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The Perils Of Offering A Second Opinion On A Botched Boob Job

May 13th, 2011 by John Di Saia, M.D. in Opinion
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A mother called the office today. Her daughter had breast implants placed by a surgeon in another state and the two ladies are not happy. They called for a second opinion.

It is dicey dealing with situation like this as a second opinion consultant. The first question is whether or not the first surgeon did anything wrong. A botched boob job is not any boob job that the patient or mother do not like. “Botched” indicates fault. Sometimes there is fault on the part of the surgeon and sometimes there is not. Sometimes patients ask for surgery on the cheap and decline breast lifting or other associated surgery that might have made things look better. Sometimes the patient choose a surgeon of limited skill or qualifications. Sometimes infection, cigarette smoking or scarring can distort an otherwise good procedure. It is not always clear.

The second question for a consultant is whether or not the patient wants him or her to fix things or just wants to return to the original surgeon. No smart consultant wants to end up embroiled in a patient’s lawsuit with the original doctor. It is a waste of time and time is money.

*This blog post was originally published at Truth in Cosmetic Surgery*

Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs): HMOs With Lipstick?

May 3rd, 2011 by Stanley Feld, M.D. in Health Policy, Opinion
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Thousands of articles have been written about forming ACOs. Millions of dollars have been spent by hospital systems to try to form an ACO. Healthcare policy consultants have discovered a new cash cow.

Hospitals systems are wasting their money. They think the return from owning salaried physicians’ intellectual property will be more than worth the cost.

1. Thousands of physicians have been confused by the concept of ACO.
2. Many have felt ACOs are an attack on their freedom to practice medicine the best they can.
3. Many have rejected the concept because they feel they will have to be salaried by hospital systems.
4. Many physicians do not trust President Obama or Dr. Don Berwick.
5. The Stage 2 ACO regulations are not easy to understand. They are more ominous than the stage 1 regulations.

The two core stated objectives for ACOs are:

(1) Reducing healthcare costs.

(2) Preserving and improving quality.

The stated objectives are laudable. The government regulations and controls are confusing. Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at Repairing the Healthcare System*