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Physician views on caring for hospitalized patients and the hospitalist model of inpatient care

Abstract

We surveyed 241 board-certified internists affiliated with a large teaching hospital (Boston, Mass) before implementing a hospitalist service to determine attitudes towards providing inpatient care and the hospitalist model. Of physicians surveyed, 66% responded. Most disagreed that inpatient care is “an inefficient use of my time,” only 10% felt a hospitalist service would improve patient satisfaction, and 54% felt it would hurt patient-doctor relationships. Multivariable analyses suggest that physicians physically furthest from their inpatient site were had more favorable attitudes toward the hospitalist model; more experienced and busier physicians were more negative. Future investigations should determine strategies for implementing the hospitalist model which address physicians’ concerns.

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Correspondence to Andrew D. Auerbach MD, MPH.

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Auerbach, A.D., Davis, R.B. & Phillips, R.S. Physician views on caring for hospitalized patients and the hospitalist model of inpatient care. J GEN INTERN MED 16, 116–119 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1525-1497.2001.91154.x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1525-1497.2001.91154.x

Keywords

  • Inpatient Care
  • Hospitalist Service
  • Favorable Attitude
  • Physician Attitude
  • Attitude Score