The Society of Hospital Medicine (SHM) exists to promote exceptional care for hospitalized patients. SHM is a medical society comprised of over 15,000 hospitalist physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and practice managers. It is estimated that there are more than 44,000 hospitalist physicians, who specialize in the practice of hospital medicine, delivering comprehensive medical care to hospitalized patients. The Society of Hospital Medicine (SHM) was originally founded in 1998 as the National Association of Inpatient Physicians and in 2003 it became the Society of Hospital Medicine. SHM has grown tremendously, and has achieved many milestones leading to the ongoing increase in the number of practicing hospitalists. From publishing the nation's first and only peer-reviewed journal for hospital medicine, Journal of Hospital Medicine, to providing the nation's largest conference for hospital medicine and offering award-winning quality improvement programs, SHM continues to be devoted to the hospital medicine movement. As hospital medicine continues to be the fastest growing medical specialty in the history of medicine and continues to evolve rapidly, SHM remains committed to promoting the highest level of quality care for hospitalized patients.