The Jan 2023 Inpatient Acupuncture Conference, Submissions are Open

 Tuesday, Oct. 25th, 2022. Announcement: Now Accepting Submissions for the Jan 2023 Inpatient Acupuncture Conference.

The submission form is open until Nov. 15th. Send in ideas and program information via the conference form to be a presenter or panelist at the Jan. 2023 virtual conference. More information about the event is on the HHP event page here.

Safety Practices for LAcs: The Autumn 2022 Presentations from the HHP's Safety Practices Workgroup (Sept, Oct, Nov.)

HHP is the nonprofit collaborative learning network for healthcare system-based LAcs and program managers.

We are the home of the healthcare system-based acupuncturist community network

Help us keep the HHP's work going this year (2022) and into 2023.

Donate $10 (about 2 small cups of coffee) ☕☕today. Thank you.

Safety Practices for LAcs, a new set of resources from the HHP

Updates on this past year’s progress with the HHP’s Safety in Practice Workgroup

For the latest information on this workgroup and its work, from presentations to publications, go to these pages on the HHP's website:

Safety Practices for LAcs, an article getting updated with event info Sept - Nov 2022.

September public presentation, the event page.

October public presentation at the IM4US 2022 conference, "Speaking the Language of Safety in HROs for LAcs." The presentation landing page.

November 12th, 2022, "Introduction to Safety Practices for LAcs in Healthcare System Practice. For Acupuncturist clinicians, safety leads, and program managers." public presentation, the event page.

The Hospital Handbook Project for Acupuncturists and Their Hospital Sponsors is a program of Free Range Health®, a 501(c)(3) public charity. All or part of your donation may be tax-deductible as a charitable contribution. Please consult with your tax advisor. Federal Tax ID #45-4395933

Making the Connection between Recognizing Women-led Organizations and the HHP's Community Resource Work

 March 21st, 2022: March is Women’s History Month—sharing how the HHP’s work is connected to this national observation

Quote/Excerpt

I write the following, encouraged by a colleague to share my nonprofit community resource work that I created and continue to direct, as a volunteer, in honor of the focus on women-created or directed resources this month.

I created The Hospital Practice Handbook (HHP) for Acupuncturists and Their Hospital Sponsors 5+ years ago to fill the need for a community resource for hospital & healthcare system-based acupuncturists & their program managers.

The HHP is a community-centered professional networking resource that endeavors to help services from these professionals be more available to patients in federal and civilian systems. 

Inpatient acupuncture services are a non-drug way to improve sleep, decrease pain & anxiety, alleviate some side effects of conventional treatment, and reduce the complexity of med profiles. This is especially prominent at Children's hospitals. Research has shown that patient use of inpatient acupuncture services decreases the overall patient length of stay and decreases frequent readmission rates. (So it saves the healthcare system money while improving patient outcomes when you take a long-term view.)

Outpatient & ambulatory acupuncture services are a great addition to many healthcare teams, including behavioral health, functional rehabilitation, oncology, pediatrics, primary care, and even (wonderfully) mother-baby in perinatal and postpartum care.

At the HHP, we are a professional development community that shares & discusses best practices in program standards and employment practices. Both are key aspects to helping maintain, grow, and even initiate programs in these healthcare settings.

Source: This 3/21/2022 HHP newsletter.

You can support this work today with a tax-deductible donation here. Learn more about how to support this nonprofit work at our website. If you are curious to learn more about our work, besides looking around our website, I recommend perusing our past newsletters here.  The Hospital Handbook Project for Acupuncturists and Their Hospital Sponsors is a program of Free Range Health®, a 501(c)(3) public charity. All or part of your donation may be tax-deductible as a charitable contribution. Please consult with your tax advisor. Federal Tax ID # 45-4395933. #hospitalhandbookproject #hospitalacupuncture #womenchangemakers #nonprofitorganization #communityresource #professionaldevelopment #inpatientacupuncture #womeninleadership #womeninhealthcare #leadership #milspousechangemakers

Help us keep The Hospital Handbook Project going for 2022! Please help us raise funds by donating today, whether it is $5 or $25 or $100 or more. Thank you. 😊 Interested in the "cost savings" research mentioned in the quote above? Citations of "cost savings" research and feasibility studies are included in our published document available through the HHP website here.

Self-care and Breathing Practice Resources for Fellow Clinicians

 keywords: self-care, mindful leadership, breathing practice

www.thehospitalhandbook.com
photo credit Megan

Self-care

Peace & time to breathe/pause to all of my essential worker colleagues and those who are also making space for positive change in their workplace or community. 🦋

"To mindfully pause is to interrupt your automatic reactions to life’s events and the stories that flow from those reactions. Pausing allows your mind to take a break, so you can be with life as it is vs. how you’d like life to be. Pausing is also part of a larger cycle of work and renewal, a rhythmic flow of life. Pausing’s not merely a good idea. It’s a required nutrient like air or water." 

Source: article from Mindful Leader 

 

Breathing Practice Resources

If you need a quick breathing break, there is a short breathing practice and 30-60 second videos on our YouTube playlist, like this one:

Autumn at Lake Crescent, Olympic National Park 

Or, Quiet evening on the Sound 

See more videos with a short guide to a basic breathing practice at The HHP's Breathing Practice playlist. Videos by Megan Kingsley Gale.

If you found this content useful or insightful, please support this community work. You can support with cups of virtual coffee, sponsor a newsletter, or sponsor a project via the website.

www.thehospitalhandbook.com

QA/QI Resource: New IHI Report, "Safer Together: A National Action Plan to Advance Patient Safety"

keywords: quality assurance (QA) standards, quality improvement (QI), program leads and program managers, leadership and workplace, metrics

topics: QA/QI and workplace safety and patient safety, the latest standards on patient and workplace safety from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) 

www.thehospitalhandbook.com

Why is this important or what is the practical application of this?

• This is a useful resource for those of you who are updating your quality improvement (QI) processes or serve on quality assurance committees
• This is useful for those of you who work as program leads or program managers
• This sets a standard for patient safety and workplace safety in the healthcare setting

 

What is this, specifically? What is the reference or resource?

This is an announcement about a new Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) report, Safer Together: A National Action Plan to Advance Patient Safety

This report, “provides clear direction that health care leaders, delivery organizations, and associations can use to make significant advances toward safer care and reduced harm across the continuum of care.”

“The report harnesses the knowledge and insights of the National Steering Committee for Patient Safety (NSC) members, including influential federal agencies, leading health care organizations, patient and family advisors, and respected industry experts, into a set of actionable and effective recommendations to advance patient safety.”

“The National Action Plan centers on four foundational and interdependent areas, prioritized as essential to create total systems safety. The recommendations in these four areas build on the substantial body of experience, evidence, and lessons learned that the NSC has gathered and will test and implement together to allow for future refinements as our understanding, experience, and evidence evolve over time.”

The National Action Plan has a list of 17 recommendations “to advance patient safety”. These recommendations fall into the following sub-categories:

1. Culture, leadership, and governance
2. Patient and family engagement
3. Workforce safety
4. Learning system

Read this report and its supporting materials on this IHI webpage.

 

Related HHP Resources

• For more about our HHP recommended resources on leadership, quality assurance issues specific to hospital-based practice, and program lead/program manager resources, send me a message via the website (for specific recommendations). 
• Or you may browse this blog with the search terms "workplace", "leadership", "quality assurance", and/or "program lead". 

 

If you found this content useful or insightful, please support this community work. You can support with cups of virtual coffee, sponsor a newsletter, or sponsor a project via the website.

www.thehospitalhandbook.com

 

Leadership: Recommended Reading and Resources

keywords: leadership in integrative health, program leads, program managers, inspiration for the workplace

Leadership Resources at the Hospital Handbook Project

Recommended Reading and More

HHP Leaders Group & Resource

• I have been developing a Leaders Group & Resource for program leads and managers over the past couple of years for the Hospital Handbook Project. If you are interested in this, you can contact me via the website with a note about your interest, including why you are interested.

The "Issues in Hospital-based Practice Webinar Series"

• This didn't get off the ground again in 2020. So, right now, the plan is to roll the 2020 sessions into the 2021 series. You can sign up now to access the 2020 resources and support the ability to have sessions in 2021. 

The "Basics of Being an Employee in a Healthcare System: Focus on Performance Management"

• A wisdom-share series with colleague Sandro Abanto, MBA, in a video interview format. Read more about it in this article.

Lunchtime Listen Recommendations

• A curated resource of audio or audiovisual resources to fit a lunchbreak or so.

HHP Leadership & Workplace Video Series

• Started this series on the public Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/HospitalHandbook/891703201278699/ 

video series on the public Facebook page

Recommended Reading: Blog articles and more

• Reflecting on Leadership, a book and audiobook reading recommendation list
• Leadership and Workplace Mondays, a seasonal or monthly review of the weekly theme on the public Facebook page. These are compilations of resources on the topics of leadership & workplace, with a focus on the professional healthcare employee.
• Leadership and Workplace Mondays, the Autumn 2019 summary
• August Leadership and Workplace Mondays Roundup, 2019
• April 2019 Leadership and Workplace summary
• March 2019 Leadership and Workplace summary
• February 2019 Leadership and Workplace roundup
• January 2019 Leadership and Workplace summary: connect to your mentors and learn about your organization's mentoring program
• December 2018 Leadership and Workplace roundup
• November 2018 Leadership and Workplace summary
• "A leader that practices mindfulness and self-awareness is a positive force in his/her organization," a Mindful.org recommended read
• "Making Space for Innovation: seeing failure as constructive towards growth."
• National Academy of Medicine's Clinician Well-being Series, an audiovisual resource
• Research Literacy: Practical Applications for The Hospital-based Practitioner

The Hospital Handbook Project Learning Opportunities Directory

• Learn more about this resource at this post.  

If you found this content useful or insightful, please support this community work. You can support with cups of virtual coffee, sponsor a newsletter, or sponsor a project via the website.

www.thehospitalhandbook.com

Federal Practice: Indian Health Service Program includes Licensed Acupuncturists

 keywords: federal practice acupuncturists, prospective practitioners, new hospital employee, position description, program funding, federal student loan forgiveness programs

The Indian Health Service (IHS) now includes licensed acupuncturists in their "eligible providers" category for their student loan forgiveness federal service employment program.

Quote:

"25 U.S.C. 1616a, authorizes the IHS to determine specific health professions for which IHS LRP contracts will be awarded....The list of priority health professions that follows is based upon the needs of the IHS as well as upon the needs of the American Indians and Alaska Natives

(a) Medicine--Allopathic and Osteopathic doctorate degrees 

(b) Nursing--Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) (Clinical nurses only).

(c) Nursing--Bachelor of Science (BSN) (Clinical nurses only).

(d) Nursing (NP, DNP)--Nurse Practitioner/Advanced Practice Nurse in Family Practice, Psychiatry, Geriatric, Women's Health, Pediatric Nursing.

(e) Nursing--Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM).

(f) Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA).

(g) Physician Assistant (Certified).

(h) Dentistry--DDS or DMD degrees.

(i) Dental Hygiene.

(j) Social Work--Independent Licensed Master's degree.

(k) Counseling--Master's degree.

(l) Clinical Psychology--Ph.D. or PsyD.

(m) Counseling Psychology--Ph.D.

(n) Optometry--OD.

(o) Pharmacy--PharmD.

(p) Podiatry--DPM.

(q) Physical/Occupation/Speech Language Therapy or Audiology--MS, Doctoral.

(r) Registered Dietician--BS.

(s) Clinical Laboratory Science--BS

(t) Diagnostic Radiology Technology, Ultrasonography, and Respiratory Therapy: Associate and B.S.

(u) Environmental Health (Sanitarian): BS and Master's level.

(v) Engineering (Environmental): BS and MS (Engineers must provide environmental engineering services to be eligible.).

(w) Chiropractor: Licensed.

(x) Acupuncturist: Licensed.

Learn more about this program and how to apply here:

Their October 15th, 2020, funding announcement:

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/10/13/2020-22649/loan-repayment-program-for-repayment-of-health-professions-educational-loans

source: October 15th, 2020 announcement

If you currently work in the IHS as a licensed acupuncturist and haven't connected to The Hospital Handbook Project community yet, start here by submitting your request or questions to us via the contact page on our website. Thank you.

If you are a student or prospective practitioner and are interested in starting practice in a large health care system, whether federal or civilian, a good starting place is our Getting Your Foot in the Door: First Steps e-book and workbook resource.

www.thehospitalhandbook.com