Hospitalists are to provide inpatient care for medical service patients in the Medical ICU (6 beds), Step Down Unit (8 beds), and occasional medical patients lodged in the Surgical ICU. Step Down Unit (SDU) rounds will be conducted by the Hospitalists, with Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) rounds to be conducted by the Pulmonary/Critical Care Unit and Cardiology staff. Hospitalists will be responsible for writing admission orders and completing History and Physicals for patients admitted during their tour of duty. There will be consultative support available from Cardiology, Pulmonology/Critical Care, Hematology/Oncology, Gastroenterology, Nephrology, Neurology, Endocrinology, Rheumatology, Dermatology, and Infectious Disease, as well as surgical, mental health, and interventional radiology consultations. Evaluation of all new admissions with completion of admission History and Physical, or completion of short form admission note as appropriate Rounding on all SDU patients daily on weekdays (twice daily on weekends) to include Federal Holidays. Rounds on weekends shall be held at the start of the tour of duty (approximately 8am morning rounds) and an evening round (approximately 8pm) as applicable. Evaluation of all patients with acute medical issues in the MICU, SDU, and Telemetry, as appropriate. A SOAP note or completion of preprinted templates in Computerized Patients medical records system (CPRS) where applicable will be required at least once daily. Hospitalists will be expected to obtain informed consent as outlined in Salem VAMC MCM 658-11-19 for invasive procedures including blood transfusions. Hospitalists will at a minimum be expected to perform basic procedures expected of any board eligible Internist including lumbar puncture, thoracentesis, and paracentesis. A proficiency in the placement of central venous catheters is highly desirable. Hospitalists will be expected to supervise any Physicians Assistants and/or resident physicians (Internal Medicine, Family Medicine) that are assigned to the Hospitalist’s area of responsibility. Hospitalists will be obliged to request consults as deemed appropriate. Telephonic contact is required in urgent/emergent situations. When the required service or level of care is not available at our facility, the Hospitalist will be asked to make arrangements for transfer to a higher level of care. This will require contact with colleagues at VA or Non-VA facilities. Participation in all activations of the Code Blue/Rapid Response Team in the areas of the MICU and SDU will be mandatory.An ability to use our Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS), Microsoft outlook, Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture (VistA) and some proficiency in typing/keyboarding are essential for efficient functioning. An ability to communicate verbally and in writing in English is mandatory
