TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK

A physician who provides long-term, comprehensive care in the office and the hospital, managing both common and complex illness of adolescents, adults and the elderly. Internists are trained in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, infections and diseases affecting the heart, blood, kidneys, joints and digestive, respiratory and vascular systems. They are also trained in the essentials of primary care internal medicine, which incorporates an understanding of disease prevention, wellness, substance abuse, mental health and effective treatment of common problems of the eyes, ears, skin, nervous system and reproductive organs.

An allergist-immunologist is trained in evaluation, physical and laboratory diagnosis, and management of disorders involving the immune system. Selected examples of such conditions include asthma, anaphylaxis, rhinitis, eczema, and adverse reactions to drugs, foods, and insect stings as well as immune deficiency diseases (both acquired and congenital), defects in host defense, and problems related to autoimmune disease, organ transplantation, or malignancies of the immune system.

A physician assistant is a person who has successfully completed an accredited education program for physician assistant, is licensed by the state and is practicing within the scope of that license. Physician assistants are formally trained to perform many of the routine, time-consuming tasks a physician can do. In some states, they may prescribe medications. They take medical histories, perform physical exams, order lab tests and x-rays, and give inoculations. Most states require that they work under the supervision of a physician.

Hospitalists are physicians whose primary professional focus is the general medical care of hospitalized patients. Their activities include patient care, teaching, research, and leadership related to Hospital Medicine. The term 'hospitalist' refers to physicians whose practice emphasizes providing care for hospitalized patients.

(1) A registered nurse provider with a graduate degree in nursing prepared for advanced practice involving independent and interdependent decision making and direct accountability for clinical judgment across the health care continuum or in a certified specialty. (2) A registered nurse who has completed additional training beyond basic nursing education and who provides primary health care services in accordance with state nurse practice laws or statutes. Tasks performed by nurse practitioners vary with practice requirements mandated by geographic, political, economic, and social factors. Nurse practitioner specialists include, but are not limited to, family nurse practitioners, gerontological nurse practitioners, pediatric nurse practitioners, obstetric-gynecologic nurse practitioners, and school nurse practitioners.

A Registered Dietitian (RD)/Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) is an individual uniquely trained in the science of nutrition and practice of dietetics to design and provide medical nutrition therapy (MNT) and other evidence-based applications of the Nutrition Care Process (NCP) that exemplify the profession's systematic approach to providing high quality nutrition care. Registered dietitians provide MNT for the purpose of disease prevention or management, or to treat or rehabilitate an illness, injury, or condition, with the use of specific, indicated physical and cognitive nutrition care services comprised of one or more of the following aspects of the NCP: nutrition assessment/reassessment, nutrition diagnosis, nutrition intervention (e.g., nutrition counseling, therapeutic diet ordering, and nutrition education) and nutrition monitoring and evaluation.

Family Medicine is the medical specialty which is concerned with the total health care of the individual and the family. It is the specialty in breadth which integrates the biological, clinical, and behavioral sciences. The scope of family medicine is not limited by age, sex, organ system, or disease entity.

A nuclear medicine specialist employs the properties of radioactive atoms and molecules in the diagnosis and treatment of disease and in research. Radiation detection and imaging instrument systems are used to detect disease as it changes the function and metabolism of normal cells, tissues and organs. A wide variety of diseases can be found in this way, usually before the structure of the organ involved by the disease can be seen to be abnormal by any other techniques. Early detection of coronary artery disease (including acute heart attack), early cancer detection and evaluation of the effect of tumor treatment, diagnosis of infection and inflammation anywhere in the body and early detection of blood clot in the lungs are all possible with these techniques. Unique forms of radioactive molecules can attack and kill cancer cells (e.g., lymphoma, thyroid cancer) or can relieve the severe pain of cancer that has spread to bone

Source: NUCC, CMS