Census of Ligurian Internal Medicine Wards of non-teaching hospitals

What is the future of internal medicine in Italy? Which competencies? Which potentialities? To this aim Ligurian FADOI Regional Society performed a census among 18 Internal Medicine Wards (IMWs) in non-teaching Ligurian Hospital. We administered, by email, a questionnaire to the heads of IMWs. Data about staffing, equipment, skills, competencies and productivity during 2011 were collected from 1^st to 31^st November 2012. A total of 15/18 (83.3%) chiefs answered to the questionnaire. The number of beds was largely variable among the wards. In 2011, mean diagnosis-related group (DRG)-weight was 1.09 (range 0.91-1.6) and that revenues/costs ratio much higher than 1.5. Staff was quite adequate to standards defined by current law, only 33% has got a doctor:patients ratio superior to 1:6.4. However, annual hospitalizations exceed the availability of beds in medicine and the complexity of the patients would require a lower doctor:patients ratio, at least for a group of patients. In fact, 4 wards have a progressive care organization with a defined area for more seriously ill patients. Mean length of stay was 10 days. Expertise was wide, covering almost all medical sub-specialties. Acquired skills such as abdominal, heart and vascular ultrasounds, invasive procedures and their comprehensive knowledge make internists complete and cost-effective specialists. IMWs, as a concentrate of medical knowledge and skills, are the natural destination of current patients with co-morbidities. Staffing and number of beds should be revised according to this new demand. Their revenues/costs ratio resulted favorable and their global approach to patients and not to disease can be useful for resource rationalization. Wider and further studies are needed to improve the awareness of stakeholders about Internal Medicine.