Journal of hospital medicine : an official publication of the Society of Hospital Medicine
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Studies have shown an association between the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Survey (HCAHPS) scores and clinical quality. The mortality risk on admission predicts adverse events. It is not known if this risk also portends a suboptimal patient experience. ⋯ Patients at high risk of dying who completed surveys were less likely to report favorable physician communication and staff responsiveness. Further understanding of these relationships may help design a care model to improve both outcomes and experience. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2016;11:628-635. © 2016 Society of Hospital Medicine.
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The growth of hospital medicine has led to new challenges, and recent graduates may feel unprepared to meet the expanding clinical duties expected of hospitalists. At our institution, we created a resident-inspired hospitalist curriculum to address the training needs for the next generation of hospitalists. ⋯ In this article, we describe the genesis of our program, our final product, and the challenges of creating a curriculum while being internal medicine residents. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2016;11:646-649. © 2016 Society of Hospital Medicine.
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Dispersion of inpatient care teams across different medical units impedes effective team communication, potentially leading to adverse events (AEs). ⋯ We found that regionalization of care teams improved recognition of care team members, discussion of daily care plan, and agreement on estimated discharge date, but did not significantly improve nurse and physician concordance of the care plan or reduce the odds of preventable AEs. Our findings suggest that regionalization alone may be insufficient to effectively promote communication and lead to patient safety improvements. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2016;11:620-627. © 2016 Society of Hospital Medicine.
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Pain is a frequent symptom among patients in the hospital. Pain management is a key quality indicator for hospitals, and hospitalists are encouraged to frequently assess and treat pain. Optimal opioid prescribing, described as safe, patient-centered, and informed opioid prescribing, may be at odds with the priorities of current hospital care, which focuses on patient-reported pain control rather than the potential long-term consequences of opioid use. ⋯ Strategies to provide adequate pain relief to hospitalized patients, which allow hospitalists to safely and optimally prescribe opioids while maintaining current standards of efficiency, are urgently needed. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2016;11:536-542. © 2016 Society of Hospital Medicine.
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Although antipsychotics are used for treatment of delirium/agitation in hospitalized patients, their scope of use has not been investigated in a large, multicenter cohort. ⋯ Antipsychotic medication exposure is common in nonpsychiatric admissions to US hospitals. The observed variation in antipsychotic prescribing was not fully explained by measured patient characteristics, suggesting the possibility of differing hospital prescribing cultures. Additional research and guidelines are necessary to define appropriate use of these potentially harmful medications in the hospital setting. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2016;11:543-549. © 2016 Society of Hospital Medicine.