When Dr. Bishal Rawal entered his residency training at The Jewish Hospital in Cincinnati he chose a relatively new and quickly growing area of medicine. His specialty is that of ?Hospitalist? and works exclusively at Union Hospital, managing the care of patients throughout their hospital stay.
Dr. Rawal, along with Dr. Jabr Hadid, are the first two Hospitalists to practice at Union Hospital. Dr. Hadid completed a Hospitalist residency at the Canton Medical Education Foundation.
Hospitalist physician, Bishal B. Rawal, M.D. (left)
meets with Tricia Langdon, RN, patient care coordinator.
The hospitalist program was organized by Dr. Thomas Kelly, vice president of medical affairs, and Karen Pica, director of physician services and recruitment.
?Changes in how physicians run their practice and increasing numbers of patients who don?t have a family doctor are two of the major reasons we started a hospitalist program,? Pica said.
Dr. Rawal and Dr. Hadid are responsible for the care of patients in the hospital who do not have a family doctor at the time of their admission. Pica says the hospitalists manage the patient?s diagnosis and care, consult with specialists as needed, order testing and treatments, and help the patient make a connection with a primary care doctor for followup care after discharge.
As a hospitalist physician Jabr E. Hadid, M.D. (right)
works only at the hospital, caring for his patients,
answering their questions, and meeting with the patient?s
family to discuss their treatment progress.
?Some primary care doctors no longer make rounds on their patients in the hospital, and will increasingly depend on the hospitalists to provide the inpatient care,? Pica said.
In those cases, Pica says the Hospitalist works in close cooperation with the patient?s family doctor. Medical histories, treatment records, and other important information about the patient are made available to the hospitalist. From time of admission through discharge, the hospitalist will communicate with the primary care doctor, call in any needed consulting physicians, and provide a detailed report to the patient?s doctor after discharge.
Dr. Kelly says patients and their family members can expect the same type of quality care in the hospital they would have received from their own doctor.
?One benefit for the patient is the fact that the Hospitalist does not have a busy office practice responsibility in addition to hospital rounds,? Kelly said. ?The hospitalist will be more accessible to talk with the patient and family members at convenient times.?
Dr. Kelly says the family doctors and other primary care physicians have been very supportive of the Hospitalist program which has been in operation since July.
?In our first few months our hospitalist program is earning the praise of our nurses, the medical staff, and most importantly, our patients,? Kelly said. ?Patients appreciate the good care and accessibility the hospitalists provide.?
November 2009
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