Key Keynotes

The Hospitalist. 2007 June;2007(06):

June 1, 2007 | The Hospitalist

He attributed part of that growth to several changes, including the additional responsibility of hospitalists for caring for surgical patients—something he sees as eventually becoming the norm. Another factor is the role hospitalists play in replacing residents in teaching hospitals, an area that has seen unplanned growth.

And finally, Dr. Wachter speculated that the quality measures movement will also boost the ranks of hospitalists. “We’re already seeing tremendous pressure on hospitalists to help their hospitals achieve success in pay-for-performance programs and in publicly reported measures,” he said. “This type of responsibility was originally considered a nice add-on for using hospitalists, but now it’s getting to be a crucial part. There’s a building expectation that hospitalists will guarantee superb performance.”

Dr. Wachter also touched on how information technology might change hospital medicine. “IT will definitely have an impact, in some exciting ways, and in other ways that have not been thought through,” he warned. “For example, consultation may be very different.” For example, a hospitalist in 2017 may be able to use a video link at a patient’s bedside to consult with one of 100 cardiologists around the country or around the world.

Following Dr. Wachter’s view of the future, Sylvia C. McKean, MD, had the last word at the meeting. As the chair in charge of next year’s Annual Meeting in San Diego, she presented the wrap-up on Friday afternoon, covering “What Have We Learned.”

Looking back on the previous three days, Dr. McKean pronounced, “The future is now.” Pointing to the number of meeting sessions, abstracts and poster presentations that emphasized recent innovations in hospital medicine, she said, “The Annual Meeting helps us find our expertise as hospitalists.” The Annual Meeting, along with SHM’s published Core Competencies helps define the role that hospitalists play in patient-centered care and in patient safety.

Dr. McKean thanked Chad Whelan, chair of the Annual Meeting Committee, for all his work, and said she was looking forward to 2008.

Chapter Reports

Chicago

On Feb. 22, the Chicago chapter met at Nick’s Fishmarket. Hospitalists, residents, and discharge planners were in attendance. Tarek Karamen, MD, and Kevin O’Leary, MD, briefly outlined the agenda of the evening and shared event details of the chapter’s June meeting.

After a lecture called “The Treatment of the Agitated Patient,” members from various hospitalists groups in Chicago introduced their programs and gave specifics of each. Residents seeking new positions were encouraged to network with hospitalists groups in attendance. At the next meeting, attendees suggested having an emphasis placed on hospitalists and primary-care physicians. The meeting was sponsored by Pfizer.

Indiana

The inaugural meeting of the SHM Indiana Chapter was held March 13. Chapter President Sam Bagchi, MD, moderated a lively roundtable discussion regarding the practice of hospital medicine in Indiana. Several topics for future meetings were discussed, including recruitment/retention of hospitalists in the region, use of allied healthcare providers in hospital-based practices, establishment of medical student outreach program, burnout avoidance, and ideas to expand the reach of the Indiana SHM Chapter and implementation of patient-oriented evidence.

A survey of event attendees revealed that most favored having quarterly meetings with a concentration on educational and practice management topics as well as more one-on-one networking time. The chapter’s next meeting was set for June 5 at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse and was to feature SHM board member Alpesh Amin, MD, speaking on in-hospital glycemic control and the future of hospital medicine.

Las Vegas

The Las Vegas chapter met Nov. 16, 2006. Gary Skankey, MD, gave a presentation on intra-abdominal infections, followed by a talk from chapter President Will Watanabe, MD, that outlined the chapter’s agenda for 2007. The chapter’s focus will be on educating fellow hospitalists and subspecialists about sepsis. Dr. Watanabe gave a presentation regarding care of the sepsis patient. The Las Vegas Chapter plans on sponsoring a two-day conference in September, “The Sepsis Continuum of Care: Integrating a Multidisciplinary Approach to Sepsis.” The November meeting was sponsored by Wyeth.

Montana

The Montana Chapter gathered in Bozeman at Boodles Restaurant on Feb. 28. The meeting included a review of hospitalist programs in the state, as well as a discussion of challenges facing Montana, such as staffing, sparse population, and quality of care. Also discussed: program diversity within the state, including size of the programs and their scope and management structure. The chapter will hold its next meeting in June or July in Bozeman. That session will highlight correct operational success and challenges with a guest speaker. The chapter will also hold chapter elections at its next meeting.

New Jersey

On March 21, the New Jersey Chapter of SHM held its March CME event in Bridgewater. The presentation topic of the night was “Cross Cultural Approach to Patient Centered Care.” Debbie Salas-Lopez, MD, member of the N.J. Board of Medical Examiners, and Valerie Allusson, MD, director of the Physician Assistance Program Morristown Memorial Hospital, each gave presentations and referenced various case studies as examples. All attendees received two CME credits for the lecture.

Pacific Northwest

The Pacific Northwest chapter held its quarterly meeting Feb. 15 at the Columbia Tower in Seattle. Thirty local hospitalists, residents, and other interested parties representing 13 hospital medicine groups attended this meeting. The program was presided over by Deborah L. Washington, MD of the Pacific Medical Centers. David Spach, MD, of the University of Washington Medical Center gave a talk on “Case Studies in the Management of Serious Infections (with an Emphasis on MRSA).” Dr. Spach presented a variety of infectious disease cases.

The next meeting is expected to feature past president Joseph Bennet, MD, speaking on Hospitalist Practice in New Zealand and Tamara Roe, MD, speaking on the legal aspects of Hospital Medicine including contracts, non-competes, malpractice, and employment. This meeting was sponsored by Ortho-McNeil, Kindred Hospital, Scios Inc., and Cubist Pharmaceuticals.

Philadelphia

On March 13, the Philadelphia Chapter gathered for its semi-annual meeting. The guest speaker for the night was Scott Manaker, MD, PhD, associate professor of Medicine and Pharmacology and vice chair for Regulatory Affairs, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Manaker spoke about “Billing and Coding for the Hospitalist: What’s In An RVU For You?” The presentation prompted many audience questions. The program was sponsored by Pfizer.

Piedmont

To kick off DVT Awareness month, the Piedmont Chapter met in Durham, N.C., Feb. 27 for an evening of discussion and case presentations with Victor Tapson, MD from Duke University. SHM members representing six regional hospitalist programs shared their clinical experiences and approach to DVT and pulmonary embolisms as Dr. Tapson presented vignettes that illustrated clinical pearls and best practices in the prevention and treatment of these conditions. Attendees expressed interest in having another chapter event this spring.

San Diego

On March 7, the San Diego Chapter met at Roy’s of La Jolla. Dr. Greg Seymann of University of California at San Diego, a member of SHM’s Public Policy Committee, presented an informative and thought-provoking lecture regarding the future pay-for-performance initiative for Medicare patients. Following the presentation, “Pay-for-Performance, What Hospitalists Need to Know,” the group had a lively discussion regarding the parameters to be measured and how this will affect hospitalists.