Why Working in a Small Hospital Can Be More Rewarding Than You Think

The responsibility of caring for and helping patients can be one of the most gratifying parts of being a hospitalist. No matter what type of facility you work in, you have made a commitment to work together with a unit of people who truly want to make a difference. That rewarding feeling though can sometimes get buried depending on the size and bureaucracy of the organization you work for. Depending on the magnitude of the communication and cohesive nature of your team, you may feel like your successes get lost in the shuffle of the everyday hustle and bustle.

According to The Hospitalist, there are many advantages to working for “rural or small hospitals.” Sure, they may have their own challenges such as staffing shortages and retention, however, smaller hospitals tend to have stronger teams that connect and work together with one another often better than in larger health care organizations. Additionally, the bond between nurses, doctors, and medical professionals tends to be supreme. Usually, smaller hospitals have lower patient volumes and are more diverse, with opportunities to practice a considerable range of services.

Physician hospitalists who work in smaller care settings are generally more autonomous and practice in more than one specialty. If there is a disaster or critical situation at hand, hospitalists in these settings have no choice but to get hands on, even if they do not posses expertise experience in the matter at hand. Luckily with smaller communities, hospitalists can call on colleagues within the field they are practicing asking for backup or second opinions. The “drink from the fire hose” approach can of course be stressful at times, but in the end can help hospitalists become more experienced and confident in their treatment long-term.

What is So Rewarding About a Smaller Hospital?

• A small facility can foster a feeling of family
• Patients and staff develop unique relationships
• Hands-on learning opportunities arise frequently
• Greater access to executives and decision makers is generally available
• More affordable cost of living versus in urban cities
• Opportunities to:
  • Multitask help build broad skills and endurance
  • Be a key decision maker in processes and procedures
  • Provide both general and emergency care
  • Provide underserved populations in rural areas that might not otherwise have access to quality health care facilities
  • Work on multiple roles and projects simultaneously
  • Have a direct impact on the hyperlocal economy
  • Work on long-term preventative care, rather than just short-term treatment
  • Experiment with new models of patient care
  • Provide lower-cost health care services to patients

Hospitalists may want to consider working in a small hospital during their tenure, as it provides experiences that may not otherwise be cultivated.

While it’s important to note that working for a larger hospital system has many advantages, community hospitals have many benefits that may work well for some more than others. Whether you start at a larger health care organization and move to a smaller one, and bring expertise with you, or you begin at a community hospital and later bring your knowhow to a larger hospital, the knowledge gained will be invaluable.

Learn More About Advanced Care Hospitalists (ACH)

ACH is a Lakeland-based hospitalist group providing comprehensive patient care in community hospitals across Central Florida. Our providers are highly skilled, board-certified internal medicine specialists who are available around-the-clock to meet the care needs of patients from hospital admission through discharge. Post-discharge from the hospital, we continue overseeing patient care for 30 days.

We’ve found that continued care coordination ensures more accurate medication reconciliation, improved compliance with discharge plans, better scheduling of follow-up visits, and fewer hospital readmissions. Our providers do everything in their power to make sure our patients receive the compassionate and comprehensive care they need to promote healing and prevent a second hospital admission.

For more information about our services and our practice, please contact Advanced Care Hospitalists at 863-816-5884 or fill out a contact form online.