Emily Heil coordinates the University of Maryland Medical Center’s antimicrobial stewardship program.
Emily Heil, PharmD, MS, found herself in the right place at the right time as a specialist in infectious diseases. When the COVID-19 pandemic arose, Heil drew upon her knowledge as an associate professor of pharmacy practice and science at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy (UMSOP) and her front-line duties at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) to help guide treatments.
Heil coordinates UMMC’s antimicrobial stewardship program. That role equipped her to lead development — and maintenance — of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) treatment guidelines for COVID-19. Heil’s team deployed a digital platform that gives clinicians access to the well-established antimicrobial use guidelines, a reliable source for years of the latest evidence-based recommendations.
The medical center and the other 12 UMMS hospitals use the COVID-19 guidance to select optimal treatment based on current data. For example, an antiviral medication, remdesivir, has advanced from investigational use through various levels of U.S. Food and Drug Administration access for treating COVID-19.
But a year ago, clinicians confronted a high-stakes puzzle. “Initially, there were no national treatment guidelines, and as we worked to determine the most effective options for our COVID-19 patients, we were getting hit with a barrage of preprint research [draft research shared publicly before being peer reviewed], anecdotes, and case reports,” Heil recalls. “As pharmacists, we relied on each other and our professional societies, talking to others across the country.”
You can read more about Heil's work as well as COVID-19 research being done across all of UMB's schools in the Spring 2021 issue of UMB’s CATALYST magazine.
The issue also highlights how students have received invaluable hands-on experience preparing COVID-19 vaccines and vaccinating patients at the SMC Campus Center. We also share the stories of our graduates, the first recipient of The Honorable Elijah E. Cummings ’76 Scholarship Endowment, the National Center for School Mental Health, and much more.