Strategic Plan
Vision: Transform healthcare systems through better work design to enhance the lives of the hospitalist workforce and improve patient, clinician, and organizational outcomes.
Mission: Our mission is to advance the science of work in the hospitalist field and beyond by establishing best practices in work processes, pioneering innovative work models, and cultivating a thriving workforce.
Values: Workforce-centered with the goal of moving and shaping healthcare systems through partnerships; innovation; respect; challenge the status quo; expertise; collaboration; integrity; empowerment; professional development and mentorship.
Strategic Goals
Advance the science of hospital medicine
Project
Adapt/innovate research methods for the study of work
Identify, develop, and promote evidence-based best practices
Tactic: Adapt methods from other fields
Ideas: Rapid systematic review
Rapid systematic review of workloads and outcomes
Build best workplace practices
Project
Test assumptions
Foster positive and inclusive work environments
Understand the impact of technology and workforce
Tactic: Apply and partner on grants
Tactic: Focus on best practices
Ideas: APP physician thriving, hospital at home, parental leave, promotions, leadership, workplace violence, worker health, environments, attention, spaces
Tactic: Build expertise in emerging technologies such as AI, electronic messaging platforms
APP practices
Administrative Harm
Focus groups on electronic communication practices
Disseminate knowledge
Project
Share knowledge and best practices within the Hospitalist community
Partner with key stakeholders to spread innovation and improve patient care
Communicate with the public
Tactic: Each WAG member has the opportunity to develop and disseminate project; developing workshops/didactics for national meetings
Tactic: Create dissemination opportunities through traditional and non-traditional venues
Ideas: X-torials/Linked In, other social media
Share experiences
Tactic: Invite guests, brainstorm on strategies
Ideas: Generate a potential perspective piece or social media; influence policy and leadership behavior
Virtual Visiting Professor program
More guests: Rapid systematic reviews
Develop our team
Project
Create opportunities for career building
Create opportunities to showcase and share work
Create opportunities for multi-site collaborations
Tactic: Share skills — mini-sessions with information sharing
Tactic: Share opportunities — more deliberate approaches to sharing opportunities for group
Ideas: Site share — Visiting Professor program — site swaps
Works in progress/sharing (inclusive of all types of writing/projects)
Promotion letter writing offerings (offering to help)
Tactic: Partner on grants, projects
Ideas: Identify new funding streams
Virtual Visiting Professor program
Collaborative Team Lead Names
Marisha Burden, MD, MBA, University of Colorado School of Medicine
Angela Keniston, PhD, MSPH, University of Colorado School of Medicine
Luci Leykum, MD, MBA, MSc, Dell Medical School, South Texas Veterans Health Care System
Member names and institutions:
- Gopi Astik, MD, Northwestern School of Medicine
- Hernán Carrillo Bestagno, Las Higueras Hospital
- Greg Bowling, MD, University of Texas San Antonio
- Shradha Kulkarni, MD, University of California San Francisco
- Areeba Kara, MD, University of Indiana School of Medicine
- Kirsten Kangelaris, MD, University of California San Francisco
- Michelle Knees, MD, University of Colorado School of Medicine
- Aveena Kochar, MD, Mount Sinai School of Medicine
- Shradha Kulkarni, MD, University of California San Francisco
- Annie Linker, MD, Mount Sinai School of Medicine
- Matthew Sakumoto, MD, University of California San Francisco, Sutter Health
- Natalie Schwatka, PhD, University of Colorado School of Medicine
- Sarah Westergaard, MD, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine
- Amy Yu, MD, University of Colorado School of Medicine
- Kasey Bowden, University of Colorado School of Medicine
- Angela Alday, Oregon Health & Science University
- Jeff Chi, Stanford Medicine
- Cat Callister, University of Colorado School of Medicine
- Rebecca Berger, Weill Cornell Medicine
- Kara-Grace Leventhal, Johns Hopkins
- Michael Hendricks, Oregon Health & Science University
- Margaret Shyu, Stanford Medicine
- Molly McCullough, University of Colorado School of Medicine
- Joy Engblade, University of Kentucky HealthCare
- Kendall Rogers, University of New Mexico
- Andrea Porrovecchio, Westchester Medical Center, New York Medical College
- Samantha Murray-Bainer, University of Wisconsin
How the group works to achieve HOMERuN Vision and Mission
Vision:
To transform patient care by fostering, a culture of innovation, collaboration, and support for hospital, medicine teams, dedicated to discovering, evaluating, and implementing breakthroughs in healthcare.
Mission:
Empower and nurture hospital medicine teams to develop and implement innovative solutions to elevate the quality, safety, equity, and value of care for hospitalized patients from hospitalization to recovery.
Values:
Patient centered, collaborative, diversity, generalizable, effective, sustainable
Our strategic plan builds off HOMERuN’s vision and mission by aligning its goals and values with the broader framework set by HOMERuN. It shares common values, such as collaboration, innovation, and effectiveness, which are in line with HOMERuN’s commitment to fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and support for hospital medicine teams. The emphasis on innovation and research in healthcare, including the adaptation of research methods and exploration of AI coding, complements HOMERuN’s mission to develop and implement innovative solutions to elevate the quality, safety, equity, and value of care for hospitalized patients. The promotion of best practices in hospital medicine aligns with HOMERuN’s goal of discovering, evaluating, and implementing breakthroughs in healthcare. Additionally, our strategic plan prioritizes creating positive, inclusive work environments that prioritize respect and well-being, further enhancing the alignment between the Workforce Strategic Plan and HOMERuN’s vision and mission.
Current Projects:
Project
Leads
Status
Clinician organizing
Kirsten/Sara
Planning phase
Audit Log
Marisha
Manuscript in progress
Electronic communication
Michelle Knees
SHM abstract accepted!
Manuscript in progress
Virtual Hospitalist
Matt Sakumoto
SHM abstract accepted!
Manuscript under review
Administrative Harm
Marisha
SHM abstract accepted!
Manuscript under review
Administrative Harm with patients
Marisha
Planning phase
APP practices and collaboration
Sara/Marisha
SHM abstract accepted!
Manuscript under review
Jeopardy Policies in Hospital Medicine rapid qualitative and quantitative survey analysis
Kirsten/Angela/Gopi
SHM abstract presented!
Manuscript in progress
Driving research in hospital medicine through a national workforce collaborative
Annie/Marisha
Manuscript under review
Leadership for hospitalist safety
Natalie Schwatka
SGIM abstract accepted!
Submitted manuscript!
Publications:
- Kangelaris KN, Keniston A, Auerbach AD, Bowling C, Burden M, Kulkarni S, Leykum LC, Linker AS, Sakumoto M, Schnipper J, Astik G. A multi‐institutional multi‐methods analysis of jeopardy systems in academic hospital medicine. J Hosp Med. 2025;1-10.
- Callister C, Astik G, Atkins M, Alday A, Dayton K, Keniston A, Linker A, McBeth L, Merriman J, Westergaard S, Yu A, Auerbach A, Burden M. Optimizing learners on direct care teaching services: A qualitative study of hospitalist clinicians at 26 sites. J Hosp Med. 2025;20(6):562-572.
- Knees M, Keniston A, Yu A, Sakumoto M, Westergaard S, Schwatka N, Peterson R, Kochar A, Auerbach A, Lee T, Burden M. Academic hospitalist perspectives on the benefits and challenges of secure messaging: A mixed methods analysis. J Hosp Med. 2025;20(3):248-257.
- Burden M, Astik G, Auerbach AD, Bowling G, Kangelaris KN, Keniston A, Kochar A, Leykum LK, Linker AS, Sakumoto M, Rogers K, Schwatka N, Westergaard S. Identifying and measuring administrative harms experienced by hospitalists and administrative leaders. JAMA Intern Med. 2024;184;(9):1014-1023.
- Linker AS, Astik GJ, Bowling G, Kangelaris KN, Kara A, Keniston A, Kulkarni SA, Sakumoto M, Schwatka N, Westergaard S, Leykum LK, Auerbach A, Burden M. Collaborative research: The power of multiorganizational affinity groups and adaptive research methods. J Hosp Med. 2025;20(2):187-191.
- Westergaard S, Bowden K, Astik GJ, Bowling G, Linker A, Sakumoto M, Schwatka N, Auerbach A, Burden M. Impact of billing reforms on academic hospitalist physician and advanced practice provider collaboration: A qualitative study. J Hosp Med. 2024;19(6):486-494.
- Schwatka NV, Keniston A, Astik G, Linker A, Sakumoto M, Bowling G, Auerbach A, Burden M. Hospitalist shared leadership for safety, health, and well-being at work: United States, 2022‒2023. Am J Public Health. 2024;114(S2):S162–S166.
- Busch JI, Keniston A, Astik GJ, Auerbach A, Kangelaris KN, Kulkarni SA, Leykum LK, Linker AS, Nieto K, Pierce RG, Sakumoto M, Burden M. Exploring the Impact of COVID-19 on Women Hospitalists: A Mixed-Gender Qualitative Analysis. J Gen Intern Med. 2023;38(14):3180-3187.
- Kulkarni SA, Keniston A, Linker AS, Astik GJ, Kangelaris KN, Leykum LK, Sakumoto M, Auerbach A, Burden M. Building a thriving academic hospitalist workforce: A rapid qualitative analysis identifying key areas of focus in the field. J Hosp Med. 2023 Apr;18(4):329-336.
- Keniston A, Sakumoto M, Astik GJ, Auerbach A, Eid SM, Kangelaris KN, Kulkarni SA, Lee T, Leykum LK, Linker AS, Worster DT, Burden M. Adaptability on Shifting Ground: a Rapid Qualitative Assessment of Multi-institutional Inpatient Surge Planning and Workforce Deployment During the COVID-19 Pandemic. J Gen Intern Med. 2022 Nov;37(15):3956-3964.
- Keniston A, Sakumoto M, Astik GJ, Auerbach A, Kangelaris K, Kulkarni SA, Linker AS, Burden M, Leykum LK. Hospitalists Are Indispensable in Healthcare System COVID-19 Responses. SGIM Forum. November 2021.
- Linker AS, Kulkarni SA, Astik GJ, Keniston A, Sakumoto M, Eid SM, Burden M, Leykum LK; HOMERuN COVID-19 Collaborative Working Group. Bracing for the Wave: a Multi-Institutional Survey Analysis of Inpatient Workforce Adaptations in the First Phase of COVID-19. J Gen Intern Med. 2021 Nov;36(11):3456-3461.
Posters:
- Schwatka, NV, Keniston, A, Burden, M, Astik, G, Linker, A, Sakumoto, M.. Shared Leadership for Safety & Health amongst hospitalist teams. Poster presentation, American Psychological Association’s Work, Stress & Health Conference, Virtual. November 2023.
- Schwatka, NV, Keniston, A, Burden, M, Astik, G, Linker, A, Sakumoto, M. Shared Leadership for Safety & Health at Work. Poster presentation, Society for General Internal Medicine Annual Conference, Aurora, CO. May 2023.
- Radhakrishnan N, Kulkarni S, Schwatka N, Linker A, Burden M, Keniston A, Mathews B, Sakumoto M, Astik G, Bowling G, Kangelaris K, Auerbach A, Kara A. Parental Leave in Hospital medicine: We Can Do Better. Society of General Internal Medicine, Denver, CO. April 2023.
- Radhakrishnan N, Kulkarni S, Schwatka N, Linker A, Burden M, Keniston A, Mathews B, Sakumoto M, Astik G, Bowling G, Kangelaris K, Auerbach A, Kara A. Parental Leave in Hospital medicine: We Can Do Better. Society of Hospital Medicine, Austin, Tx. March 2023.
- Kangelaris K, Astik G, Keniston A, Linker A, Sakumoto M, Kulkarni S, Bowling G, Leykum L, Schnipper J, Auerbach A, Burden M. A “Necessarily Evil”: Multi-institutional Rapid Qualitative Analysis of Jeopardy Systems. Society of Hospital Medicine, Austin, Tx. March 2023. Poster Finalist.
- Kulkarni S, Linker A, Astik G, Keniston A, Kangalaris K, Leykum L, Burden M. Building a Thriving Academic Hospitalist Workforce: A Rapid Qualitative Analysis to Identify Key Areas of Focus in the Field. Society of Hospital Medicine, Nashville, TN April 8, 2022.
Presentations:
- Linker A, Astik G, Kangelaris K. Don’t be a Lone Ranger: Creative Ways to Expand Academic Opportunities through Multi-Center Networks, Society of Hospital Medicine, 2022.
