The operations hospitalist: Physician operational stewardship of inpatient capacity and access

Inpatient capacity and access are shaped by daily decisions about hospitalization necessity, discharge readiness, and barrier resolution, yet responsibility for patient progression is often fragmented. We developed an operations hospitalist (Ops) role to provide dedicated physician operational stewardship of inpatient progression, capacity use, and access. The model reframed length of stay (LOS) as a patient safety and access metric, organized structured daily review around the question of why each patient required another hospital day, and paired accountability with barrier resolution. Implementation was associated with improved throughput and access while maintaining readmission and mortality performance.