COL Richard Harder Award

This award is presented to the student who submits the top Best Practice from the residency year, as voted on by faculty. The award is named for former program director of the Army Baylor program, COL Richard Harder. COL Harder’s efforts to continually develop the Army Baylor program are in keeping with the nature of this award - focused on the long term improvement of the military healthcare system. The recipient of this award will be asked to present at a national forum to be determined.

2022 Nominees

Dave Ahmadian on Tele-Emergency Department Triage Services

BHS successfully utilizes a tele-ED service to triage callers experiencing a medical emergency, offer nursing advice, and connect patients to physicians virtually or during a subsequent in-person consultation. The service is tangentially contributing to the system’s revenue by providing a pathway for patients to visit the ER and be admitted as an in-patient, if needed. Tele-ED accomplished the goal of connecting with and, in most cases, treating people in the local community who may not have presented to the ER due to a fear of contracting COVID-19 or a preoccupation with “wasting” medical resources during a pandemic. However, it remains unclear whether the program has a material effect on reducing the burden currently faced by BHS ERs due to COVID-19 surges.

Daniel Menz-Erb on Polytrauma Residential Program Expansion

In the recent past, the number of active-duty service members has been decreasing; however, due to the changing nature of military conflict, Special Operations Forces remain heavily engaged and are exposed to multiple concussive events. In response to this need, the Department of Veterans Affairs has received special purpose funding to expand residential polytrauma rehabilitative programs to active-duty Special Forces service members. Richmond VA is currently implementing this expansion through their STAR program. The goal of this project is to continue the facilitation of this programmatic expansion and increase Special Forces Census (8 beds in FY22).

Steven Ryan on Sensory Friendly Children's ER

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and sensory processing disorders (SPDs) visit the emergency department at higher rates than the average child. While hospitals can be a scary place for all children, healthcare providers frequently indicate that they have difficulty accommodating patients with ASD and SPD in an ED setting. This best practice paper highlights the patient-centered approach taken at Methodist Hospital in San Antonio, TX. Methodist Hospital established the region’s first Sensory-Friendly Children’s ER, consisting of facility upgrades, employee training, and tools to accommodate a variety of sensory disorders. This best practice paper discusses the processes that the Children’s ER has put in place to establish and grow their sensory friendly environment.

COL Richard Harder Best Practice Previous Awardees