ALTHA 2010 National Clinical Conference

Presentations

Conference Opening Session
Welcome
William Walters, J.D.
Chief Executive Officer
ALTHA, Inc.

Bill Walters became CEO of ALTHA in 2005 and led ALTHA’s efforts to secure Congressional passage of LTAC hospital provisions in Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (MMSEA). He is a former counsel to the House Ways & Means Committee and the House Energy & Commerce Committee. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois and Indiana University School of Law.

T. Brian Callister, M.D., F.H.M.
Chair, ALTHA Clinical Committee
National Medical Director, LifeCare Hospitals

With over 20 years experience in clinical medicine and as a physician leader, T. Brian Callister, M.D. is a Board Certified Internal Medicine specialist and Hospitalist who is nationally recognized as an expert in acute care medicine. Currently, Dr. Callister serves as the National Medical Director for LifeCare Hospitals, one of the largest Long Term Acute Care Hospital systems in the country, and has directed its Medical Staff leadership for a dozen years. He is the current Chairman of the Clinical Committee for the Acute Long Term Hospital Association (ALTHA), and is also the Nevada State Chairman for the American Medical Association’s (AMA) Organized Medical Staff Section (OMSS). Dr. Callister is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Stanford University with a degree in Economics, and received his M.D. from the University Of Utah School Of Medicine where he graduated Alpha Omega Alpha.

Keynote Address
Infection Control in the Long Term Acute Care Hospital Setting
Allan J. Morrison Jr., M.D., M.Sc., F.A.C.P., F.I.D.S.A.
Infectious Disease Physicians, Inc.
Hospital Epidemiologist, Inova Health System

Dr. Allan Morrison is a Professor and Distinguished Senior Fellow at George Mason University in the School of Public Policy. Further, he is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine in the Georgetown University School of Medicine. Dr. Morrison received his M.D. degree at the University of Virginia in 1980. Following internship and residency training in internal medicine, he received a Master of Science degree in Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control from the University of Virginia. He completed his Infectious Diseases training at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia in 1986. Since that time, he has been in private practice of Infectious Diseases in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Dr. Morrison has become honored as one of Washington's top doctors in Infectious Diseases continuously since 1993. He is the Hospital Epidemiologist for the Inova Health System.

The Normalization of Deviance
John D. Banja, Ph.D.
Medical Ethicist, Center for Ethics
Emory University

John D. Banja is a Professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine and a medical ethicist at the Center for Ethics at Emory University. He also directs the Section on Ethics in Research and Participant Advocacy of the Atlanta Clinical Translation Science Institute at Emory. Dr. Banja received a doctorate degree in philosophy from Fordham University in New York and has taught and lectured on topics in medical ethics throughout the United States. He has authored or coauthored over 150 publications and has delivered over 700 invited presentations at regional, national, and international conferences.  

Issues in Healthcare Staff Safety
Jane Perry, M.A.
Associate Director, International Health Care Worker Safety Center
University of Virginia

Jane Perry is associate director of the International Healthcare Worker Safety Center at the University of Virginia Health System. The Center is a world leader in surveillance, research and education on the prevention of occupational exposures to bloodborne pathogens. Ms. Perry served as editor of the Center’s journal, Advances in Exposure Prevention, from 1994 to 2005. She has lectured extensively on topics related to needle safety in the U.S., Canada, and other countries. Ms. Perry received her B.A. from Scripps College and M.A. from the University of Ottawa.

Rehospitalizations
Eric A. Coleman, M.D., M.P.H.
Director, Care Transitions Program
University of Colorado Denver

Eric A. Coleman is Professor of Medicine within the Divisions of Health Care Policy and Research and Geriatric Medicine at the University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center. Dr. Coleman is the Director of the Care Transitions Program, aimed at improving quality and safety during times of care “hand-offs.” He is also the Executive Director of the Practice Change Fellows Program, designed to build leadership capacity among health care professionals who are responsible for geriatric programs and service lines. As a board-certified geriatrician, Dr. Coleman maintains direct patient care responsibility for older adults in ambulatory, acute, and subacute care settings.

Measuring Quality: Who, What and How?
Dexanne Clohan, M.D.
Chief Medical Officer
HealthSouth

Dr. Dexanne Clohan, voted #5 on Modern Physician’s list of “50 Most Powerful Physician Executives in Healthcare” for 2008, has been active in aspects of health care ranging from policy development to clinical practice for over 20 years. In her current position as Chief Medical Officer for HealthSouth, a major provider of inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation services, she is responsible for development and implementation of clinical and quality initiatives. In addition, she coordinates the company's clinical research efforts and the evaluation of new technology. Dr. Clohan received her Doctor of Medicine and Masters degree in Administration from George Washington University in Washington, DC and is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Colorado. She is a specialist in the field of physiatry, certified by the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, who received her postgraduate medical education at the University of California, Irvine.

Critical Care Skills for Medical-Surgical Nurses
Mary Ann “Cammy” House-Fancher, A.C.N.P., M.S.N., C.C.R.N.-C.S.C., P.C.C.N.
ACNP for the Department of Thoracic Cardiovascular Surgery
University of Florida

Cammy is a nationally known speaker with over 35 years of Critical Care experience. Cammy has taught many Critical Care topics with an emphasis on the critical thinking skills of the bedside practitioner. As well as lecturing across the country, Cammy is a reviewer for several referred nursing journals, has numerous publications in the area of critical care, and continues to have an active practice as an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner at the University of Florida, Division of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. As a critical care nurse practitioner, Cammy brings much clinical practice skill to the lectures as well as providing clinical pearls for bedside care.

Establishing a Hospitalist Program in the LTAC Hospital Setting
Joseph Li, M.D., F.H.M.
Assistant Professor of MedicineHarvard Medical School
Director, Hospital Medicine Program
Associate Chief, Division of General Medicine and Primary Care
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Joe Li is the Director of the Hospital Medicine Program and Associate Chief, Division of General Medicine and Primary Care at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC). Dr. Li received his BS in Pharmacy and Medical Degree from the University of Oklahoma. After serving as Chief Medical Resident at BIDMC in 1998, Dr. Li became the first hospitalist at BIDMC. Located in Boston’s Longwood Medical Area, the BIDMC is a major teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School where Dr. Li serves on the fulltime faculty as an Assistant Professor of Medicine. Dr. Li has numerous leadership and medical education roles. He is a Charter Member of the Society of Hospital Medicine and an elected member of the SHM Board of Directors. He founded and remains the President of the SHM Boston Chapter. He is a former Firm Chief for the BIDMC Internal Medicine Training Program. He was the Course Director for the 2009 SHM Annual Meeting and an Assistant Editor for The Journal of Hospital Medicine.

Disruptive Behavior and Staff Communication
David Bazzo, M.D., F.A.A.F.P.
Director, QICM ProgramUniversity of California, San Diego

David E.J. Bazzo, M.D., F.A.A.F.P. is a Clinical Professor of Family Medicine at the UCSD School of Medicine. He is board certified in Family Medicine and has a Certificate of Added Qualification in Sports Medicine. He is Associate Director of the UCSD Physician Assessment and Clinical Education (PACE) Program, Director of the UCSD California Correctional Healthcare Improvement Program (C-CHIP) and past Director of the UCSD Quality Improvement in Correctional Medicine (QICM) Program. Dr. Bazzo has an active practice in Family and Sports Medicine in addition to his teaching and administrative roles. He is the Co-Director of the Primary Care Core Clerkship for 3rd year medical students and faculty for the UCSD Family Medicine Residency Program and the UCSD Sports Medicine Fellowship Program. He has an active interest in physician assessment and meaningful education at all levels of medicine - medical school through active practice. He has lectured nationally and internationally on a number of topics including Sports Medicine, Osteoarthritis, Headache, Communications and Physician Assessment.

Giovanna Zerbi, Psy.D.
Physician Assessment and Clinical Excellence (PACE) Program
University of California, San Diego

Giovanna Zerbi, Psy.D. is a Clinical Psychologist who has been living and practicing in San Diego for the past 20 years. She was licensed in 1995, and since then, has had a private practice in Hillcrest, specializing, among other things, in Dialectical Behavior Therapy. She also contributed to the designing and implementation of the Women’s Resilience Program at the California School of Professional Psychology, where she was the Clinical Supervisor. She is currently on the Faculty of UCSD Department of Psychiatry, where she supervises and trains interns and residents. In addition, Dr. Zerbi is the Anger Management Course Director for the UCSD Physician Assessment and Clinical Education (PACE) Program. She is also the Program Director of the UCSD Outpatient Psychiatric Services, where she also provides psychological services to impaired and disruptive physicians.

Anti-Coagulation Issues in the LTAC Setting
Tony Casanova, Pharm.D.
Emergency Department Pharmacist Specialist
St. Joseph Medical Center

Franciscan Health SystemDr. Casanova is currently practicing as the Emergency Department Pharmacist Specialist at St Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma, Washington, part of the Franciscan Health System. SJMC is a community based, tertiary care center for FHS which nationally is affiliated with the Catholic Health Initiatives. Tony completed his undergraduate education as well as his Doctorate of Pharmacy at South Dakota State University, then leading to his residency completion at FHS. Currently Tony is a member of the ASHP ED Section Advisory Group and recently published a paper on ED Pharmacy Practice in a community based institution.

LTAC Hospital Industry Benchmarking Project
Raymond Alvarez, M.P.A., D.H.A., F.A.C.H.E.
Vice President, OperationsRegency Hospital Company

T. Brian Callister, M.D., F.H.M.
National Medical Director
LifeCare Hospitals

Alice Hare, R.N., M.S.N., C.R.R.N., C.I.C.
Corporate Director of Quality
Cornerstone Healthcare Group

Sean Muldoon, M.D., M.P.H.
Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer
Kindred Healthcare