MGHHOTLINEA PUBLICATION FOR EMPLOYEES AND STAFF OF THE MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL1

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TThe mosT frequenTly asked quesTion Latoya Brewster, manager of Nutrition and Food Services at Eat Street Café, and her team are asked is why the MGH doesn’t have trash and recycling bins readily available in its cafeteria. Food trays are simply placed on a conveyer belt that leads into the kitchen.

So what exactly happens with all the food waste produced at the hospital each day? It’s used for electricity, heat, fertilizer and much more.

In October 2014 the MGH teamed up with Agri-Cycle Energy and now six days a week the company picks up the hospital’s food waste and transports it to Stonyvale Farm in Exeter, Maine. There it is mixed with manure from the farm’s 1,000 cows in a large anaerobic digester.

When the manure and organic waste mixture are heated to just over 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the digester, an energy-packed supply of (Continued on page 4)

Endecott Pear Tree provides abundant harvestaT mid-day on sepT. 23, officials of Mass General/North Shore Center for Outpatient Care in Danvers opened the locked gate protecting the oldest living cultivated fruit tree in North America. Richard Grant, arborist with Mayer Tree Service, inspected the condition of the tree, dubbed it robust and healthy and then hand-harvested the abundant crop of pears. The tree provided a bounty of pears and is also the first year that the baby Endecott Pear Tree, an offshoot of the main tree, has borne fruit. 

“The hardiness of the tree continues to surprise me,” says Elena Sierra, executive administrative director at MGH/North Shore. “After the toughest of winters and so many years, we had the biggest harvest to date.”

The Endecott Pear Tree was planted nearly 400 years ago by the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, John Endecott. It is the last surviving fruit tree of many that were planted under the direction of Endecott. The pears have since been known as Endecott Pears, and are harvested every year. Over the years the tree has survived hurricanes, snowstorms, neglect, soil stripping, industrial development and vandalism.

Plenty of Pears: The Endecott Tree’s annual harvest

Hospital’s waste becomes farm’s energy

10.02.15

My Giving Helps comes to closeThe 2015 my GivinG helps: The MGH Fund + United Way employee campaign celebrated the final week of its annual fundraising efforts Sept. 28-Oct. 2. The campaign ended with a sea of blue and orange roaming through the MGH halls. Employees sported their hospital spirit, wearing campaign colors for a chance to win a variety of prizes such as restaurant gift cards and concert tickets.

Led by campaign co-chairs David Brown, MD, chief of Emergency Medicine, and Harry Orf, PhD, senior vice president for Research, the 2015 My Giving Helps campaign is a monthlong celebration where employees have an opportunity to donate to the MGH Fund, United Way or both. Gifts to the MGH Fund provide unrestricted dollars to support the most promising programs and initiatives at the hospital. Gifts to United Way provide assistance to more than 

170 organizations in the Boston area.

This year, there is double the reason to contribute. Any new or increased gift to the MGH Fund or United Way will be doubled in full, thanks to five generous donors.

Although contributions to the campaign are accepted year-round and final results for the 2015 My Giving Helps campaign will not be available until early next year, preliminary

results will be announced later this fall. The campaign aims to engage 5,000 employee donors this year, an increase of almost 20 percent over 2014.

To learn more about the campaign or to make a donation, visit www.mygivinghelps.org. n

Andrew A. Nierenberg honored as inaugural incumbent of endowed chair andrew a. nierenberG, md, director of the Bipolar Clinic and

Research Program, was honored Sept. 3 as the inaugural incumbent of the Thomas P. Hackett, MD, Endowed Chair in Psychiatry. The chair was established through the generosity of several donors, including Kent and Elizabeth Dauten.

“The Hackett chair is a perfect tribute to Dr. Andrew Nierenberg, who is the ideal first incumbent,” said Britain Nicholson, MD, chief medical officer, who served as the event’s master of ceremonies. “Like Tom, Andy is a go-to critical thinker and thought leader who can appreciate all sides of a complex challenge.”

Nierenberg joined the MGH Psychiatry Department in 1992. His primary interests are treatment-resistant depression, bipolar depression and the longitudinal course of mood disorders and he has been recognized nationally for the treatment of mood and anxiety disorders.

Nierenberg helped lead Systematic Treatment Enhancement Program for Bipolar Disorder and Sequential Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression, two National Institute of Mental Health clinical trials that include thousands of patients with mood disorders. He currently is the principal investigator for the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute Mood Patient-Powered Network. The group’s goal is to collaborate with 50,000 patients across the country to use patient reported outcomes and electronic medical records as a national infrastructure for future studies.

Hackett, the chair’s namesake, was chief of Psychiatry at the MGH from 1976 until his death in 1988. “He was absolutely beloved and revered as a chief, animating and enhancing all he touched. His life and his work remain an inspiration,” said Nicholson.

More than 85 guests attended the ceremony honoring Nierenberg at the Paul S. Russell, MD Museum of Medical History and Innovation, including donors, Nierenberg’s family, friends and colleagues as well as members of the Hackett family.

“The Hackett chair is a great honor that will give me the time to be curious, to ask good questions and to work with fellow researchers to seek answers,” said Nierenberg. “Even more important, it will help generations of researchers who come after me continue to do so at the MGH.”

HoPe anD HealInG: In recognition of National Recovery Month, the Charlestown Substance Abuse Coalition joined the Charlestown Health and Development group for the seventh annual Candlelight Vigil to remember those who have lost their battle with drugs and alcohol and to give hope to those struggling with addiction. The event was part of a series of programs held throughout September to raise community awareness. In Revere, the ninth annual Beach Memorial was organized by Revere CARES and the city of Revere. Both vigils served as reminders of the communities’ dedication to help those involved with substance-use disorders understand they are part of a larger community and that they are not alone in their struggle.

Vigils unite communities

sHoWInG sUPPort: Members of the Development team in their festive blue and orange attire.

PerfeCt trIBUte: Kent and Elizabeth Dauten, and Nierenberg and his wife, Karen Blumenfeld

MGHHOTLINEeCare Corner

Epic: Epic is the primary technology vendor for the Partners eCare system. Partners selected Epic because of its reputation as a leader in health information technology and its success working with some of the nation’s most respected academic medical centers and health systems. Epic software will form the backbone of the Partners eCare program, replacing and integrating most of the existing core clinical and administrative systems at the MGH.

Super User: Staff who attend training first, support end-users in classroom training, offer insight into operational changes and support end-users at go-live are called super users. A super user is a knowledgeable advocate within a department who will serve as a liaison between users, department leaders and the Partners eCare team. They will become a key resource both before and after go-live for departments.

Credentialed Trainer: A credentialed trainer leads user training with the curriculum designed by Partners eCare-certified instructional designers. They will prepare for classes, set up the classroom, and facilitate follow-up on any outstanding questions that arise, collect valuable feedback from trainees and report that information to the instructional designer.

Peer Educator (providers only): A peer educator is a provider (MD/DO/NP/PA) from within a specialty who co-facilitates end user training with the credentialed trainer. Peer educators will provide workflow expertise during training, answer questions during classes and emphasize clinical points.

Go-Live: This is when the new electronic system will become operational.

Cutover: The coordinated set of activities required to discontinue the technology and business operations of the previous system and resume them on the new Epic system applications is called a cutover.

Test Drives: A test drive is a hands-on, facilitated exploration of the Partners eCare system for clinicians. Basic and specialty scripts are used to demonstrate Epic functionality and workflows. The goal is to provide clinicians with an understanding of how their work will function in the Partners eCare Epic build. This format is especially suited for clinicians who have not previously experienced Epic.

Playground: An Epic environment specifically built and maintained for end user training and practice prior to go-live is called the playground.

Partners Patient Gateway: The new Partners HealthCare patient portal is called Partners Patient Gateway. MyChart gives patients controlled access to the same Epic medical records as their provider via an internet browser or mobile phone application. MyChart is integrated with the electronic medical record, making it easy for patients to get involved in their own health care. 

Charge Capture: With the current system, charge and clinical documentation are separate functions completed in different systems. With Partners eCare, that will change, and charges will be automatically generated by clinical documentation or by using easy and highly-integrated charge preference lists.

MedRec: Pre-admit and discharge reconciliation of a patient’s medication list is named MedRec.

In Basket: The electronic messaging system used within Epic applications. This is a hub for patient information, including material related to test results, medication refills, cosigns, patient communication and provider-to-provider messaging. n

What does it mean? Terms to know nowPartners eCare is a Partnerswide initiative to implement Epic, the electronic health record and administrative system at each hospital and affiliated health care site. The single electronic medical record will allow a patient’s health-related information to be shared among authorized clinicians and staff from anywhere within the Partners network.

Case Management celebrates 20th anniversaryThis year, the MGH Case Management Department celebrated 20 years with a special gala dinner celebration Sept. 17 at the Hotel Marlowe in Cambridge.

The goal of Case Management is to empower patients to manage the impact of illness on their lives and function in the community and on family dynamics, and to achieve the maximum benefits from health care services throughout the continuum.

The department is continuing its celebration with a poster display across from Coffee Central between Oct. 5-Oct. 19. Case Management tables also will be in the White hallway on Oct. 13 and Oct. 15 from 8 am to 3 pm.

In addition, Suzanne O’Connor, RN, MSN, will present “Winning with Change and Changing to Win: Building Agility for a Faster Moving Healthcare System” from noon to 1 pm on Oct. 27 in the O’Keeffe Auditorium. tWo DeCaDes stronG:

Members of the Case Management team

EDIToR: Colleen Marshall Delaney • 617-726-0275 • aSSISTanT EDIToR: Colleen Keilty • 617-724-2753

EMaIL: Hotline@partners.org • MaIL: Public Affairs Office • 125 Nashua Street, Suite 220 • Boston, MA 02114

MGH Hotline is printed on recycled paper and published weekly by the MGH Public Affairs Office.

MGHHOTLINE10.02.15

— Farm energy(Continued from page 1)

biogas – a combination of methane and carbon dioxide – is produced, which is then burned into heat and electricity. The combustion of the biogas also is used to produce organic fertilizer for the farm, organic soil additives, compost and comfortable bedding for the cows.

“We are very proud about this initiative,” says Bill Banchiere, director of Environmental Services, who spearheaded the program. “It is something very different but so helpful.”

The farm’s digester currently returns to the grid enough heat every day to replace 700 gallons of heating oil and 22,000 kilowatt hours of electricity. Broken down, that is enough energy to heat 300 homes and power 800 homes in New England per year.

“This program is why we do not have trash and recycle bins available in the MGH eateries,” says Brewster. “There is so much to sort out correctly that we need to do it all behind the scenes.” Five-gallon white buckets are available for cafeteria staff to dispose of all compostable food, recycling is sorted out separately and there is even a pulper to chop up Styrofoam products.

From Oct. 1, 2014 – when this initiative began – through Aug. 31, 2015, the MGH has sent 358 tons of organic waste to Stonyvale Farm. From the MGH’s waste mixture alone, the farm has been able to offset fuel costs for more than 10,000 vehicles, created 71,600 gallons of natural liquid fertilizer and produced about 180 yards of compost.

The farm owners continue to expand and grow their business. Currently they are creating a larger digester and want to build an adjacent greenhouse to take advantage of the excess heat and nutrients it generates.

“We are the only Partners hospital so far to be doing this, and we hope to continue to work to help produce energy for a long time moving forward,” says Banchiere. n

festIVe fUn: In honor of National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, the MassGeneral Hospital for Children (MGHfC) Pediatric Hematology-Oncology Clinic hosted its annual Slime Day Sept. 24. Patients and their families spent the morning making the green goo with help from the staff of The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp’s Hospital Outreach Program. They then lined up for their chance to dump it on Heather Peach, an MGHfC Child Life specialist, while they sang a special Slime Day song.

MGH ready to celebrate HUBweekThe mGh will hosT extraordinary programs, take on tough health care challenges and showcase advances in neuroscience, cancer research and care delivery as part of Boston’s first HUBweek festivities, from Oct. 3-10. The hospital joins Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and The Boston Globe in presenting HUBweek, a weeklong gathering throughout the city to celebrate the big ideas and bold solutions that emerge from the people and intellectual energy found in Greater Boston. From arts and culture to technology and cutting-edge medicine, Boston is harnessing curiosity to create the future.

All HUBweek events at the MGH are free and open to the public, however advance registration is required. Visit www.massgeneral.org/hubweek/ to learn more.

Slimy gooed time

“ we are very proud about this initiative. it is something very different but so helpful.”

— Bill Banchiere