Hospitalists at Washakie Medical Center
What is a Hospitalist?
Hospitalists are physicians who are responsible for a patient’s care and treatment during their stay in the hospital. They begin caring for you at admission and continue that care all the way to discharge.They coordinate communication between all of the physicians involved in your care. They also order tests and procedures.
All of Banner Health’s hospitalist physicians are board certified or board eligible in their respective specialties, such as Internal Medicine, Family Medicine or Geriatrics. Once you are discharged, your care is overseen by your primary care doctor.
What benefits do hospitalists offer patients?
A hospitalist is always close by. They are available seven days a week, 24-hours a day, and will see a patient more than once a day, if needed. By being readily available, hospitalists can review the progress of a patient’s care more frequently and make decisions to ensure treatment is not delayed.
Additionally, because our hospitalists practice medicine within the halls of the hospital, they know the specialists and departments who can patients through a smooth and speedy recovery process. They can also follow up on tests and adjust treatment throughout the day based on test results or changes in condition or progress.
Patient communication — personal interaction
Hospitalists, because they are in the hospital all day, look for opportunities to speak with patients and family members face-to-face whenever possible. Hospitalizations are stressful and hospitalists provide honest and caring answers to patients’ questions. Hospitalists understand that good communication about care and treatment options is essential.
Where does my primary care doctor fit in?
Primary care doctors refer patients to a hospitalist when a patient can no longer be cared for in an outpatient setting and that patient requires inpatient hospitalization. Following discharge from the hospital, each patient will return to the care of his/her regular, primary care physician.