A hospitalist is a doctor who specializes in the care of hospitalized patients, providing better care than the patient’s primary care physician. They communicate with the patient’s primary care physician and other specialists, and are employed by hospitals, managed care companies, or medical groups. The Society of Hospital Medicine is the medical society for hospitalists in the United States.
A hospitalist is a doctor who specializes in the care of hospitalized patients. This professional undergoes the same medical training required of other doctors. The vast majority of these specialists are internal medicine physicians, along with family physicians, pediatric specialists, nurse practitioners and physician assistants who also fill this role. While other specialists focus on a body system or disease, the hospitalist’s specialty focuses on the medical environment of the hospital. Because of his familiarity with the hospital and his job, he may be able to provide the patient with better care than that provided by the patient’s primary care physician, while being on call and performing shifts during the hours when he is not busy with his external practice.
The term “hospitaller” was first coined in a 1996 article by Dr. Robert Watcher for the “New England Journal of Medicine.” However, the function of this specialist has existed since the mid-1970s. Due to the advent of managed care and the increased burden on private practice physicians, the demand for specialists working on site at the hospital increased rapidly in the mid-1990s.
Duties typically include those required of the visiting primary care physician, including patient care and education, research, and leadership. In addition, the hospitalist plays an important role in communicating information and coordinating care with the patient’s primary care physician (PCP) and other specialists. This saves the PCP time, cost and inconvenience of having to visit the hospital and be on call when his patients visit the emergency room or are admitted to the hospital. The hospitalist spends his time in the hospital and may see one or more patients during his shift. He may be employed by the hospital, a managed care company or a medical group. Additionally, you have the option of being a self-employed contractor for these groups.
This is a relatively new medical specialty, so there isn’t much data on salaries. From the data available, hospitallers are generally thought to have similar or slightly higher incomes than other physicians with the same training. They have the added benefit of not having to maintain an inpatient or outpatient practice with all the associated expenses and liabilities.
Hospitallers are mostly located in the United States, although Canada has a growing number of these specialists. The Society of Hospital Medicine (SHM) is the medical society for those working professionals in the United States.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
