what is a hospitalist

A hospitalist is a physician who cares for inpatients, meaning they only work inside a hospital. They are specialists in hospital medicine, which is the medical specialty dedicated to providing comprehensive care to hospitalized patients. Hospitalists provide timely attention to all the needs of the patients, including diagnosis, treatment, and coordination of care across the many specialists the patient might see during their stay. They manage and treat a significant range of complex and comorbid disease conditions. Hospitalists typically undergo residency training in general internal medicine, general pediatrics, or family practice. They may also be board-certified in hospital medicine. Hospitalists improve care for hospitalized patients by supporting safe transitioning of patient care within the hospital, practicing efficient and judicious use of hospital and healthcare resources, and providing efficient care delivery and improving clinical outcomes, reducing mortality rates, enhancing care coordination, preventing hospital-acquired infections, and facilitating comprehensive transitions of care. The term “hospitalist” was first coined by two physicians who wrote about hospital-based physicians in The New England Journal of Medicine in 1996.