title: The practice patterns of recently graduated internal medicine-pediatric hospitalists.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To identify the current practice patterns and professional activities of internal medicine-pediatrics (med-peds) hospitalists who have graduated in the past 5 years (June 2009-June 2013).
  
  
  METHODS
  The national Medicine-Pediatrics Program Directors Association (MPPDA) conducted a cross-sectional survey study of the 79 residency program directors who are members of the MPPDA regarding the practice patterns of recent graduates (from 2009-2013) currently practicing as hospitalists. The survey was distributed in the spring of 2014 on the MPPDA listserv. The survey inquired about time spent caring for hospitalized adults and children, medical school appointments, practice in freestanding children's hospitals, and completion of hospital medicine (HM) fellowships.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Forty-nine program directors (62%) completed the survey and provided data on 1042 graduates from 46 programs. Of those graduates, 26.4% (n=275) practice as hospitalists, and none had completed an HM fellowship. Approximately two-thirds (65%) of med-peds hospitalists provide care to hospitalized children and adults, with one-third providing care solely to hospitalized adults. Approximately one-half (53.5%) have an appointment with a medical school and roughly one-quarter (28%) practice in a freestanding children's hospital.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An increasing percentage of recent med-peds graduates are pursuing careers in HM, and two-thirds are providing care to hospitalized children. As consideration for an accredited pediatric HM fellowship continues, certifying and accrediting bodies should consider how this will impact the med-peds workforce and allow med-peds graduates flexibility in their training requirements that will permit them to acquire the necessary skills to care for hospitalized children and adults.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Division of Hospital Medicine, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center/University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio; Jennifer.otoole@cchmc.org.
authors.forename: Jennifer K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: O'Toole
authors.affiliation: Departments of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Christiana Care Health System, Wilmington, Delaware;
authors.forename: Allen R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Friedland
authors.affiliation: Departments of Pediatrics and Internal Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;
authors.forename: Alda Maria R
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Gonzaga
authors.affiliation: Divisions of General Internal Medicine and General Pediatrics, University of Alabama School of Medicine, Birmingham, Alabama;
authors.forename: Jason R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Hartig
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Section of Hospital Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, The Ohio State University College of Medicine/Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio;
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Holliday
authors.affiliation: Departments of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbor, Michigan;
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lukela
authors.affiliation: Departments of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee; and.
authors.forename: Sandra A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Moutsios
authors.affiliation: Department of Med-Peds, Greenville Health System/University of South Carolina Greenville, Greenville, South Carolina.
authors.forename: Russ
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kolarik
mesh_terms: D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D019538:Health Care Surveys / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D020445:Hospitalists / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007388:Internal Medicine / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010372:Pediatrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*