Meet the Board: Jeffrey M. Hoffman, MD, FAMIA

Jeffrey M. Hoffman, MD, FAMIA was elected as ABPM’s Clinical Informatics Sub-Board Chair at the January 2022 meeting of the Board of Directors. He will begin his term in August 2022.

Dr. Hoffman is the Chief Medical Information Officer at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Division Chief of Clinical Informatics at the Ohio State University College of Medicine. Dr. Hoffman has also served on the Item-Writing Subcommittee for the ABPM’s Clinical Informatics Longitudinal Assessment Program (LAP) Pilot. Notably, Dr. Hoffman was a member of the first cohort of physicians to become board certified by ABPM in Clinical Informatics in 2014. He also developed one of the first ACGME-accredited Clinical Informatics fellowships where he currently serves as Program Director.

Dr. Hoffman was kind enough to answer a few questions to help us learn more about him.

Why did you get into medicine and how did you come to choose the subspecialty of Clinical Informatics?

As a young child, I was fascinated by how the human body worked and read every book I could find in my local library, at least those that I  could understand. My interest in medicine grew over the years, along with a few unexpected hospitalizations. By late high school, I had decided to become a physician, which later turned into a love of pediatrics and ultimately pediatric emergency medicine. As a PEM physician, I quickly learned the value of having accurate and timely information about my patients… something often in short supply given the how everything was on paper back then. So, when my hospital decided to implement an enterprise-wide EHR, I was one of the first to raise my hand to volunteer.

Parallel with my journey into healthcare, my interest in computers also began at an early age. My teenage years coincided with the initial heyday of personal computers, and just like with medicine, I went about learning all I could about this amazing device and what it was capable of. Though I have no formal training in computer science or coding, I quickly learned how to program and became an advocate for the use of computers during medical school, residency, and fellowship. Little did I know at the time that these two intellectual passions – medicine and computers – would blend together into a new specialty.

What do you think the value of board certification is?

As physicians, we are always being measured and validated. Whether it be by quality measures, academic promotions, online ratings, “best doctor” recognition, or a bevy of positive patient comments, these accolades are often seen as a testament to our clinical and academic acumen. However, the gold standard still remains board certification, which signifies to our professional colleagues, co-workers, and hospital administrators that we possess the same degree of knowledge, skill, and experience in the domains of clinical informatics as do other physicians in their specialties. And as digital tools and digital experience transform the delivery of healthcare in the coming years, board-certified physician informaticists are uniquely suited to best leverage technology to serve not only patients, but also our fellow physicians who are tasked with providing that care safely and efficiently.

What do you hope to accomplish during your time as the ABPM’s Clinical Informatics Sub-Board Chair?

Clinical informatics is a young specialty and has already experienced its share of growing pains. Under the thoughtful and dedicated leadership of our two previous CI Sub-board chairs, CI diplomates now represent the largest group of diplomates within ABPM. As CI Sub-board Chair, I want to continue evolving both the initial certification exam and the longitudinal assessment program to best fit the breadth and ever-changing practice environment of our specialty, to facilitate the growth and expansion of clinical informatics fellowship programs around the country, and to partner even more closely with AMIA to help support the educational needs of our CI trainees and diplomates.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

My first reaction to this question is… what spare time? But seriously… this year, my wife and I will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. We have two adult children (one of them finishing her freshman year in college) and a son still in high school. Balancing a busy home life with the demands of being CMIO and CI division chief at a large children’s hospital is not easy, but if these past two years have taught us anything, it is that work-life balance is essential in combating fatigue and burnout.

As you might imagine from learning of my journey into medicine and informatics, I am a voracious learner. I read occasionally (mostly non-fiction) and watch my fair share of educational YouTube videos. I enjoy watching football (college more than pro) and attend most home Buckeye games as many Columbus area residents are prone to do. I also enjoy classic music… and by “classic”, I mean pop and rock from the 70’s and 80’s. My son keeps trying to introduce me to rap and hip-hop, but I have yet to learn to appreciate those genres… much to his disappointment. All that – plus a dog, a cat, and my daughter’s bearded dragon that we are babysitting while she is at college – keeps me plenty busy.

Any other information you’d like to share about yourself with ABPM Diplomates?

Thirty years ago, I started my pediatric emergency medicine fellowship in Kansas City. At the time, there were less than a dozen programs, and after graduation, I was in the second cohort to take the PEM board certification exam. PEM was a relatively new field, and much of the discussion today about the value of physician informaticists and CI board certification remind me of similar conversations back then when board-certified PEM physicians were trying to prove their value and find their place. Once again, I find myself at the dawn of a new medical specialty trying to find its own place and future. I am excited at the opportunity the ABPM Board has given me to help guide clinical informatics in that journey in the years ahead.