Internal medicine units treat patients with undifferentiated or multisystem diseases, with a non-specific organ approach. In some cases, patients with single-organ disease may be admitted to internal medicine wards. Acute pancreatitis is the most common gastrointestinal illness requiring acute admission to hospital. It is characterised by local and systemic inflammation of the pancreas corresponding to single-organ disease. For patients with single-organ disease such as acute pancreatitis, it is not known whether admission to internal medicine is as effective as admission to a unit specialising in a specific organ, such as hepato-gastro-enterology.