It is next-to-impossible to scroll through the database of Practical Reviews: Hospital Medicine without coming across the name of Sarah Vick, MD. Dr. Vick, a hospitalist at the University of Kentucky's Albert B. Chandler Hospital, has her fingerprints all over Practical Reviews, Oakstone CME’s subscription audio program.

Open a recent issue and you will hear her summarizing a meta-analysis assessing the value of dual antiplatelet therapy alone versus adding anticoagulation therapy, and adding her own assessment that the data “is compelling for changing practice.”

Click on another issue and listen as Dr. Vick lends her critical eye to a review examining inpatient interventions on malnutrition and their impact on mortality. While noting her approval for the general approach, Dr Vick also tells listeners what’s missing, since some assessed outcomes were only moderately impacted or not impacted at all. “I would be interested in further studies on enteral nutrition supplementation on the outcomes studied here….because if improving the nutritional status of our hospitalized patients will impact outcomes, then these interventions should be routine.”

Most recently, Dr. Vick summarized an interesting evaluation of patients’ understanding of specialty titles and clinicians’ roles on the care team. Researchers concluded that treating clinicians may be assuming too much of patients. Dr. Vick reminds her fellow hospitalists that “taking time to introduce ourselves and our roles on the team is paramount to better patient communication and coordination of care.”

Practical Reviews: Hospital Medicine and its subscribers are fortunate to have Dr. Vick as an educational resource and clinical expert. We recently sat down with Dr. Vick to learn a little bit more about her background and personal interests, and asked what advice she would give to up and coming clinicians.

What led you to the medical field, and how long have you been practicing?

I always loved science and was fascinated by the application of science to caring for people so medicine was a natural fit. I have been an internal medicine hospitalist since 2018 and love it.

Why did you choose to be an internal medicine hospitalist?

I knew internal medicine was right for me from the first day rounding in the hospital. The discussions and thought process was fascinating to me. To this day, I love rounding in the hospital.

What do you enjoy most about what you do?

Every day in hospital is a little different with new patients and new puzzles to solve. The intellectual curiosity and patient connections keep me energized. Also, my current job involves teaching, which is my other passion.

What’s the one piece of advice you would give a student pursuing your field?

As a hospitalist, I often see patients in one of the most difficult moments of their lives. So we should always keep in mind that while this is our “job,” many patients and their families are in crisis. For that reason, approach every day with grace and humility.

How did you get involved in CME/medical education?

Teaching has always been my passion. I did an extra year as a chief resident after my internal medicine residency to have more opportunities to teach, which opened doors to more teaching opportunities for students, residents, and faculty.

How do you make earning CME fun/entertaining?

I try to make the content engaging and applicable with stories from my practice. All the material applies to patients I see every day, which makes is fun because I will get to use it almost immediately!

What do you enjoy doing outside of work?

I am a wife and mother of 2 young children so when I am not at work I spend time with my family. I also love being outside and reading.

If you had to pick another profession outside of medicine, what would it be?

If I were not a doctor, I would be a high school science teacher. I always thought I would be a teacher, but fell in love with medicine along the way. I am lucky that my current career includes a lot of teaching so I get the best of both worlds.