Inpatient Practices of Hospitalists vs Traditonal PCPS;Final rept. 1 Apr 00-31 Mar 02

摘要

Dedicated inpatient physicians, currently known as hospitalists, provide care for patients from admission to discharge, allowing primary care physicians (PCPs) to use their time more effectively by focusing on outpatient practice. The principle aim of the current study was to develop and pilot a structured web-based survey to measure PCP and hospitalist clinical and professional practices and their attitudes toward different aspects of the hospitalist model. The survey adds to the current literature by providing a measure that allows direct comparisons between PCP and hospitalist background, practices, and attitudes. The survey also emphasizes the working relationship of PCPs and hospitalists and how they jointly manage patients (e.g., communication patterns, hand-off practices, system barriers and facilitators). Comparative analyses of PCP and hospitalist responses were conducted, indicting several areas warranting further investigation with a large sample.