Background: Many pediatric hospitalist programs in community hospitals around the country function with a 24-hour shift model for 24/7 coverage. This creates significant discontinuity and daily inefficiencies in patient care. Furthermore, there is a robust amount of adult literature that points to the benefits of both inpatient and outpatient continuity of care. When our community [...]

Background: There is a population of patients who visit Emergency Department (ED) frequently and this has become a challenge for the health-care system. A small proportion, four percent of ED patients, could constitute up to 20% of ED visits (1-3).Interdisciplinary approach of care management is the most widely evaluated and single-point-of contact (4).We conducted a [...]

Background: When a patient with cancer or terminal illness is hospitalized, they may benefit from the input of their outpatient, primary oncologist or palliative care provider to inform key decisions. As most oncologists’ and ambulatory palliative care clinics are based outside the hospital, these conversations often happen via unreimbursed phone conversations, making it difficult to [...]

Background: Our experience developing the Comprehensive Care Physician (CCP) program within the Section of Hospital Medicine at the University of Chicago has illustrated the value of relational continuity in the care of patients with complex medical needs. For patients with increased risk of hospitalization and who are willing to find a new primary care physician, [...]

Background: Emergency room crowding has been proven to lead to poor outcomes (e.g., mortality) and has worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. Novel clinics that work collaboratively with emergency departments (ED) to transfer lower acuity patients to receive care in ambulatory settings rather than the ED have emerged. Our innovative ED Surge program cares for these [...]