The system might work if there was real cooperation and communication between the hospitalists and the patient's primary care provider (PCP). Unfortunately, in the hospitals in my area, the hospitalists refuse to consult with the patient's PCP. Because of this, I experienced a series of nightmare experiences when I was hospitalized recently for influenza and pneumonia. The admissions test results sent the hospitalist and one of the specialists whom he brought in on a wild-goose chase dealing with a problem that didn't exist in the first place. In my opinion, the hospitalist trend is the worst new idea in medicine since leeches and bloodletting.