Hospitalist Expert Witnesses
The expertise you need in cases involving hospital negligence
Hospital medicine in the United States is the discipline concerned with the medical care of acutely ill hospitalized patients. Physicians whose primary professional focus is hospital medicine are called hospitalists. Hospitalists manage patients' medical conditions, order tests and procedures, prescribe medications, and communicate with primary care physicians and other providers.
Becoming a hospitalist typically requires completing a residency program in internal medicine, family medicine, or pediatrics, followed by a fellowship in hospital medicine which provides additional training and expertise in the care of hospitalized patients. Hospitalists can seek Board Certification through the American Board of Hospital Medicine (ABHM).
Hospitalists function as transition coordinators and case managers in hospital settings. In addition to patient care, they often develop and manage hospital operations and oversee quality improvement initiatives. As such, they can offer professional opinions on individual patient care and the broader operations of a hospital.
What is hospitalist malpractice?
Because hospitalists work with acutely ill or injured patients at a hospital level of care, following standards of care to protect the patient’s health is critical. Some examples of hospitalist malpractice include:
- Failure to follow standards of care in diagnosis or triage decisions.
- Failure to communicate effectively with specialists, primary care providers, or patients.
- Prescribing incorrect medications or failing to monitor patients for drug interactions.
The hospitalist as an expert witness
Hospitalists may be valuable expert witnesses in all medical malpractice cases involving hospital negligence, including emergency medicine, critical care medicine, and long-term hospital care. A hospitalist can help establish the standard of care that should have been provided to a patient in a hospital setting and provide an expert opinion on whether the standard of care was met. Hospitalists can also evaluate medical records or offer an opinion on whether a patient’s injury or illness was caused by hospital care.
A hospitalist's expert testimony can be invaluable when dealing with a legal case involving a hospital’s negligence. Our network includes experienced, Board-Certified hospitalists who are prepared to offer objective testimony in depositions and at trial. Contact us today for a free case summary review.