The incidence of thromboembolic events remains high in hospitalized medical patients, despite known risk factors and international recommendations regarding prevention of venous thromboembolism. Several studies have proven that the use of a thromboembolic prediction risk score, associated with an informatic alert system, improve the prescription of adequate thromboembolic prophylaxis and decrease the number of thromboembolic events. In this article, we present an overview of thromboembolic risk factors, thromboembolic prediction risk scores, and interventions that improve thromboembolic prophylaxis prescription.