January 2023 CEP Partner Spotlight

Marsha Hamner, MD, is Practicing Excellence’s Clinician Experience Program Partner of the Month for January! Dr. Hamner is an experienced hospitalist at Banner Health, who rose to the role of Hospitalist Regional Medical Director of North Colorado just before the pandemic, in January 2020.

Stepping up in such a critical time, no one knows better about the need to adapt and grow than Dr. Hamner. To see how the Clinician Experience Program helped her grow in her day to day, read our interview with Dr. Hamner below!

How long have you been in medicine, and what are your favorite parts about it?

I’ve practiced hospital medicine for twenty years, and it’s been a privilege to be a part of some of the most challenging and impactful times in the lives of patients and their families.

Can you tell us one of your favorite patient stories from working in medicine? 

A few weeks ago, a patient opened up about a mental health issue she was struggling with. On the way home, I happened to listen to a podcast from an author of a book that addressed her challenges in a compassionate and authentic way. I was able to share that resource with my patient, and when I saw her again last week, she got tearful and said how much it changed her life to hear that someone had conquered what she was facing. It gave her hope.

How has the Clinician Experience Program helped you as a clinician? 

I like the succinct communication tips, especially when it comes to speaking with challenging patients. It helps me to know that I am not the only one who struggles to communicate well at times.

Could you tell us about a time that a tip came in handy?

Just last week, a patient became angry when I told her she would be going home the following day. Her expectations of how she would feel prior to discharge were not realistic for her situation. I would normally be anxious about going in to see her the following day, or at least defensive. But the tips on listening helped me stay calm. She apologized, and we had a great conversation followed by a successful discharge home!

What new skills are you looking forward to developing?

Change management skills. We’re in a constant space of change in medicine, and we are going to need to learn to roll out new ways of doing things to continue to provide care for an increasingly complex patient population. 

what do you look forward to most after each week’s new tip?

I like the “try this” challenges. It’s funny how an opportunity to use them seems to come up after hearing the tip!

Thank you Dr. Hamner for sharing your story with us! We are so grateful to have you all as our partners and we look forward to what you accomplish next with the Clinician Experience Project!