Practice-based Learning & Improvement

Patient Satisfaction Ratings: Is There a Punchline for Physicians

H-CAHPS and CG-CAHPS are patient satisfaction surveys in the hospital and office settings. They are being collected, published and used by payers in determining hospital and physician reimbursement. Criticisms have been raised about the validity of the surveys and their…

Jousting Mistake: Blaming Other Providers

Every physician in medical practice has at some time seen situations of patient past medical care that seemed inappropriate. In such situations physicians are immediately placed in the position of determining the immediate requirement for continuing medical care and the…

UpToDate

UpToDate is an electronic learning tool that provides current, authoritative, and clinically focused information available on 10,000+ topics covering 22+ medical specialties. We integrate the best evidence with clinical experience to produce practical and detailed topics to answer physicians’ questions…

Physician in Management: Resolving Conflict

Experts say some conflict is healthy, and they’re right. When not managed well, however, conflict can become disruptive and lead to medical errors, poor patient satisfaction, increased cost and higher turnover. Learn the skills you need to make conflict productive….

DocCom Module 3: Therapeutic Aspects of Medical Encounters

Clinician patient encounters are therapeutic in and of themselves, independently of diagnostic and therapeutic activities of proven effectiveness. This module identifies the therapeutic elements of clinical encounters, so the learner can be intentional about maximizing these elements with patients. These…

Managing Physician Stress, Preventing Burnout

Physicians are under more stress than ever before, much of it due to factors beyond their control. Laurie Drill-Mellum, an emergency medicine physician describes the forces bearing down on physicians, including litigation stress, and presents techniques for actively managing the…

APRNs and the Collaborative Practice Agreement: What Physicians Need to Know

Physicians considering working with a Nurse Practitioner often ask, “What is a Collaborative Practice Agreement?”, “Will this increase my liability?” and “I’ve been asked to just sign off on the NP’s records; what do I do?” This monograph will answer…

General Surgery Claims and Case Study

On one occasion, a surgeon may make a technical error in the operating room but no claim of medical malpractice follows. On another occasion, a technically perfect surgery may be followed by a claim of medical malpractice. Are there any…

DocCom Module 2: Mindfulness and Reflection in Clinical Training and Practice

This module examines specific communication skills that promote mindful awareness, a key to effective clinical practice. Mindfulness can also be applied to the acquisition of skills and knowledge, cultivation of caring and healing attitudes, and facing the anxiety of uncertainty….

Surgical Readmissions: What Surgeons Can and Can’t Do About Them

CMS’s Hospital Readmission Reduction Program, previously targeting medical diagnoses, is expanding its reach to surgical procedures, starting with knee and hip replacements in 2015. This monograph will review new peer-reviewed studies about the reasons for surgical readmissions, to what extent…