Projects
Current Projects
• Re-Invention of the North Carolina Medical Journal – The NC•IOM is striving to make the NC Medical Journal, begun by the NC Medical Society in 1849 and continuously published by them since 1940, the key medium of policy exchange among policy makers, health care organizations and professions in the state. The Journal, published bimonthly, addresses major health and healthcare issues facing the state.
Editor-In-Chief: Thomas C. Ricketts, III, M.P.H., Ph.D.
Publisher: Pam C. Silberman, J.D., Dr.P.H.
Funding Source #1: The Duke Endowment
Total Project Period: 06/02 – 06/08
Funding Source #2: North Carolina Medical Society
Total Project Period: 06/02 – 06/07
Funding Source #3: Carolinas Center for Medical Excellence
Total Project Period: 06/02 – 06/08
Funding Source #4: North Carolina Academy of Physician Assistants
Total Project Period: 06/02 – 06/06
Funding Source #5 North Carolina College of Internal Medicine
Total Project Period: 06/02 – 06/06
Funding Source #6 North Carolina Health Care Facilities Association
Total Project Period: 01/05 – 12/07
Funding Source #7 North Carolina Dental Society
Total Project Period: 01/05 – 12/07
Funding Source #8 North Carolina Association of Pharmacists
Total Project Period: 01/05 – 12/06
• Safety Net Advisory Council – The number of uninsured has risen dramatically over the last four years, leading to an increased number of uninsured people seeking healthcare from safety net providers. However, federal and state funding has not increased to subsidize the care of those seeking services. This has caused significant strain on safety net providers. The NC•IOM Safety Net Task Force issued a report in April 2005 describing the different types of safety net organizations, where they are located, and how many uninsured are being served. The report identified communities with inadequate systems to care for the uninsured and underinsured, included a plan to better coordinate and integrate existing safety net organizations, and recommended that the capacity of healthcare providers and safety-net institutions to care for underserved populations in North Carolina be expanded and strengthened. One of the recommendations was to create an ongoing Safety Net Advisory Council (SNAC), which would help promote collaborations among safety net organizations. The SNAC is developing a technical assistance manual to help communities expand their safety net capacity; and a website that will identify the various safety net organizations throughout the state, services provided, hours of operation, and eligibility criteria (if any).
Principal Investigator: Pam C. Silberman, J.D., Dr.P.H.
Funding Source: Funded as part of the State and BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina Foundation appropriations for the NC•IOM.
Total Project Period: 05/05 – 06/08 (renewable)
• Chronic Kidney Disease Task Force –The NC General Assembly directed the NC Institute of Medicine to convene a task force to develop a cost-effective plan to enhance prevention efforts to reduce the occurrence of chronic kidney disease, educate the public and healthcare professionals about early screening, diagnosis and treatment of chronic kidney disease using clinical practice guidelines, educate health professionals about early renal replacement therapy prior to the onset of end-stage renal disease, and identify current barriers to the adoption of best practices and potential policy options to address these barriers. The task force will include healthcare professionals, representatives of the NC Department of Health and Human Services, and other interested people, and will be chaired by the Secretary of the NC Department of Health and Human Services or her designee.
Principal Investigator: Pam C. Silberman, J.D., Dr.P.H.
Funding Source: Funded as part of the State appropriation for the NC•IOM.
Total Project Period: 07/06 – 06/08
Recent Projects
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Task Force on Covering the Uninsured – This Task Force is part of the North Carolina State Planning Grant Initiative described under the Program on Health Care Economics and Finance. It is comprised of representatives of state and local policy makers, the business community, providers, insurers, consumers and the faith community, to examine the problem and develop policy options to expand coverage to more uninsured and The Task Force is expected to release a report of its findings and recommendations in the Spring of 2006.
Principal Investigator: Pam C. Silberman, J.D., Dr.P.H.
Funding Source: Health Resources and Services Administration, USDHHS (subcontract with North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services)
Total Project Period: 11/04 – 08/06
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Study of Primary Care and Specialty Supply – The study of the primary care and specialty workforce in North Carolina is a collaborative effort of the NC Institute of Medicine, NC AHEC program, and the Sheps Center’s Southeast Regional Workforce Center, described under the Program on Primary Care and the Health Professions. Current data from the NC Health Professional Data System indicate that physician growth is no longer keeping pace with the population growth in North Carolina. The goal of this study is to identify likely provider shortages, both in terms of provider specialty (e.g., OB-GYN, surgeons, psychiatrists, geriatricians, pediatric subspecialists, primary care), or areas of the state experiencing persistent shortages, and to address these potential problems before the state is in the midst of a full-blown crisis. This initiative also includes the needs of underserved population groups (e.g., uninsured, immigrants, frail and elderly) in determining the types of providers needed in the future. The study evaluates the state’s past efforts to recruit and retain health professionals both in and out-of-state; the use of international medical graduates; whether the growth in nurse practitioners, physicians’ assistants and certified nurse midwives will offset the likely shortfall in primary care physicians; and professional quality of life issues. The goal of this study is to develop public and private policy options to ensure that North Carolina has an adequate supply of providers distributed throughout the state.
Principal Investigator: Pam C. Silberman, J.D., Dr.P.H.
Funding Source: Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust
Total Project Period: 09/05 – 06/07 (extended)
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Task Force on Preparing for a Flu Pandemic: Ethical Considerations – Recent cases of the avian influenza A virus have heightened the public’s awareness of the possibility of a flu pandemic in the near future. In the last century, there have been three influenza pandemics, the last being the Hong Kong pandemic of 1968-69. Many experts suggest that we are overdue for another influenza pandemic. Unfortunately, there are not enough vaccinations and/or antiviral medications to treat everyone in the event of a flu pandemic. Thus, the state will be faced with critical ethical choices about how to allocate scarce resources. The NC Department of Health and Human Services has developed a preliminary Pandemic Influenza Response Plan, in response to the national pandemic influenza federal response plan. Yet, the public has had very little ability to provide input into the plan; and certain issues remain unaddressed. The Division of Public Health within the NC Department of Health and Human Services asked the NC•IOM to convene a task force to explore some of the ethical issues that the state may face in the event of a flu pandemic, including but not limited to: the responsibilities that healthcare professionals have to treat, how the state should balance an individual’s personal freedoms with the need to isolate or quarantine individuals to protect the public’s health, and allocation of limited health resources (including vaccinations, anti-viral drugs, or other health resources such as ventilators).
Principal Investigator: Pam C. Silberman, J.D., Dr.P.H.
Funding Source: NC Department of Health and Human Services
Total Project Period: 02/06 – 06/07 (extended)
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Task Force on Health Literacy – North Carolina has a high percentage of individuals with low literacy levels. This raises significant health implications, as individuals with lower literacy skills are also more likely to have lower health literacy abilities. Low health literacy is associated with poor understanding of written or spoken medical advice and adverse health outcomes. Studies suggest that people with low health literacy are less likely to take their medications as prescribed or follow treatment protocols, less able to manage their chronic conditions, and more frequently hospitalized. The Chronic Diseases & Injury Section of the NC Division of Public Health, NC Department of Health and Human Services (NC DHHS) has asked the NC Institute of Medicine (NC IOM) to convene a task force to study this problem. The task force is a collaborative effort between the NC Institute of Medicine, the NC Department of Health and Human Services (NC DHHS), and the Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) program. The goal of the task force is to study the problem and develop workable solutions to ensure that the healthcare needs of people with low health literacy skills are met.
Principal Investigator: Pam C. Silberman, J.D., Dr.P.H.
Funding Source: NC Department of Health and Human Services
Total Project Period: 05/06 – 06/07
