Michael O'Neal

A recent study showed 28% of patient meals sampled from a university hospital in Houston were found to be contaminated with toxigenic Clostridium difficile bacterium, and researchers think undercooked food is to blame.

"The temperatures at which hospital foods are cooked may be too low to kill the bug," according to Hoonmo Koo, MD, assistant professor of medicine and an infectious-disease specialist at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and lead author of the study, "Contamination of Hospital Food with Clostridium Difficile." The study results were presented at the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America in October.

Sampled food included chicken, beef, seafood, and fruits and vegetables, but the highest instance of contamination occurred in 60% of dessert items, which were kept at an average of 62 degrees, the report noted.

Jonathan Pell, MD, assistant professor of hospital medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver, says food contaminated with C. diff might not be unique to the hospital setting.

"As far as we know, food at Arby's has the same concentration of toxigenic C. diff," Dr. Pell said in an email to The Hospitalist. He notes the strain of bacteria found in food is typically different from that found in affected humans, a fact outlined in a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report states that toxinotype V strains of C. diff—those often found in food animals—are "currently an uncommon cause of human illness, which may occur more frequently among persons without traditional risk factors associated with [C. diff-associated disease], such as recent exposure to a healthcare setting."

Despite the need for further research, hospitalists and health professionals are encouraged to continue practicing thorough hand-washing hygiene in the hospital setting to prevent the spread of bacteria.

Visit our website for more information about C. diff infection prevention.

A recent study showed 28% of patient meals sampled from a university hospital in Houston were found to be contaminated with toxigenic Clostridium difficile bacterium, and researchers think undercooked food is to blame.

"The temperatures at which hospital foods are cooked may be too low to kill the bug," according to Hoonmo Koo, MD, assistant professor of medicine and an infectious-disease specialist at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and lead author of the study, "Contamination of Hospital Food with Clostridium Difficile." The study results were presented at the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America in October.

Sampled food included chicken, beef, seafood, and fruits and vegetables, but the highest instance of contamination occurred in 60% of dessert items, which were kept at an average of 62 degrees, the report noted.

Jonathan Pell, MD, assistant professor of hospital medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver, says food contaminated with C. diff might not be unique to the hospital setting.

"As far as we know, food at Arby's has the same concentration of toxigenic C. diff," Dr. Pell said in an email to The Hospitalist. He notes the strain of bacteria found in food is typically different from that found in affected humans, a fact outlined in a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report states that toxinotype V strains of C. diff—those often found in food animals—are "currently an uncommon cause of human illness, which may occur more frequently among persons without traditional risk factors associated with [C. diff-associated disease], such as recent exposure to a healthcare setting."

Despite the need for further research, hospitalists and health professionals are encouraged to continue practicing thorough hand-washing hygiene in the hospital setting to prevent the spread of bacteria.

Visit our website for more information about C. diff infection prevention.

A recent study showed 28% of patient meals sampled from a university hospital in Houston were found to be contaminated with toxigenic Clostridium difficile bacterium, and researchers think undercooked food is to blame.

"The temperatures at which hospital foods are cooked may be too low to kill the bug," according to Hoonmo Koo, MD, assistant professor of medicine and an infectious-disease specialist at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and lead author of the study, "Contamination of Hospital Food with Clostridium Difficile." The study results were presented at the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America in October.

Sampled food included chicken, beef, seafood, and fruits and vegetables, but the highest instance of contamination occurred in 60% of dessert items, which were kept at an average of 62 degrees, the report noted.

Jonathan Pell, MD, assistant professor of hospital medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver, says food contaminated with C. diff might not be unique to the hospital setting.

"As far as we know, food at Arby's has the same concentration of toxigenic C. diff," Dr. Pell said in an email to The Hospitalist. He notes the strain of bacteria found in food is typically different from that found in affected humans, a fact outlined in a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report states that toxinotype V strains of C. diff—those often found in food animals—are "currently an uncommon cause of human illness, which may occur more frequently among persons without traditional risk factors associated with [C. diff-associated disease], such as recent exposure to a healthcare setting."

Despite the need for further research, hospitalists and health professionals are encouraged to continue practicing thorough hand-washing hygiene in the hospital setting to prevent the spread of bacteria.

Visit our website for more information about C. diff infection prevention.

Bassam Kret, MD, has been named Physician of the Year at 227-bed Licking Memorial Hospital (LMH) in Newark, Ohio. Dr. Kret, who joined LMH in 2002, helped found the hospitalist program. Dr. Kret received the hospital’s MVP award in 2008 and practices with nine other hospitalists as part of the 24-hour HM service.

Louay Shawesh, MD, has been promoted to chief medical officer of Glendale, Calif.-based hospitalist services provider Apollo Medical Holdings (ApolloMed). Prior to his new position, he served as ApolloMed’s regional medical director. As CMO, Dr. Shawesh will be focused on improving efficiency and quality of healthcare delivery throughout ApolloMed’s network of 27 hospitalist programs.

Tony Rino is the new executive director for IPC: The Hospitalist Company’s New England region of operations. He is the first to serve in this new position, which oversees operations at acute-care and post-acute-care facilities throughout New England. Rino, a veteran hospital administrator, previously served as vice president of physician services for national hospital company Vanguard Health Systems. IPC is based in North Hollywood, Calif., and provides hospitalist services in 28 states.

Daniel Hilton, MD, has been named regional hospitalist medical director for ApolloMed’s new Orange County, Calif., division. Dr. Hilton will oversee all hospitalist operations at four Orange County hospitals; he already holds administrative positions at three of those facilities. A board-certified internal-medicine physician and veteran hospitalist, Dr. Hilton is especially focused on palliative care.

Mark Rudolph, MD, SFHM, is the new vice president of patient experience and physician development for Tacoma, Wash.-based Sound Physicians. He will focus on improving patient experience in all 70 of Sound’s hospitalist programs across the country. Prior to this role, Dr. Rudolph served as CMO of Sound’s Northwest region. Since joining the company in 2002, he has served as chief hospitalist at Highline Medical Center in Burien, Wash., and he helped pilot the development of SoundInstitute, a Web-based physician learning system.

Hospitalist Brian Harte, MD, SFHM, has been appointed president of Cleveland Clinic’s South Pointe Hospital in Warrensville Heights, Ohio. Dr. Harte previously served as chief operating officer at Hillcrest Hospital in Mayfield Heights, Ohio. He is a member of SHM’s board of directors and a deputy editor of the Journal of Hospital Medicine. At Cleveland Clinic, he also serves as medical director of Enterprise Business Intelligence.

Deepak Pahuja, MD, FACP, recently received the American College of Physicians’ (ACP) Illinois Downstate and Pennsylvania Leadership Development Achievement Award for completing ACP’s Leadership Seminars for Young Physicians. Dr Pahuja is a hospitalist and CEO of Aerolib Healthcare Solutions, a medical device innovation firm. He is a physician reviewer for Medical Audit and Review Solutions and Intercede Health for concurrent and retrospective patient reviews. He is pursuing his MBA with a focus in medical management from the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Mass.

Business Moves

Apollo Medical Holdings (ApolloMed) has begun providing hospitalists services at 22 Los Angeles County hospitals in the L.A. Care Health Plan. L.A. Care serves more than 1 million people in Los Angeles County, making it the largest public healthcare plan in the country.

 

IPC: The Hospitalist Company, based in North Hollywood, Calif., has announced its acquisition of Elder Medical Services, P.C. Based in New York’s Syracuse and Buffalo areas, Elder provides post-acute care to patients in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Elder’s doctors and nurse practitioners focus on safe and efficient transitions between inpatient care and these facilities.

IPC also has announced the acquisition of Valley Hospital Doctors (VHD) in McAllen, Texas. All five of VHD’s co-owner physicians will stay on as practicing hospitalists.

 

Brentwood, Tenn.-based Cogent HMG now provides full-service hospitalist accommodations at the 65-bed Atlanta Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Texas. Atlanta Memorial serves the Cass and Atlanta counties’ area. Cogent provides services at more than 100 hospitals throughout the U.S.

 

Private equity group Sverica International has announced plans to invest in Akron, Ohio-based Inpatient Medical Services (IMS). Sverica officials say they were impressed with IMS’ exceptional growth in the Midwest over the past several years. IMS currently provides hospitalist services to hundreds of thousands of patients in the Northern Ohio region.

 

Sound Physicians, based in Tacoma, Wash., has announced plans to take over management of hospitalist services at 659-bed Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Mass. Baystate’s hospitalist program already employs 45 physicians.

 

Antelope Valley Hospital (AVH) in Lancaster, Calif., has launched its new hospitalist program for adult inpatients. The 420-bed facility already provides pediatric and OBGYN hospitalist services to their respective patients. Hospitalist and medical director Ferdinand Panoussi, DO, will lead a team of six full-time clinicians.

 

—Michael O’Neal

Bassam Kret, MD, has been named Physician of the Year at 227-bed Licking Memorial Hospital (LMH) in Newark, Ohio. Dr. Kret, who joined LMH in 2002, helped found the hospitalist program. Dr. Kret received the hospital’s MVP award in 2008 and practices with nine other hospitalists as part of the 24-hour HM service.

Louay Shawesh, MD, has been promoted to chief medical officer of Glendale, Calif.-based hospitalist services provider Apollo Medical Holdings (ApolloMed). Prior to his new position, he served as ApolloMed’s regional medical director. As CMO, Dr. Shawesh will be focused on improving efficiency and quality of healthcare delivery throughout ApolloMed’s network of 27 hospitalist programs.

Tony Rino is the new executive director for IPC: The Hospitalist Company’s New England region of operations. He is the first to serve in this new position, which oversees operations at acute-care and post-acute-care facilities throughout New England. Rino, a veteran hospital administrator, previously served as vice president of physician services for national hospital company Vanguard Health Systems. IPC is based in North Hollywood, Calif., and provides hospitalist services in 28 states.

Daniel Hilton, MD, has been named regional hospitalist medical director for ApolloMed’s new Orange County, Calif., division. Dr. Hilton will oversee all hospitalist operations at four Orange County hospitals; he already holds administrative positions at three of those facilities. A board-certified internal-medicine physician and veteran hospitalist, Dr. Hilton is especially focused on palliative care.

Mark Rudolph, MD, SFHM, is the new vice president of patient experience and physician development for Tacoma, Wash.-based Sound Physicians. He will focus on improving patient experience in all 70 of Sound’s hospitalist programs across the country. Prior to this role, Dr. Rudolph served as CMO of Sound’s Northwest region. Since joining the company in 2002, he has served as chief hospitalist at Highline Medical Center in Burien, Wash., and he helped pilot the development of SoundInstitute, a Web-based physician learning system.

Hospitalist Brian Harte, MD, SFHM, has been appointed president of Cleveland Clinic’s South Pointe Hospital in Warrensville Heights, Ohio. Dr. Harte previously served as chief operating officer at Hillcrest Hospital in Mayfield Heights, Ohio. He is a member of SHM’s board of directors and a deputy editor of the Journal of Hospital Medicine. At Cleveland Clinic, he also serves as medical director of Enterprise Business Intelligence.

Deepak Pahuja, MD, FACP, recently received the American College of Physicians’ (ACP) Illinois Downstate and Pennsylvania Leadership Development Achievement Award for completing ACP’s Leadership Seminars for Young Physicians. Dr Pahuja is a hospitalist and CEO of Aerolib Healthcare Solutions, a medical device innovation firm. He is a physician reviewer for Medical Audit and Review Solutions and Intercede Health for concurrent and retrospective patient reviews. He is pursuing his MBA with a focus in medical management from the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Mass.

Business Moves

Apollo Medical Holdings (ApolloMed) has begun providing hospitalists services at 22 Los Angeles County hospitals in the L.A. Care Health Plan. L.A. Care serves more than 1 million people in Los Angeles County, making it the largest public healthcare plan in the country.

 

IPC: The Hospitalist Company, based in North Hollywood, Calif., has announced its acquisition of Elder Medical Services, P.C. Based in New York’s Syracuse and Buffalo areas, Elder provides post-acute care to patients in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Elder’s doctors and nurse practitioners focus on safe and efficient transitions between inpatient care and these facilities.

IPC also has announced the acquisition of Valley Hospital Doctors (VHD) in McAllen, Texas. All five of VHD’s co-owner physicians will stay on as practicing hospitalists.

 

Brentwood, Tenn.-based Cogent HMG now provides full-service hospitalist accommodations at the 65-bed Atlanta Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Texas. Atlanta Memorial serves the Cass and Atlanta counties’ area. Cogent provides services at more than 100 hospitals throughout the U.S.

 

Private equity group Sverica International has announced plans to invest in Akron, Ohio-based Inpatient Medical Services (IMS). Sverica officials say they were impressed with IMS’ exceptional growth in the Midwest over the past several years. IMS currently provides hospitalist services to hundreds of thousands of patients in the Northern Ohio region.

 

Sound Physicians, based in Tacoma, Wash., has announced plans to take over management of hospitalist services at 659-bed Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Mass. Baystate’s hospitalist program already employs 45 physicians.

 

Antelope Valley Hospital (AVH) in Lancaster, Calif., has launched its new hospitalist program for adult inpatients. The 420-bed facility already provides pediatric and OBGYN hospitalist services to their respective patients. Hospitalist and medical director Ferdinand Panoussi, DO, will lead a team of six full-time clinicians.

 

—Michael O’Neal

Bassam Kret, MD, has been named Physician of the Year at 227-bed Licking Memorial Hospital (LMH) in Newark, Ohio. Dr. Kret, who joined LMH in 2002, helped found the hospitalist program. Dr. Kret received the hospital’s MVP award in 2008 and practices with nine other hospitalists as part of the 24-hour HM service.

Louay Shawesh, MD, has been promoted to chief medical officer of Glendale, Calif.-based hospitalist services provider Apollo Medical Holdings (ApolloMed). Prior to his new position, he served as ApolloMed’s regional medical director. As CMO, Dr. Shawesh will be focused on improving efficiency and quality of healthcare delivery throughout ApolloMed’s network of 27 hospitalist programs.

Tony Rino is the new executive director for IPC: The Hospitalist Company’s New England region of operations. He is the first to serve in this new position, which oversees operations at acute-care and post-acute-care facilities throughout New England. Rino, a veteran hospital administrator, previously served as vice president of physician services for national hospital company Vanguard Health Systems. IPC is based in North Hollywood, Calif., and provides hospitalist services in 28 states.

Daniel Hilton, MD, has been named regional hospitalist medical director for ApolloMed’s new Orange County, Calif., division. Dr. Hilton will oversee all hospitalist operations at four Orange County hospitals; he already holds administrative positions at three of those facilities. A board-certified internal-medicine physician and veteran hospitalist, Dr. Hilton is especially focused on palliative care.

Mark Rudolph, MD, SFHM, is the new vice president of patient experience and physician development for Tacoma, Wash.-based Sound Physicians. He will focus on improving patient experience in all 70 of Sound’s hospitalist programs across the country. Prior to this role, Dr. Rudolph served as CMO of Sound’s Northwest region. Since joining the company in 2002, he has served as chief hospitalist at Highline Medical Center in Burien, Wash., and he helped pilot the development of SoundInstitute, a Web-based physician learning system.

Hospitalist Brian Harte, MD, SFHM, has been appointed president of Cleveland Clinic’s South Pointe Hospital in Warrensville Heights, Ohio. Dr. Harte previously served as chief operating officer at Hillcrest Hospital in Mayfield Heights, Ohio. He is a member of SHM’s board of directors and a deputy editor of the Journal of Hospital Medicine. At Cleveland Clinic, he also serves as medical director of Enterprise Business Intelligence.

Deepak Pahuja, MD, FACP, recently received the American College of Physicians’ (ACP) Illinois Downstate and Pennsylvania Leadership Development Achievement Award for completing ACP’s Leadership Seminars for Young Physicians. Dr Pahuja is a hospitalist and CEO of Aerolib Healthcare Solutions, a medical device innovation firm. He is a physician reviewer for Medical Audit and Review Solutions and Intercede Health for concurrent and retrospective patient reviews. He is pursuing his MBA with a focus in medical management from the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Mass.

Business Moves

Apollo Medical Holdings (ApolloMed) has begun providing hospitalists services at 22 Los Angeles County hospitals in the L.A. Care Health Plan. L.A. Care serves more than 1 million people in Los Angeles County, making it the largest public healthcare plan in the country.

 

IPC: The Hospitalist Company, based in North Hollywood, Calif., has announced its acquisition of Elder Medical Services, P.C. Based in New York’s Syracuse and Buffalo areas, Elder provides post-acute care to patients in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Elder’s doctors and nurse practitioners focus on safe and efficient transitions between inpatient care and these facilities.

IPC also has announced the acquisition of Valley Hospital Doctors (VHD) in McAllen, Texas. All five of VHD’s co-owner physicians will stay on as practicing hospitalists.

 

Brentwood, Tenn.-based Cogent HMG now provides full-service hospitalist accommodations at the 65-bed Atlanta Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Texas. Atlanta Memorial serves the Cass and Atlanta counties’ area. Cogent provides services at more than 100 hospitals throughout the U.S.

 

Private equity group Sverica International has announced plans to invest in Akron, Ohio-based Inpatient Medical Services (IMS). Sverica officials say they were impressed with IMS’ exceptional growth in the Midwest over the past several years. IMS currently provides hospitalist services to hundreds of thousands of patients in the Northern Ohio region.

 

Sound Physicians, based in Tacoma, Wash., has announced plans to take over management of hospitalist services at 659-bed Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Mass. Baystate’s hospitalist program already employs 45 physicians.

 

Antelope Valley Hospital (AVH) in Lancaster, Calif., has launched its new hospitalist program for adult inpatients. The 420-bed facility already provides pediatric and OBGYN hospitalist services to their respective patients. Hospitalist and medical director Ferdinand Panoussi, DO, will lead a team of six full-time clinicians.

 

—Michael O’Neal

Hospitalist Lawrence Magras, MD, MBA, has been named medical director for the physician hospital organization at Catholic Health Services (CHS) in Rockville Centre, N.Y. Dr. Magras will serve as vice president and assistant medical director for clinical effectiveness, care coordination, and physician integration for the department of care management. Before transitioning to administration, he worked for several years as a hospitalist and held numerous positions focusing on quality improvement (QI) and efficient care management.

Randall Lorenz, MD, has been named chief hospitalist of the Sound Physicians hospitalist group at Dameron Hospital in Stockton, Calif. Dr. Lorenz completed his residency at the University of California at Irvine after receiving his medical degree from the Oregon Health and Sciences University School of Medicine in Portland. Sound Physicians has been providing hospitalist services at Dameron Hospital since April.

Bruce Mitchell, MD, is the new director of hospitalist services at Emory University Hospital Midtown in Atlanta. A Georgia native, Dr. Mitchell completed his residency at Emory’s School of Medicine. After working as a hospitalist at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., for 14 years, he made his return to Emory in 2010 as assistant professor of hospital medicine.

Ryan O’Connell, MD, is now vice president of performance and risk management at Bridgeport Hospital in Bridgeport, Conn. Dr. O’Connell, who received his medical degree from New York University and completed his residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital, practiced as a hospitalist at Bridgeport Hospital before being appointed medical director for care coordination there in 2011.

Jason Krupp, MD, is the new chief medical officer at Banner Boswell Medical Center of the Banner Health System in Sun City, Ariz. Before serving as CMO at several institutions prior to Banner Boswell, Dr. Krupp worked as both a hospitalist and a privately practicing hypertension specialist.

Business Moves

Northumberland Hills Hospital (NHH) in Cobourg, Ontario, has announced plans to provide hospitalist services. The move came in response to the decline in primary-care physicians willing to provide their services to inpatients, according to a release from the hospital.

 

Sound Physicians, based in Tacoma, Wash., has announced plans to provide hospitalist services at Mercy Health System’s Mt. Airy Hospital in Cincinnati. Sound already employs hospitalists at three of Mercy Health’s other Cincinnati-area hospitals.

 

IPC: The Hospitalist Co., based in North Hollywood, Calif., announced its acquisition of three New England hospitalist practices. IPC will oversee operations at Nexis Healthcare Inc. in Taunton, Mass.; Fall River, Mass.-based Omni Medical Diagnostics PC; and Park Medical Associates LLC in North Smithfield, R.I. IPC estimates the three HM programs will increase patient encounters by 65,000 in the New England areas they serve.

 

Hospitalist Lawrence Magras, MD, MBA, has been named medical director for the physician hospital organization at Catholic Health Services (CHS) in Rockville Centre, N.Y. Dr. Magras will serve as vice president and assistant medical director for clinical effectiveness, care coordination, and physician integration for the department of care management. Before transitioning to administration, he worked for several years as a hospitalist and held numerous positions focusing on quality improvement (QI) and efficient care management.

Randall Lorenz, MD, has been named chief hospitalist of the Sound Physicians hospitalist group at Dameron Hospital in Stockton, Calif. Dr. Lorenz completed his residency at the University of California at Irvine after receiving his medical degree from the Oregon Health and Sciences University School of Medicine in Portland. Sound Physicians has been providing hospitalist services at Dameron Hospital since April.

Bruce Mitchell, MD, is the new director of hospitalist services at Emory University Hospital Midtown in Atlanta. A Georgia native, Dr. Mitchell completed his residency at Emory’s School of Medicine. After working as a hospitalist at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., for 14 years, he made his return to Emory in 2010 as assistant professor of hospital medicine.

Ryan O’Connell, MD, is now vice president of performance and risk management at Bridgeport Hospital in Bridgeport, Conn. Dr. O’Connell, who received his medical degree from New York University and completed his residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital, practiced as a hospitalist at Bridgeport Hospital before being appointed medical director for care coordination there in 2011.

Jason Krupp, MD, is the new chief medical officer at Banner Boswell Medical Center of the Banner Health System in Sun City, Ariz. Before serving as CMO at several institutions prior to Banner Boswell, Dr. Krupp worked as both a hospitalist and a privately practicing hypertension specialist.

Business Moves

Northumberland Hills Hospital (NHH) in Cobourg, Ontario, has announced plans to provide hospitalist services. The move came in response to the decline in primary-care physicians willing to provide their services to inpatients, according to a release from the hospital.

 

Sound Physicians, based in Tacoma, Wash., has announced plans to provide hospitalist services at Mercy Health System’s Mt. Airy Hospital in Cincinnati. Sound already employs hospitalists at three of Mercy Health’s other Cincinnati-area hospitals.

 

IPC: The Hospitalist Co., based in North Hollywood, Calif., announced its acquisition of three New England hospitalist practices. IPC will oversee operations at Nexis Healthcare Inc. in Taunton, Mass.; Fall River, Mass.-based Omni Medical Diagnostics PC; and Park Medical Associates LLC in North Smithfield, R.I. IPC estimates the three HM programs will increase patient encounters by 65,000 in the New England areas they serve.

 

Hospitalist Lawrence Magras, MD, MBA, has been named medical director for the physician hospital organization at Catholic Health Services (CHS) in Rockville Centre, N.Y. Dr. Magras will serve as vice president and assistant medical director for clinical effectiveness, care coordination, and physician integration for the department of care management. Before transitioning to administration, he worked for several years as a hospitalist and held numerous positions focusing on quality improvement (QI) and efficient care management.

Randall Lorenz, MD, has been named chief hospitalist of the Sound Physicians hospitalist group at Dameron Hospital in Stockton, Calif. Dr. Lorenz completed his residency at the University of California at Irvine after receiving his medical degree from the Oregon Health and Sciences University School of Medicine in Portland. Sound Physicians has been providing hospitalist services at Dameron Hospital since April.

Bruce Mitchell, MD, is the new director of hospitalist services at Emory University Hospital Midtown in Atlanta. A Georgia native, Dr. Mitchell completed his residency at Emory’s School of Medicine. After working as a hospitalist at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., for 14 years, he made his return to Emory in 2010 as assistant professor of hospital medicine.

Ryan O’Connell, MD, is now vice president of performance and risk management at Bridgeport Hospital in Bridgeport, Conn. Dr. O’Connell, who received his medical degree from New York University and completed his residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital, practiced as a hospitalist at Bridgeport Hospital before being appointed medical director for care coordination there in 2011.

Jason Krupp, MD, is the new chief medical officer at Banner Boswell Medical Center of the Banner Health System in Sun City, Ariz. Before serving as CMO at several institutions prior to Banner Boswell, Dr. Krupp worked as both a hospitalist and a privately practicing hypertension specialist.

Business Moves

Northumberland Hills Hospital (NHH) in Cobourg, Ontario, has announced plans to provide hospitalist services. The move came in response to the decline in primary-care physicians willing to provide their services to inpatients, according to a release from the hospital.

 

Sound Physicians, based in Tacoma, Wash., has announced plans to provide hospitalist services at Mercy Health System’s Mt. Airy Hospital in Cincinnati. Sound already employs hospitalists at three of Mercy Health’s other Cincinnati-area hospitals.

 

IPC: The Hospitalist Co., based in North Hollywood, Calif., announced its acquisition of three New England hospitalist practices. IPC will oversee operations at Nexis Healthcare Inc. in Taunton, Mass.; Fall River, Mass.-based Omni Medical Diagnostics PC; and Park Medical Associates LLC in North Smithfield, R.I. IPC estimates the three HM programs will increase patient encounters by 65,000 in the New England areas they serve.

 

Susan D. Hutchins, MD, has been named medical director of hospitalist services at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital in The Woodlands, Texas. Dr. Hutchins’ new responsibilities include managing nine hospitalists, two nurse practitioners, and one registered nurse as part of Memorial Hermann’s inpatient hospitalist program.

Lewis L. Low, MD, FCCM, FACP, has been promoted to senior vice president and chief medical officer of Legacy Health System in the Portland, Ore., and Vancouver, Wash., areas. Dr. Low has been commended by his colleagues for his supervision of several of Legacy’s hospitalist programs within the Portland metropolitan area.

Business Moves

Helena Regional Medical Center in Helena, Ark., began offering hospitalist services in September. Hospitalists will staff the 155-bed facility 24 hours a day in order to further the hospital’s mission of “Quality Care, Right Here.”

Inpatient Physicians of Southwest Florida (ISSF), a newly formed hospitalist group, has begun offering HM services in the Lee Memorial Health System’s Fort Myers, Fla.-area hospitals. ISSF is a collaborative between Brentwood, Tenn.-based Cogent HMG and the Hospitalist Group of Southwest Florida.

The Mauldin, S.C.-based OB Hospitalist Group has expanded its services to include the Owensboro Medical Health System’s 477-bed flagship facility in Owensboro, Ky., which serves northwestern Kentucky and southwestern Indiana.

—Michael O’Neal

Susan D. Hutchins, MD, has been named medical director of hospitalist services at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital in The Woodlands, Texas. Dr. Hutchins’ new responsibilities include managing nine hospitalists, two nurse practitioners, and one registered nurse as part of Memorial Hermann’s inpatient hospitalist program.

Lewis L. Low, MD, FCCM, FACP, has been promoted to senior vice president and chief medical officer of Legacy Health System in the Portland, Ore., and Vancouver, Wash., areas. Dr. Low has been commended by his colleagues for his supervision of several of Legacy’s hospitalist programs within the Portland metropolitan area.

Business Moves

Helena Regional Medical Center in Helena, Ark., began offering hospitalist services in September. Hospitalists will staff the 155-bed facility 24 hours a day in order to further the hospital’s mission of “Quality Care, Right Here.”

Inpatient Physicians of Southwest Florida (ISSF), a newly formed hospitalist group, has begun offering HM services in the Lee Memorial Health System’s Fort Myers, Fla.-area hospitals. ISSF is a collaborative between Brentwood, Tenn.-based Cogent HMG and the Hospitalist Group of Southwest Florida.

The Mauldin, S.C.-based OB Hospitalist Group has expanded its services to include the Owensboro Medical Health System’s 477-bed flagship facility in Owensboro, Ky., which serves northwestern Kentucky and southwestern Indiana.

—Michael O’Neal

Susan D. Hutchins, MD, has been named medical director of hospitalist services at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital in The Woodlands, Texas. Dr. Hutchins’ new responsibilities include managing nine hospitalists, two nurse practitioners, and one registered nurse as part of Memorial Hermann’s inpatient hospitalist program.

Lewis L. Low, MD, FCCM, FACP, has been promoted to senior vice president and chief medical officer of Legacy Health System in the Portland, Ore., and Vancouver, Wash., areas. Dr. Low has been commended by his colleagues for his supervision of several of Legacy’s hospitalist programs within the Portland metropolitan area.

Business Moves

Helena Regional Medical Center in Helena, Ark., began offering hospitalist services in September. Hospitalists will staff the 155-bed facility 24 hours a day in order to further the hospital’s mission of “Quality Care, Right Here.”

Inpatient Physicians of Southwest Florida (ISSF), a newly formed hospitalist group, has begun offering HM services in the Lee Memorial Health System’s Fort Myers, Fla.-area hospitals. ISSF is a collaborative between Brentwood, Tenn.-based Cogent HMG and the Hospitalist Group of Southwest Florida.

The Mauldin, S.C.-based OB Hospitalist Group has expanded its services to include the Owensboro Medical Health System’s 477-bed flagship facility in Owensboro, Ky., which serves northwestern Kentucky and southwestern Indiana.

—Michael O’Neal

Business Moves

Spring Valley Hospital Medical Center in Las Vegas has announced that Tacoma, Wash.-based Sound Physicians will provide hospitalist services at the 231-bed acute-care hospital.

Sound Physicians also will offer hospitalist services at Southern Regional Medical Center in Riverdale, Ga., just outside Atlanta.

Summerville (S.C.) Medical Center has teamed up with the Greenville, S.C.-based OB Hospitalist Group to provide obstetrics and gynecology services to inpatients 24 hours a day. Five physicians will provide OB/GYN hospitalist services: Susie Wilson, MD; Tawanna Gilliard, MD; Melissa Pearce, MD; Greg Miller, MD; and Ann Gorman, MD.

Buffalo Medical Group (BMG) has begun providing hospitalist services to inpatients at Sisters of Charity Hospital in Buffalo, N.Y. BMG has been supplying hospitalist services in the Buffalo area since 1999.

Benchmark Hospitalists, based in Manhattan Beach, Calif., has partnered with Methodist Hospital of Southern California in Arcadia to provide hospitalist management services. Benchmark has been helping hospitals improve quality and return on investment in their hospitalist programs since 2009.

Galen Inpatient Physicians will begin providing 24/7 hospitalist services at Memorial Hospital Los Banos in California. Galen has provided HM services to medical centers nationwide since 2000.

—Michael O’Neal

Hospitalist John C. Sorg, MD, recently was appointed medical director of the hospitalist program at North Arkansas Regional Medical Center in Harrison, Ark. Dr. Sorg is board-certified in internal medicine and spent nearly 20 years in private practice in Elkhart, Ind.

Chintu Sharma, MD, is the July Physician of the Month at Carroll Hospital Center in Westminster, Md. Dr. Sharma has been a hospitalist at Carroll for more than two years, and his supervisors say that he leads by example in providing excellent patient care.

Karim Godamunne, MD, is the new chief medical officer of North Fulton Hospital in Roswell, Ga. Dr. Godamunne also serves as the HM group’s medical director at North Fulton.

After working with the HM group at Covenant HealthCare in Saginaw, Mich., since 2003, Iris Mangulabnan, MD, FACP, has been named the group’s medical director. The program employs 27 providers, 18 of whom are hospitalists.

Deborah Puckhaber, MD, has been named medical director of the hospitalist service at North Country Hospital in Newport, Vt. Dr. Puckhaber completed her medical training at the State University of New York Buffalo School of Medicine, and practiced adolescent and internal medicine for 14 years before becoming a hospitalist.

Kenric Maynor, MD, has been named HM director of Geisinger Health System in Pennsylvania. In addition to his duties of overseeing the HM programs at six area hospitals, Dr. Maynor will implement a new program at Geisinger Community Medical Center in Scranton.

Adam Fall, MD, SFHM, has joined TeamHealth’s Hospital Medicine Eastern Division as regional medical director for its eastern Tennessee and Georgia regions.

Jeffrey L. Dryden, DO, is the new medical director of the hospitalist team at Ozarks Medical Center in West Plains, Mo. Dr. Dryden has been practicing medicine for more than 20 years, and currently serves as a member of the American Osteopathic Association, the American College of Osteopathic Internists, and the South Central Ozark Association of Osteopathic Physicians.

Business Moves

Spring Valley Hospital Medical Center in Las Vegas has announced that Tacoma, Wash.-based Sound Physicians will provide hospitalist services at the 231-bed acute-care hospital.

Sound Physicians also will offer hospitalist services at Southern Regional Medical Center in Riverdale, Ga., just outside Atlanta.

Summerville (S.C.) Medical Center has teamed up with the Greenville, S.C.-based OB Hospitalist Group to provide obstetrics and gynecology services to inpatients 24 hours a day. Five physicians will provide OB/GYN hospitalist services: Susie Wilson, MD; Tawanna Gilliard, MD; Melissa Pearce, MD; Greg Miller, MD; and Ann Gorman, MD.

Buffalo Medical Group (BMG) has begun providing hospitalist services to inpatients at Sisters of Charity Hospital in Buffalo, N.Y. BMG has been supplying hospitalist services in the Buffalo area since 1999.

Benchmark Hospitalists, based in Manhattan Beach, Calif., has partnered with Methodist Hospital of Southern California in Arcadia to provide hospitalist management services. Benchmark has been helping hospitals improve quality and return on investment in their hospitalist programs since 2009.

Galen Inpatient Physicians will begin providing 24/7 hospitalist services at Memorial Hospital Los Banos in California. Galen has provided HM services to medical centers nationwide since 2000.

—Michael O’Neal

Hospitalist John C. Sorg, MD, recently was appointed medical director of the hospitalist program at North Arkansas Regional Medical Center in Harrison, Ark. Dr. Sorg is board-certified in internal medicine and spent nearly 20 years in private practice in Elkhart, Ind.

Chintu Sharma, MD, is the July Physician of the Month at Carroll Hospital Center in Westminster, Md. Dr. Sharma has been a hospitalist at Carroll for more than two years, and his supervisors say that he leads by example in providing excellent patient care.

Karim Godamunne, MD, is the new chief medical officer of North Fulton Hospital in Roswell, Ga. Dr. Godamunne also serves as the HM group’s medical director at North Fulton.

After working with the HM group at Covenant HealthCare in Saginaw, Mich., since 2003, Iris Mangulabnan, MD, FACP, has been named the group’s medical director. The program employs 27 providers, 18 of whom are hospitalists.

Deborah Puckhaber, MD, has been named medical director of the hospitalist service at North Country Hospital in Newport, Vt. Dr. Puckhaber completed her medical training at the State University of New York Buffalo School of Medicine, and practiced adolescent and internal medicine for 14 years before becoming a hospitalist.

Kenric Maynor, MD, has been named HM director of Geisinger Health System in Pennsylvania. In addition to his duties of overseeing the HM programs at six area hospitals, Dr. Maynor will implement a new program at Geisinger Community Medical Center in Scranton.

Adam Fall, MD, SFHM, has joined TeamHealth’s Hospital Medicine Eastern Division as regional medical director for its eastern Tennessee and Georgia regions.

Jeffrey L. Dryden, DO, is the new medical director of the hospitalist team at Ozarks Medical Center in West Plains, Mo. Dr. Dryden has been practicing medicine for more than 20 years, and currently serves as a member of the American Osteopathic Association, the American College of Osteopathic Internists, and the South Central Ozark Association of Osteopathic Physicians.

Business Moves

Spring Valley Hospital Medical Center in Las Vegas has announced that Tacoma, Wash.-based Sound Physicians will provide hospitalist services at the 231-bed acute-care hospital.

Sound Physicians also will offer hospitalist services at Southern Regional Medical Center in Riverdale, Ga., just outside Atlanta.

Summerville (S.C.) Medical Center has teamed up with the Greenville, S.C.-based OB Hospitalist Group to provide obstetrics and gynecology services to inpatients 24 hours a day. Five physicians will provide OB/GYN hospitalist services: Susie Wilson, MD; Tawanna Gilliard, MD; Melissa Pearce, MD; Greg Miller, MD; and Ann Gorman, MD.

Buffalo Medical Group (BMG) has begun providing hospitalist services to inpatients at Sisters of Charity Hospital in Buffalo, N.Y. BMG has been supplying hospitalist services in the Buffalo area since 1999.

Benchmark Hospitalists, based in Manhattan Beach, Calif., has partnered with Methodist Hospital of Southern California in Arcadia to provide hospitalist management services. Benchmark has been helping hospitals improve quality and return on investment in their hospitalist programs since 2009.

Galen Inpatient Physicians will begin providing 24/7 hospitalist services at Memorial Hospital Los Banos in California. Galen has provided HM services to medical centers nationwide since 2000.

—Michael O’Neal

Hospitalist John C. Sorg, MD, recently was appointed medical director of the hospitalist program at North Arkansas Regional Medical Center in Harrison, Ark. Dr. Sorg is board-certified in internal medicine and spent nearly 20 years in private practice in Elkhart, Ind.

Chintu Sharma, MD, is the July Physician of the Month at Carroll Hospital Center in Westminster, Md. Dr. Sharma has been a hospitalist at Carroll for more than two years, and his supervisors say that he leads by example in providing excellent patient care.

Karim Godamunne, MD, is the new chief medical officer of North Fulton Hospital in Roswell, Ga. Dr. Godamunne also serves as the HM group’s medical director at North Fulton.

After working with the HM group at Covenant HealthCare in Saginaw, Mich., since 2003, Iris Mangulabnan, MD, FACP, has been named the group’s medical director. The program employs 27 providers, 18 of whom are hospitalists.

Deborah Puckhaber, MD, has been named medical director of the hospitalist service at North Country Hospital in Newport, Vt. Dr. Puckhaber completed her medical training at the State University of New York Buffalo School of Medicine, and practiced adolescent and internal medicine for 14 years before becoming a hospitalist.

Kenric Maynor, MD, has been named HM director of Geisinger Health System in Pennsylvania. In addition to his duties of overseeing the HM programs at six area hospitals, Dr. Maynor will implement a new program at Geisinger Community Medical Center in Scranton.

Adam Fall, MD, SFHM, has joined TeamHealth’s Hospital Medicine Eastern Division as regional medical director for its eastern Tennessee and Georgia regions.

Jeffrey L. Dryden, DO, is the new medical director of the hospitalist team at Ozarks Medical Center in West Plains, Mo. Dr. Dryden has been practicing medicine for more than 20 years, and currently serves as a member of the American Osteopathic Association, the American College of Osteopathic Internists, and the South Central Ozark Association of Osteopathic Physicians.

Six out of 7 respondents to an unscientific survey at the-hospitalist.org correctly answered the question "Which patient being discharged DOES NOT require VTE prophylaxis?" while 14% of respondents answered incorrectly, according to veteran hospitalists who reviewed survey results.

Nearly 200 people responded to the survey, which provided the following answers:

• Hip/knee replacement patients;

• Hip-fracture surgery patients;

• Patients with advanced solid tumors;

• Patients with congestive heart failure; and

• Immobile or bed-bound patients.

The survey ran from June 29 to July 27 and was not limited to physicians. Sixty-six percent of respondents chose "patients with congestive heart failure" as their answer; 20% of respondents chose "patients with advanced solid tumors." Both types of discharged patients do not require VTE prophylaxis, according to the new American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) guidelines, says Joseph Ming Wah Li, MD, SFHM, FACP, past president of SHM, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and hospitalist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

"Hospitalists are familiar with the fact that patients with advanced solid tumors without additional risk factors do not need extended prophylaxis, as per the guidelines put out by ACCP," Dr. Li says. "And patients with congestive heart failure being discharged from the hospital do not need extended thromboprophylaxis, either."

As for the 14% of respondents who chose incorrectly, Gregory Maynard, MD, MSc, SFHM, health sciences professor of medicine at the University of California at San Diego, says extended prophylaxis "may not be on their radar."

"Hospitalists are still struggling to get a consistent approach to inpatient VTE prophylaxis, especially since the ACCP 9 guidelines changed methodologies and provided weaker support for prophylaxis," says Dr. Maynard, senior vice president of SHM's Center for Hospital Innovation and Improvement.

For more information, check out our "Key Clinical Question" outlining VTE prophylaxis guidelines.

Six out of 7 respondents to an unscientific survey at the-hospitalist.org correctly answered the question "Which patient being discharged DOES NOT require VTE prophylaxis?" while 14% of respondents answered incorrectly, according to veteran hospitalists who reviewed survey results.

Nearly 200 people responded to the survey, which provided the following answers:

• Hip/knee replacement patients;

• Hip-fracture surgery patients;

• Patients with advanced solid tumors;

• Patients with congestive heart failure; and

• Immobile or bed-bound patients.

The survey ran from June 29 to July 27 and was not limited to physicians. Sixty-six percent of respondents chose "patients with congestive heart failure" as their answer; 20% of respondents chose "patients with advanced solid tumors." Both types of discharged patients do not require VTE prophylaxis, according to the new American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) guidelines, says Joseph Ming Wah Li, MD, SFHM, FACP, past president of SHM, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and hospitalist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

"Hospitalists are familiar with the fact that patients with advanced solid tumors without additional risk factors do not need extended prophylaxis, as per the guidelines put out by ACCP," Dr. Li says. "And patients with congestive heart failure being discharged from the hospital do not need extended thromboprophylaxis, either."

As for the 14% of respondents who chose incorrectly, Gregory Maynard, MD, MSc, SFHM, health sciences professor of medicine at the University of California at San Diego, says extended prophylaxis "may not be on their radar."

"Hospitalists are still struggling to get a consistent approach to inpatient VTE prophylaxis, especially since the ACCP 9 guidelines changed methodologies and provided weaker support for prophylaxis," says Dr. Maynard, senior vice president of SHM's Center for Hospital Innovation and Improvement.

For more information, check out our "Key Clinical Question" outlining VTE prophylaxis guidelines.

Six out of 7 respondents to an unscientific survey at the-hospitalist.org correctly answered the question "Which patient being discharged DOES NOT require VTE prophylaxis?" while 14% of respondents answered incorrectly, according to veteran hospitalists who reviewed survey results.

Nearly 200 people responded to the survey, which provided the following answers:

• Hip/knee replacement patients;

• Hip-fracture surgery patients;

• Patients with advanced solid tumors;

• Patients with congestive heart failure; and

• Immobile or bed-bound patients.

The survey ran from June 29 to July 27 and was not limited to physicians. Sixty-six percent of respondents chose "patients with congestive heart failure" as their answer; 20% of respondents chose "patients with advanced solid tumors." Both types of discharged patients do not require VTE prophylaxis, according to the new American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) guidelines, says Joseph Ming Wah Li, MD, SFHM, FACP, past president of SHM, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and hospitalist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

"Hospitalists are familiar with the fact that patients with advanced solid tumors without additional risk factors do not need extended prophylaxis, as per the guidelines put out by ACCP," Dr. Li says. "And patients with congestive heart failure being discharged from the hospital do not need extended thromboprophylaxis, either."

As for the 14% of respondents who chose incorrectly, Gregory Maynard, MD, MSc, SFHM, health sciences professor of medicine at the University of California at San Diego, says extended prophylaxis "may not be on their radar."

"Hospitalists are still struggling to get a consistent approach to inpatient VTE prophylaxis, especially since the ACCP 9 guidelines changed methodologies and provided weaker support for prophylaxis," says Dr. Maynard, senior vice president of SHM's Center for Hospital Innovation and Improvement.

For more information, check out our "Key Clinical Question" outlining VTE prophylaxis guidelines.

Casa Grande Regional Medical Center in Arizona named hospitalist Ammar Saifo, MD, its Physician of the Year. The medical center’s nursing staff praised Dr. Saifo “for his leadership, compassion, dedication, and for ‘going the extra mile’” in caring for his patients.

Bob Adams, MD, former chief hospitalist at MedWest-Harris in North Carolina, has accepted a position at Angel Medical Center in Franklin, N.C. A veteran hospitalist, he began his new position July 1.

Syed Irfan Ali, MD, a hospitalist at MaineGeneral Medical Center’s Thayer Unit in Waterville, received the 2011 NASF Humanitarian of the Year award from the Nasreen & Alam Sher Foundation. Dr. Ali earned the honor after spending several days in Pakistan providing free care to patients at Aisha Bibi Memorial Hospital (see “Hospitalist Honored for Humanitarian Work in Pakistan,” the-hospitalist.org).

J.D. Fitz, MD, FACP, has joined Sound Physicians as senior vice president of physician development. Dr. Fitz comes from MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital, where he worked as vice president of medical affairs for five years. In his new position, Dr. Fitz will direct professional development for Sound’s more than 500 physicians.

St. Luke’s The Woodlands Hospital in The Woodlands, Texas, recently awarded Seshasree Marupudi, MD, its 2012 Physician of the Year plaque. Dr. Marupudi is a hospitalist who has been at The Woodlands Hospital since 2008. According to her colleagues, she takes an active role in patient care, as well as in communication between staff, patients, and their families.

William Lamm, MD, was named Physician of the Year by the Western Maryland Health System (WMHS) at its annual recognition gala. Dr. Lamm joined the HM program at WMHS in 2004, and he serves as a clinical instructor at the University of Maryland Medical Center’s Department of Family Medicine, where he spent his residency.

Hospital executive Greg Ohe was recently appointed president of Health Central Hospital in Orlando, Fla. Ohe had served as senior vice president of the hospital since 2004, during which time he spearheaded several of the hospital’s successful programs, including its hospitalist program.

Blal Zafar, MD, hospitalist at River Park Hospital in McMinnville, Tenn., recently was awarded the 2012 Lathem Physician Leadership Award in Hand Hygiene. The award, sponsored by Proventix Systems Inc. of Birmingham, Ala., recognizes physicians who lead by example in their dedication to excellent hand hygiene.

Casa Grande Regional Medical Center in Arizona named hospitalist Ammar Saifo, MD, its Physician of the Year. The medical center’s nursing staff praised Dr. Saifo “for his leadership, compassion, dedication, and for ‘going the extra mile’” in caring for his patients.

Bob Adams, MD, former chief hospitalist at MedWest-Harris in North Carolina, has accepted a position at Angel Medical Center in Franklin, N.C. A veteran hospitalist, he began his new position July 1.

Syed Irfan Ali, MD, a hospitalist at MaineGeneral Medical Center’s Thayer Unit in Waterville, received the 2011 NASF Humanitarian of the Year award from the Nasreen & Alam Sher Foundation. Dr. Ali earned the honor after spending several days in Pakistan providing free care to patients at Aisha Bibi Memorial Hospital (see “Hospitalist Honored for Humanitarian Work in Pakistan,” the-hospitalist.org).

J.D. Fitz, MD, FACP, has joined Sound Physicians as senior vice president of physician development. Dr. Fitz comes from MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital, where he worked as vice president of medical affairs for five years. In his new position, Dr. Fitz will direct professional development for Sound’s more than 500 physicians.

St. Luke’s The Woodlands Hospital in The Woodlands, Texas, recently awarded Seshasree Marupudi, MD, its 2012 Physician of the Year plaque. Dr. Marupudi is a hospitalist who has been at The Woodlands Hospital since 2008. According to her colleagues, she takes an active role in patient care, as well as in communication between staff, patients, and their families.

William Lamm, MD, was named Physician of the Year by the Western Maryland Health System (WMHS) at its annual recognition gala. Dr. Lamm joined the HM program at WMHS in 2004, and he serves as a clinical instructor at the University of Maryland Medical Center’s Department of Family Medicine, where he spent his residency.

Hospital executive Greg Ohe was recently appointed president of Health Central Hospital in Orlando, Fla. Ohe had served as senior vice president of the hospital since 2004, during which time he spearheaded several of the hospital’s successful programs, including its hospitalist program.

Blal Zafar, MD, hospitalist at River Park Hospital in McMinnville, Tenn., recently was awarded the 2012 Lathem Physician Leadership Award in Hand Hygiene. The award, sponsored by Proventix Systems Inc. of Birmingham, Ala., recognizes physicians who lead by example in their dedication to excellent hand hygiene.

Casa Grande Regional Medical Center in Arizona named hospitalist Ammar Saifo, MD, its Physician of the Year. The medical center’s nursing staff praised Dr. Saifo “for his leadership, compassion, dedication, and for ‘going the extra mile’” in caring for his patients.

Bob Adams, MD, former chief hospitalist at MedWest-Harris in North Carolina, has accepted a position at Angel Medical Center in Franklin, N.C. A veteran hospitalist, he began his new position July 1.

Syed Irfan Ali, MD, a hospitalist at MaineGeneral Medical Center’s Thayer Unit in Waterville, received the 2011 NASF Humanitarian of the Year award from the Nasreen & Alam Sher Foundation. Dr. Ali earned the honor after spending several days in Pakistan providing free care to patients at Aisha Bibi Memorial Hospital (see “Hospitalist Honored for Humanitarian Work in Pakistan,” the-hospitalist.org).

J.D. Fitz, MD, FACP, has joined Sound Physicians as senior vice president of physician development. Dr. Fitz comes from MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital, where he worked as vice president of medical affairs for five years. In his new position, Dr. Fitz will direct professional development for Sound’s more than 500 physicians.

St. Luke’s The Woodlands Hospital in The Woodlands, Texas, recently awarded Seshasree Marupudi, MD, its 2012 Physician of the Year plaque. Dr. Marupudi is a hospitalist who has been at The Woodlands Hospital since 2008. According to her colleagues, she takes an active role in patient care, as well as in communication between staff, patients, and their families.

William Lamm, MD, was named Physician of the Year by the Western Maryland Health System (WMHS) at its annual recognition gala. Dr. Lamm joined the HM program at WMHS in 2004, and he serves as a clinical instructor at the University of Maryland Medical Center’s Department of Family Medicine, where he spent his residency.

Hospital executive Greg Ohe was recently appointed president of Health Central Hospital in Orlando, Fla. Ohe had served as senior vice president of the hospital since 2004, during which time he spearheaded several of the hospital’s successful programs, including its hospitalist program.

Blal Zafar, MD, hospitalist at River Park Hospital in McMinnville, Tenn., recently was awarded the 2012 Lathem Physician Leadership Award in Hand Hygiene. The award, sponsored by Proventix Systems Inc. of Birmingham, Ala., recognizes physicians who lead by example in their dedication to excellent hand hygiene.