The Musculo-Skeletal System as an Emerging Specialty Focus,

The New York Times on April 22, 2008, featured a full page advertisement for the Hospital for Special Surgery. The motto for the hospital, as seen in this ad, is "Specialists in Mobility." Also, according to the ad, the Hospital for Special Surgery is a "world leader in musculoskeletal research, linking laboratory science to state of the art clinical procedures." This caught my attention and caused me to think about the topic of specialized hospitals (see: Cardiology Morphs into Cardiovascular Medicine).

It's commonplace for various organ systems or patient categories to form the basis of a specialty practice in medicine. Think cardiovascular medicine, gastroenterology, pediatrics, and obstetrics/gynecology. Also increasingly common, as in the case of cardiovascular medicine, has been the development of specialized hospitals that offer both inpatient and outpatient care in that specialty area. These trend has evoked the ire of the execs of general hospitals by siphoning off many of the high-margin cases.

I find that the blending of orthopedics and rheumatology in a specialized hospital, as exemplified by HSS, to be interesting and relatively unique. First of all, it cuts across several medical specialty boundaries, including internal medicine, orthopedic surgery, and sports medicine. In this regard, such hospitals are analogous to multidisciplinary cancer centers. The hospital's research program is also cross-disciplinary, focusing on rheumatoid arthritis, autoimmune disease, and the design and testing of joint prostheses.

I am wondering whether we will see the development of other specialty hospitals and centers for, say, gastrointestinal or respiratory diseases in addition to the current major current examples of cancer, cardiovascular, children's, and women's hospitals/centers. In the case of the musculoskeletal orientation of HSS, one gets the impression that the orthopedic surgical procedures pay the rent and autoimmune diseases attract affluent donors to support the research programs. Good synergy.

Comments

[novasuresystem]

Amazing Site! i have got lot of information by going through your site.I to think that we will see the development of specialty hospitals and centers for gastrointestinal or respiratory diseases in a short time.