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2005 Issues

December 2005

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Who should receive beta-blockers in the surgical setting?

New and revised ICD-9 codes hospitalists need to know

How working with family members can improve care in the ICU

New studies on hospital performance show some progress, but is it enough?

A review of the evidence to treat sepsis and anemia

A patient sends you e-mail: Are you violating HIPAA?

A new view of why hospital mortality increases around the holidays

Mortality rates and the holidays: hospital medicine’s untold story


November 2005

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A look at the evidence on preventing hospital-acquired infections

Rigorous review of quality improvement yields surprising results

Do your discharges need fine-tuning? A nurse coordinator may be the solution

Short-term jobs: Staffing solution or trouble for the specialty?

A look at pneumovax and other bumps in the road to quality improvement

A first for hospitalists: a clinical journal the specialty can call its own

Medication history discrepancies, PFP outcomes, more

Are hospitalists increasing their liability risk?


October 2005

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Hospitalists and the hurricane: how three physicians worked through the storm and its aftermath

A new role for hospitalists: overseeing the transfer of patients within a hospital system

Profile: For this physician, teaching is the perfect antidote to exhaustion

Want to keep your JCAHO accreditation? Focus on improving hand-offs and sign-outs

The search for a therapy to prevent and treat postoperative ileus

Did you remember to remove the patient’s urinary catheter?

More questions “and answers ” about observation and inpatient consultation codes

Caught between evidence and a hard place


September 2005

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Declaring victory in the war against drug errors, if only for a month

Hospitalists in the ED: moving beyond gains in throughput

Strategies to prescribe the right discharge drugs to ACS patients

Academic hospitalists cope with life after work-hour limits

The test results are in, but the patient has gone home. Will anyone notice?

One physician’s view of why 24/7 coverage is critical for hospital medicine

Hospitalists in demand: An opportunity or a “Band-Aid?”


August 2005

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In a new role as “clog-busters,” hospitalists are helping streamline the ED

Time is tissue: Why emerging evidence on sepsis urges physicians to watch the clock

What hospitalists can learn from a computer-based alert to prevent inpatient DVT

Separate and unequal: comparing two hospitalist groups working under one roof

Pay for performance: a cure for hospital medicine’s reimbursement problems?

The diagnosis wasn’t right, but was it really a mistake?

Answers to questions about timing for discharge and observation codes

Coming to a city near you: hospitalist-centered CME


July 2005

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Your hospital says the contract is illegal. Is that really the case?

How a shock team can detect and treat critical illness earlier

Strategies to make a definitive diagnosis of osteomyelitis

A little information can go a long way in preventing drug problems after discharge

Fake hospital inspectors, LOS, antipsychotics, more

How hospitalists can avoid common pitfalls of palliative care

Is a ward-based clinic the answer for high-risk patients?


June 2005

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Measuring physician performance? These eight pearls of wisdom can help

As hospital medicine grows, so do the challenges of avoiding burnout

A long view of strategies to reduce inpatient mortality

Why withholding information from terminally ill patients can be a good thing

You think the diagnosis is correct, but are you right about being right?

In southeast Michigan, hospitalists take the lead on patient safety

Problems with your hospital’s EMR? Try a little creative thinking

Tired of tracking down patient information by hand, one resident found a better way


May 2005

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Seven strategies to prevent VAP: a look at the evidence

When it comes to improving patient care, redundancy is not a bad thing

A new look at an old problem: missing clinical information

New survey yields clues about efforts to prevent drug problems

Tips to choose the right codes for incision and drainage

The business case for hospitalists heats up: Is your program ready?

Inpatient rounder or hospitalist: Which one are you?


April 2005

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Boom times for hospitalists: What’s driving the growth?

One researcher’s view of what’s wrong with living wills

Hospital medicine and economics: a case of meeting market demands

How a “ticket home” can help streamline the discharge process

Considering a pay-for-performance program? Try these strategies

Does that pneumonia patient really need to be hospitalized?

Coming soon to a city near you: hospitalist-centered CME

Why timing is everything with prophylactic antibiotics and surgery

Tips to calculate the time you spend on discharge services codes


March 2005

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Is pay for performance in your future?

Changing the structure, not just the process, of patient care

Taking a page from nuclear power to improve patient safety

Your patient may be delirious: What do you do next?

When QI research brings good news, can you believe the results?

Trends in medication errors: a look at five years of data

New ICD-9 and CPT codes that every hospitalist needs to know


February 2005

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Strategies to spot the telltale signs of HIT

A syndrome that makes you choose sides

Computers and errors, report card on U.S. health care, more

A best-practice makeover to fine-tune VAP prevention

A new role for community-based hospitalists: teacher

A plan to save the lives of 100,000 inpatients by 2006

Putting a spotlight on discharge planning and problems with “care transitions”

The lumbar puncture was incomplete. How do you code for it?


January 2005

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Co-managing orthopedic surgery patients: The next big thing for hospitalists?

How one health system encourages staff to give its patients a “safe passage”

Continuity of care vs. errors: Which is the bigger worry when reducing work hours for residents?

The new emphasis on medication reconciliation

To prevent drug errors, try “medication reconciliation”

Can one group’s recommendations create “leaps” in health care quality?

Procedures part 2: coding for respiratory services