In recent months, numerous articles have come out targeting high-billing physicians—looking for smoking guns in recently released 2012 Medicare fee-for-service physician claims data. These data include both the amount each individual physician billed and the amount Medicare paid on average for services performed by all physicians treating Medicare beneficiaries.

Many physician groups, including the AMA, criticized the data release as having significant limitations, including clinical and billing practice realities that confound the layperson’s understanding of the data’s implications. Still, there is much physicians can learn by exploring this information, particularly those in a still-growing field like hospital medicine (HM).

There is no clear method to identify hospitalists within these data. Hospitalists are dispersed throughout their respective board certifications—internal medicine, family practice, pediatrics. The designations come directly from the Medicare specialty billing code; the code associated with the largest number of services becomes that provider’s de facto specialty. For the majority of providers, this will correspond with their board certification and their professional identity. A hospitalist’s unique practice is lost within these general identifiers.

However, the contours of that unique practice may provide some tools to identify hospitalists, albeit roughly, within the data and in the absence of a specialty billing code. Things like practice location and commonly billed Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes can help sketch the boundaries of the field. Certainly, any classification methodology will have its share of imperfections and may exclude individuals who would otherwise identify as hospitalists. Regardless, such an exercise could identify trends in hospital medicine while providing a better understanding of the field as a whole.

HM does not have the traditional hallmark signifiers—board certification and Medicare specialty billing code—used by many specialties and subspecialties to frame their fields and to classify and compare physicians. The Medicare specialty billing code is a unique code applied to Medicare billing claims that tells Medicare exactly how the provider would like to be identified.

Because of its relative specificity and ready accessibility, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) uses the specialty billing code to create specialty comparison groups in pay-for-performance programs. Under the value-based payment modifier, hospitalists are compared against outpatient internal medicine or family medicine physicians, which makes them seem all the more expensive and less efficient.

SHM has been attuned to this particular issue since the early days of the physician value-based payment modifier. For nearly two years, SHM has repeatedly admonished CMS to compare hospitalists against other hospitalists in order for a pay-for-performance scheme to fairly and reasonably evaluate quality and efficiency. CMS acknowledged that many specialties and subspecialties may be masked within the current listing of Medicare specialty billing codes but yielded only so far as to say that aggrieved specialties can apply for their own code. SHM, for its part, applied for a specialty billing code for hospitalists in May 2014.

SHM has been actively exploring the data and looking at ways to identify hospitalists within this Medicare data. There’s an inherent value to this sort of self-reflection—it explains who we are and where we have been.

More importantly, it helps inform where we are going.

Joshua Lapps is SHM’s government relations manager.

In recent months, numerous articles have come out targeting high-billing physicians—looking for smoking guns in recently released 2012 Medicare fee-for-service physician claims data. These data include both the amount each individual physician billed and the amount Medicare paid on average for services performed by all physicians treating Medicare beneficiaries.

Many physician groups, including the AMA, criticized the data release as having significant limitations, including clinical and billing practice realities that confound the layperson’s understanding of the data’s implications. Still, there is much physicians can learn by exploring this information, particularly those in a still-growing field like hospital medicine (HM).

There is no clear method to identify hospitalists within these data. Hospitalists are dispersed throughout their respective board certifications—internal medicine, family practice, pediatrics. The designations come directly from the Medicare specialty billing code; the code associated with the largest number of services becomes that provider’s de facto specialty. For the majority of providers, this will correspond with their board certification and their professional identity. A hospitalist’s unique practice is lost within these general identifiers.

However, the contours of that unique practice may provide some tools to identify hospitalists, albeit roughly, within the data and in the absence of a specialty billing code. Things like practice location and commonly billed Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes can help sketch the boundaries of the field. Certainly, any classification methodology will have its share of imperfections and may exclude individuals who would otherwise identify as hospitalists. Regardless, such an exercise could identify trends in hospital medicine while providing a better understanding of the field as a whole.

HM does not have the traditional hallmark signifiers—board certification and Medicare specialty billing code—used by many specialties and subspecialties to frame their fields and to classify and compare physicians. The Medicare specialty billing code is a unique code applied to Medicare billing claims that tells Medicare exactly how the provider would like to be identified.

Because of its relative specificity and ready accessibility, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) uses the specialty billing code to create specialty comparison groups in pay-for-performance programs. Under the value-based payment modifier, hospitalists are compared against outpatient internal medicine or family medicine physicians, which makes them seem all the more expensive and less efficient.

SHM has been attuned to this particular issue since the early days of the physician value-based payment modifier. For nearly two years, SHM has repeatedly admonished CMS to compare hospitalists against other hospitalists in order for a pay-for-performance scheme to fairly and reasonably evaluate quality and efficiency. CMS acknowledged that many specialties and subspecialties may be masked within the current listing of Medicare specialty billing codes but yielded only so far as to say that aggrieved specialties can apply for their own code. SHM, for its part, applied for a specialty billing code for hospitalists in May 2014.

SHM has been actively exploring the data and looking at ways to identify hospitalists within this Medicare data. There’s an inherent value to this sort of self-reflection—it explains who we are and where we have been.

More importantly, it helps inform where we are going.

Joshua Lapps is SHM’s government relations manager.

In recent months, numerous articles have come out targeting high-billing physicians—looking for smoking guns in recently released 2012 Medicare fee-for-service physician claims data. These data include both the amount each individual physician billed and the amount Medicare paid on average for services performed by all physicians treating Medicare beneficiaries.

Many physician groups, including the AMA, criticized the data release as having significant limitations, including clinical and billing practice realities that confound the layperson’s understanding of the data’s implications. Still, there is much physicians can learn by exploring this information, particularly those in a still-growing field like hospital medicine (HM).

There is no clear method to identify hospitalists within these data. Hospitalists are dispersed throughout their respective board certifications—internal medicine, family practice, pediatrics. The designations come directly from the Medicare specialty billing code; the code associated with the largest number of services becomes that provider’s de facto specialty. For the majority of providers, this will correspond with their board certification and their professional identity. A hospitalist’s unique practice is lost within these general identifiers.

However, the contours of that unique practice may provide some tools to identify hospitalists, albeit roughly, within the data and in the absence of a specialty billing code. Things like practice location and commonly billed Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes can help sketch the boundaries of the field. Certainly, any classification methodology will have its share of imperfections and may exclude individuals who would otherwise identify as hospitalists. Regardless, such an exercise could identify trends in hospital medicine while providing a better understanding of the field as a whole.

HM does not have the traditional hallmark signifiers—board certification and Medicare specialty billing code—used by many specialties and subspecialties to frame their fields and to classify and compare physicians. The Medicare specialty billing code is a unique code applied to Medicare billing claims that tells Medicare exactly how the provider would like to be identified.

Because of its relative specificity and ready accessibility, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) uses the specialty billing code to create specialty comparison groups in pay-for-performance programs. Under the value-based payment modifier, hospitalists are compared against outpatient internal medicine or family medicine physicians, which makes them seem all the more expensive and less efficient.

SHM has been attuned to this particular issue since the early days of the physician value-based payment modifier. For nearly two years, SHM has repeatedly admonished CMS to compare hospitalists against other hospitalists in order for a pay-for-performance scheme to fairly and reasonably evaluate quality and efficiency. CMS acknowledged that many specialties and subspecialties may be masked within the current listing of Medicare specialty billing codes but yielded only so far as to say that aggrieved specialties can apply for their own code. SHM, for its part, applied for a specialty billing code for hospitalists in May 2014.

SHM has been actively exploring the data and looking at ways to identify hospitalists within this Medicare data. There’s an inherent value to this sort of self-reflection—it explains who we are and where we have been.

More importantly, it helps inform where we are going.

Joshua Lapps is SHM’s government relations manager.

Recruiting and retaining hospitalists are major challenges for hospital medicine groups across the country, and the State of Hospital Medicine report can be the roadmap for helping them keep the hospitalists they need.

The State of Hospital Medicine, available in September from SHM, provides a comprehensive data set on compensation and productivity for hospitalists across the country—and across sub-specialties in HM. Using data from the State of Hospital Medicine report, hospitalists everywhere compare their own compensation strategies against those in their region and throughout the U.S.

The latest issue, published by SHM every other year, will be available later this month but can be pre-ordered today. For more information, or to pre-order, visit www.hospitalmedicine.org/sohm.

Recruiting and retaining hospitalists are major challenges for hospital medicine groups across the country, and the State of Hospital Medicine report can be the roadmap for helping them keep the hospitalists they need.

The State of Hospital Medicine, available in September from SHM, provides a comprehensive data set on compensation and productivity for hospitalists across the country—and across sub-specialties in HM. Using data from the State of Hospital Medicine report, hospitalists everywhere compare their own compensation strategies against those in their region and throughout the U.S.

The latest issue, published by SHM every other year, will be available later this month but can be pre-ordered today. For more information, or to pre-order, visit www.hospitalmedicine.org/sohm.

Recruiting and retaining hospitalists are major challenges for hospital medicine groups across the country, and the State of Hospital Medicine report can be the roadmap for helping them keep the hospitalists they need.

The State of Hospital Medicine, available in September from SHM, provides a comprehensive data set on compensation and productivity for hospitalists across the country—and across sub-specialties in HM. Using data from the State of Hospital Medicine report, hospitalists everywhere compare their own compensation strategies against those in their region and throughout the U.S.

The latest issue, published by SHM every other year, will be available later this month but can be pre-ordered today. For more information, or to pre-order, visit www.hospitalmedicine.org/sohm.

Now is the time to clear space on your calendar for Hospital Medicine 2015: March 29 through April 1, 2015. Hospitalists often tell SHM that the main reason they can’t make it to our annual meeting is schedule conflicts, so reserving time in your busy schedules today ensures that you can meet with fellow hospitalists at HM15 in just a few months.

Since HM15 will be just a few miles from the nation’s capital, SHM is organizing another specialty-wide Hospitalists on the Hill, where hospitalists from across the country meet with lawmakers to discuss the major challenges facing care for hospitalized patients. Now more than ever, hospitalists are a force for change in Washington, testifying before Congress and meeting with lawmakers in record numbers.

Hospital Medicine 2015

March 29-April 1

National Harbor, Maryland, just outside of Washington, D.C.

www.hospitalmedicine2015.org

Now is the time to clear space on your calendar for Hospital Medicine 2015: March 29 through April 1, 2015. Hospitalists often tell SHM that the main reason they can’t make it to our annual meeting is schedule conflicts, so reserving time in your busy schedules today ensures that you can meet with fellow hospitalists at HM15 in just a few months.

Since HM15 will be just a few miles from the nation’s capital, SHM is organizing another specialty-wide Hospitalists on the Hill, where hospitalists from across the country meet with lawmakers to discuss the major challenges facing care for hospitalized patients. Now more than ever, hospitalists are a force for change in Washington, testifying before Congress and meeting with lawmakers in record numbers.

Hospital Medicine 2015

March 29-April 1

National Harbor, Maryland, just outside of Washington, D.C.

www.hospitalmedicine2015.org

Now is the time to clear space on your calendar for Hospital Medicine 2015: March 29 through April 1, 2015. Hospitalists often tell SHM that the main reason they can’t make it to our annual meeting is schedule conflicts, so reserving time in your busy schedules today ensures that you can meet with fellow hospitalists at HM15 in just a few months.

Since HM15 will be just a few miles from the nation’s capital, SHM is organizing another specialty-wide Hospitalists on the Hill, where hospitalists from across the country meet with lawmakers to discuss the major challenges facing care for hospitalized patients. Now more than ever, hospitalists are a force for change in Washington, testifying before Congress and meeting with lawmakers in record numbers.

Hospital Medicine 2015

March 29-April 1

National Harbor, Maryland, just outside of Washington, D.C.

www.hospitalmedicine2015.org

Controlling glycemic levels and diabetes in hospitalized patients is one of the biggest ongoing challenges hospitalists face. Now, hospitalists can help their hospitals come up with system-wide improvements to address glycemic control.

SHM’s Glycemic Control Mentored Implementation (GCMI) Program gives hospitalists the tools they need to make system-level changes in their hospital and pairs them with a mentor to help make it happen.

SHM is accepting applications for the 2014 GCMI program, but act soon. Applications are due September 30. For more information, visit www.hospitalmedicine.org/gcmi.

Controlling glycemic levels and diabetes in hospitalized patients is one of the biggest ongoing challenges hospitalists face. Now, hospitalists can help their hospitals come up with system-wide improvements to address glycemic control.

SHM’s Glycemic Control Mentored Implementation (GCMI) Program gives hospitalists the tools they need to make system-level changes in their hospital and pairs them with a mentor to help make it happen.

SHM is accepting applications for the 2014 GCMI program, but act soon. Applications are due September 30. For more information, visit www.hospitalmedicine.org/gcmi.

Controlling glycemic levels and diabetes in hospitalized patients is one of the biggest ongoing challenges hospitalists face. Now, hospitalists can help their hospitals come up with system-wide improvements to address glycemic control.

SHM’s Glycemic Control Mentored Implementation (GCMI) Program gives hospitalists the tools they need to make system-level changes in their hospital and pairs them with a mentor to help make it happen.

SHM is accepting applications for the 2014 GCMI program, but act soon. Applications are due September 30. For more information, visit www.hospitalmedicine.org/gcmi.

Have you ever worried about which billing code is appropriate? Worried that your coding decisions could be called into question, but reading up on the topic only left you more confused?

SHM’s new, first-of-its-kind online educational tool can help.

CODE-H Interactive—short for “Coding Optimally for Documenting Effectively for Hospitalists”—gives hospitalists an online guided tour through six different coding scenarios, enabling them to choose the codes they believe are appropriate. Then, SHM’s coding expert highlights the correct codes and offers rationales for each.

HM groups can enroll multiple team members using a single subscription, making educating entire teams easy. Each participant receives a certificate documenting his or her participation in the program.

CODE-H Interactive is available today at www.hospitalmedicine.org/codehi.

Have you ever worried about which billing code is appropriate? Worried that your coding decisions could be called into question, but reading up on the topic only left you more confused?

SHM’s new, first-of-its-kind online educational tool can help.

CODE-H Interactive—short for “Coding Optimally for Documenting Effectively for Hospitalists”—gives hospitalists an online guided tour through six different coding scenarios, enabling them to choose the codes they believe are appropriate. Then, SHM’s coding expert highlights the correct codes and offers rationales for each.

HM groups can enroll multiple team members using a single subscription, making educating entire teams easy. Each participant receives a certificate documenting his or her participation in the program.

CODE-H Interactive is available today at www.hospitalmedicine.org/codehi.

Have you ever worried about which billing code is appropriate? Worried that your coding decisions could be called into question, but reading up on the topic only left you more confused?

SHM’s new, first-of-its-kind online educational tool can help.

CODE-H Interactive—short for “Coding Optimally for Documenting Effectively for Hospitalists”—gives hospitalists an online guided tour through six different coding scenarios, enabling them to choose the codes they believe are appropriate. Then, SHM’s coding expert highlights the correct codes and offers rationales for each.

HM groups can enroll multiple team members using a single subscription, making educating entire teams easy. Each participant receives a certificate documenting his or her participation in the program.

CODE-H Interactive is available today at www.hospitalmedicine.org/codehi.

More than a thousand hospitalists have earned the right to affix “FHM” or “SFHM” alongside their other credentials. Now, you can learn from them about how to apply for Fellow in Hospital Medicine (FHM) or Senior Fellow in Hospital Medicine (SFHM) designations in a first of its kind webinar hosted by SHM (Sept. 24, 1 pm EST). Speakers will include current FHM and Master in Hospital Medicine (MHM) designees. They will talk about the process and how the designation has impacted their careers as hospitalizes.

SHM Fellows Webinar

Sept. 24

1 p.m. (EST)

www.hospitalmedicine.org/fellows

More than a thousand hospitalists have earned the right to affix “FHM” or “SFHM” alongside their other credentials. Now, you can learn from them about how to apply for Fellow in Hospital Medicine (FHM) or Senior Fellow in Hospital Medicine (SFHM) designations in a first of its kind webinar hosted by SHM (Sept. 24, 1 pm EST). Speakers will include current FHM and Master in Hospital Medicine (MHM) designees. They will talk about the process and how the designation has impacted their careers as hospitalizes.

SHM Fellows Webinar

Sept. 24

1 p.m. (EST)

www.hospitalmedicine.org/fellows

More than a thousand hospitalists have earned the right to affix “FHM” or “SFHM” alongside their other credentials. Now, you can learn from them about how to apply for Fellow in Hospital Medicine (FHM) or Senior Fellow in Hospital Medicine (SFHM) designations in a first of its kind webinar hosted by SHM (Sept. 24, 1 pm EST). Speakers will include current FHM and Master in Hospital Medicine (MHM) designees. They will talk about the process and how the designation has impacted their careers as hospitalizes.

SHM Fellows Webinar

Sept. 24

1 p.m. (EST)

www.hospitalmedicine.org/fellows

Academic hospitalists: Now is the time to set your sights on new career goals in 2015. The Academic Hospitalist Academy helps academic hospitalists map out a career in teaching and scholarship while at the same time learning directly from the best academic hospitalists in the field.

Spaces for Academic Hospitalist Academy are limited, and it’s only a month away. Register today.

Academic Hospitalist Academy

October 20-23

Englewood, Colorado

www.academichospitalist.org/

Academic hospitalists: Now is the time to set your sights on new career goals in 2015. The Academic Hospitalist Academy helps academic hospitalists map out a career in teaching and scholarship while at the same time learning directly from the best academic hospitalists in the field.

Spaces for Academic Hospitalist Academy are limited, and it’s only a month away. Register today.

Academic Hospitalist Academy

October 20-23

Englewood, Colorado

www.academichospitalist.org/

Academic hospitalists: Now is the time to set your sights on new career goals in 2015. The Academic Hospitalist Academy helps academic hospitalists map out a career in teaching and scholarship while at the same time learning directly from the best academic hospitalists in the field.

Spaces for Academic Hospitalist Academy are limited, and it’s only a month away. Register today.

Academic Hospitalist Academy

October 20-23

Englewood, Colorado

www.academichospitalist.org/

Medical school and residency are the first steps toward being a first-rate hospitalist, but will they prepare you for the demands of managing a new project in the hospital? Or taking a leadership position within a hospital medicine group? How about making the financial case for changes you’d like to see in your hospital?

SHM established its popular Leadership Academy to help hospitalists take the next steps into leadership positions. The three courses of Leadership Academy teach skills like practicing team and physician engagement, speaking the language of hospital finances, and using your own personal attributes to create an effective and authentic leadership style.

And now, you can demonstrate your experience in Leadership Academy by applying for SHM’s Certificate of Leadership in Hospital Medicine (CLHM). The certificate program requires attending all three Leadership Academy courses and completing a mentored leadership program at your hospital.

A limited number of reservations are still available for the November Leadership Academy in Honolulu. Visit www.hospitalmedicine.org/leadership for more information.

SHM Leadership Academy

November 3-6

Honolulu, Hawaii

www.hospitalmedicine.org/leadership

Medical school and residency are the first steps toward being a first-rate hospitalist, but will they prepare you for the demands of managing a new project in the hospital? Or taking a leadership position within a hospital medicine group? How about making the financial case for changes you’d like to see in your hospital?

SHM established its popular Leadership Academy to help hospitalists take the next steps into leadership positions. The three courses of Leadership Academy teach skills like practicing team and physician engagement, speaking the language of hospital finances, and using your own personal attributes to create an effective and authentic leadership style.

And now, you can demonstrate your experience in Leadership Academy by applying for SHM’s Certificate of Leadership in Hospital Medicine (CLHM). The certificate program requires attending all three Leadership Academy courses and completing a mentored leadership program at your hospital.

A limited number of reservations are still available for the November Leadership Academy in Honolulu. Visit www.hospitalmedicine.org/leadership for more information.

SHM Leadership Academy

November 3-6

Honolulu, Hawaii

www.hospitalmedicine.org/leadership

Medical school and residency are the first steps toward being a first-rate hospitalist, but will they prepare you for the demands of managing a new project in the hospital? Or taking a leadership position within a hospital medicine group? How about making the financial case for changes you’d like to see in your hospital?

SHM established its popular Leadership Academy to help hospitalists take the next steps into leadership positions. The three courses of Leadership Academy teach skills like practicing team and physician engagement, speaking the language of hospital finances, and using your own personal attributes to create an effective and authentic leadership style.

And now, you can demonstrate your experience in Leadership Academy by applying for SHM’s Certificate of Leadership in Hospital Medicine (CLHM). The certificate program requires attending all three Leadership Academy courses and completing a mentored leadership program at your hospital.

A limited number of reservations are still available for the November Leadership Academy in Honolulu. Visit www.hospitalmedicine.org/leadership for more information.

SHM Leadership Academy

November 3-6

Honolulu, Hawaii

www.hospitalmedicine.org/leadership

If you are a hospitalist working for Kaiser, IPC, or another of the large healthcare systems, you may wonder what the Veterans Health Administration Healthcare System (VA) could possibly have to do with your practice. In many ways, the VA is the prototype, risk-adjusted, capitated accountable care organization (ACO) focused on expanding access to affordable healthcare, lowering costs, and improving quality. We care for complex, diverse, often vulnerable patient populations. We are incented to keep them healthy and out of the hospital. As a highly integrated healthcare system with 152 medical centers and more than 400 hospitalists, the VA has been able to coordinate hospital care, primary care, and post-acute care in a way that many health systems hope to achieve.

VA hospitalists care for veterans with multiple issues, including acute MI, heart failure, pneumonia, and COPD. In short, we care for the same types of patients as hospitalists across the country, with measured outcomes of similar or better quality as non-VA patients.

The VA has utilized an advanced electronic health record (CPRS) since 1997. It allows for effective patient care and is successfully leveraged for large-scale health services research.

The VA has been the site of groundbreaking, Nobel Prize-winning research that has shaped the care of hospitalized patients worldwide: beta blockers for heart failure, steroids for COPD exacerbations, and the invention of implantable cardiac pacemakers and computerized axial tomography (CAT) scans all have as their foundation research performed at VAs.

VA hospitalists educate the next generation of physicians through robust academic affiliations with most of our nation’s most-renowned medical schools and have administered residency training programs for almost 60 years. More than half of all medical students and residents complete part of their training at VAs.

VA hospitalists are also leaders in quality and patient safety.

Over the next year, SHM’s VA Task Force will be sharing 10 of the innovative approaches VA hospitalists are taking to provide care for our nation’s heroes. We will dispel a few myths about the “VA Spa” along the way and, hopefully, share some ideas you can use to better care for your patients.

Many of The Hospitalist’s readers have family members who have served in the military. For all of you, this IS your granddad’s VA—and it’s pretty darn good.

Dr. Odden is a hospitalist at the VA in Ann Arbor, Mich. Dr. Kartha is a hospitalist at the VA in Boston. Both are members of SHM’s VA Task Force.

If you are a hospitalist working for Kaiser, IPC, or another of the large healthcare systems, you may wonder what the Veterans Health Administration Healthcare System (VA) could possibly have to do with your practice. In many ways, the VA is the prototype, risk-adjusted, capitated accountable care organization (ACO) focused on expanding access to affordable healthcare, lowering costs, and improving quality. We care for complex, diverse, often vulnerable patient populations. We are incented to keep them healthy and out of the hospital. As a highly integrated healthcare system with 152 medical centers and more than 400 hospitalists, the VA has been able to coordinate hospital care, primary care, and post-acute care in a way that many health systems hope to achieve.

VA hospitalists care for veterans with multiple issues, including acute MI, heart failure, pneumonia, and COPD. In short, we care for the same types of patients as hospitalists across the country, with measured outcomes of similar or better quality as non-VA patients.

The VA has utilized an advanced electronic health record (CPRS) since 1997. It allows for effective patient care and is successfully leveraged for large-scale health services research.

The VA has been the site of groundbreaking, Nobel Prize-winning research that has shaped the care of hospitalized patients worldwide: beta blockers for heart failure, steroids for COPD exacerbations, and the invention of implantable cardiac pacemakers and computerized axial tomography (CAT) scans all have as their foundation research performed at VAs.

VA hospitalists educate the next generation of physicians through robust academic affiliations with most of our nation’s most-renowned medical schools and have administered residency training programs for almost 60 years. More than half of all medical students and residents complete part of their training at VAs.

VA hospitalists are also leaders in quality and patient safety.

Over the next year, SHM’s VA Task Force will be sharing 10 of the innovative approaches VA hospitalists are taking to provide care for our nation’s heroes. We will dispel a few myths about the “VA Spa” along the way and, hopefully, share some ideas you can use to better care for your patients.

Many of The Hospitalist’s readers have family members who have served in the military. For all of you, this IS your granddad’s VA—and it’s pretty darn good.

Dr. Odden is a hospitalist at the VA in Ann Arbor, Mich. Dr. Kartha is a hospitalist at the VA in Boston. Both are members of SHM’s VA Task Force.

If you are a hospitalist working for Kaiser, IPC, or another of the large healthcare systems, you may wonder what the Veterans Health Administration Healthcare System (VA) could possibly have to do with your practice. In many ways, the VA is the prototype, risk-adjusted, capitated accountable care organization (ACO) focused on expanding access to affordable healthcare, lowering costs, and improving quality. We care for complex, diverse, often vulnerable patient populations. We are incented to keep them healthy and out of the hospital. As a highly integrated healthcare system with 152 medical centers and more than 400 hospitalists, the VA has been able to coordinate hospital care, primary care, and post-acute care in a way that many health systems hope to achieve.

VA hospitalists care for veterans with multiple issues, including acute MI, heart failure, pneumonia, and COPD. In short, we care for the same types of patients as hospitalists across the country, with measured outcomes of similar or better quality as non-VA patients.

The VA has utilized an advanced electronic health record (CPRS) since 1997. It allows for effective patient care and is successfully leveraged for large-scale health services research.

The VA has been the site of groundbreaking, Nobel Prize-winning research that has shaped the care of hospitalized patients worldwide: beta blockers for heart failure, steroids for COPD exacerbations, and the invention of implantable cardiac pacemakers and computerized axial tomography (CAT) scans all have as their foundation research performed at VAs.

VA hospitalists educate the next generation of physicians through robust academic affiliations with most of our nation’s most-renowned medical schools and have administered residency training programs for almost 60 years. More than half of all medical students and residents complete part of their training at VAs.

VA hospitalists are also leaders in quality and patient safety.

Over the next year, SHM’s VA Task Force will be sharing 10 of the innovative approaches VA hospitalists are taking to provide care for our nation’s heroes. We will dispel a few myths about the “VA Spa” along the way and, hopefully, share some ideas you can use to better care for your patients.

Many of The Hospitalist’s readers have family members who have served in the military. For all of you, this IS your granddad’s VA—and it’s pretty darn good.

Dr. Odden is a hospitalist at the VA in Ann Arbor, Mich. Dr. Kartha is a hospitalist at the VA in Boston. Both are members of SHM’s VA Task Force.

The Hospitalist has grabbed the attention and interest of physicians and industry professionals across the country for 18 years. Now, it has the attention of another type of professional

body—the Awards for Publication Excellence (APEX), which presented the publication with the APEX Grand Award for Magazines, Journals, and Tabloids. [http://www.apexawards.com/A2014_Win.List.pdf].

The annual awards, presented to corporate and nonprofit publications, received 2,075 total applications, including nearly 500 entries to the Magazines, Journals, and Tabloids category. Only 10 Grand Awards were presented in the category.

The Hospitalist also received an Award of Excellence in Health and Medical Writing for writer Bryn Nelson’s special report on the Affordable Care Act in the January 2014 issue.

On the APEX website [www.apexawards.com/apex2014grandawardcomments], category judges complimented The Hospitalist for its “appealing spreads, effective use of sidebars, numbered lists, and a bold headline schedule—all combining to complement the well written copy, which is informative and clearly well researched. The Obamacare special report insert is particularly informative and well designed.”

Published by Wiley Inc., The Hospitalist is the official newsmagazine of the Society of Hospital Medicine. The monthly newsmagazine has a circulation of about 25,000 and provides news, features, and information specific to hospitalists and the healthcare industry.

SHM President Burke Kealey, MD, SFHM, expressed his pride for the individuals who bring The Hospitalist together.

“SHM constantly strives to bring the very best to our members and other leaders in healthcare. These two APEX awards, especially the Grand Award, are evidence that we are delivering on that goal,” he wrote in an e-mail.

The Hospitalist has garnered seven APEX Awards in the past six years, as well as attaining finalist status for “Best Healthcare Business Publication” from Medical Marketing and Media in 2009.

Physician Editor Danielle Scheurer, MD, MSCR, SFHM, considers the high quality of writing and practical, relevant article topics two of the magazine’s biggest strengths. She thanked the editors for designing a creative repertoire of stories and for thinking of new ways to cover topics.

“A huge part of our success is keeping our finger on the pulse of our customer base and trying to figure out…what kind of information they’re seeking from a magazine like The Hospitalist,” she said. “We are continuously ensuring that we’re hearing the voice of the customer.”

Erin Petenko is a contributing writer for The Hospitalist.

The Hospitalist has grabbed the attention and interest of physicians and industry professionals across the country for 18 years. Now, it has the attention of another type of professional

body—the Awards for Publication Excellence (APEX), which presented the publication with the APEX Grand Award for Magazines, Journals, and Tabloids. [http://www.apexawards.com/A2014_Win.List.pdf].

The annual awards, presented to corporate and nonprofit publications, received 2,075 total applications, including nearly 500 entries to the Magazines, Journals, and Tabloids category. Only 10 Grand Awards were presented in the category.

The Hospitalist also received an Award of Excellence in Health and Medical Writing for writer Bryn Nelson’s special report on the Affordable Care Act in the January 2014 issue.

On the APEX website [www.apexawards.com/apex2014grandawardcomments], category judges complimented The Hospitalist for its “appealing spreads, effective use of sidebars, numbered lists, and a bold headline schedule—all combining to complement the well written copy, which is informative and clearly well researched. The Obamacare special report insert is particularly informative and well designed.”

Published by Wiley Inc., The Hospitalist is the official newsmagazine of the Society of Hospital Medicine. The monthly newsmagazine has a circulation of about 25,000 and provides news, features, and information specific to hospitalists and the healthcare industry.

SHM President Burke Kealey, MD, SFHM, expressed his pride for the individuals who bring The Hospitalist together.

“SHM constantly strives to bring the very best to our members and other leaders in healthcare. These two APEX awards, especially the Grand Award, are evidence that we are delivering on that goal,” he wrote in an e-mail.

The Hospitalist has garnered seven APEX Awards in the past six years, as well as attaining finalist status for “Best Healthcare Business Publication” from Medical Marketing and Media in 2009.

Physician Editor Danielle Scheurer, MD, MSCR, SFHM, considers the high quality of writing and practical, relevant article topics two of the magazine’s biggest strengths. She thanked the editors for designing a creative repertoire of stories and for thinking of new ways to cover topics.

“A huge part of our success is keeping our finger on the pulse of our customer base and trying to figure out…what kind of information they’re seeking from a magazine like The Hospitalist,” she said. “We are continuously ensuring that we’re hearing the voice of the customer.”

Erin Petenko is a contributing writer for The Hospitalist.

The Hospitalist has grabbed the attention and interest of physicians and industry professionals across the country for 18 years. Now, it has the attention of another type of professional

body—the Awards for Publication Excellence (APEX), which presented the publication with the APEX Grand Award for Magazines, Journals, and Tabloids. [http://www.apexawards.com/A2014_Win.List.pdf].

The annual awards, presented to corporate and nonprofit publications, received 2,075 total applications, including nearly 500 entries to the Magazines, Journals, and Tabloids category. Only 10 Grand Awards were presented in the category.

The Hospitalist also received an Award of Excellence in Health and Medical Writing for writer Bryn Nelson’s special report on the Affordable Care Act in the January 2014 issue.

On the APEX website [www.apexawards.com/apex2014grandawardcomments], category judges complimented The Hospitalist for its “appealing spreads, effective use of sidebars, numbered lists, and a bold headline schedule—all combining to complement the well written copy, which is informative and clearly well researched. The Obamacare special report insert is particularly informative and well designed.”

Published by Wiley Inc., The Hospitalist is the official newsmagazine of the Society of Hospital Medicine. The monthly newsmagazine has a circulation of about 25,000 and provides news, features, and information specific to hospitalists and the healthcare industry.

SHM President Burke Kealey, MD, SFHM, expressed his pride for the individuals who bring The Hospitalist together.

“SHM constantly strives to bring the very best to our members and other leaders in healthcare. These two APEX awards, especially the Grand Award, are evidence that we are delivering on that goal,” he wrote in an e-mail.

The Hospitalist has garnered seven APEX Awards in the past six years, as well as attaining finalist status for “Best Healthcare Business Publication” from Medical Marketing and Media in 2009.

Physician Editor Danielle Scheurer, MD, MSCR, SFHM, considers the high quality of writing and practical, relevant article topics two of the magazine’s biggest strengths. She thanked the editors for designing a creative repertoire of stories and for thinking of new ways to cover topics.

“A huge part of our success is keeping our finger on the pulse of our customer base and trying to figure out…what kind of information they’re seeking from a magazine like The Hospitalist,” she said. “We are continuously ensuring that we’re hearing the voice of the customer.”

Erin Petenko is a contributing writer for The Hospitalist.