ACP InternistSM - September 2009
Featured Articles
Conference coverage
Guiding clinicians through GI diagnoses
ACP Internist wraps up highlights of Digestive Disease Week, including dyspepsia, weight loss and incontinence, as well as the latest about the risks of proton-pump inhibitors and antithrombotics.
Expert hints at how GI practices can keep coding current
Medicare’s Recovery Audit Contractors are, in fact, auditing physicians more than ever. The “incident to” provision and teaching physician guidelines cause the greatest confusion and require special attention to ensure they are used correctly.
Reliable medical answers are only a click away
Going online during a patient encounter delivers answers immediately, letting physicians provide better care and improve their knowledge base. A new generation of tools makes evidence-based information quickly available to busy clinicians.
Look for subtle differences when evaluating acute diarrhea
For the few cases of diarrhea severe enough to warrant medical attention, consider infections, toxicity, food allergies and medicine reactions, says a speaker from Internal Medicine 2009.
Neurology
MS confounds, calls for better coordination
Internists are closely involved in care for multiple sclerosis, from recognizing symptoms to preventing complications. As the first line of defense, primary care physicians can find reassurance in guidance from a recent consensus paper on differential diagnosis.
FDA Update
Warnings for varenicline, bupropion; pacemaker recalled
A summary of approvals, recalls, warnings and alerts digested by ACP Internist from the Food and Drug Administration’s alerts.
Perspectives
Mindful medicine
Unmasking the patient’s hidden agenda
Something about a response of ‘so-so’ triggers Ian Gilson, FACP, to delve further into how a patient is feeling—and a potentially suicidal hidden agenda.
Practical genomics
Creating a blueprint for genomic medical training
Genomics education should be integrated into existing paradigms for teaching about health and disease, because the intersection of the patient-centered medical home and genomics requires primary care physicians and specialists with advanced genetics training as necessary links to effective care delivery.
Editor’s Note
Internists play an important role in diagnosing, treating MS
A round-up of this issue’s articles on multiple sclerosis; conference coverage from Digestive Disease Week; our latest columns.
Letters to the editor
Readers respond to our most recent coverage
Physicians will bear the costs of the update to ICD-10; population studies need to apply their predictive value to individual patients; health care reform can cover everyone only when it curbs escalating costs.
ACP Highlights
What’s new in ACP Hospitalist
What’s new in ACP Hospitalist and other College publications, including nutritional support in the hospital and the release of free ACP Summer Session recordings.
President’s Message
Economic pressures turn art of medicine into rote practice
While much of a clinician’s stature among peers depends on encyclopedic understanding of the scientific literature, his or her effectiveness depends largely on well-honed skills of communication and relationship building. Never have such skills been more critical or more challenging than they are today.
Washington Perspective
Health care reform at the precipice: What happens next?
A snapshot of health care reform as Congress takes a mid-summer break. Multiple bills need to be reconciled, while members of Congress face increasing pressure from advertising and lobbying.
Practice Management
Practice Rx
Clarifying CPT codes for observation, admission, discharge
An expert from ACP’s Regulatory and Insurer Affairs section clarifies what codes to use when admitting and discharging patients across the span of several days, and how to handle observation status depending upon how much time is spent.
CPII Tips
Consider offering in-office labs
Office-based labs increase efficiency, contribute to faster diagnoses and treatment and improve satisfaction. Increased regulation and reduced reimbursement should be balanced against new technology and a greatly expanded range of tests available.
College News
Honors
John Tooker, FACP, named one of health care’s 100 most powerful
ACP Executive Vice President and CEO John Tooker, FACP, MBA, has been named one of Modern Healthcare’s “100 Most Powerful People in Healthcare.” As the health care debate has gained momentum, Dr. Tooker has increased commitments to national forums, including congressional hearings and legislator panels, to ensure that the views of internists are heard.
2009 Recruit-a-Resident Program underway
The 2009 Recruit-a-Resident program offers educational rewards to those residency programs that recruit at least 90% of their residents to be Associate members in good standing of the College.
Programs
Complimentary literature available for young physician members
ACP members are eligible to receive a free copy of the Pocket Guide to Selected Preventive Services for Adults and the Young Physician Practice Management Survival Handbook developed by the 2008-2009 Council of Young Physicians.
Obituaries
Included in this month’s listings are Thomas W. Burns, MACP, and Harry Edstrom, FACP.
Internist Archives Quick Links
ACP Career Connection
Looking for a new internal medicine or subspecialty position?
ACP Career Connection can help you find your next job in internal medicine. Search internist and subspecialist 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.
Register Now For Your ACP Fall Chapter Meeting
Attend your fall chapter meeting, earn CME credit, and find out what your local ACP Chapter has to offer! See the Chapter calendar or find out more, including the answers to frequently asked questions about ACP Chapters and regions.
Test Your Medical Knowledge on Your Mobile Device with ACP’s Doctor's Dilemma™ Game!
This new online game is based on the popular ACP Doctor's Dilemma™ Competition from ACP’s annual Internal Medicine meetings. The game is simple to play but challenging to master. Start now!