As we consider ways to improve health care and its costs in this country, perhaps we should be thinking of physicians as the valuable economic resource to society that they are. We clearly have an impending shortage of physicians to address the demographic tsunami – Baby Boomers entering Medicare age. And the lead time to train adequate capable physicians to address this trend is measured in years, not months. The fewer physicians available to take care of the public, the more expensive care will be. We should be doing all we can to make the practice of medicine inviting, so there are enough talented individuals to deliver care…. Makes sense, doesn’t it?
Jeffrey Segal, MD, JD
Informed Spousal Consent: A Great Idea Worth Spreading
Jeff Segal, MD, JD, FACS I was thumbing through General Surgery News recently and read an article espousing a great idea; an idea worth spreading. Philip Schaurer, MD, and Jim Saxton, Esq. wrote about adding a spouse’s name to the informed consent document. Informed consent, of course, is a process, and not a document. But, … Read more
Your Mother Was Right
Michael J. Sacopulos, Esq. Doctors are busy, enough said. The problem is too many doctors are not getting enough sleep. According to a recent New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) article “sleep deprivation adversely affects clinical performance and impairs psychomotor performance as severely as alcohol intoxication”. There are currently work/sleep regulations in place for first … Read more
Bill to Make Doctors Histories Available Moves to Senate
Bill to make detailed IL doctors’ histories available moves to Senate According to a recent Chicago Tribune article, a bill (Patients’ Right to Know Act) in Illinois that has already made its way through the House and is on its way to the Senate could allow patients to view detailed histories of their doctor online … Read more
Rating Sites and the Worst Possible Interpretation Part II
This is part II of Rating Sites Sometimes Err on the Side of the Worst Possible Interpretation Jeff Segal, MD, JD, FACS Doctor B.’s record was blemished on a separate rating site. The blemish: “Doctor B. was sanctioned in the past”; sanction being defined as actions taken to punish or restrict physicians who have demonstrated … Read more
Rating Sites Sometimes Err on the Side of the Worst Possible Interpretation
Doctor Rating Sites Sometimes Err on the Side of the Worst Possible Interpretation Jeff Segal, MD, JD, FACS These two vignettes involve real Medical Justice plan members; both talented physicians. Rating sites tarred these innocent bystanders, courtesy of their respective licensing Board of Medicines. Medical Justice helped set the record straight. Doctor A. is an … Read more
Voir Dire – Jury Selection Process
Voir Dire – Medical Malpractice Jury Selection Process
Joseph Horton, MD
They called me for jury duty last week. As luck had it, there was only one jury trial in court and I didn’t get picked for it. But since I find the experience instructive—and symptomatic of much that I believe to be wrong with our judicial system—I’d like to share the story of what happened Monday.
We entered Judge Harrington’s courtroom where the trial was to be held. Standing next to the bench was a chart that asked each potential juror to state his or her name, address, occupation, name of spouse and spouse’s occupation, and number of children. No clue why they were interested in offspring, but hey—why not? I admitted that I’m a surgeon and a board member of Medical Justice, and that I have a son who also is a physician. I don’t know a huge amount about statistics, but it fascinated me that, of the 33, there were also 5 registered nurses, 4 of whom were currently practicing, plus one who had retired. There was also a fireman with good knowledge of CPR and EMT.
Gone But Not Forgotten: The Curious Dormancy of Metadata
Gone But Not Forgotten: The Curious Dormancy of Metadata
Peter G. Yelkovac, Attorney at Law
Medical students are taught that certain viruses tend to take refuge in cells and live a latent existence long after symptoms have cleared. In many cases, such viruses remain dormant for the life of the patient. In other cases, they may spring back to life at an inopportune time.
Nearly every technologically literate person knows that viruses can attack a computer. Fortunately, such attacks are easily eradicated by automatic protection programs that capture and expel the offender forever. Few computer users, however, are aware that the mere use of a computer may create different type of organisms which, like a virus in a human cell, are not so easily discarded.
Limits on Malpractice Damages Unconstitutional
Louisiana Court of Appeals Rules Limits on Malpractice Damages Unconstitutional The Louisiana Court of Appeals ruled last month that the state’s limits on malpractice damages violated the constitution. The Louisiana Medical Malpractice Act, which caps damages general damages at $500,000, was ruled to be unconstitutional on November 17, 2010 in Oliver v. Magnolia Clinic (WL … Read more
Gamble Big and Lose, Sue, Collect Big Check
Jeff Segal, MD, JD, FACS, CEO Medical Justice
Gamble Big and Lose. Then Sue Big Pharma. Then Collect Big Check. No Kidding.
To those who plan to go to Vegas and gamble, here’s how to cut your losses – even win big. The secret: Pramipexole. Stay with me on this.
Pramipaxole, to refresh, is a dopamine agonist used for early stage Parkinson’s disease. It also treats restless legs syndrome. There’s more. It is currently being investigated to treat clinical depression and fibromyalgia. Pramipaxole is sometimes used off label to treat cluster headache and to counteract problems with sexual dysfunction caused by antidepressants. Finally, it is currently being investigated for the treatment of clinical depression and fibromyalgia. A veritable cornucopia of treatments.
Back to the hedge against gambling losses.
