Division of General Medicine

Extraordinary care for every patient, every day – this is our calling and our promise to our patients. In an increasingly complex healthcare landscape, The Division of General Medicine’s physicians are here to provide the following services to our patients:

• Primary Care
• Hospitalist Care
• Palliative Care

About the Hospital Medicine Program

BIDMC's Hospital Medicine Program is part of the Division of General Medicine. Our hospitalists work on the inpatient medical and surgical floors 24 hours a day at our Boston hospital and at several affiliated community hospitals. They work closely with patients, their family members, and other physicians, conducting patient evaluations, organizing family meetings, and coordinating patient care with specialists and surgeons when necessary.

About Palliative Care Services

Palliative Care Services is a branch of The Division of General Medicine aimed at improving the quality of life for patients living with serious and advanced illnesses. With the goal of addressing the physical symptoms and stress that can come with managing a life-limiting disease, our palliative care practitioners also provide emotional and spiritual support to patients and families, helping them make difficult decisions and coordinate care.

Our mission is to promote the delivery of extraordinary palliative care to all BIDMC patients with serious illness, which includes patient care, support and education for those who care for patients, scholarly work, and innovation.

Our vision is to enhance quality of life and provide support for all patients with serious illness and those who care for them by modeling exceptional clinical palliative care, scholarship, and advocacy.

Our values are:

• Compassion: We act with kindness, offering comfort and relief of suffering.
• Collaboration: We provide holistic care through a transdisciplinary approach.
• Dignity: We respect each individual’s personhood and unique perspective.
• Justice: We promote equitable care, opposing prejudice and celebrating diversity.
• Learning and Innovation: We embrace curiosity and creativity in delivering palliative care and educating our community.

At BIDMC's Division of General Medicine, we lead the nation in educational programs to train the next generation of exceptional physicians.

Educational Programs

The Division of General Medicine and Primary Care enjoys the opportunity to teach students, who bring to our learning community a high level of excellence expressed in a rich diversity of accomplishments, talents, interests, and backgrounds. Medical school students are eager to work with our faculty, who are well known for emphasizing clinical decision making, the patient-doctor relationship, the social context of health care, communication skills, and professionalism in their teaching encounters. Programs include:

• Primary Care Track Residency
• General Medicine Research Fellowship
• Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowships
• Botswana Global Health Fellowship
• Linde Fellowship in Primary Care

Internal Medicine Residency Education

BIDMC hospitalists hold dual appointments as staff in the Department of Medicine at BIDMC, and faculty members at Harvard Medical School (HMS). As such, the BIDMC hospitalists have assumed a major role in the education of the medical house staff and HMS students, who use BIDMC as one of their major teaching hospitals.

The hospitalists group, within the Hospital Medicine Program, is actively engaged in developing innovative medical curriculum, outcomes research, quality improvement and professional development.

The success of this approach is reflected in the nationwide growth of the academic hospitalist movement. The academic hospitalist is always on-site to provide expertise and supervision to continue education and professional development for the medical house staff, and as such are uniquely situated to become the Physician-Educator for the next generation of internists.

Teaching Awards & Honors

The Division of General Medicine faculty are frequent recipients of teaching awards and honors recognizing their extraordinary contributions to the fields of primary care medicine and medical education. 

Academic Presentations & Professional Leadership

Division faculty members are often called upon to share their knowledge, experiences, and insights at regional, national and international medical conferences. At the local level, the Shapiro Institute for Education and Research at BIDMC and Harvard Medical School frequently requests Division clinicians to lead faculty development seminars attended by staff from all HMS-affiliated institutions.

Since its inception more than 20 years ago, Division faculty have directed and taught in the HMS continuing medical education course in primary care, “Primary Care Internal Medicine: Principles and Practice.” In addition, Division faculty members are frequent speakers at the nationally recognized continuing medical education program, the Pri-Med Conference, co-directed annually by the Division's associate chief. The conference, which is sponsored by Harvard Medical School, provides valuable insight to clinicians on current primary care research, best practices and technology.

Many faculty present their work at the national meeting of the Society of General Internal Medicine, and several faculty hold key leadership roles within the Society. Division faculty present frequently at other professional meetings including the Society of Hospital Medicine (SHM), American College of Physicians and the American Medical Informatics Association. Division members are also asked to participate in international health initiatives and international medical conferences.

In the Division of General Medicine, all of our services are grounded and shaped by scientific research. Learn more about our research.