I recall my first time at a national physicians conference. Moving from room to room amongst a sea of medical professionals from across the nation, I felt a bit lost. Which sessions should I attend? How could I maximize learning in my limited time there? Should I enter the cavernous hall for the plenary session?

There were so many offerings, and who knew what might be relevant for me at that early stage of training? (I remember thinking, what the heck is an “RVU”?)

Fear not, future and early career hospitalists: SHM has created a dedicated track and special sessions at HM15 with your issues and concerns in mind.

For the first time, SHM’s annual meeting is offering an educational track specifically tailored to medical students, residents, and early career hospitalists. The “Young Hospitalist” track will be delivered by speakers from the Physicians in Training Committee and will be enhanced by a special luncheon for students and residents, followed by the afternoon Research, Innovations, and Clinical Vignettes abstract presentations.

This month’s “Future Hospitalist” column provides a sneak peek at all of the content in this track. All sessions will be on Monday, March 30, at the Gaylord National Resort and Conference Center in National Harbor, Md. (www.hospitalmedicine2015.org).

The “Young Hospitalist” track will be delivered by speakers from the Physicians in Training Committee and will be enhanced by a special luncheon for students and residents, followed by the afternoon Research, Innovations, and Clinical Vignettes abstract presentations.

“Career Pathways in Hospital Medicine: Getting Your Ideal Job–One Job at a Time”

10:35 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.

This session will explore the many avenues a hospitalist’s career may take, including clinical medicine, administration, hospital leadership, and academic hospital medicine. It will highlight the value of being open to different opportunities and explain how such opportunities can ignite and shape one’s career over the long term.

Through the stories and career trajectories of real hospitalists, the faculty will demonstrate how teaching students and residents, getting involved in patient-related projects, and joining local or national committees can open the door to further opportunities.

Discussion will highlight the ways in which incorporating any one or more of these hospital medicine “extras” into your ongoing responsibilities might be the crucial ingredient to help you find, achieve, and/or create your ideal job.

“How to Stand Out: Being the Best Applicant You Can Be”

11:20 a.m. to noon

This session will focus on the practical skills and information needed to embark on a fulfilling career in hospital medicine. Topics covered in this session will include effective ways to search for a job and maximize the impression you make on potential employers. We will help you identify which mentors can guide you through this process. You will learn how to leverage what you’ve done in training, or just out of training, to make yourself an attractive applicant. We will cover the do’s and don’ts of correspondence with prospective employers and essential questions to ask during interviews.

“Getting to the Top of the Pile: How to Write the Best CV”

1:10 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.

A good CV can be a gateway to a great career in hospital medicine, but a poorly formatted CV can underrepresent a strong future hospitalist, limiting opportunities. This session will provide detailed information about what hospitalist leaders look for in a CV, and dissect good and bad CVs. You will hear strategies for ensuring that your CV will be both attention grabbing and effective.

“Quality and Patient Safety for Residents and Students”

1:55 p.m. to 2:25 p.m.

Students and residents are required to have at least some quality and patient safety exposure during their training; however, it is often not until they embark upon their own careers that they realize the critical role quality and safety play in both hospital operations and patient care. In this session, we will use interactive methods and case studies to help students, residents, and early career hospitalists learn how to make the most of opportunities in quality and safety. Through these methods, we will illustrate how hospitalists can effect change within these realms even when they are just starting their careers.

“Time Management”

2:45 p.m. to 3:25 p.m.

Time management can be a challenge for any hospitalist, but it’s especially challenging early in one’s career. This session is taught by experienced hospitalists who have learned how to succeed and thrive in various venues. Presenters will examine a typical hospitalist workday and review clinical practices that help enhance efficiency and organization on the wards.

In addition, presenters will walk through different patient care scenarios and discuss strategies for maximizing the face time spent with patients and our workflow outside the patient’s room. Faculty will use examples but will leave time at the end of the session for Q&A and for sharing of techniques.

“Making the Most of Mentorship”

3:30 p.m. to 4:10 p.m.

A great mentor/mentee relationship can be a springboard to a promising career in hospital medicine. This session will help attendees to understand the importance and impact of mentorship. We will demonstrate how to identify and approach mentors—including project mentors—and to create meaningful relationships that can be both personally and professionally rewarding. Areas of focus will include choosing and planning academic, operational, or clinical projects, as well as evaluating career choices.

In addition to the above session offerings, a cornerstone of our student/resident track will be the special luncheon for medical students and residents. We will have assembled some of the best and the brightest within the field to sit with you and provide career mentoring and advice. Students and residents will have the chance to chat informally with nationally recognized leaders in diverse realms such as HM administration, academia, quality, information technology, and more.

Act now if you are interested in attending; space will be limited, and we ask that you register in advance at www.hospitalmedicine2015.org/program.

We also encourage you to attend the Research, Innovations, and Clinical Vignettes (RIV) abstract competition. Many of the concepts presented in the “Young Hospitalists” track will be illustrated in the work displayed here, and it’s a great chance to see these themes and possibilities played out in more detail. Moreover, this year you can show support for your colleagues who have achieved the new Trainee Award, which will recognize resident and student authors within each category.

The first day of HM15 promises to be an exciting opportunity for budding hospitalists to connect with each other and learn a bit about the job application process and career development. We hope you can join us next month.

Dr. Tad-y is assistant professor of medicine, associate program director of the internal medicine residency program, and associate program director of the hospitalist training program at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Aurora. Dr. Steinberg is associate professor of medicine, associate chair for education, and residency program director in the Department of Medicine at Mount Sinai Beth Israel Icahn School of Medicine in New York City. Dr. Donahue is assistant professor of medicine in the division of hospital medicine, department of medicine, at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Boston. Debra Beach is SHM’s manager of membership outreach programs.

All three authors are members of SHM’s Physicians in Training Committee. Other members of the committee also contributed to this report.

Society of Hospital Medicine's 2015 Annual Meeting Adds Focus on Early Career Hospitalists