Read the 2024 Newsletter

Newsletter overview:

• Letter from the President (Barry Simon):
  Recaps a spring wine-tasting event honoring Andy Levitt, with thanks to donors Garwood Gee, Ronald Tom, and hosts DaShawn Hickman and Niko Shih. Highlights updates on the SEM Research Diversity Externship (Dr. David Duong) and ED-based syndemic screening work (Dr. Doug White). Announces three new board members—Drs. Foster Goss, Nathan Irvin, and John Lewis—and bids farewell to Pratima Arapakota. Celebrated the Center’s 15th anniversary with a matching campaign and calls for year-end support .
• Reflections on 15 Years (Co-Founder Harrison Alter):
  Traces the Center’s founding to honor Andy Levitt’s legacy, early HIV research under Dr. Doug White, and growth catalyzed by the 2017 “Inventing Social Emergency Medicine” conference. Outlines next steps: expanding decentralized SEM efforts (e.g., Colorado SEM Collaborative), integrating SEM into community EDs, and strengthening medical student externships .
• Program Spotlights:
  • SEMinal Study Curriculum: Launch of a free, modular online Social EM curriculum led by Dr. John Lewis in partnership with SAEM/ACEP, featuring 15 expert-reviewed topics in 10–15 minute sessions.
  • Dr. White’s Syndemic Screening: Ongoing rapid ART and multi-disease ED screening programs under a $1 million state grant, plus national presentations and peer-reviewed publications.
  • Colorado SEM Collaborative: Dr. Kristen Nordenholz’s partnerships with Denver Health, community organizations, and student pathways to broaden SEM impact.
  • SEM Diversity Externship: Summer externships for underrepresented medical students at Highland Hospital, with clinical coaching and MIMS mentorship, resulting in strong residency placements.
  • HEAL Initiative: Gilead-funded collaboration with Stanford to train disadvantaged community college scholars in SEM and cardiovascular health.
  • Data Bridge Project: Development of open-source tools for secure cross-sector data sharing to support social determinants of health programs.
  • Medical School SEM Education Study: UCSF-led research under Dr. Theresa Cheng mapping SEM curricula at the undergraduate level .
• New Board Members Profiles:
  Introduces Drs. Foster R. Goss (informatics and EHR equity), Nathan Irvin (health humanities and vulnerable populations), and John E. Lewis (SEM education and layperson health literacy).
• Andrew Levitt Academic Resident of the Year:
  Honors Dr. Megan Heeney for her QI work (behavioral emergency response teams, reproductive health access) and ongoing addiction medicine research as a NIDA-funded scholar

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