There is no single organization for all Attending Physicians. A list of medical specialty societies can be found at the website of the Council of Medical Specialty Societies.
Mary Grace Zetkulic, MD, St. Peter’s University Hospital
Additional Review by Gerald P. Whelan, MD, ECFMG
Who is an Attending Physician?
Attending Physicians are the doctors who are responsible for supervising, teaching, and training interns, residents, fellows, and medical students. They are the “doctors in charge” of the residents and are ultimately responsible for all aspects of patient care. In some university hospitals, there are separate Teaching Attendings and Supervising Attendings. A Teaching Attending is a physician whose role is not directly related to patient care, but whose responsibility is to direct the learning of resident physicians. The Supervising Attending is the physician ultimately responsible for a patient’s care. In some settings, an Attending Physician fills both roles.
What does an Attending Physician do?
The Supervising Attending assumes primary care for the patient and has the legal and ethical responsibility for directing the care of the patient. He or she must see each patient every day, review treatment plans with their residents, and document his or her supervision of the patient’s management.
When doctors function in the role of a Teaching Attending only, they will round with the interns, residents, and students for bedside teaching. These Teaching Attendings are not necessarily directly responsible for direction of patient care.
What education, training, and experience must one have to function as an Attending Physician?
The Attending Physician must have completed an accredited residency program and usually will have obtained specialty board certification. Teaching Attendings often have additional fellowship training and usually have faculty appointments.
How and by whom is an Attending Physician supervised?
Attending Physicians are supervised in the hospital setting by the Chairs of their departments. They are also supervised by the Chairs of the medical schools where they have faculty appointments.
What are the typical day-to-day activities of an Attending Physician?
The schedules of Attending Physicians are very diverse, depending on the field of practice. In internal medicine, Attending Physicians may begin the day with morning report, reviewing cases recently admitted. They then may go to the hospital wards to conduct bedside teaching rounds or perform consultations. They may see patients in an outpatient site with residents and fellows. In addition, many Attendings spend some time doing clinical or basic science research.
Must an Attending Physician be licensed or certified to function in his or her role as part of a health care team?
To become an Attending Physician in the U.S. health care system, a physician must:
All Attending Physicians must be licensed to practice medicine. Licensure is a legal designation given by individual states. An Attending Physician may be licensed in one or more states; however, there is no national licensure, and licensure in one state is not necessarily transferable to another state.
Eligibility for specialty board certification is determined independently by each of the specialties of medicine (internal medicine, family medicine, general surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, etc.). Each specialty board determines its own minimal requirements of competency, including length of residency training and certification examination requirements.
How and when does an Attending Physician become involved in the care of a patient?
In the hospital setting, patients are assigned to an Attending Physician as soon as they are admitted. If the patient has an Attending Physician outside the hospital, and that physician has admitting privileges, then that physician will remain the patient’s primary physician. If not, an Attending Physician is assigned to the patient.
