Physicians regularly renew their medical licenses. A typical question on the application reads:
Since you last renewed have you become aware of any medical condition that impairs or limits, or could possibly impair or limit, your ability to practice medicine safely? (If you are an anonymous participant in the Physician Health Program and in compliance with your contract, you do not need to list any medical conditions related to that contract).
Doesn’t happen often. But, when it does, expect a potential s*%#storm. Patient is anxious about the mole on his back. A dermatologist removes the mole and sends the specimen to the lab. Rule in or rule out melanoma. The lab says it never received the specimen. The dermatologist then does full excision. Then the doctor … Read more
I live in North Carolina. Each year I have a general physical exam. This includes the ritual known as the prostate exam. I don’t particularly look forward to it. But, it takes a few seconds and I’m reassured knowing that there are no lumps or bumps. My internist is male. And, in the exam room, … Read more
The question is not so simple anymore. According to the UCLA School of Law’s Williams Institute, there are approximately 700,000 transgender individuals in the United States. In a recent Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruling (Lusardi v. McHugh, EEOC, No. 0120133395, 4/1/15), the US government ruled that a government employee who transitioned from male to female … Read more
How many of us has received the dreaded notice that medical records are not complete; or worse, that records are complete but need to be signed. The absence of a “proper” signature gums up the works for getting paid. This following is what CMS considers to be a valid signed order/record. I won’t belabor the … Read more
We’ve heard plenty of horror stories where someone tried to do the right thing – and got screwed.
Everyone knows the saying, “No Good Deed Goes Unpunished.”
Still, my faith in humanity was renewed on January 10th.
Dr. Philip Taylor was employed by Spectrum Health Primary Care Partners. He practiced as an ob-gyn. His employment agreement with Spectrum defined how they could terminate the relationship.
Summary Termination. If your employment … is terminated by its Board of Directors [the “Board”] for a serious, intentional violation of the standards of patient care (i.e., serious quality and/or safety breaches), or unethical behavior, you will automatically be deemed to have voluntarily resigned or otherwise terminated your clinical privileges or medical staff membership at any Spectrum-owned hospital facility. Termination under these circumstances will be taken only after thorough investigation and review of facts by [the Board] which includes the President of [defendant] and CEO of Spectrum. Any termination described immediately above will be referred to in this Agreement as a “Summary Termination,” and will trigger automatic resignation of Medical Staff privileges. . . .
Yesterday, I read two articles in JAMA on pimping. (Yes, I still get JAMA.) The article suggested that pimping medical students and residents may be “old school.” Used inappropriately, it may serve more as a tool off abuse and humiliation as opposed to a pedagogical art.
Duh.
Some say there are two types of online sites. Those that know they have been hacked. And those that have been hacked, but don’t know it. Sobering. Everyone is busy. The important question is what can be done to mitigate the downside of sites being hacked. You want two outcomes: (a) minimize the likelihood malicious … Read more
We often write about serious topics. Not today. I want to give a shout out to a site called Gomerblog. GOMER is medical slang for a patient in the emergency room who is not in need of emergency services. For those of you not old enough to remember, it first appeared in … Read more
