May 23, 2022

HOMERuN Collaborative: Faculty Development Focus Groups

The Hospital Medicine Reengineering Network (HOMERuN) is a rapidly growing collaborative made up of more than 50 Hospital Medicine groups from academic and non-academic hospitals across the United States.

Organizers and Facilitators: Ankur Segon, Marisha Burden, Matthew Sakumoto, Jack Badawy, David Schmidt, Christine Davis, Elizabeth Murphy, Andrew Auerbach

Current Approaches to Faculty Development at Academic Hospitalist Programs There is a range of faculty development programs starting from ad hoc sessions on topics of interest to highly structured programs Commonly cited components of faculty development programs include lecture series on clinical topics, sessions on educational topics such as giving feedback to residents, mentorship programs, orientation and onboarding programs for new faculty, coaching programs, affinity groups with focus on specific areas such as medical education, research, or quality improvement Mentorship programs commonly assign mentor to new faculty while mentoring systems for mid-career faculty are less common Some programs have dedicated faculty development directors Barriers to Setting Up Faculty Development Programs for Academic Hospitalists Internal medicine residency may not prepare new faculty for non-clinical roles an academic hospitalist can take on Lack of structured faculty development programs Lack of direction/roadmap for professional development for academic hospitalists Hospitalist programs disproportionately have more junior faculty than senior faculty Large number of faculty in hospitalist programs makes it challenging to create personalized faculty development programs Increasing clinical workload  COVID  Online meetings have led to lower engagement and participation in faculty development efforts Sites may not have leadership for faculty development programs

"Who owns it? What piece of faculty development is owned by whom? Lack of defined leadership leads to dilution of responsibilities."

Purpose of Faculty Development Programs for Academic Hospitalists

Increase comfort with clinical pathways and special programs for new faculty Promotion  Help create professional identity as an academic hospitalist and to help navigate change from one type of identity to the other (such as educator to researcher) Increase retention and satisfaction of faculty Ensure faculty have skills and support to pursue scholarly activity Ensure mentorship and provide opportunities for networking Help with applying for grants and funding Create a welcoming atmosphere for new faculty so they feel engaged and involved with the group

"The goal is potentially intangible: have faculty members feel loved and feel that the division or institution is invested in their success as a whole rather than measurable objectives like via survey and retention/attrition rates."

Ideal Faculty Development Program for Hospitalists

Identifies dedicated directors of faculty development who have protected time and are held accountable for faculty development goals Focuses on research, QI, and education, and covers topics such as best practices on putting together presentations, not just clinical topics Provides leadership training programs and skill development sessions on areas of interest to academic hospitalists Creates lists of shared resources such as repository of QI projects across divisions/departments, list of local faculty development opportunities, and list of mentors with their areas of interest Advocates for the promotion process to assign value to non-traditional areas such as diversity, equity, and inclusion  Helps plug faculty into national networks of collaborators and mentors Creates mechanisms for faculty to bring back content from national meetings and share with rest of the division Puts in place robust mentorship programs as exemplified by: A bench of mentors so “bottom heavy” programs with multiple new faculty can be supported Availability of experienced mentors Assignment of mentors to early faculty with “forced” meetings to develop relationships Appropriate incentive to mentors, such as financial compensation or access to free courses Provides adequate support services for faculty development, including data analysts and research coordinators Identifies a “point person” available to answer questions about day-day issues Caters to the specific needs of faculty at different levels (assistant vs associate vs professor)

"If you want to do more, you need to provide more support."

Key Takeaways A successful faculty development program is structured, caters to diverse interests, and is led by a clearly identified and supported leader  Adequate mentorship is challenging to put in place but remains key to the success of faculty development programs  Creating shared resources such as lists of ongoing projects and mentor panels, both within the institution and nationally, can help facilitate faculty development efforts for hospitalists

Become a Site for the RELIANCE Study: Roflumilast or Azithromycin to Prevent COPD Exacerbations

Purpose of RELIANCE: Both roflumilast and azithromycin have been shown to reduce the risk of COPD exacerbations compared to placebo. However, there has not been a head-to-head comparison of these two FDA-approved medications. RELIANCE is intended to support hospital efforts to reduce the risk of all-cause hospitalization and premature deaths in individuals with COPD.  RELIANCE is Seeking Community-Based Hospitalists: Hospitalists are critical in the development of post-discharge care plans and medications used by people with COPD. We found from preliminary work that identification of people with COPD while they are hospitalized is an efficient recruitment method for RELIANCE. Benefits and Compensation: $500/year honorarium for being a community partner (paid after registration) plus $200 per patient enrolled. Option to participate in clinical roundtables with COPD thought leaders. Contribute topic ideas for future grant proposals or publications related to hospitalist care. Community Partners will not be investigators / authors, but will be acknowledged in the RELIANCE publication.  Please reach out to Tiffany.Lee@ucsf.edu if you are interested in participating and would like more information about RELIANCE.

Our next meeting will be on June 10, 2022.

Check out the HOMERuN website for more information. If you would like to join the HOMERuN Collaborative calls, please reach out to Tiffany.Lee@ucsf.edu.