Clinical Component

Navigating the Clinical Component

A Practice Built on a Strong Referral Foundation and Efficient Workflow

Your clinical practice at Westover Hills Baptist Hospital is built on a deep referral base. Baptist Medical Network spans seven acute-care hospitals across greater San Antonio, organized into geographic pods that funnel cardiology referrals into the local team. This network-level structure is separate from, and additive to, the pod-based clinic design your practice uses internally for daily workflow. Together, the two layers feed your panel from day one.

Referral Base and Patient Flow

• 40+ primary care physicians referring directly into the Westover service area
• 80+ primary care physicians across the broader system
• Freestanding emergency department referrals
• Inbound transfers from rural outreach areas including Del Rio and El Paso
• Current appointment backlog of 46 to 80+ days signals immediate volume on day one
• The seven-hospital network and its pod-based feeder system support a healthy, sustainable patient base

Your Daily Practice

You'll work in a modern facility designed for efficient workflow. Approximately nine exam rooms operate within the pod-based clinic, with medical assistants handling intake, AI scribe technology supporting documentation, and echo and nuclear technologists onsite. The setup keeps you focused on patient care rather than administrative load.

A typical day blends clinic and hospital responsibilities:

• 80% clinic / 20% hospital for general cardiology
• Hybrid model with morning hospital rounds when assigned, then clinic in the afternoon
• Patient volume scales to physician preference and experience; new attendings are expected to ramp gradually, not start at full panel
• In-house diagnostics including echocardiography, nuclear stress testing, vascular studies, and treadmill stress tests
• Studies can be read in clinic, in hospital, or remotely from home
• EMR: Hospital uses Cerner, clinic uses Athena
• Mentorship and clinical ramp-up support for early-career cardiologists

Patient Population

You'll see a wide spectrum of cardiovascular conditions, from hypertension management to pre-operative clearance for orthopedic and other surgical patients. The west San Antonio population is growing fast and includes a significant Spanish-speaking patient base.

Call Structure

Baptist Medical Network's cardiology program directors are dedicated to supporting the work-life balance of their cardiology physicians. Call schedules are flexible, and the program is amenable to working with various call preferences based on candidate needs. The team is committed to keeping the rotation at approximately 1:5 through locums coverage and additional cardiology hires.

What that looks like in practice for a non-invasive cardiologist:

• APPs handle first call and triage, escalating only when needed
• Advanced call responsibilities go to interventional cardiology, including STEMI coverage
• Call coverage is mostly consult, performed primarily by phone
• Overnight call typically involves only 2 to 6 calls; RN support handles most after-hours items
• Weekend volume averages 20 to 25 encounters split across paired facilities
• Westover Hills and St. Luke's share a call group, located 15 minutes apart
• Program directors are open to negotiating call expectations to match candidate preference

Cardiovascular Service Line Support

You'll work alongside Baptist Health System's interventional cardiology, vascular surgery, and cardiothoracic surgery teams. The system operates the largest vascular surgery group in the region, providing depth of support for complex patients and clean care transitions when intervention is needed.