MSSNY eNews: May 19, 2021 – Medical Schools Overestimate Number of Graduates who Specialize in Primary Care, Experts Say
Medical Schools Overestimate Number of Graduates who Specialize in Primary Care, Experts Say
Many medical school graduates who complete their residency in primary care switch into different specialties later. That makes medical schools’ estimates of its graduates entering family medicine largely inaccurate, NPR reported May 18.
“You don’t know what somebody is going to do until they finish residency,” Mark Deutchman, MD, a family medicine professor at the University of Colorado in Denver told NPR.
While medical schools report about 40 percent of graduates enter a primary care residency, that later turned into just 22 percent, according to a study led by Dr. Deutchman published last year in Family Medicine. The research involved 17,509 medical students from 14 U.S. universities who graduated between 2003-14.
The American Association of Medical Colleges told NPR the findings may not provide an accurate picture, highlighting that 30 new medical schools have opened in the U.S. since 2006.
Ada Stewart, MD, president of the American Academy of Family Physicians said while medical schools have been graduating record numbers of physicians into family medicine residencies over the last decade, many end up switching into higher paying specialties.
“We may have to look at a more focused analysis of how many individuals are actually going into the specialty of family medicine,” Dr. Stewart told NPR.
Jobs in higher paying specialties are largely in cities, further compounding the primary care shortage in rural areas, experts told the news outlet.
–Erica Carbajal, Becker’s Hospital Review
DOH Eliminates Pre-Surgery COVID-19 Testing for Individuals Who are Vaccinated
The New York State Department of Health has issued new guidance for elective procedures. Under the guidance, pre-elective procedure COVID -19 testing is not required for patients who are fully vaccinated or have recovered from laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 during the previous three months. There is no need to test asymptomatic recently recovered patients to prove they are now negative. However, pre-elective procedure testing remains encouraged by NYSDOH for all asymptomatic patients scheduled for elective surgery/procedures. A copy of the guidance is here.
AMA Prior Authorization Physician Survey
A recent study of 1,000 practicing physicians in December of 2020 found that 30% of physicians noted prior authorizations have resulted in a serious adverse event for a patient in their care.
- 94%of physicians said the prior authorization process delays patients’ access to necessary care.
- 90% of physicians reported that prior authorizations have a negative effect on patients’ clinical outcomes.
- 85%of the physicians surveyed said the burden associated with prior authorization is high or extremely high.
- 79%of physicians said the prior authorization process at least sometimes leads to treatment abandonment.
- Click here to view the full report.
New MSSNY Leadership from Long Island Featured in Newsday
Dr. Parag Mehta of Manhasset Hills, senior vice chairman of the department of medicine and the chief medical information officer at New York Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital in Brooklyn, has been elected president-elect of the Medical Society of the State of New York in Westbury.
Dr. Paul Pipia of Syosset, chairman of the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation as well as the department of neurology at Nassau County Medical Center in East Meadow, has been elected vice president of the Medical Society of the State of New York in Westbury.
Dr. Frank Dowling of Oakdale, a psychiatrist with a private practice in Garden City and Islandia, has been elected secretary of the Medical Society of the State of New York in Westbury. Link to Newsday’s LI People on the Move
Five Steps to Create Meaningful Patient Connections
Time constraints and administrative demands in health care often impede the human connection that is central to clinical care, contributing to physician burnout and patient dissatisfaction.
To improve clinical encounters with patients, physicians can learn from the Presence 5 project, which aims to develop a simple, scalable evidence-based intervention that helps enhance the patient-physician connection. The effort was described in detail in a JAMA article last year.
“The Presence 5 practices are intuitive to many clinicians, representing what is at the core of medical care and healing,” said Donna Zulman, MD, MS, assistant professor in the Division of Primary Care and Population Health at Stanford University School of Medicine, during a recent AMA webinar on fostering physician humanism and connection. “But in the context of today’s busy medical practice with its endless distractions, adopting a ritual to explicitly focus on presence and connection can help build trusting relationships and can have a positive impact, not only on the patient, but on the clinician as well.”
Here are the five practices that have the potential to enhance physician presence and create meaningful connections with patients.
Prepare with Intention
“This is about familiarizing yourself with the patient you are about to meet and creating a ritual to focus your attention,” said Dr. Zulman, who in addition to her role at Stanford is associate director of the Center for Innovation to Implementation at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System. “A specific strategy that can be helpful is to perform a brief chart review, emphasizing key elements of the social history, to remind yourself of the person you are about to see,” she added.
Listen Intently and Completely
“The goal of this practice is to position one’s self to fully hear a patient’s story and perspective,” said Dr. Zulman. That means “sit down, lean forward, position yourself to listen, recognizing that your patient is your most valuable source of information.”
“When it comes to nonverbal communication, thoughtful body positioning has been shown to support relationship building, trust and patient satisfaction,” she said. “If you need to be seated at a computer, position your body towards the patient as much as possible and avoid interrupting a patient.”
Agree on What Matters Most
“A simple form of this practice involves beginning the visit with an open-ended question such as, ‘What would you like to discuss today?’” said Dr. Zulman. “Then develop an agenda that incorporates the patient’s priorities.
“At the end of the visit, you want to review the agenda and elicit any unaddressed priorities,” she added, noting that asking, “Is there something else you want to discuss today?” is particularly effective phrasing to elicit unaddressed concerns.
Connect with your Patient’s Story
“This practice is all about considering the social, cultural, behavioral circumstances that influence your patient’s health,” said Dr. Zulman. It’s also about “finding positive connections, acknowledging your patient’s efforts and celebrating success.”
“The first step is to be curious about your patient’s life story. This not only draws out important information that can guide your clinical care, but this mindset also can help you interrogate potential biases that you might have,” she said. “Use positive language, including statements of approval, reassurance and partnership.”
Explore Emotional Cues
“Notice, name and validate your patient’s emotions to become a trusted partner,” said Dr. Zulman. “There’s so much we can learn from tuning into a patient’s verbal and nonverbal emotional cues such as changes in tone of voice, facial expressions and body language.
“One of our collaborators for this project talked about how she considers the patient’s face to be a road map of emotion,” she added. “Ask your patient how they are feeling about their health concerns and stressors, and reflect, validate and confirm your perceptions of a patient’s emotions.”
Learn more from the AMA STEPS Forward™ webinar series, which focuses on physician well-being, practice redesign and implementing telehealth during COVID-19.
–Sara Berg, AMA
Researchers Say People with Obesity Who Tend to Stay Up Late at Night at Higher Risk for Diabetes
HealthDay (5/17, Mozes) reports researchers found that people with obesity who have “a tendency to stay up late at night” are at higher risk for developing diabetes. The findings were presented at the virtual meeting of the European Congress on Obesity.
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Beautifully Renovated Modern Medical Office Sublet in Great Neck
-Separate reception area -Consultation room -1-3 exam rooms -Free Valet Parking -Designated physician parking spot. Contact Dr. Nir Somekh (516) 662-1232.
Professional Office Space For Sale – Albany, NY
319 S. Manning Blvd, Suite 308A. Albany NY. Located on the St. Peter’s Hospital Campus. 2000 SF. Bright, 3rd floor location. Office is in move in condition. Waiting room, front reception area for 3 staff, 2 consult rooms, 4 exam rooms, 1 large procedure room, eat in break room, storage room, walk in storage closet. 369K. Contents negotiable. Please contact 518-222-4956 / email perrotmi@yahoo.com
Office Rental 30 Central Park South
Two fully equipped exam, two certified operating, bathrooms and consultation room. Shared secretarial and waiting rooms. Elegantly decorated, central a/c, hardwood floors. Next to Park Lane and Plaza hotels. $1250 for four days a month. Available full or part-time. 212.371.0468 / drdese@gmail.com.
Ophthalmic Office to Sublet – NYC
340 E. 49TH St. (Ground Floor -Handicap Accessible) 1-3 Lanes Wed/Fri/Sat/Sun Full use of: VF / OCT /Pachymeter/ Autorefractor /Autolensometer / Argon / YAG Lasers
Please contact Scott Weissman MD. privacyssw@gmail.com. 914-772-5581
Two Offices Available for Rent in Established SoHo Primary Care PracticeNewly constructed loft space. Dedicated private waiting area available. This space is ideal for individual psychiatry, psychology, social work, physical therapy, or acupuncture services. Potential to work with existing Primary Care Practice as a referral source. Centrally located in the heart of SoHo, close to all subways. Available 7 days/week.
Contact: SpringPrimaryCare@gmail.com.
Medical Office and Medical Practice (Upper East Side)
79th St near Lexington / Park. 750 sq Ft beautiful, street entrance, medical office for sale with a 25 + yr internal medical practice for sale. Office is in move in condition. Physician retiring. Waiting room. Secretarial area for 3. 1 Consult room. 2 exam Rooms 2 Toilets. Please contact: 917-770-8700 / email drklein@att.net
Review Vacancy
Date Posted: 03/23/21 Applications Due: 04/06/21 Vacancy ID: 85272
Position Information
| Agency | Health, Department of |
| Title | Health Program Director 2 -TBD |
| Occupational Category | Other Professional Careers |
| Salary Grade | 665 |
| Bargaining Unit | M/C – Management / Confidential (Unrepresented) |
| Salary Range | From $122092 to $154253 Annually |
| Employment Type | Full-Time |
| Appointment Type | Permanent |
| Jurisdictional Class | Non-competitive Class |
| Travel Percentage | 10% |
Schedule
| Workweek
Hours Per Week |
Mon-Fri
37.5 |
Workday
| From | 8:30 AM |
| To | 4:30 PM |
| Flextime allowed? | No |
| Mandatory overtime? | No |
| Compressed workweek allowed? | No |
| Telecommuting allowed? | No |
Location
| County | Albany |
| Street Address | CCH; Division of Family Health
Corning Tower, ESP |
| City | Albany |
| State | NY |
| Zip Code | 12237 |
Job Specifics
| Minimum Qualifications | Twelve years of professional level work experience, three of which must have included managerial, decision-making and/or oversight responsibilities for a major health-related program or in the direction of a major administrative function of a large health-related organization. A bachelor’s degree may be substituted for four years of the general professional experience.
Twelve or more years of progressively responsible administrative experience in programs that improve perinatal health, child and/or adolescent health, early care, and learning, and/or sexual violence prevention, including four years of managerial, decision-making, and/or program direction. Seven years of this experience would also include fiscal management, policy making and oversight responsibilities, and statewide supervision of professional level staff. The preferred candidate would be familiar with representing departmental interests and serving as a spokesperson and liaison to Executive staff, and have experience working with other state and federal governmental programs. Experience with second-level professional supervision as well as strong oral and written communication skills is also desired. A master’s degree in an appropriate field may substitute an additional one year of the general professional experience, not to exceed a maximum of five years total allowable educational Please refer to full listing |
Review Vacancy
Date Posted: 04/09/21 Applications Due: 05/10/21 Vacancy ID: 85840
Position Information
| Agency | Health, Department of |
| Title | Director Public Health – 601 |
| Occupational Category | Administrative or General Management |
| Salary Grade | NS |
| Bargaining Unit | M/C – Management / Confidential (Unrepresented) |
| Salary Range | From $149004 to $149004 Annually |
| Employment Type | Full-Time |
| Appointment Type | Temporary |
| Jurisdictional Class | Exempt Class |
| Travel Percentage | 20% |
Schedule
| Workweek
Hours Per Week |
Mon-Fri
40 |
Workday
| From | 9 AM |
| To | 5 PM |
| Flextime allowed? | No |
| Mandatory overtime? | No |
| Compressed workweek allowed? | No |
| Telecommuting allowed? | No |
Location
| County | Albany |
| Street Address | Office of Public Health
ESP, Corning Tower OR Metropolitan Area Regional Office (MARO) Church Street |
| City | Albany OR New York |
| State | NY |
| Zip Code | 12237 |
Job Specifics
| Minimum Qualifications | A Bachelor’s degree and eleven years* of professional level government or non-profit experience, five of which must have included managerial, decision-making and/or oversight responsibilities for a major public health-related program or in the direction of a major administative function of a large health-related organizaton. Substitution – JD or Master’s degree may substitute for one year of the general experience, a PhD may substitute for two years of the general experience.
Preferred Qualifications: Track record of strong analytical and organizational skills; excellent written and verbal communication; ability to multi-task and work in a fast-paced and confidential environment under tight deadlines is essential; experience in a managerial role, interacting with state and federal government officials is preferred; |