What is a community-based hospital?

[Padfoot]

---

Members don't see this ad.

I've tried researching this, but the definitions are vague. When med schools talk about how their students can experience a variety of healthcare settings, such as suburban community-based hospitals as well as hospitals in the big city, what does community-based really mean? What do med students see there that they wouldn't see in an urban area? Do large cities not have community-based hospitals?

 

[Mansamusa]

From wiki: "In the United States, hospitals that are not part of a university, a health system or a chain of private hospitals are often called "community hospitals'"

Your profile says that you are in Hartford, so a community hospital would be like Milford Hospital vs an academic hospital like Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Edit: In regards to medical school, my impression is that community-based means less/or no research activity at those hospitals and less "famous" names for residency LORs. But it is good to get exposure to both community-based and academic hospitals so you can figure out the setting you want to practice in when you are an attending

 

[Law2Doc]

But maybe more hands on and more bread and butter stuff. Some people feel you come out of a community hospital a better technician but maybe won't have seen enough zebras.

 

[Rainbow Zebra]

From wiki: "In the United States, hospitals that are not part of a university, a health system or a chain of private hospitals are often called "community hospitals'"

Your profile says that you are in Hartford, so a community hospital would be like Milford Hospital vs an academic hospital like Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Edit: In regards to medical school, my impression is that community-based means less/or no research activity at those hospitals and less "famous" names for residency LORs. But it is good to get exposure to both community-based and academic hospitals so you can figure out the setting you want to practice in when you are an attending

Nice explanation. COmmunity hospitals tend not to be Level 1 Trauma Centers, don't have speciality units (like Burn units, transplant) and may not have speciality Peds. But they due more routine stuff like Cardiac Procedures, Hip and Knee Replacements, Nice OB centers, Gen Surgery, Rad Onc.

I live in Ann Arbor, the U of Michigan is a Big academic Medical Center with all the bells and whistles as a quandary care center. I work at St. Joes, our local community hospital as an ED Scribe, and they have a Level 2 trauma center, but only have a small general peds unit, and no big time specialty services, and only Gen. surgery, OB/Gyn, ED and IM residency slots. Any serious child illness goes to U of Michigan or Childrens' Hospital in Detroit. Hope that helps explain it.

 

[Padfoot]

From wiki: "In the United States, hospitals that are not part of a university, a health system or a chain of private hospitals are often called "community hospitals'"

Your profile says that you are in Hartford, so a community hospital would be like Milford Hospital vs an academic hospital like Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Edit: In regards to medical school, my impression is that community-based means less/or no research activity at those hospitals and less "famous" names for residency LORs. But it is good to get exposure to both community-based and academic hospitals so you can figure out the setting you want to practice in when you are an attending

Are community-based hospitals more committed to helping their communities compared to academic hospitals?

 

[WedgeDawg]

Are community hospitals more


Are community-based hospitals more committed to helping their communities compared to academic hospitals?

Not necessarily. There are several (many?) academic centers in underserved areas.

 

[Cyberdyne 101]

In the past, I've used the terms "county hospital" and "community hospital" interchangeably. I guess it was wrong to do so...

 

[Danbo1957]

There are complex issues defining hospitals, whether they have teaching programs or not. Community also means just that, a non-academic hospital that serves a specific community. Almost all small to medium sized cities, and large cities, have a hospital that serves the local population with basic medical services. There is a mid-sized to large community hospital called a "regional" hospital which serves a larger area, say an eleven county semi-rural area, where all the counties support it financially.

But as mentioned above, any hospital that is not owned and/or run by a medical school can be considered community by definition.

 

[Law2Doc]

Are community-based hospitals more committed to helping their communities compared to academic hospitals?

No.

 

[Padfoot]

No.

Well, what are some of the positive aspects of being in a community hospital?

 

[WedgeDawg]

Well, what are some of the positive aspects of being in a community hospital?

More bread and butter cases, don't have to teach anyone, get paid a lot more, don't have to vie for tenure or anything like that, more streamlined administration (generally), less "intense" environment sometimes.

Of course, depending on what you're looking for, a lot of these can be negatives.