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April 2009
Featured Articles
When hiring midlevels, proceed with caution
NPs and PAs can be a boon to a hospitalist service, but planning is essential
The very first thing a service needs to do before hiring midlevels is sit down to determine its goals and scope, then figure out the best way to staff for those goals.
Your Practice
Making a good connection
Tips for establishing good patient rapport
Gaining the trust of new patients can be difficult for any physician, but for the hospitalist, it’s a daily challenge. Establishing the rapport necessary for an effective therapeutic relationship requires effort and finely honed interpersonal skills.
Your Career
New job? Read the fine print
Reviewing your contract now can save time and money later
There are many factors to consider when weighing a job offer, but most physicians tend to focus on two: Will I be happy working at this practice, and how much money am I going to make?
Green Medicine
It isn’t easy being green
Designing a hospital room to balance patients, planet and practicality
Whether green and patient-friendly concepts actually do make for an ideal hospital room seems to be a matter of debate, depending on the priorities of the user.
Perspectives
Letter from the Editor
With the demand for hospitalists high and busy practices stretched to the breaking point, midlevel practitioners may seem like an easy solution to recruitment woes. But do some careful planning before you place that “Help Wanted” ad, experts say.
Newman’s Notions
Colombia, the new kid on the hospital medicine block
Hospitalists continue to gain exposure and acceptance in the U.S. as well as in other parts of the world, including Australia, Europe and Brazil. We are very excited that now the vibrant Andean country of Colombia is jumping on board.
Your Practice
Coding Corner
Stroke versus transient ischemic attack
Distinguishing between stroke and TIA requires taking into consideration various definitions, including cerebral infarction, cerebral hemorrhage, aborted stroke, impending stroke and TIA.
Quality Corner
Measure of the month: Stroke and stroke rehabilitation
In accordance with a law passed by Congress late in 2006, physicians and other eligible professionals are able to receive bonus payments of a percentage (increased to 2%) of their total allowed Medicare charges, subject to a cap, by submitting information for defined quality measures.
Your Career
New job? Read the fine print
Reviewing your contract now can save time and money later
There are many factors to consider when weighing a job offer, but most physicians tend to focus on two: Will I be happy working at this practice, and how much money am I going to make?
Pulse On™ St. Paul, Minn.
By ACP Hospitalist Staff
Pulse On™ Omaha, Neb.
By ACP Hospitalist Staff
Clinical Medicine
Conference Coverage
tPA timing is right, and possibly expandable
Tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) was the star of the show at this year’s International Stroke Conference 2009 in San Diego, with much discussion of expanding its treatment window and several studies presented on gender differences in tPA treatment.
Help from afar
Telemedicine versus telephone advice for treating acute stroke
Stroke telemedicine has plenty of champions, but others think that a telephone system is better.
Test yourself
Ventricular tachycardia
The following cases and commentary, which address ventricular tachycardia, are excerpted from ACP’s Medical Knowledge Self-Assessment Program (MKSAP14).
FDA Update
Boxed warning for metoclopramide, alert for zonisamide
Drug recalls, warnings, approvals.
Research News
Journal watch
Recent studies of note.
In the News
New opioid therapy guidelines, and more
National Trends
Forgoing health care for cost of coverage
Health insurance is a major factor when people balance health care with its cost.
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ACP Hospitalist Weekly
From the March 10, 2009 edition
- Current, validated med lists reduce errors on hospital admission
- Use of probiotics helps lower ventilator-associated pneumonia rates
Cartoon Caption Contest
ACP HospitalistWeekly wants readers to create captions for this cartoon and help choose the winner. Pen the winning caption and win a $50 gift certificate good toward any ACP product, program or service.

ACP Career Connection
Looking for a new hospitalist position?
ACP Career Connection can help you find your next job in hospital medicine. Search hospitalist positions nationwide that suit your criteria and preferences. Jobs are posted about two weeks before print publication of Annals of Internal Medicine, ACP Internist, and ACP Hospitalist. Exclusive “Online Direct” opportunities are updated weekly. Check us out online.
New ACP Online Clinical Information Page
Sneak a peek at ACPs new and improved Clinical Information page! Test drive the beta version of our redesigned Clinical Information landing page, give us your feedback, and help us make it as easy to use as possible.
Your Opinion Counts
Twice a year, ACP participates in a journal readership survey of random internists. If you receive one of these surveys in the mail, please indicate if you read our journals and answer the questions about your reading habits of our journals.
Your voice in these surveys is very important to ACP and enables us to continue to produce the high-quality publications that you expect. Find out more.