UAB General Surgery Resident Connie Shao, M.D., was awarded the Piedmont American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons (ASCRS) Award.
Shao won the award for her presentation “Limited Health Literacy is Associated Reduced Adherence to ERP Components” which was presented in Tampa, FL during the 2022 ASCRS Annual Scientific Meeting.
Researchers found that higher health literacy is independently associated with greater adherence to components of enhanced recovery programs, which is the only factor associated with shorter length of stay when accounting for patient- and procedure-level factors. Importantly, enhanced recovery programs must be adapted to the needs of low health literacy populations to improve outcomes and equity in care.
The American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons is a community of health care professionals who are dedicated to advancing the understanding, prevention and treatment of disorders of the colon, rectum and anus.
The Piedmont Award is one of several regional awards. Awards are given for the best basic science or clinical paper presented from the podium or as a quick shot.
Additionally, Shao was selected as a 2022 AcademyHealth Diversity Scholars Program scholarship recipient. She was one of only five residents across the nation selected for the scholarship, which supports the professional development of underrepresented racial/ethnic minority groups in the field of health services research.*
Mentoring is a core component of the program; Shao will be matched with a mentor whose research interests and career path align with hers. Additionally, she will be included in the growing cohort of diversity scholars, who are invited to the annual networking reception and asked to serve in varying capacities for the Program, including as a reviewer for upcoming application cycles.
The scholarship also includes full registration for the main conference, ARM, and one-year AcademyHealth membership. Plus, all scholarship recipients are invited to participate in the Diversity Networking Reception during the 2022 ARM Meeting.
Shao is honored to represent the UAB General Surgery Residency program, the department, and the institution as a whole.
“I am grateful to my mentors and peers for supporting me and pushing me to improve as a health services researcher,” said Shao. “It is incredibly rewarding to be part of a program like UAB that prioritizes healthcare access and equity - I hope to continue this work in the future as an academic surgeon.”
* AcademyHealth's definition of underrepresented racial and ethnic minority groups in the field of HSR is based on the NIH definition as the following: African American/Black, American Indian & Alaskan Native, Hispanic/Latino, Native Hawaiian, and Asian American & Pacific Islander.