Focused on the Practice

The Hospitalist. 2009 June;2009(06):

June 1, 2009|The Hospitalist

Most HM groups (HMGs) participate in quality initiatives in their hospitals, according to new SHM research. Moreover, 7 out of 10 HMGs participating in QI initiatives are leading those efforts at their hospitals.

The findings are part of SHM’s 2008-2009 Focused Survey, the latest in a series of reports commissioned by the Practice Analysis Committee. The survey and report concentrate on topics of interest from SHM’s comprehensive, biannual survey of its membership.

The survey compiled responses from 145 HMG leaders. In addition to QI initiatives, participants in the survey responded to a variety of questions, including quality-based incentives, hospitalist turnover, and the use of part-time hospitalists.

These surveys answer the kinds of questions that often come up when hospitalists and hospitals begin to evaluate their performance and plan for the future.

—Joe Miller, SHM’s executive advisor to the CEO

“This is certain to be a conversation starter for hospitalists, hospital executives, and others,” says Burke Kealey, MD, FHM, medical director for hospital medicine at St. Paul, Minn.-based HealthPartners and chair of SHM’s Practice Analysis Committee. “The Focused Survey is an opportunity for SHM to answer some of the pressing questions that healthcare executives and providers have about managing a hospitalist practice within the larger context of the hospital.”

Hospital executives and hospitalists use SHM survey findings to better understand what is going on in the specialty, says Joe Miller, SHM’s executive advisor to the CEO. “These surveys answer the kinds of questions that often come up when hospitalists and hospitals begin to evaluate their performance and plan for the future,” Miller says. “We use their questions as source material for this survey, so we can help them answer questions like, ‘How are most hospitalists participating in QI?’ or ‘How are other hospitalists using part-time staff members?’ ”

Practice Management Courses at UCSF Conference

This fall hospitalists and HMG administrators will have new opportunities to make their practices more efficient. SHM will present two practice management courses Sept. 23 before the regional HM conference sponsored by the University of California at San Francisco:

“Best Practices in Managing a Hospital Medicine Program” will feature new content for 2009. It is designed for individuals seeking to improve the management and operation of an existing HM program, or to start a new program.
“Fundamentals of Inpatient Coding and Documentation: Getting Paid What You Deserve” will aim to enhance a practicing hospitalists’ ability to document and code clinical services.

Both courses were presented at a sold-out HM09 last month in Chicago. Course offerings at regional conferences offer hospitalists who were unable to attend the annual meeting the same opportunity at continuing education, says Joe Miller, SHM’s executive advisor to the CEO. “There’s clearly a demand from hospitalists for the kind of real-world education that the courses on best practices and coding offer,” he says. “We’re glad we can meet that demand.”

For more information, visit the new course micro-site at www.hospitalmedicine.org/Courses/SHM_Courses.cfm.

Hospitalists Lead the Way

Hospitalists continue to be at the forefront of QI initiatives within their hospitals, according to the latest survey. Almost all respondents (96.5%) reported that their HMG participated in QI programs; the average HMG has six hospitalists playing an active role in QI within the hospital.

The survey also found that 72.1% of respondents involved in QI activity reported that their hospitalists were “responsible for leading project(s)” on QI initiatives.

“The findings about the active role hospitalists play in QI initiatives may surprise even the most staunch advocate of QI within the hospital medicine specialty,” says Leslie Flores, MHA, SHM’s director of the Practice Management Institute and leader of the Focused Survey research. “In essence, it shows that nearly every hospitalist group is active in promoting QI, and that the vast majority of them are taking a leadership position to improve quality. … It is remarkable and extremely exciting that hospitalists are so deeply involved in QI in their organizations.”