Hospitalist Care
Authors: Tariq Shafi
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2003)

Letters21 October 2003Hospitalist CareTariq Shafi, MDTariq Shafi, MDFrom Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI 48201.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-139-8-200310210-00020 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:The 2 articles on academic hospitalist practices (1, 2) concluded that hospitalist services reduced cost. However, a detailed description of what is meant by cost per case is lacking. This precludes meaningful interpretation of cost reduction and comparison of cost-saving with previously reported studies.Each health care system uses different algorithms, sometimes arbitrary, to tally costs and assign them to individual patients (3, 4). Because physicians have little impact on certain aspects of the total cost, failure to analyze these components may overestimate or underestimate the effectiveness of a hospitalist system. The total cost of hospitalization is ...References1. Auerbach AD, Wachter RM, Katz P, Showstack J, Baron RB, Goldman L. Implementation of a voluntary hospitalist service at a community teaching hospital: improved clinical efficiency and patient outcomes. Ann Intern Med. 2002;137:859-65. [PMID: 12458985] LinkGoogle Scholar2. Meltzer D, Manning WG, Morrison J, Shah MN, Jin L, Guth T, . Effects of physician experience on costs and outcomes on an academic general medicine service: results of a trial of hospitalists. Ann Intern Med. 2002;137:866-74. [PMID: 12458986] LinkGoogle Scholar3. Taheri PA, Butz DA, Greenfield LJ. Length of stay has minimal impact on the cost of hospital admission. J Am Coll Surg. 2000;191:123-30. [PMID: 10945354] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Roberts RR, Frutos PW, Ciavarella GG, Gussow LM, Mensah EK, Kampe LM, . Distribution of variable vs fixed costs of hospital care. JAMA. 1999;281:644-9. [PMID: 10029127] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Cleverley WO. 1997 Essentials of Health Care Finance. 4th ed. Aspen Gaithersburg, MD. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI 48201. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoImplementation of a Voluntary Hospitalist Service at a Community Teaching Hospital: Improved Clinical Efficiency and Patient Outcomes Andrew D. Auerbach , Robert M. Wachter , Patricia Katz , Jonathan Showstack , Robert B. Baron , and Lee Goldman Effects of Physician Experience on Costs and Outcomes on an Academic General Medicine Service: Results of a Trial of Hospitalists David Meltzer , Willard G. Manning , Jeanette Morrison , Manish N. Shah , Lei Jin , Todd Guth , and Wendy Levinson Hospitalist Care Jerome S. Tannenbaum Hospitalist Care William Rifkin , Brad Flansbaum , and Steven Walerstein Hospitalist Care Jonathan P. Whitney Metrics 21 October 2003Volume 139, Issue 8Page: 703KeywordsAlgorithmsDiagnostic radiologyForecastingHealth careHospitalistsHospitalizationsInpatientsLaboratory tests ePublished: 21 October 2003 Issue Published: 21 October 2003 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2003 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...