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Entering The Hospital Through The Front Door -- Elective Admission

Confirm The Identity Of Your In Hospital "Point Person"

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On any given day you may speak with specialists, a surgeon, anesthesiologist, and a changing casts of interns and residents.  There should be one doctor who coordinates your care to:

  • Help to prevent overlapping orders.
  • Conflicting information.
  • Things falling through the cracks.
  • Provide one person who has an overview of what is happening for you and your advocate to speak with should you have questions or concerns.

Typically your admitting / attending physician is on record at the hospital as being in charge of your care.  Depending on your condition, your admitting doctor may be your surgeon, oncologist, cardiologist, infectious disease specialist, etc. The person may also be a hospitalist - a doctor who specializes in in-hospital care.

After you have been assigned a room, confirm with your nurse the name, and contact information of your "point person." It's preferable if you can contact the doctor directly if necessary. Even if you have to leave a message with the doctor's service, you'll feel more in control than asking a nurse to contact the doctor for you and waiting for the result.

Residents and interns can be helpful in your care.  They are in the hospital to gain practical experience and expertise.  They can assist physicians in providing patient care when the attending physician is not present.  However, if you feel that any intern or resident is not up to proper standards, you have a right to ask that they be removed from your case.  If an intern or a resident is to perform a procedure ask how many times they have done it.  If it seems too few ask for someone with more experience. (You may learn that the number which seemed small, is actually a lot of experience for a particular situation. You won't know until you ask.) 


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