Physician Executive Profile: Kenneth W. Kizer, M.D., M.P.H.

Occasionally, we will feature a physician executive profile so that you can see how some of these individuals navigated their careers to an executive level. Today, we feature:

Kenneth W. Kizer, M.D., M.P.H.

Dr. Kenneth W. Kizer is Director of the Institute for Population Health Improvement, UC Davis Health System, and a Distinguished Professor in the UC Davis School of Medicine (Department of Emergency Medicine) and the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing.

Dr. Kizer’s professional experience includes positions in academia and the public and private sectors. His previous positions have included: President, CEO and Chairman of Medsphere Systems Corporation, the nation’s leading commercial provider of open source healthcare information technology; founding President and CEO, National Quality Forum, a Washington, DC-based quality improvement and consensus standards setting organization; Under Secretary for Health, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and chief executive officer of the nation’s largest healthcare system; Director, California Department of Health Services; and Director, Emergency Medical Services Authority, State of California. He has served on the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and as Chairman of the Board of The California Wellness Foundation, the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted to health promotion and disease prevention, as well as on the governing boards of managed care and health IT companies, several foundations and various professional associations and non-profit organizations. He also has worked in various capacities over the years with numerous foreign countries on health-related matters.

2014 APHA Public Health Fellowship in Government

Don't miss the call for applications for the 2014 American Public Health Association (APHA) Public Health Fellowship in Government. This is the seventh year that APHA is offering this fellowship, which has been described as an “amazing” and “phenomenal” experience by previous fellows.

Candidates must have strong public health credentials and be interested in spending one year in Washington, D.C. working in a congressional office on legislative and policy issues related to health, the environment or other public health concerns.

The fellowship will begin in January 2014 and continue through December 2014. The fellowship provides a unique learning experience for a public health professional to gain practical knowledge in government and see how the legislative and public policy process works.

Electronic application, including a CV and three letters of recommendation, are due to APHA by April 8, 2013.

Apply online here.

CMS Innovation Advisors Program

In the months and years to come, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (Innovation Center) will seek to introduce transformative models of care delivery across the nation that will meet the aim of reducing cost and improving quality for Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP beneficiaries.

The Innovation Advisors Program is designed to support delivery system reform, strengthening the capacity for change by creating a network of experts in improving the delivery system.

Specifically, the Innovation Advisors Program will engage individuals in the health care system to test and refine new models of payment and care delivery. Selected Innovation Advisors will refine, apply, and sustain managerial and technical skills necessary to deepen several key skill sets, including:

• Health care finance;
• Population health;
• Systems analysis; and
• Operations research

After completing this orientation, these individuals will:

• support the Innovation Center in testing new models of care delivery;
• utilize their knowledge and skills in their home organization or area in pursuit of the three-part aim of improving health, improving care, and lowering costs through continuous improvement;
• work with other local organizations or groups in driving delivery system reform;
• harvest new ideas or innovations for possible testing of diffusion by the Innovation Center; and
• build durable skill in system improvement throughout their area or region

Population Health Certificate Program

The Population Health Colloquium is offering a Population Health Certificate Program, developed by the Jefferson School of Population Health, in the form of an optional course within the conference for attendees wishing to take a deeper dive into the Colloquium's subject matter.

POPULATION HEALTH CERTIFICATE PROGRAM OVERVIEW

The National Population Health and Care Coordination Colloquium is pleased to offer a Certificate Program, sponsored by the Jefferson School of Population Health, in the form of an optional continuing professional education course within the conference for attendees wishing to take a deeper dive into the Colloquium's subject matter.

The Population Health Certificate Program's continuing professional education curriculum and requirements are as follows:

1. Consider questions submitted by faculty in conjunction with completion of the preconference readings. (1 hour)
2. Attend the Population Health Preconference Boot Camp (4 hours). The preconference readings and questions will be discussed during the Preconference Boot Camp.
3. Attend the entire Population Health and Care Coordination Colloquium.
4. Successfully complete the post-conference online examination. (1 hour)

Working for the HHS

You've probably heard that Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius has been appointed as the next HHS secretary. So how do you work for the HHS? Begin by getting involved in politics and lobbying efforts. People are always at Capitol Hill trying to rally and get support for some type of health issue. Stay updated with the reports produced by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the Office of Inspector General (OIG). It's critical that you stay current with all the political issues that surround healthcare. You may want to get an MPH so that you can have a better population health perspective.

Non-Clinical Medicine

To many people (including myself), the phrase "non-clinical medicine" sounds a bit odd. After all, the practice of medicine is clinical in nature.

Can you image the following conversation?

Q: "So what type of medicine do you practice?"
A: "I practice non-clinical medicine."
Q: "Oh, you mean like radiology or pathology?"

See, many people equate clinical medicine to seeing and treating patients. So if you're not actively engaged in direct patient contact and patient care, does that mean you're practicing non-clinical medicine? Not necessarily. The answer to the question above could also sound like this:

A: "No, I work behind in a company developing population-based disease management programs for managed care organizations."
or,
A: "No, I work in a medical education company developing continuing education programs for physicians, pharmacists, and nurses."
or,
A: "No, I now work in Wall Street"
or,
A: "No, I now work for the marketing division of a pharmaceutical company"
or,
A: "No, I work on developing market research surveys on different therapeutic topics."
or,
A: "No, I now work as a medical news reporter."

To some, the phrase "non-clinical medicine" means that you sit in an office and have full-time administrative duties. And yet to others, "non-clinical medicine" just means that you're no longer engaged in anything that directly relates with patient care.

Are public health physicians working in non-clinical medicine? Population health issues may conflict with direct patient care issues since population medicine needs to weigh decisions against the "greater good." Direct patient care is individualized medicine.

I've gone on quite a tangent, but the point I'd like to return to is this: non-clinical medicine is a very broad phrase that means different things to different people. So don't make any automatic assumptions about someone's career if they tell you that they are now engaged in pursuing a non-clinical career.