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The article relates the key elements of the Pharm2Pharm service model funded by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center aimed at improving care and reducing costs of medications across care settings in the U.S. Topics covered include the health information technology currently supporting the program, and the economics needed in sustaining this model of medication management.

Background: In light of the documented physician shortage on Hawai'i Island, the Hawai'i Clinician Recruitment and Retention survey was designed and implemented to assess perceptions of quality of life and the work environment among clinicians on Hawai'i Island and to identify aspects of the environment on Hawai'i Island that predict responses to questions regarding recruitment and retention. Methods: The respondents were 127 Hawai'i Island clinicians, specifically 96 physicians, 15 nurses, five pharmacists, four physician assistants, two social workers, and five "other" healthcare workers. The internal reliability of the survey was high (alpha=.91) and its convergent validity was supported by the significant correlation of item total scores with anchor items that measured overall ratings of the environment and likelihood of recruitment and retention. Given the small number of non-physician clinicians responding, descriptive analyses included only physicians. Physicians who indicated they plan to retire within 5 years were excluded from the correlation analyses to focus on patterns within the target group for retention. Results: Overall, results indicate that, while the majority of physicians who relocated to Hawai'i Island did so primarily for the quality of life, the best predictors of retention are financial sustainability, professional opportunities, community support, and access to good K-12 schools. Survey results also indicate that Hawai'i Island will lose 32% of its current physicians within the next five years due to retirement or other causes. Discussion: These findings indicate that increased urgency to find solutions is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organizational culture is defined as the shared values and beliefs that guide behavior within each organization, and it matters because it is related to performance. While culture is generally considered important, it is mysterious and intangible to most leaders. The first step toward understanding organizational culture is to measure it properly. This chapter describes methods for measuring culture in health-care organizations and how these methods were implemented in a large academic medical center. Because of the consistent empirical link between the dimension of communication, other culture dimensions, and employee satisfaction, special attention is focused in this area. Specifically, a case study of successful communication behaviors during a major "change management" initiative at a large academic medical center is described. In summary, the purpose of this chapter is to demystify the concept of culture and demonstrate how to improve it.