved. A breadth of discussion on ethics, community resources, and health equity helped students define their role in an imperfect system. This study is a call to thoughtfully prepare students to work in free clinics in order to provide the highest quality patient care.

Background: Over 100,000 people are currently waiting for organ transplants in the United States, and tragically 17 people die each day while waiting for an organ. Efforts to reduce these deaths have been made at many levels along the donation pathway, from increasing organ donation registration, to improving surgical techniques that optimize organ procurement. Objective: Our goal is to implement interventions in Primary Care to reduce deaths of those awaiting transplant. Methods: The first step will be a review of the existing literature on transplant-related interventions in the Primary Care setting. Multiple databases including PubMed, MedLine, and Google Scholar will be systematically searched. Results of these efforts will be synthesized and presented in a poster for the UC San Diego Family Medicine Department Research symposium. Results: Preliminary results show a wealth of data on a wide spectrum of efforts to reduce deaths on the transplant list. However, as searches are narrowed to include only Primary Care interventions, the number of applicable, high-quality studies decreases. There have been at least two published literature reviews on this subject and both conclude that although the data are limited, some interventions may confer benefit. Conclusions: While the data on this subject appears limited, it provides enough guidance to inform the development of a Primary Care intervention. The existing evidence and our conclusions therefrom will be documented in this poster. The limited available data highlights the opportunity that exists to study, and publish on, potential future interventions in our clinic.