Hospital Medicine Pioneer Bob Wachter, MD, MHM, Hits High Note at HM14
““Your Song” became “Your Hospitalist Song”—the crowd gave him a standing ovation, perhaps as much for his chutzpah and piano playing as for his voice.”
LAS VEGAS—Bob Wachter, MD, MHM, hyped the final six minutes of his annual meeting address as something hospitalists at HM14 conference wouldn’t forget. As usual, he was right.
The man who helped coin the term “hospitalist,” and whose penultimate pep talk has come to signal the unofficial end of SHM’s annual meeting, finished his plenary on the confab’s last day and returned minutes later in a white suit, yellowed wig, and sunglasses worthy of the man he was portraying: Elton John.
After enjoying Dr. Wachter’s retooled lyrics—in which “Your Song” became “Your Hospitalist Song”—the crowd gave him a standing ovation, perhaps as much for his chutzpah and piano playing as for his voice.
“That was just phenomenal,” said hospitalist Kevin Gilroy, MD, of Greenville, S.C. “What other conference does that? You find another society that is that down to Earth.”—RQ
