BUSINESSDoctors find hospitalists save time, moneyPrimary care physicians are seeing that turning over their hospital business allows them to make more income.By Cheryl Jackson, amednews staff. Feb. 19, 2001. After initially resisting the idea of turning inpatient care over to hospital-based physicians, an increasing number of primary care physicians are hiring or collaborating with hospitalists. The reason: Those primary care physicians believe that using hospitalists allows them to see more patients at the office, which more than makes up for any revenue lost by not seeing their patients at the hospital. They also say continuity and quality of care are not problems with hospitalists, especially when the hospitalists and primary care physicians are affiliated with the same group. About 20% of American Academy of Family Physicians members use hospitalists, said board member Burton Dibble, MD. "The idea that you can be in the office seeing patients rather than being on the road is much more attractive," said Dr. Dibble, a family physician in solo practice in Kingston, N.H. A 1997 survey of the National Assn. of Inpatient Physicians found that medical groups were the largest employer, with 35% of hospitalists working for groups. That number has likely increased, said group president Robert Wachter, MD, who co-wrote a 1996 New England Journal of Medicine article that first coined the phrase "hospitalist." "Early on in the hospitalist movement, I would get calls from hospital CEOs asking me to come out and see if I could work with the medical groups to help them understand the potential of the hospitalist program," Dr. Wachter said, adding that today he is just as likely to hear from medical groups making inquiries themselves.
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Copyright 2001 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
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