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Hospitalists decrease LOS and costs, says study

Case Management Weekly, August 18, 2004

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Patients cared for by hospitalists stayed, on average, one day less in the hospital than those who were cared for by nonhospitalist physicians, according to a recent study by the Iowa Department of Veteran Affairs and the University of Iowa. Hospitalists are general internal medicine physicians who serve as attending physicians for patients admitted to inpatient units. These patients don't usually require treatment in an ICU but need hospital care for conditions such as pneumonia, liver disease, heart failure, or diabetes complications. Patients who were primarily cared for by a hospitalist stayed an average of 5.5 days v. 6.5 days for those patients who had a nonhospitalist physician. Researchers also found that the use of hospitalists resulted in a 10% reduction in hospital costs.

Source: The American Journal of Managed Care, August 2004

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