3-8.
THE HOSPITAL STAFF
a. The Medical Staff. The medical staff of a hospital consists of the physicians,
interns, residents, and physician assistants.
b. The Executive Board (Civilian) vs. the Executive Staff (Military). The
term executive board pertains to civilian hospitals. The executive board is a body that
establishes policies, sets goals, makes financial plans, and hires the hospital director or
administrator. In the military, the executive staff would constitute the military
counterpart to a civilian hospital's executive board.
c. The Role of the Executive Board (Civilian). Not all physicians in a civilian
hospital are practicing members of the hospital. Thus, one of the responsibilities of the
executive board of a civilian hospital is to extend rights and privileges to nonmember
physicians to practice in the hospital. This ensures that there will be enough specialists
to support the hospital in its mission. Another important responsibility is to organize the
staff to cooperate in making the rules that govern their respective activities. The rules
may relate to standards of care, medical records, restrictions on patients and/or staff,
and so forth. Whatever the rules pertain to, they must promote a smooth
interrelationship among the various departments of the hospital.
3-9.
HOSPITAL DEPARTMENTS
a. Credentials of the Department Head and Other Personnel. Generally,
each department within a treatment facility will have a supervisor whose education and
expertise relate directly to their particular area of responsibility. For example, the
pharmacy department will usually have a registered pharmacist as its department head,
the radiology department will have a board certified radiologist, and so forth. The
personnel in each department are specifically trained for work within that department.
Thus radiological technologists (X-ray specialists) are trained in radiological imaging,
pharmacy specialists are trained in an area of pharmacy, and so forth.
b. Direct Patient Care. Some departments, such as the nursing department
meet patient needs directly.
c. Diagnostic Services. Other departments, such as the medical laboratory
and radiology departments, provide diagnostic services.
d. Therapeutic Services. Still others, such as the physical therapy,
occupational therapy, and radiation therapy departments, provide therapeutic services.
(Thus, the radiology department provides both diagnostic and therapeutic services for
patients.)
e. Administrative and Support Services. All departments need administrative
and/or support services, such as medical records, the comptroller, supply,
housekeeping, laundry, medical library, personnel, and so forth.
MD0064
3-4