Federal estimates released this month show a nearly 30% rise in fatal overdoses over the prior year, an increase that health officials attributed partly to the emotional toll of the COVID-19 pandemic.

OARS can improve the success of medication-assisted treatment programs. The Wright Center’s primary care practices offer medication-assisted treatment – a whole-person approach to addiction that combines counseling and behavioral therapies with the use of approved medications such as buprenorphine.

“Tools like OARS, which extend our behavioral health team’s ability to connect with and support individuals in recovery, are especially useful and potentially can improve outcomes,” said Scott Constantini, The Wright Center’s Director of Behavioral Health. “We’re proud to be on the forefront of studying and introducing these kinds of technologies.”

In response to community needs, The Wright Center became an early proponent and provider of medication-assisted treatment and related services across a multicounty area in Northeastern Pennsylvania. In 2016, the state Department of Human Services designated The Wright Center as an Opioid Use Disorder Center of Excellence. Today the organization serves about 540 active Center of Excellence patients.

The Wright Center also co-founded the Healthy MOMS program, which assists pregnant and postpartum women who are coping with substance use disorder. The program currently has 121 active mothers.

The OARS app will be offered to The Wright Center’s Center of Excellence patients and the women enrolled in the region’s Healthy MOMS program. About two dozen patients have already adopted use of the app.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) had granted approval earlier this year for the OARS software to proceed to a Phase II clinical trial. The Wright Center, which operates primary care practices in Lackawanna, Luzerne and Wayne counties, served as a study site during Phase I and is also a study site for Phase II. For more information about The Wright Center’s healthcare services, visit thewrightcenter.org.

Along with meeting the rigorous requirements to apply to medical school, a Hometown Scholar must spend time in a community health center and receive the recommendation of a community health center leader. In Bartolai’s case, her endorsement came from Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, president and chief executive officer of The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education.

“Moriah is dedicated to becoming a highly skilled, compassionate primary care osteopathic physician and healthcare leader who will both serve and advocate for vulnerable populations, communities and humanity,” said Dr. Thomas-Hemak. “Notably, she is to become a first generation physician.”

Bartolai, a 2016 alumna of Scranton Preparatory School, began working at The Wright Center’s Mid Valley and Scranton practices last year, serving as a medical scribe. A graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, she earned a bachelor of science degree in microbiology. 

“I’m excited and thrilled for this Hometown Scholars opportunity,” she said. “When I received the call, I realized I would finally be able to move forward in achieving a major milestone … a milestone I’ve been working towards for the last few years.”

One of about 160 medical students in ATSU-SOMA’s Class of 2025, Bartolai will gain exposure to clinical settings sooner than many of her counterparts at other medical schools, which typically don’t offer clinical rotations until the third year.

“It does give you a leg up,” said Bartolai. “I’m going to get a lot more patient experience than I would at any other medical school.”

The Hometown Scholars program at ATSU-SOMA was developed to address the workforce needs of the nation’s community health centers, which provide affordable care to traditionally underserved populations, including low-income individuals and people who face other barriers to healthcare.

Today the program is helping to create a pipeline of exceptional, community-minded medical and dental students who are committed to serving in America’s health centers.

Educational opportunities are available for aspiring physicians, physician assistants and dentists. To learn more about these Hometown Scholars opportunities, please contact The Wright Center’s Office of Clerkships at 570-591-5132 or email howellse@thewrightcenter.org.

“As a valued member of our team, Allison will nurture positivity and resiliency within individuals and at the organizational level, which is particularly relevant as we collectively emerge from the pandemic experience,” said Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, President and CEO of The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education.

A special focus of LaRussa’s work will be The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education’s resident physicians and fellows. These trainees, like their counterparts in programs across the country, deal with the dual pressures of delivering top-notch care to patients and simultaneously completing rigorous graduate medical education requirements.

“Our art activities at The Wright Center will be designed to decrease a lot of stress and burnout,” said LaRussa. “The projects will allow people to be more mindful, to process more, so that they are better able to handle their work.”

A 2010 Marywood University graduate, LaRussa, 34, has long been active in the region’s arts scene, including First Friday Scranton.

Scranton, Pa. (June 18, 2021) – The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education proudly celebrated the accomplishments of its 2021 graduating class of residents and fellows on Friday, June 18. During a virtual commencement, tribute was given to 81 graduates for their resiliency during the COVID-19 pandemic and their dedication to the medical profession as practitioners who are helping to address the shortage of primary care physicians in locations across the nation, including Northeast Pennsylvania. 

Other awards included:

Teacher of the Year (Internal Medicine Residency) – Douglas Klamp, M.D.; co-Teachers of the Year (Family Medicine Residency) – Alexies Samonte, M.D., and Jason Scotti, M.D.; Faculty of the Year (National Family Medicine Residency) – Anam Whyne, D.O.; Teacher of the Year (Psychiatry Residency) – Sanjay Chandragiri, M.D.; Teacher of the Year (Cardiology Fellowship) – Samir B. Pancholy, M.D.; Teacher of the Year (Gastroenterology Fellowship) – Aman Ali, M.D.; Teacher of the Year (Geriatrics Fellowship) – Edward Dzielak, D.O.

The Robert E. Wright Award (for Internal Medicine) – Mousa Thalji, M.D.; the Moses Taylor Hospital Golden Stethoscope (for Internal Medicine) – Mousa Thalji, M.D.; Outstanding Fellow (Cardiology) – Gaurav Patel, M.B.B.S.; Outstanding Fellow (Gastroenterology) – Mladen Jecmenica, M.D.; Outstanding Fellow (Geriatrics) – Nirali Patel, M.D.; Intern of the Year (Internal Medicine Residency) – Usman Manzoor, M.D.; Intern of the Year (National Family Medicine Residency) – Carl Supnet, D.O.; Interns of the Year (Regional Family Medicine) – Mohamed El Ayashy, M.D., and Supriana Bhandol, M.D.; Intern of the Year (Psychiatry) – Erica Schmidt, M.D.

Chief Fellow (Cardiology) – Gaurav Patel, M.B.B.S.; Chief Fellow (Gastroenterology) – Mladen Jecmenica, M.D.; Chief Fellow (Geriatrics) – Nirali Patel, M.D.; Chief Residents (Internal Medicine) – Frank Frasca, D.O., Gowtham Gannamani, M.D., Daniel C. Kazmierski, M.D., Mousa Thalji, M.D., and Korinn Vandervall, D.O.; Chief Residents (National Family Medicine) – Dallin Erickson, D.O., Esther Quintero, D.O., Loc Nguyen, D.O., David Eki, D.O., Catherine Njiru-Sewer, D.O., and Sun-jae Kim, D.O.; Chief Residents (Psychiatry) – Shevani Ganesh, M.D., and Casey Lenderman, D.O.; Chief Residents (Regional Family Medicine) – Ebi Rowshanshad, D.O., and Lee Wagner, M.D.

The Society of Teachers of Family Medicine Award – Lee Wagner, M.D. (Regional Family Medicine); Outstanding Resident Award (National Family Medicine) – Catherine Njiru-Sewer, D.O.; COPC Project Award (National Family Medicine Residency) – David Eki, D.O., and Afia Ukor Albin, D.O.; Practice Improvement Award (National Family Medicine Residency) – Xuan-Loc V. Nguyen, D.O., and Brandon John Miller, D.O.; AFMRD Family Medicine Resident Award for Advocacy (National Family Medicine Residency) – Catherine Njiru-Sewer, D.O.; Founding Member Award (National Family Medicine Residency) – Eleni O’Donovan, M.D.

Dr. Sanjay Chandragiri Outstanding Psychiatry Resident Award – Alex Slaby, M.D.; Dr. Stephen J. Pancoast Compassion, Kindness, Service and Humility Award – Mladen Jecmenica, M.D.; Gerard Geoffroy Patient and Community Engagement Award – Nirali Patel, M.D.; The Wright Center “Values in Action” Spirit Award – National Family Medicine Residency and Gastroenterology Fellowship; Bost Award – Edward Dzielak, D.O.

The virtual commencement recognized the accomplishments of all 81 graduating student learners, 10 of whom will stay in Northeast Pennsylvania to continue practicing medicine. The doctors studied in The Wright Center’s internal medicine, regional family medicine, national family medicine and psychiatry residencies as well as its cardiovascular disease, gastroenterology and geriatrics fellowships.

Scranton, Pa. (June 3, 2021) –  The Wright Center for Community Health is pleased to announce it will welcome its first dental resident in July 2021 as part of a new affiliation with New York University (NYU) Langone Dental Medicine Postdoctoral Residency Programs.

The NYU Langone Dental Medicine Advanced Education in General Dentistry (AEGD) Program is designed to educate dental residents in primary dental care for vulnerable and underserved patients while providing culturally competent health care to socially and economically-disadvantaged populations in the region. The Wright Center for Community Health, a Federally Qualified Health Center Look-Alike with a growing network of practices in Lackawanna, Luzerne and Wayne counties, provides safety-net primary care services, including dental, to people of all ages regardless of insured status or ability to pay.

“We’re excited to have The Wright Center as our newest affiliated health center,” said Dr. Martin Lieberman, DDS, MA, Vice President, Graduate Dental Education at NYU Langone Dental Medicine.  “We’re proud to collaborate with The Wright Center to address the need for high-quality, affordable oral health care and train the next generation of generalists and specialists in five postgraduate programs across 27 US States and the Caribbean.” 

“This new program will build on our ongoing efforts to address persistent health disparities and difficulties in accessing oral health care for at-risk patients in Northeast Pennsylvania,” said Meaghan Ruddy, Ph.D., the Wright Center’s Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs. “It is our plan that program graduates will also receive advanced knowledge, skills, and experiences to best serve children and adults who need these services the most.”

The lack of fluoridated water in Northeast Pennsylvania, coupled with poor nutrition and lack of education on the importance of oral health, has resulted in a critical need for dental care access in the region. Additionally, Lackawanna County is also designated by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) as a Health Professional Shortage Area, meaning it suffers from a critical shortage of dentists, primary care physicians and mental health providers.

“During the pandemic, even with the successful launch of telehealth services for our dental patients, many people put their oral health on hold,” explained Kimberly McGoff, Manager of Dental Operations for The Wright Center. “As more people are getting vaccinated and COVID restrictions are lifted, we’ve seen an overwhelming rise in requests for dental appointments — an increase of more than 30% since January alone. In order to meet the higher demand, our dentists and staff are coming in on their days off to help meet the region’s needs.”

In response, The Wright Center is actively recruiting two more full-time dentists, with a new dentist set to join the care team in August. Additionally, The Wright Center’s new mobile medical unit, Driving Better Health, is equipped with two full dental operatories and will offer pop-up dental clinics in both rural and urban settings throughout a seven-county Northeast Pennsylvania service area.

By training tomorrow’s doctors today in community-immersed clinical learning environments that serve diverse and medically underserved populations, The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education is creating the workforce pipeline America needs while addressing the country’s growing primary care provider shortage. Research shows that more than 90% of graduates who trained in Teaching Health Centers, like The Wright Center, remain in primary care practice, and more than 75% plan to work in underserved communities. 

The dental residency is the newest addition to The Wright Center’s robust physician learner programming, which also includes internal medicine, family medicine and psychiatry residencies as well as gastroenterology, geriatric and cardiovascular disease fellowships. The Wright Center is the nation’s largest Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education consortium, with close to 250 physician learners gaining hands-on training throughout Northeast Pennsylvania and in partnering sites in Washington state, Arizona, Ohio and Washington, D.C.