Bronson Hospitalist Service Renamed Bronson Internal Medicine Hospital Specialists

KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Effective July 1, 2007, Bronson Hospitalist Service changed its name to Bronson Internal Medicine Hospital Specialists. There will not be any changes in services or staff.

Hospitalists are board certified internal medicine physicians who are experts in inpatient care. And they're at Bronson around the clock to communicate with patients and families.

The new name is intended to make it easier for patients and the community to understand the role of these healthcare providers. Many people do not understand the term “hospitalist,” so nationally, healthcare organizations are moving away from using the term.

Bronson Internal Medicine Hospital Specialists reflects that fact that all physicians and mid-levels (PA-C’s) in that practice have internal medicine as their specialty. There are 17 physicians and four certified physician assistants with Bronson Hospitalist Service. Dr. Hussein Akl serves as medical director. The practice, at 601 John St. in Kalamazoo, can be reached at (269) 341-8481.

About Bronson Methodist Hospital

Bronson Methodist Hospital, located at 601 John St. in downtown Kalamazoo, Mich., is the flagship of Bronson Healthcare Group, a not-for-profit healthcare system serving all of southwest Michigan and northern Indiana. With 343 licensed beds and all private rooms, Bronson Methodist Hospital provides care in virtually every specialty—cardiology, orthopedics, surgery, emergency medicine, neurology, oncology—with advanced capabilities in critical care as a Level I Trauma Center; in neurological care as a JCAHO certified Primary Stroke Center; in cardiac care as the region’s only accredited Chest Pain Center; in obstetrics as the leading BirthPlace and only high-risk pregnancy center in southwest Michigan, and in pediatrics as one of only four children's hospitals in the state. The hospital is the recipient of the 2005 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation's highest presidential honor for quality and organizational performance excellence, and was named one of the nation's 100 Top Hospitals for 2005 by Solucient.

Bronson Healthcare Group is one of Kalamazoo’s largest employers. For four consecutive years, it has been ranked by Working Mother magazine and for three straight years by FORTUNE as one of the nation’s 100 best companies to work for. With a workforce of more than 4,100, Bronson makes a significant contribution to the local economy. Annually, Bronson provides more than $48 million in community benefits through outreach and charitable care for the un- and under-insured. Bronson also serves the largest percentage of Medicaid patients of any Michigan hospital outside of the Detroit area.

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