Perspectives
Even the smallest steps can bring big changes
A physician offers tips on how hospitalists can make more use of pulmonary rehabilitation in patients with COPD.
Use HCC coding to engage hospitalists in value-based care
Hierarchical condition category (HCC) coding isn't just for outpatients.
A call to action: Align well-being and antiracism strategies
Physicians have a duty to challenge processes, policies, and procedures that stem from structural inequities.
Political conversations with patients
Questions about politics are inevitable in clinics and hospitals during this election season.
A framework for team problem solving
A hospitalist discovered some useful principles while working to improve throughput.
How to be appealing: Peer-to-peer conversations 101
Typically there is general agreement between the clinical side and the payer side. But reasonable people can disagree.
APPs key to pandemic planning
Advanced practice providers (APPs) shifted roles in preparation for a COVID-19 surge.
Breaking the cycle: Changing how we deal with addiction
A hospitalist gained insight from a neuroscience journalist.
Small victories on the night shift
COVID-19 brought fear and anxiety, but also humanity and hope.
A harm-reduction approach to hospitalized patients with opioid use disorder
Initiating inpatient treatment is a prime opportunity to elicit insight from patients about their drug use.
How to be successful at early discharges
A hospitalist offers tips on planning and working ahead.
Physicians' obligations under EMTALA
Some examples explain the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA).
Avoiding the femoral vein in central venous cannulation: an outdated practice
Contemporary data on central venous cannulation shows safety advantages to using the femoral vein in some cases.
A prescription for medication errors
A simplified approach to medication adherence could lead to better outcomes, according to two physicians who propose steps for clinicians and the health care system to prevent adverse medication events.
Politics and the wellness of our foreign-born colleagues
Travel bans and visa-law changes in a volatile political arena can affect the morale of a large number of physicians, in training and established in practice, as well as international students enrolled in medical schools in the United States.
Understanding nocturnists
Most hospitalist programs misunderstand how to attract and keep quality physicians in this role, the author says.
Present people, not diseases
Instead of focusing on all the past medical problems a patient has, you should focus on who they are first.
Breaking the barriers
Identifying “teachable moments” for patients is an important part of quality care.
Improving patient satisfaction is not rocket science
Ten easy ways to generate “thank yous”.
‘Gentlemen, this is no humbug’: A history of anesthesia
If the history of anesthesia is the story of trying to manage pain, then it is indeed a long one.
Hospitalist grand rounds: Vision to reality
Instituting a grand rounds specifically for the hospitalist service.
Horsing around
In a fictitious hospital, a momentary misunderstanding leads to a pun-filled visit summary.
DNR: An order ignored
Deconstruct a poorly handled situation to help prevent a similar occurrence.
In praise of doing research
An Irish intern recalls the thrill of presenting at his first big U.S. scientific meeting.
Improve core measure compliance with electronic medical record tools
A hospitalist explains how his facility uses its EHR to meet CMS core measures.
Inpatient versus observation status: the Medicare dilemma
The review process is flawed, and physicians should take action, three experts say.
Working the Hawaiian night shift
A nocturnist discusses a move that changed his life for the better.
Occupy med school
Income inequality exists throughout our culture, but it is particularly poignant in health care.
Meetings: bane of a hospitalist's existence? Not necessarily
One hospitalist gives advice on making the most of work gatherings.
Genetics in hospital medicine
Obtaining and applying genetic information can play a vital role in diagnosis and treatment.
Patient-centered care from admission to discharge
It's hard to increase time spent with patients, so improving the quality of the time is the only workable alternative.
The big and small of it
It's remarkably different to practice in a small rural hospital than in its urban big brother.
Why general medicine ward teams should round in the ICU
Rounding on established patients undergirds the fundamental bases of professionalism.
Bath salts that were never meant for a tub
You might not understand the nicknames Meow-Meow, Ivory Wave and Powdered Rush, but you probably have patients who do.
Computerized provider order entry systems and patient safety
Computerized provider order entry has a promising, yet unproven, future as a tool for improving overall patient care and safety.
Sleepless in the hospital: Our own default
Patients should not be disturbed in the middle of the night unless it is medically necessary.
The scourge of seven on/seven off
How many soccer games have you missed because of your work schedule? How often has your spouse had to eat dinner without you?.
Ventilator-associated pneumonia rates: The wrong quality measure
Legislators, payers and quality-of-care advocates across the nation are considering requiring hospitals to report ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) rates as a way to benchmark quality of care and penalize poor performers.