Guidance Regarding Travel to Certain Countries Outside the U.S. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is currently experiencing an outbreak of Ebola virus disease, and Nigeria has recently experienced ongoing transmission of Lassa fever. It is important to identify and isolate patients under investigation for viral hemorrhagic fever when they arrive at a Hopkins hospital(...)
Clinical Affairs
Improving Provider Satisfaction
Posted by | Patient Care, Vice Chair ContributorsOver the course of the last 18 months, you’ve likely heard many conversations about topics relating to Joy in Medicine, provider satisfaction and clinician burnout. Whether at Grand Rounds, during a DOM focus group, in a school-wide survey or from a podcast by the dean, you’ve heard that burnout is a very real issue nationally(...)
Epic Upgrade on September 10
Posted by | Patient CareOver the next few days, our Epic environment will be upgraded to the most current version of the Epic software. This newest version of the product reflects many of the enhancements we have recently requested, and we are grateful for the contributions of our physicians, nurses and all healthcare professionals in defining these emerging requirements.(...)
Why Answer Documentation Queries?
Posted by | Patient Care, Vice Chair ContributorsHow the state, payors and patients view the quality of care provided by the DOM depends on it. Moreover, this assessment increasingly determines reimbursement. Consider Maryland Hospital Acquired Conditions (MHACs): 46 potentially preventable conditions monitored by the state. At current pace, The Johns Hopkins Hospital, including the DOM, may face a $7-10 million penalty for(...)
Updates to CRISP Access
Posted by | Patient CareWe are writing to inform you of several changes being made across Johns Hopkins Medicine to improve access to and broaden the number of users of the Chesapeake Regional Information System for Our Patients (CRISP), Maryland's statewide health information exchange. These changes will be effective on March 13 at noon and are outlined below. Current(...)
What Happens When the Weather is Bad?
Posted by | Administration, Patient Care, Vice Chair ContributorsNow in the cold days of January, winter storms are always a possibility. This is the time to review the Inclement Weather guidelines. Below is the updated version sent by Ambulatory Services. These policies apply to ambulatory clinics. Decisions regarding closures are made by the Incident Command Team with leadership representation present for JHH, Bayview and(...)
Meyer Opening
Posted by | Administration, Patient Care, Vice Chair ContributorsThe DOM is excited to announce the opening of Meyer 8 and 9 on Wednesday, December 14 after extensive renovations. Outlined below are the plans for these two units: Meyer 8, with its 24 private rooms, will replace H2O2. These beds will house the hospitalist patients as well as MEG patients. Meyer 9 will have 21(...)
Ambulatory Updates–Initiatives to Improve Patient Care Access
Posted by | Administration, Patient Care, Vice Chair ContributorsThere are several exciting initiatives taking place in the Johns Hopkins ambulatory setting to enhance care delivery. First, the Johns Hopkins Patient Access Process Improvement group has been promoting the use of Appointment Issue Tracker (AIT) to record issues related to the quality of scheduled appointments made by central scheduling. Benefits of AIT are: Centralized(...)
Assessing and Improving Hospital Team Communication with Primary Care Providers
Posted by | Administration, Patient Care, Vice Chair ContributorsGood communication between hospital providers and primary care providers (PCPs) prevents readmissions, medication errors and dropped treatment plans, but good communication is not the norm. Discharge summaries, a standard form for this communication, are often received late or never at all.1 Direct communication between providers during the hospitalization can be challenging to implement. Phone calls require(...)
DOM Provider Satisfaction Assessment
Posted by | Administration, Patient CareThe ever-evolving demands of healthcare delivery in academic medicine have resulted in both a challenging clinical practice environment and provider dissatisfaction for some in our department. Department of Medicine leadership aims to create an environment where our providers feel valued, understand their role in the larger context of Johns Hopkins Medicine and are motivated to(...)