Speech? Check!
Slides? Check!
Selfie? Check!
I had the great honor to address our membership a few weeks ago in Las Vegas at HM 14. For those of you who have never had the chance to speak before a huge ballroom filled with over 3,000 of your closest friends and colleagues, I recommend it – there’s nothing better to get you focused on the issues at hand and to come to terms with your own self-doubts. We finished out HM14 at 3603 attendees. This is 924 total attendees over our previous registration record. Either we have a bunch of party animals who were ready to hit Las Vegas en masse or we have an enthusiastic membership who knows that our annual meetings are the place to learn, network, polish skills, and get reenergized for another year. I know, I know, both is the right answer.
Over the course of my 20 year career in the hospital I have noticed the many changes in the healthcare environment, from managed care in the 90’s, to the Quality and Safety Movement in the 2000’s, to our new work on experience and affordability. It occurred to me that not only was the healthcare environment changing, but so were the doctors who were joining our ranks. I began to notice the shift from Baby Boomers to Gen X to Millenials and how each generation has tackled the problems of the time and how each has contributed immeasurably to creating our specialty and our society.
I devoted my speech to telling the story of how these three generations came together and now how we must work together to improve the care for all patients in the three dimensions that have come to be known as the triple aim. The triple aim is improving not only the health of our patients (as we have focused on for years), but also bringing patients into our work lives helping us to improve their experience when they are in our care, and lastly, tackling the huge issue of affordability. And not just do these in three individual silos, but simultaneously. Every new pathway, order set, QI project that we work on should incorporate improving health, improving the patient’s experience, and creating a more affordable process. We hospitalists are three generations and we need all the skills, creativity and energy of these three generations to deliver on the triple aim and make the lives of our patients better.
Now a couple notes on some other speakers…
So, my speech told the story of our field back to the late 80’s and early 90’s, but nobody can tell it quite like Bob Wachter, as he showed us the next day at the end of his closing remarks. When he walked out on the stage in his Sir Elton getup, I was prepared for a few big laughs. And I did get a few, but little did I know that I would get so verklempt. Enjoy!
Finally, an update on my previous post: Eric Howell finished his year as SHM President going out in style, delivering on his promise to increase the number of students and residents as members by 1000! Of course he challenged us to add 1000 more before next year!
I like the roll we are on.
Burke Kealey, MD, SFHM is the Associate Medical Director for Hospital Specialties at Park Nicollet HealthPartners Medical Group in Bloomington, Minnesota. Dr. Kealey began his career as a hospitalist in 1995 and has worked in medical leadership since 2000. In 2003 he was awarded SHM’s Award for Clinical Excellence. He has Chaired SHM’s Practice Analysis Committee and helped produce several of SHM’s Compensation and Productivity surveys. More recently, Dr Kealey has served on the SHM’s board of directors, serving as secretary and treasurer, and is currently serving as President.
Dr. Kealey has a strong interest in ensuring that hospital medicine practices are effectively managed with a strong focus on the triple aim of affordability, great experience, and best health for our patients.
Raised in Texas, Dr. Kealey received his undergraduate degree from Texas A&M University, his medical degree from the University of Texas at Houston, and then moved north for Internal Medicine training at the University of Minnesota Hospitals and Clinics. While in chief residency he met his lovely wife Samantha, a Minnesota native and current Emergency Medicine resident. Together, they have 4 children.
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