When doctors fire patients. Most commonly happens during sustained non-compliance or appointment no-shows.
February 2008
All Stories
"Can’t I get an American doctor?"
Dealing with the prejudiced patient.
World’s first eyeball tattoo
"We ought to have evidence-based tort reform"
The AMA analyzes tort reform:
Recent research -- consistent with earlier studies -- revealed that noneconomic damage caps continue to reduce insurers' claims payouts, which translates to lower rates for doctors.
The AMA analysis also concluded that reforms can help alleviate physician shortages. And some research showed that medical liability risk contributed to higher health care spending, the report said.
Annuale
I missed this last weekend, but it's pretty damn funny.
(via John Mack)
Residency applications and blogging
See what Graham thinks about it.
Code blue in the air
Scalpel: "I'm sure a lawsuit will be brought against American Airlines in this case, but the sad truth is that if you have a cardiac arrest when you're 30,000 feet over the ocean, then you are likely going to die whether the oxygen tanks are working or not."
Panda: "No doubt the family of the lady are going to sue the airline. And they'll probably win because ...
Physician "consulting" agreements
How medical device companies are bribing doctors:
Wine-tasting outings to California's Napa Valley. Ski trips to Colorado. Tickets to sporting events. Gourmet meals at swanky restaurants. Forays to "adult entertainment" clubs.Paying doctors to go to strip clubs? Bizarre. (via Schwitzer)
What happened here?
(via Street Anatomy)
Google interviews Joshua Schwimmer
He talks about Google Book Search.
Neurosurgeon shortage
Expect more of this to happen:
As a group, specialists are getting older and less willing to work on call. Many specialists say they fear they are more likely to get sued by emergency patients than by their regular patients, who know and trust them. Even when hospitals pay doctors for working on call, specialists often make less money working emergencies than they do caring for regular patients.
Beautiful inside?
Sid Schwab: "Operating, as is our aim, on sick people, more often than not things aren't so pretty inside. Diabetic, or old, or overweight, or with concomitant diseases affecting various organs, typical surgical patients rarely retain the born-in beauty and peach-fuzz perfection with which they came into the world."
Costs
The Happy Hospitalist: "It does not surprise me that health care costs are out of control in this country. It does not surprise me that health care costs are out of control in any country that does not run its business practices based on capitalistic principles of supply and demand. Resources are not infinite. Without demand control, you will eventually ration."
Stylish scrubs
Who cares what you look like when you're in the hospital? Apparently, plenty of people do.
Operating on a Jehovah’s Witness
Dr. Bruce Campbell writes about his experience in JAMA.
10 out of 10 pain
Read how differently people describe "the worst pain you can imagine".
Kids and obscenities
Dr. WhiteCoat: "Some kids think it's business as usual spewing toxic waste out of their mouths and don't bat an eye about it. People around them seem to accept it as an 'exacerbation' of their ADHD. This type of stuff didn't happen 20 years ago. It isn't potty mouth any more, it's 'potty brain.'"
Transplant surgeon on trial
Goran Klintmalm: "If you think a malpractice lawsuit is scaring surgeons off, wait to see what happens when people see a surgeon being charged criminally and going to jail."
Jon Arbuckle . . .
. . . minus Garfield: "Who would have guessed that when you remove Garfield from the Garfield comic strips, the result is an even better comic about schizophrenia, bipolor disorder, and the empty desperation of modern life?"
(via Movin' Meat)
Irrational health IT exuberance
MedInformaticsMD: "There must come a time when medicine's professionals stand up for their profession and stop permitting politicians, business interlopers and other parasites from attaching themselves to medicine's back and sucking the blood and sweat of its practitioners, and siphoning off capital better used to improve health."
Kevin Pho, MD
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How I approach ovarian cancer screening with patients
Ovarian cancer screening clearly touches a nerve. No one doubts that ovarian cancer is a devastating diagnosis, often found when the disease...
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Why more primary care doctors are referring patients to specialists
According to a recent study from the Archives of Internal Medicine, primary care physicians are referring more patients to specialists than ever...
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Should Google censor anti-vaccine claims?
One of the reasons there is such a movement against vaccines is the democratization of information, perpetuated by search engines like Google....
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Radiologists who cheat on their board exams: Who’s to blame?
In a widely circulated CNN article, many radiologists have been found to cheat on their board exams: "Doctors around the country taking an...
Physician
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Why an anesthesiologist would be needed for organ donation
I've only had to declare death a couple of times. Once in a three-year-old and once in an adult. In each case...
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5 ways to avoid a misdiagnosis
Billionaire Teddy Forstmann had been diagnosed with a serious form of brain cancer. There’s a tragic twist to the story: according to...
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Benefits of the Medicare Adult Wellness Visit
One of the things I love about family medicine is that I get to care for people of all ages. I almost...
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Cancer has a way of teaching us poignant life lessons
I just finished reading George’s recent post on Evelyn Lauder, who recently passed away from ovarian cancer, and am still stirred by...
Patient
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In love there is a life giving force
Here is a toast to the miracle of love. Not to the romantic, chocolate, dance club nightlife type of love. Not warm...
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How to get ready for death
No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet...
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The long term cost of a pain in the neck
One morning this May, I woke up with a stiff neck. I applied hot and cold therapy all day and took an...
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Preparing for your visit with someone in hospice care
Visiting someone who is dying or critically ill is an experience many of us will have in the course of our lives....
Policy
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AMA: Advocating for Medicare, military and fiscal responsibility
A guest column by the American Medical Association, exclusive to KevinMD.com. This week, I’m joining hundreds of physicians and medical students in Washington, DC...
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A critical look at value driven health care
Everyone in the world is talking about “value-driven health care.” Or so it might seem if you pick up a medical journal...
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Surviving the new landscape of physician reimbursement
CNN recently posted an article titled "Doctors Going Broke." It described several cases of independent physicians who are near bankruptcy although they once...
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Doctors lobby Congress to repeal the SGR
One of the things that I like most about my job is engaging with ACP’s physician leadership—the internal medicine doctors who dedicate...
Tech
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There is a patient attached to that implantable defibrillator
As a follow-up to my post on why patients with implantable defibrillators should have access to their device’s data, I am going...
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The pitfalls of email communication with patients
A recent article in the Wall Street Journal reviewed the emerging role of email in healthcare, arguing that doctors should more aggressively...
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Why adoption of EHRs is a transformational event for physicians
Paul Conslato, MD, director of clinical affairs for Lancaster General Medical Group, recently was quoted in the PAMED Better Health Network eZine...
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Why EMR is a dirty word to many doctors
Don’t get me wrong, EMRs (electronic medical records) are inevitable. Over the long-run they are almost certainly good for physicians, patients and...
Social Media
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Using Twitter to deliver health improvement messages
I have decided to spam for public health. Phone calls, text messaging, and even apps have been shown to help improve health...
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Addressing comments on your medical practice’s Facebook page
Does your medical practice allow anybody to post links and comments on your Facebook page? The short answer is yes. We do....
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The Internet is where patients go for pre-visit consultations
As a physician, technology cannot replace you, but it can make you more efficient and effective. This was the message from Richard...
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5 ways doctors can benefit from professional connections
Looking ahead to the next several months, I’ve found myself frequently wondering how many physicians will make this their year to take...
