At #HospMed16 Plenary, the U.S. Surgeon General, Vice Admiral Vivek H. Murthy, MD, MBA, spoke to a standing-room-only crowd about how hospitalists can lead in “Bringing Health to America.”
Dr. Murthy, who previously worked as a hospitalist in Boston, spoke about how the urgency to build a foundation for health in America, where chronic illness and healthcare costs have skyrocketed, could not be any greater. Health is the key to opportunity, he said. He explored the following strategies to make America healthier:
- Make the pursuit of healthy appealing;
- Improve the safety of our communities;
- Focus on the mind and spirit; and,
- Cultivate our ability to give and receive kindness.
Specifically, hospitalists should contemplate the following questions:
- How can hospitalists leverage their leadership in the hospital to improve systems and create a culture that supports healing and health?
- How can hospitalists be a powerful of force of change both inside and outside the hospital?
- How can hospitalists inspire the next generation of physicians to safeguard the health of their community by treating and preventing illness?
Dr. Murthy challenged hospitalists to commit to strengthening the foundation of health in our country and shift our culture towards the well-being of our communities through prevention.
He left the group by saying, “In the end, the world gets better when people choose to come together to make it better.” TH