With September upon us, the usual march of time would traditionally mark the new academic year reengaging with colleagues with a return to our research offices, welcome face-to face meetings, and numerous on-site events. Yet as we all are only too aware, COVID-19 continues to be a major presence in our personal and work lives. This month’s “Mongan Reflections” considers how we are doing as a community, reflects on some opportunities to continue to support each other while embracing current and future challenges, while also celebrating selected examples of recent Mongan faculty achievements.

Impact of COVID on our MGH Community
Close to home at MGH, the pandemic continues to have a profound impact on our community of health care providers, educators, and researchers. On September 16th I had the privilege of co-hosting the Department of Medicine Grand Rounds with Kerri Palamara McGrath, who leads the Center for Physician Wellbeing, “A Conversation on Pandemic Burnout for the MGH Community:  Drivers and Potential Strategies”. In this session we asked participants “What words best describes how you are feeling in your work life in the current upsurge of the pandemic?”.  Displayed in a word cloud, frequent terms included “overwhelmed”, “exhausted”, “tired”, “discouraged”, “anxious”, “frustrated”, “busy”, and “worried”. This informal pulse of our collective feelings confirmed what we all know only too well-- that we have all been deeply affected in our personal and work lives over the past 18 months. After sharing examples of how we have come together at MGH to support each other at MGH, some new words appeared in the mix when asked to consider our future, including: “cautious” “hopeful”, and “not alone”. Over the coming months we will continue to work together to build on approaches to support our community during this difficult time. (view here)

Community and Collaboration at Mongan in a Hybrid Work Environment
At our September faculty meeting we came together to discuss our future work lives in the new hybrid onsite/remote work arrangement. Small breakout groups discussed potential strategies to optimize community and collaboration including suggestions such as designating “Mongan days” for institute-wide in-person seminars, sessions for early research career development, informal small group lunches, “speed dating” sessions, social events, and others. Additional recommendations included initiatives to support cross-center collaborations, creation of a faculty directory of research focus and methods expertise, and optimized hybrid meeting formats. At our next faculty meeting we will review and prioritize recommendations for implementation. These and other encounters with our outstanding faculty and staff leave me ever more excited, inspired, and optimistic about the future of the Mongan Institute.

Selected Recent Team Science Major Awards at Mongan
At the same time that we plan forward to further enhance cross-center collaborations—it is noteworthy that our faculty have been extraordinarily successful in achieving major grants leveraging the power of team science. Among the most recent examples of awards spanning different centers at Mongan include: a multi-site NIH “Data Resource Core on the Post-Acute Sequalae of COVID-19” led by Andrea Foulkes (and Elizabeth Karlson from Brigham and Women); a U01 grant on the “Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Patients with Alzheimer's Disease and Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias” with John Hsu as PI; and a large PCORI phased comparative effectiveness study of “Specialty Compared to Oncology delivered Palliative care for Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia” led by Areej El-Jawahri and Jennifer Temel as co-principal investigators. Despite the challenges of working remotely, these recent awards, along with many others over the past year, demonstrate the opportunities and success of investigators working together across Mongan to engage in high impact team science. 

Selected Recent Junior Faculty Achievements
Among the many recent achievements of our junior faculty that deserve special mention include promotions to the rank of Assistant Professor, including Lisa Bebell, Jocelyn Carter, and Long Nguyen. We also congratulate junior faculty who recently received special awards, including Emily Hyle (Anne Klibanski Visiting Scholar Award); Ben Bearnot (DOM transformative scholar award); Bharati Kochar (Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation Clinical Research Alliance Award); Giselle Perez-Lougee (Rappaport Research Fellowship in Psychiatry); and Fatima Cody Stanford (Dr. Edmond and Rima Cabbabe Dedication to the Profession Award from the American Medical Association). At the same time that we celebrate these honors, I want to recognize all of the remarkably talented junior faculty at Mongan for their extraordinary efforts, dedication, and perseverance over the past 18 months. Under normal circumstances, the process of becoming an independently funded investigator can feel overwhelming, uncertain, and stressful. The pandemic dramatically compounded the many challenges of this critical time of growth. Knowing that our junior faculty are the future or our science, at Mongan we will continue to strive to support early research career development as our highest priority.

What’s Next in Public Health Challenges in the Post COVID-19 Era?
As a research enterprise dedicated to population and health care delivery science aimed at advancing health equity, how should we be considering the next phase of our research, our work and our lives as we gradually emerge from COVID-19?  

To kick off the coming academic year we are excited to have Dr. Sandro Galeo, Dean of the Boston University School of Public Health as our Blumenthal Visiting Lectureship to provide his perspective at the Department of Medicine Virtual Grand Rounds on October 28th from 8-9am in a presentation titled: “Priorities for Health in the Post-COVID-19 era”. Dr. Galeo is a physician, epidemiologist, and author, and Dean at the Boston University School of Public Health who has published over 640 journal articles and has been listed as one of the most widely cited scholars in the social sciences. We will be also honored to have Dr. David Blumenthal attending this annual lecture, who is the President of the Commonwealth Fund and the founding Director of the Institute for Health Policy establishing the beginnings of the Mongan Institute. Please join us in this annual event for the Mongan Institute and MGH on October 28th as we consider future challenges and directions in our work together!