The seventh annual Kindred Clinical Impact Symposium has officially come to a close. Luckily, we live-blogged the whole event, so you can always find that content right here on the Kindred Continuum. Here's a look at each of the speakers, panels and breakout sessions in order:

Clinical Impact Symposium 2015 Pre-Conference

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Tori Murden McClure does everything backwards. As a rower, it just comes naturally. She went to divinity school and then to law school, while most people might presume you need divinity school AFTER law instead of before. At Kindred Healthcare's 2015 Clinical Impact Symposium, she began explaining her incredible life story by reading the last page of her book first.

Now the president of Spalding University, McClure has too many accolades to count. She holds a Master's in Divinity from Harvard Divinity School, a Juris Doctorate from the University Of Louisville - Brandeis School Of Law and a Master's of Fine Arts in writing from Spalding University. Previously, she has worked as a hospital chaplain, a mayoral policy assistant and a director of a shelter for homeless women.

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At the 2015 Clinical Impact Symposium, many case studies were examined through poster presentations. Lisa Orsino is a registered nurse at Kindred Hospital Sahara in Las Vegas. Her case study on a traumatic brain injury patient stood out to us because of the joined efforts of so many different levels of care.

John, a 33 year-old gentleman, was injured in a motor vehicle accident that left him with severe brain injuries and multiple fractures and wounds. Upon arrival at Kindred, John was not responsive and was both physically and chemically restrained. However, within only a month, his care was progressing so well that he was able to be de-cannulated. 

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While there can be a divide between what matters to the average American and what matters to politicians, in recent years, healthcare has been on the minds of both. Ray Sierpina, Senior Vice President, Public Policy and Government Affairs for Kindred Healthcare, said the 2016 presidential race will continue the ongoing discussion about healthcare and healthcare reform. He added, though, that although 10,000 Baby boomers qualify for Medicare every day, candidates have yet to have a meaningful conversation about the future healthcare needs of this constituency.

Sierpina also noted the 2016 field is one of the most diverse - racially, culturally, geographically and economically - for both the Democrats and Republicans. He cited self-described democratic-socialist Bernie Sanders and real estate developer/reality TV star Donald Trump as noted examples from both sides. 

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Two years ago, after the close of the 2013 Clinical Impact Symposium, the clinicians from Kindred's Dallas/Fort Worth Integrated Care Market returned home with the intent to delve further into deep training on cognitive care. They pulled together clinicians from all over their market and decided where to start - developing a training program that was workable within the hospital environment.

 

The team, headed by Jane Dailey, Vice President of Clinical Operations for the hospital division in the east and southeast regions, piloted the program and studied the results. Initially, the plan was to integrate the program into the hospital division's new cognitive care training program before it was spread out into the other fields. 

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Imagine a world where a patient is able to access pre acute care rather than just post acute care; a world where there is a more central role for post acute care. At the end of the 2015 Clinical Impact Symposium's second full day, the clinicians were treated to a dinner where William Altman, Executive Vice President for Strategy, Policy and Integrated Care provided insights into Kindred's current position in the world, as well as where we are headed.

Altman spoke to how we, as a company, are figuring out how to reposition ourselves in this new world, where healthcare is patient-centric.

"I don't know what is going to happen," Altman said. "But I do know that our country has reached a tipping point when it comes to integrated care."

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The assignment in the medical management breakout session Wednesday seemed straightforward: Review information on a patient's medications, create a Medication Action Plan to identify any potential issues and place the patient's daily medications in a pill organizer divided into days of the week. 

No problem for an audience filled with nurses, physicians, pharmacists and other clinicians, right?

The reality was somewhat different, but the big payoff was in a deeper understanding (and appreciation) of the medication management challenges faced every day by healthcare providers across the Kindred continuum and the opportunity to brainstorm on how to better address those challenges. 

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There's possibly no better way to bring the patient experience into focus than to spotlight the person behind every role - whether you're the patient, a family member, a healthcare provider or other staff member.

Dr. Sumita Khatri opened her presentation at the Kindred Clinical Impact Symposium with a powerful video from Cleveland Clinic, where she is co-director of the Asthma Center. The video, Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care , opens with a quote from Henry David Thoreau: "Could a greater miracle take place than for us to look through each other's eyes for an instant?"

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Throughout the seventh annual Kindred Clinical Impact Symposium, Kindred's clinical leaders have come back to the fictional case study of Jack and Mary Marton, a couple in their late seventies facing a bevy of medical conditions and issues as they struggle to remain independent. The Martons and their health issues have played a role in Clinical Impact Symposiums past, as well, and their example is useful in helping participants brainstorm and learn about how to better handle some of the common problems patients like the Martons face.

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It's quite common for older adults to experience falls or to limit their activities because they are afraid of falling, but we shouldn't just accept falling as a normal part of aging, according to Jane Painter-Patton, Ed.D, a professor at East Carolina University's College of Allied Health Sciences in the Occupational Therapy Department.

In her presentation Wednesday at the Kindred 2015 Clinical Impact Symposium, Painter-Patton gave tips to clinicians and encouraged them to work as a team with other specialists as they deal with the complex issues relating to falls in older adults.

Despite addressing large audiences, both Painter-Patton's presentation and the reaction panel discussion that followed felt very much like advice one clinician might give to a colleague, one-on-one. The participants weren't just speaking at the audience or discussing abstracts, they were speaking directly to every clinician in the room, giving practical, actionable advice that could be implemented successfully in the real world. 

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