Hospitalists' Involvement in Pediatrics Training: Perspectives From Pediatric Residency Program and Clerkship Directors

Purpose To explore the use and perceived impact of pediatric hospitalists as teaching attendings among pediatric residency and clerkship programs. Method Between November 2007 and February 2008, the authors conducted a mail-based survey of all pediatric residency program directors (170) and pediatric clerkship directors (131) in the United States as identified by the Association of Pediatric Program Directors and Council on Medical Student Education in Pediatrics. The surveys focused on the responsibilities of pediatric hospitalists in training programs and their perceived impact on the roles of pediatric residents and medical students. Results The response rate for residency directors was 86% (146/170) and 87% (114/131) for clerkship directors. One hundred thirteen (77%) residency programs and 91 (80%) clerkship programs used hospitalists as teaching attendings. Among these programs, 65% (73) of residency program directors and 64% (58) of clerkship directors reported that pediatric hospitalists are responsible for all general inpatient services. The majority of residency (76%, 84) and clerkship directors (71%, 64) reported that hospitalists are more accessible to trainees than traditional attendings. A minority of residency program directors (36%, 39) reported that use of hospitalists has decreased senior resident autonomy. Conclusions The role of hospitalists in resident and student education will likely continue to evolve over the next decade. Additional refinement of the roles and responsibilities of hospitalists will address lingering concerns in some programs about resident autonomy.