What's New at the Center?
IM08 Courses
Are you attending IM08? If so, the Center put together two courses that you may be interested in attending. The first (#803) is a two-day pre-session course designed to address many of the contemporary challenges faced by practicing physicians and their staff. The presenters will offer real-life solutions and resources. The second offering (PN 024) is a 1.5 hour long panel presentation given by two CPI practices to discuss how their respective practices worked together as a team to choose and implement quality improvement initiatives.
IM08 Pre-Session Course #803
“Focus on the Practice – Challenges, Choices and Change”
Date: Tuesday, May 13th – Wednesday, 14th
The course is open to physicians and members of their practice. The speakers for this course will provide very practical ideas in an interactive format with time for questions and panel discussions.
Some of the issues that will be explored during this 2-day pre-course include:
1) How can office workflow processes be improved without derailing current productivity?
2) What do financial analyses of similar practices indicate about how to structure my practice?
3) What is the “medical home” concept and how does my practice compare to the model?
4) How can my practice improve communication with patients to be more efficient?
5) Are “advanced scheduling” and “group visits” something my practice should explore?
6) What are some good resources to use to encourage patients to help themselves?
7) Should I use email to communicate with patients?
8) What is a registry and how does it differ from an electronic medical record?
9) Is now a good time to buy an electronic health record? What about e-prescribing?
10) How should my practice approach the decision about whether to invest in electronic medical records and other office technology?
Register here.
Click here to see the course agenda![[PDF]](/graphics/new/pdf.gif){kind=small}
IM08 PN 024
“Innovation in Practice: Exploring the Impact of Practice Redesign, Quality Improvement and Information Technology on the Economics of Physician Offices”
Date: Saturday, May 17; 11:15 AM to 12:45 PM
Moderator: Michael S. Barr, MD, MBA, FACP
Panelists: Jacqueline W. Fincher, MD, FACP; Pam Shivers, CPC; Christopher J. Mays, MD; Dawn Cooke
This panel is composed of two physician & office manager teams from the Center for Practice Innovation project. Both teams will address how they chose and implemented major quality improvement initiatives in their respective practices. Emphasis will be given to the importance of working together as a team. Register here.
The Center for Practice Innovation Continues its Mission of Practice Improvement
The Center is now fully engaged in analysis and dissemination of findings from the two-year project. In addition to traditional academic distribution, the Center will also catalog some of the lessons learned in a more creative fashion- by film. The Center is producing a DVD designed to provide small practices with inspiration to take on the challenge of incorporating quality improvement into their offices.
The prospect of making practice changes in the midst of seeing patients, billing, referring, etc. can feel overwhelming. This DVD will show how seven practices successfully accomplished this daunting feat. We selected the practices from among the CPI teams. Though each and every one of the CPI practices has a worthy story to tell, we chose these seven based on a combination of some unique aspect of the practice, diversity of geographical location, and representation across a variety of quality improvement endeavors. Michael Barr and Paula Woodward will be traveling to the centers during April and May and filming interviews with principle physicians, staff, and patients. In addition to filming at the centers listed below, IM08 Pre-session course #803 will also be filmed as possible footage to be used in this DVD.
The following practices will be participating in this project:
| Faith R. Protsman, MD The Center for Stress Management | Gilroy, CA |
| McDuffie Medical Associates | Thomson, GA |
| Christopher J. Mays, MD, LLC | Olney, MD |
| Mohammed Ismail MD PC | Waterford, NY |
| Arvind R. Cavale, MD, LLC | Southampton, PA |
| Asthma, Allergy & Immunology Clinics, LLC | Charleston, SC |
| Keith Michl MD Internal Medicine | Manchester Center, VT |
November Conference was a hit!
An all-day conference entitled, “Focus on the Practice: Challenges, Choices, and Change” was held in Washington DC in November. Twenty eight of the 30 CPI practices were represented by at least one physician; notably, 12 practices included the lead physician and a staff member with significant influence in the practice (in most cases, an office manager). In all, there were 60 attendees. Guest speakers included Dr. Frederick Turton, Drs. Christine and Tom Sinsky, Dr. Ted Eytan, Drs. Angela and Kevin Egly, Dr. Faith Protsman, Dr. Georgia Newman, Dr. Keith Michl, Pam Shivers, and Dr. Jacqueline Fincher.
Project participants had met each other “virtually” during numerous chat room and teleconference exchanges, but they met face-to-face for the first time during a museum tour and kickoff dinner held the night before the conference. Lively conversations begun that evening flowed into the next day and created an exciting dialogue throughout the conference. Mutual problems and potential solutions were discussed and debated. The degree to which the participants were engaged was evidenced by full participation clear to the end of the day! Click here to see the conference agenda and presentations.
The Washington D.C. Office has Moved
We are still in D.C. but in a much more convenient site for those of you visiting us. We are now located on the 7th floor of the Republic Square office building, just a short 1.5 blocks from Union Station. Stepping outside of our building is a thrilling experience as the U.S. Capitol Building looms just two blocks away! 
Our new address is 25 Massachusetts Avenue NW., Washington, D.C. 20001-7401. Our telephone and fax numbers remain the same.
Thank you!
ACP is grateful to The Physicians' Foundation for Health Systems Excellence for its generous two-year grant in support of this endeavor. In addition, the College acknowledges the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation for sponsoring a quality summit in February 2005 at which time many of the concepts and programmatic ideas for Center were generated.
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Page updated: 9-25-07
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