Mark your calendars for the Greeley Medical Staff Institute Symposium June 8-9

The Greeley Medical Staff Institute Symposium is the place for medical staff and hospital leaders to get the skills they need to overcome whatever challenges the healthcare industry has in store. Here’s a sneak peak at what you’ll learn during this two-day event:

What’s the matter with kids today? Solutions for working with physician generational differences

Medical staffs today consist of a blend of four generations: the World War II Silent Generation (1925–1942), Baby Boomers (1943–1961), Generation X (1962–1981), and Generation Y (1982–1998). Each generation brings with it a different work ethic, mode of communication, and definitions of professionalism and loyalty. These generational differences can stymie productivity if medical staff members can’t agree to disagree.

“If you attempt to change someone else’s culture, you are going to be in for a long fight,” says Phillip Kibort, MD, MBA, vice president of medical affairs and chief medical officer at Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota in Minneapolis and St. Paul and presenter at the 2010 Greeley Medical Staff Institute Symposium. “The best leaders are the ones who work with these differences as opposed to trying to change them.”

Join Kibort on Tuesday June 8 at 8:00 a.m. to learn more about managing generational differences between members of your medical staff.
 
Leaders, Liars and Lunatics: Case studies in implementing a medical staff code of conduct

The Joint Commission requires hospitals to develop a formal process for defining and addressing unacceptable behavior for all healthcare professionals (LD.03.01.01, elements of performance 4 and 5). Make sure that your medical staff’s code of conduct policy isn’t so onerous that physicians are more likely to use it as a coaster than follow it.

Your code of conduct policy should extend beyond simply defining disruptive behavior— it should connect the dots between disruptive behavior and patient care, says Jonathan Burroughs, MD, FACPE, CPE, FACEP, CMSL, senior consultant at The Greeley Company, a division of HCPro, Inc., in Marblehead, MA.

For example, your disruptive behavior policy may define behavior that:
 

• Undermines morale and creates turnover among professional and medical staffs
• Leads nurses or other healthcare providers to avoid discussing patient care with the healthcare team for fear of being treated poorly
• Is considered discriminatory under federal law

Policy language such as “This hospital does not tolerate disruptive behavior” is vague and not likely to engage physicians, says Burroughs.

Join Burroughs and Dean White, DDS, MS, medical staff advisor at Texas Health Resources Harris Methodist Hospital HEB on Tuesday, June 8 at 10:45 a.m. to learn more about developing a solid medical staff code of conduct.

What hospitals and physicians need to know about physician employment restrictive covenants

Restrictive clauses apply to physicians or physician groups who are employed by or have exclusive contracts with a hospital or other healthcare organization. They do not apply to licensed independent practitioners because their relationships with hospitals are generally not governed by contracts. Organizations may choose to apply restrictive clauses only to big-ticket specialties, such as neurosurgery or orthopedic care, which provide the most financial benefits to a hospital. They are not usually used for specialties such as radiology, in which the practitioners don’t technically have a patient following and referrals are not likely to be negatively affected, says Michael Callahan, Esq., partner at Katten Muchin Rosenman, LLP in Chicago.

However, many organizations include restrictive clauses in all their contracts as a safety measure, but that doesn’t mean the organization is obligated to enforce the terms of those clauses. “Hospitals always have a right to decide whether they want to enforce any term in a contract,” says Callahan.

Join Callahan on Wednesday, June 9 at 9:15 a.m. for more information about restrictive covenants.

Don’t forget about our post-conference workshops:
 

• Post-conference Workshop (June 9, 1-4pm): ED Call Solutions: Compensation that achieves collaboration 
• Post-conference Workshop (June 9, 1-4pm): Engaging Physicians in Quality Improvement Initiatives
• Post-conference Workshop (June 9, 1-4pm): Medical Staff Bylaws: Contemporary Best Practices and Impact of New Joint Commission Standard MS.01.01.01

To learn more about the Greeley Medical Staff Institute Symposium, click here.