Patient Care
If you are a patient cared for by the Hospital Medicine Division at Strong Memorial Hospital, one of our hospitalists will keep your primary care physician or specialist informed of your progress, as needed. When you leave the hospital, your primary care physician will receive all the details of your hospitalization in order to create a well-coordinated plan for your ongoing care and good health.
Our Services
Surgical Co-Management Services
Orthopedic/Geriatric Fracture Center (GFC), Trauma/Emergency General Surgery Program, and Geriatric Surgery Program
Our co-management services involve both the surgical and hospital medicine teams sharing equal responsibility for patients' well-being. This partnership allows each team to practice at the top of their expertise. Co-management between surgical services and hospital medicine has been shown to improve patient outcomes and reduce the length of hospital stays. This care model has been recognized by the Joint Commission, which offers Hip Fracture Certification for centers meeting high standards of quality care. The American College of Surgeons also recognizes this approach through the “Geriatric Surgery Verification” program.
Since 2017, the Geriatric Fracture Center (GFC) at Strong Memorial Hospital has improved and streamlined care for older orthopedic patients with fragility fractures. The GFC was developed to enhance the quality and efficiency of care for patients with fractures due to fragile bones, such as hip and pelvic fractures. These patients are co-managed by both the Hospital Medicine and Orthopedic Surgery teams, who work together to reduce delays in surgery, promote early weight-bearing, and minimize preventable complications. The Joint Commission, a leading healthcare accrediting organization, has recognized the GFC for delivering high-quality care to older adults with fractures.
Navigating healthcare can feel overwhelming, especially when a loved one is faced with a serious injury or needs surgery. For older adults, these challenges can be even more complex due to age-related underlying health conditions. The Geriatric Trauma and General Surgery Co-management Team is a group of medical professionals who work together to care for older adults who have experienced a traumatic injury or need surgery. The key part of this team is the co-management model, where specialists from various fields collaborate with the goal of ensuring personalized and comprehensive treatment leading to faster recovery, fewer complications, reduced cost of care, and shorter length of stay. The treatment team consists of multiple healthcare professionals (e.g., trauma/general surgeons, hospital medicine physicians, physical and occupational therapists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, etc.) coordinating their efforts to address all aspects of the patient's needs.
We assist with co-managing a vast range of medical conditions including, but not limited to: heart failure, diabetes, dementia, COPD/asthma, and osteoporosis. Additionally, our team emphasizes “the 4M’s of Geriatric Medicine” to align with our goals as an Age Friendly Medical System:
- Medications: Proper management and review of medications to avoid harmful interactions, polypharmacy, or side effects.
- Mobility: Ensuring the patient maintains or regains physical movement and independence during recovery.
- Mentation: Focusing on cognitive health, delirium screening and prevention, and mental well-being
- What Matters Most: Understanding the patient’s personal goals, preferences, and values to tailor care to what truly matters for their well-being. This includes discussing advanced directives and health care agents.
We are actively developing processes and partnerships with additional surgical services, such as colon and rectal surgery, thoracic surgery, and urology, to improve care for older surgical patients and work toward achieving ACS Geriatric Surgery Verification.
Hepatology Co-Management Service
Since 2020, the Hepatology Co-management service has partnered with URMC’s Division of Transplant Hepatology to create a unique inpatient service focused on meeting the needs of patients with End Stage Liver Disease (ESLD). Within the setting of a specialized solid organ transplant unit, a team of hospitalists, transplant providers, pharmacists, and coordinators collaborate to provide comprehensive for patients with ESLD. With a focus on adherence to society guidelines and evidence-based practices, this specialized service aims to provide comprehensive care for both liver disease and a wide variety of common chronic medical conditions. The hepatology co-management service utilizes a novel style of hospital care to optimize length of stay, medications, and provide comprehensive discharge planning for patients with liver disease.
Advanced Heart Failure/HMD Co-Management Service
The Hospital Medicine Division-Advanced Heart Failure Co-Management Team is a partnership between the Hospital Medicine Division (HMD) and Advanced Heart failure (AHF) for patients with advanced heart failure with Left Ventricular Assist Devices (LVADs) who are admitted primarily for non-cardiac medical issues. This collaboration includes AHF cardiology physicians, HMD physicians, AHF advanced practice providers, AHF nurses, LVAD coordinators, care coordinators, infectious disease, psychiatry, pharmacy social workers, physical therapists, mobility assistants working together to improve care for patients with LVADs and complex medical needs. Some examples of common conditions we treat are:
- Infectious
- Gastrointestinal bleeding
- Stroke
- Pneumonia
- Diabetes
- Abdominal pain
Hospital Medicine Oncology Service
Since 2020 the Heme Onc Hospitalist group has been caring for patients with cancer who are admitted to Strong Memorial Hospital for complications related to their cancer or cancer treatments. We work collaboratively with the Wilmot Cancer Center oncology attendings, solid oncology APPs, nurses, physical and occupation therapy, social work, and the palliative care team to care for this complex group of patients. Our goal is to get our patients back to where they can continue their cancer directed treatments, but goals of care change, we are skilled at providing palliative and end of life care with the aide of our palliative care colleagues. This field can be challenging at times, but it is incredibly rewarding thanks to the dedication of a unique team that delivers exceptional care for our patients.
Unit-Based Teams
Hospitalists serve as Medical Directors for thirteen patient units at Strong Memorial Hospital. In partnership with the Unit Nurse Managers, they lead interdisciplinary unit-based teams and collaborate on initiatives to improve the quality and efficiency of care for our patients. Each unit-based team includes a core group of physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, care coordinators, social workers, physical therapists, mobility assistants, and other important contributors to patient care.
Patient Safety and Quality Improvement
Hospitalists at Strong Memorial Hospital are actively involved in processes and lead over 20 different initiatives to improve the safety, efficiency and quality of care we provide our patients. Hospitalists lead and collaborate on initiatives to prevent hospital-acquired infections, delirium, falls, and readmissions, while improving pain control, geriatric care, and the overall patient experience. Hospitalist initiatives also target specific conditions, such as diabetes, pneumonia, and heart failure, and integrate methods to help our patients quit smoking.