Internal medicine

The specialty of the internal medicine department lies in systemic diseases, meaning those that can affect multiple organs simultaneously. These diseases can be inflammatory in nature, often autoimmune (caused by antibodies directed against specific organs). Examples include systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjögren's syndrome, scleroderma, polymyositis, sarcoidosis, mastocytosis, histiocytoses, and vasculitis (such as giant cell arteritis, granulomatosis, etc.).

These are mostly chronic illnesses requiring regular monitoring within the department, in collaboration with the patient's primary care physician and organ specialist(s) (for example, cardiologist, pulmonologist, dermatologist, ophthalmologist, etc., depending on the organs affected). The department synthesizes these often complex cases and coordinates care.

The service is labeled "Center of Expertise for Rare Diseases and Systemic and Autoimmune Diseases, Immune Deficiencies and Hereditary Angioedema" : it works in close collaboration with the various national reference centers to offer the patient the best care, adapted to the most current knowledge.

At the request of the attending physician or specialist, the department receives patients for consultation and/or hospitalization whose illness has not yet been identified despite various investigations. Laboratory and imaging tests, responses to administered treatments, and clinical examination data are all pieces of a puzzle that must be considered together to reach a diagnosis. In this capacity, the department provides evaluations for persistent fever, weight loss, phlebitis, or recurrent pulmonary embolism .

A significant part of the department's activity concerns patients admitted to the medical emergency department for reasons as diverse as malaise, anemia, infection, phlebitis, stroke, cancer... Internal Medicine takes care of these patients in their entirety, particularly when several associated pathologies make things complex.

The conditions for the proper care of these patients are also taught to students.

Note:
For more information on the specialty of internal medicine, please visit: www.snfmi.org

The clinical activity of the "Department of Internal Medicine and Clinical Immunology" is focused on two main areas: consultation and hospitalization

Hospitalization in the department takes place according to four modalities:

• by direct admission at the request of the attending physician after agreement from the medical team,
• after prior consultation with a doctor in the department,
• after admission to the Emergency Reception and Treatment Department (DATU) of the University Hospital,
• by transfer from another department or establishment.

This hospitalization follows the traditional model. TheHPDD (Psychiatric Hospitalization and Diagnosis Unit) can meet the needs for further investigation in various pathological situations. It provides valuable time for establishing a diagnosis and takes into account the need to control healthcare costs.

Day Hospitalization (DH) primarily allows for the periodic administration of various intravenous treatments such as immunosuppressants, immunoglobulins, transfusions and infusions of coagulation factors.

During their visits, doctors interview and examine patients. They meet, by appointment, with the family of the patient who requests it.

Consultations are the second^major focus of the service: four full-time doctors provide consultations throughout the week. These consultations are open to all patients, preferably referred by their primary care physician or another specialist.

In addition to hospitalization and consultations, the service provides a telephone hotline 6 days a week for all doctors in the Lower Normandy region.