Hospitalists

A hospitalist is a doctor who specializes in the practice of hospital medicine.

Working out of MultiCare Deaconess Hospital, Rockwood's Internal Medicine hospitalists offer comprehensive care for the acutely ill adult population. They are experts in handling severe chronic illnesses and situations where several different illnesses may be present at the same time.

In addition to their core expertise managing the clinical problems of seriously ill, hospitalized patients, hospital medicine practitioners work to enhance the quality of health care by:

• Providing prompt and complete attention to all patient care needs including diagnosis, treatment and the performance of medical procedures
• Employing quality improvement techniques
• Referring their patients to appropriate specialists as needed
• Collaborating, communicating and coordinating with all providers and health care personnel caring for hospitalized patients
• Transitioning patient care safely within the hospital, and from the hospital to the outpatient clinic
• Using hospital and health care resources efficiently

What is a Hospitalist?

A hospitalist, or "inpatient physician," is a doctor who specializes in caring for patients in the hospital. The hospitalist manages your treatment at the hospital, ordering tests and procedures, coordinating and consulting with specialists, closely monitoring your progress and staying in close touch with you and your doctor. Our hospitalists are part of MultiCare Rockwood Internal Medicine and are residency-trained, board-certified physicians in Internal Medicine.

Will the Hospitalist Talk with My Doctor?

When you are admitted to the hospital, your primary care doctor communicates with the hospitalist about your condition and transfers the management of your care to the hospitalist. The hospitalist develops a plan with your primary care doctor. The hospitalist remains in contact with each patient's primary care physician. Your primary care physician will also be informed about your care at discharge and will receive a copy of your records. This two-way communication between the hospitalist and your primary care doctor enables a smooth transfer of care back to your primary care doctor.

How Can the Hospitalist Benefit Me?

Often when a patient is hospitalized, their primary care physician is not immediately available due to scheduled office hours or significant patient load. Hospitalists see only patients in the hospital, so they are readily available to respond to any changes in your condition, see you as often as necessary to provide you with the best care, and can arrange for immediate tests and assessments. Your hospitalist knows every specialist and department in the hospital, and will assist you through a smooth and speedy recovery process by following up on tests and adjusting your treatment regimen based on those test results.

Non-hospitalized patients also benefit from the hospitalist program. Before this program was in place, doctors would have to leave a waiting room full of patients and rush to the hospital if there was an emergency. Now, providers can be assured that their hospitalized patients are getting the best of care without interrupting their daily office schedule. After patients are discharged, their primary care doctor once again assumes their ongoing care.