Sean M. Berenholtz, MD, MHS, FCCM

Associate Professor
Departments of Anesthesiology/Critical Care Medicine and Surgery
The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
600  North Wolfe Street, Halsted 842
Baltimore, MD  21287-5842
Phone: 410-614-9919
Fax: 410-614-1776
E-Mail: sberenh1@jhmi.edu
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Sean Berenholtz‘s goal is to become an independent clinician-scientist focused on applying rigorous clinical research methods to improve the quality of care in the intensive care unit.  

The author of numerous articles and chapters in the fields of patient safety, ICU care, evidence-based medicine, and the measurement and evaluation of safety efforts, Dr. Berenholtz has worked with the VHA Health Foundation and JCAHO to develop quality measures for sepsis care, served as National Chair for the VHA’s Transformation of the ICU program, and is currently a co-investigator for two statewide collaboratives to improve ICU care in Michigan and Rhode Island and a statewide effort to improve perioperative care in Michigan.

Dr. Berenholtz has obtained funding from NIH/NHLBI, The Eugene & Mary B. Meyer Center for Advanced Transfusion Practices and Blood Research, and the General Clinical Research Center to conduct a randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled trial to assess the efficacy and safety of epsilon aminocaproic acid (EACA) in reducing allogeneic blood transfusion requirements in 170 patients undergoing spine surgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital. The hypothesis is that patients receiving EACA will require 30% fewer allogeneic blood transfusions than will patients receiving placebo, without additional thrombotic complications. Completion of the proposed research will significantly advance our knowledge of who is likely to require allogeneic transfusion, the complications associated with transfusion, and the possible strategies for reducing transfusion exposure. In particular, successful implementation of the proposed clinical trial may decrease allogeneic transfusion exposure and the risks associated with transfusion in this patient population.

Dr. Berenholtz receives funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to identify the structural and process measures that show causal effects of a structured, nursing-driven intervention on patient outcomes in critical care. With funding from the Michigan Health & Hospital Association Keystone Center for Patient Safety & Quality, Dr. Berenholtz seeks to improve surgical care for patients in Michigan hospitals by reducing surgical site infections, mislabeled specimens, and wrong-site surgeries, and with funding from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality he works on improving medication monitoring for vulnerable populations via information technologies.

Professional Activities
American Medical Association
Society of Critical Care Medicine
American Society of Critical Care Anesthesiologists
American Society of Anesthesiologists
Faculty, Critical Care Congress, Society of Critical Care Medicine, 2002–present
Faculty, American Society of Anesthesiologists Annual Meeting, 2002–present
Adult MCCKAP Committee, Society of Critical Care Medicine, 2002–present

Selected Publications

1. Haut ER, Noll K, Efron DT, Cornwell EE,  Berenholtz SM, Pronovost PJ. Can increased incidence of deep vein thrombosis be used as a marker of quality of care in the absence of standardized screening? J Trauma 63:1132–7, 2007.
2. Winters BD, Berenholtz SM, Pronovost P. Improving patient safety reporting systems. Crit Care Med 35(4):1206–7, 2007.
3. Berenholtz SM, Pronovost PJ, Ngo K, Barie PS, Hitt J, Kuti JL, Septimus E, Lawler N, Schilling L, Dorman T, Core Sepsis Measurement Team. Developing quality measures for sepsis care in the ICU.  Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf 33(9):559–68, 2007.
4. Berenholtz SM, Pustavoitau A, Schwartz SJ, Pronovost PJ. How safe is my intensive care unit? Methods for monitoring and measurement. Curr Opin Crit Care 13(6):703–8, 2007.
5. Pronovost PJ, Berenholtz SM, Needham DM. A framework for health care organizations to develop and evaluate a safety scorecard. JAMA 298(17):2063–5, 2007
6. Pronovost PJ, Goeschel C, Marsteller J, Sexton JB, Pham JC, Berenholtz SM. A framework for patient safety research and improvement. Circulation 119(2):330–7, 2009.

Laboratory Members/Key Associates

For other members of the Johns Hopkins Quality and Safety Research Group, please go to http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/quality_safety_research_group/

Honors

Richard L. Keenan Scholarship for research in anesthesiology (1992, 1993)
Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society (1993)
Richard H. Kirkland Scholarship for academic excellence (1993, 1994)
A.H. Robbins Scholarship for academic excellence (1993)
Outstanding dedication to Multidisciplinary Critical Care Fellowship (Teaching) (2000)
Clinician-Scientist Award (2000, 2001)
Fellow, American College of Critical Care Medicine (2005)