Hospitalists

our Primary Care Provider While Staying in the Hospital

While your primary care physician acts as your regular point of contact for nearly all of your medical needs, their busy schedules make it impossible for them to facilitate every aspect of your care while in the health system. This is why many hospitals assign patients a hospitalist. A hospitalist is essentially a primary care provider that exclusively cares for patients in the health system.

Hospital care often requires patients to see a variety of medical professionals, which can be an overwhelming experience. To help alleviate any concerns, your assigned hospitalist will coordinate between the various providers so that you fully understand your inpatient care. .

The Hospitalist’s Role

St. John’s hospitalists specialize in general medicine for adult patients. Their training covers a broad range of medicine so they can handle the wide array of conditions that hospitals treat on a daily basis.

A hospitalist’s duties may include:

• Ordering tests
• Consulting with medical specialists
• Recommending patient transfers
• Tracking a patient’s progress
• Prescribing medication

Additionally, a hospitalist should keep in contact with your primary care provider so they can stay up to date on the state of your condition. This collaboration is an important part of the process as hospitalists should know more about the care you’ve received in the past, and your primary physician should be caught up on your health system treatments.

24/7 Care

At St. John’s, hospitalists remain on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in case of emergencies. Your hospitalist should become a familiar face during your stay at the health system. By working with a singular contact, patients can cultivate a relationship with the health system staff and feel more comfortable bringing up questions and concerns regarding their care.