Following up with adult general medicine patients by phone within the week after their hospital discharge as a stand-alone intervention has no impact on readmissions, mortality or patient satisfaction, according to a new study by Vanderbilt University Medical Center researchers.

Vanderbilt University Medical Center has established a new chaplain residency training program to provide quality education for developing chaplains and better support the spiritual needs of patients, their families and Medical Center employees.

After serving as interim chair since Jan. 1, Kimryn Rathmell, MD, PhD, Cornelius Abernathy Craig Professor of Medicine, has been named chair of the Department of Medicine in the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and Physician-in-Chief for the Vanderbilt University Adult Hospital and Clinics.

Ken Clarke, MBA, MHA, joined Vanderbilt University Medical Center Aug. 1 as Senior Vice President for Laboratory Services.

Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Nurse Residency Program is facing a unique challenge this summer — welcoming more than 350 nurse residents, its largest cohort ever, while drastically altering the program to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Scott McCarver, MHA, Chief Operating Officer for Vanderbilt University Adult Hospital, has taken the position of Chief Operating Officer at Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital (VWCH). Jim Hayman, MS, MBA, who has served as Chief Pharmacy Officer for Vanderbilt University Adult Hospital and Clinics for the past 12 years, will serve as the hospital’s interim Chief Operating Officer.

Care of COVID-19 patients has led to swift establishment of a COVID service line at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, complete with the institutional infrastructure, planning and multi-disciplinary coordination implied by the service line designation.