About Hospitalists/Medical Professionals

Samaritan Hospitalists are a group of doctors who specialize in caring for inpatients at Good Samaritan Hospital (GSH). Because these physicians work only in the hospital, they can be at a patient’s bedside in a matter of minutes and are available to talk with family members when needed.

Samaritan Hospitalists Group

Hospitalists are dedicated to providing patients with high-quality health care and cost-effective hospital care. All of the doctors in the Samaritan Hospitalists Group are board-certified or board-eligible Internal Medicine Specialists. Because they do not have a private practice away from the hospital, they are available to patients, family members, medical staff, and other physicians throughout a patient’s hospital stay.

Many primary care physicians use Hospitalists to care for their patients who visit emergency rooms or are admitted to the hospital. The Hospitalists work closely with the referring primary care physician to ensure the best possible care is delivered to the patient.

About Hospitalists

• The term “Hospitalist” was introduced in 1996 to describe “a new breed of physicians” who provide care only in a hospital setting (New England Journal of Medicine, Aug. 16, 1996)
• Hospitalists have completed medical school and postgraduate training in Internal Medicine or Family Practice
• A Hospitalist may work directly for a hospital or as part of a managed care organization, multi-specialty practice, or specialty group that includes hospitalist services
• About half the hospitals in the United States employ Hospitalists
• The Hospitalist profession is the fastest-growing medical specialty in the United States. According to a survey by the Society of Hospital Medicine, the number of Hospitalists has grown from about 800 in the mid-1990s to more than 15,000 in 2006. Demand for this specialty was initially fueled by managed care efforts to bolster efficiency, cut costs, and improve care
• Reported in the Dec. 20, 2007, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine: In the largest study to date, evaluating the outcome of in-hospital care by various physician types, findings show that care by Hospitalists resulted in shorter stays and lower costs to patients. The study showed that compared to general internists, patients cared for by hospitalists had a length of stay shortened by 12%, or nearly half a day, and modestly lower costs. The two groups exhibited similar mortality and hospital readmission rates. When compared to family physicians, patients overseen by Hospitalists also stayed in the hospital almost half a day less. Treatment cost, mortality, and readmission rates were similar