May 5th, 2010 by DrRob in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion, True Stories
Tags: Defensive Medicine, Doctor-Patient Connection, Doctor-Patient Responsibility, Family Doctor, Family Medicine, Friends, Genuine Personal Investment, Getting Older, Getting Sick, Long-Term Patients, Medicare Cuts, Mid-Level Healthcare Providers, Patient-Doctor Relationship, Personal Stake in Health, Primary Care Medicine, Relational Medicine, The Joy of Primary Care, To Know and Be Known, Walgreens
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I was happy when I looked at [the day’s] schedule. Two husband-and-wife pairs were on my schedule, both of whom have been seeing me for over 10 years. Their visits are comfortable for me — we talk about life and they are genuinely interested in how my family is doing. They remember that I have a son in college, and want to know how my blog and podcast are doing. I can tell that they not only like me as a doctor — they see me, to some degree, as a friend.
Another patient on the schedule is a woman from South America. She has also been seeing me for over 10 years. I helped her through her husband’s sudden death in an accident. She brings me gifts whenever she goes on her trips, and also brings very tasteful gifts for my wife. Today she brought me a Panama hat.
I know these people well. I know about their past illnesses and those of their children. I know about their grandchildren, having hospitalized one of them over the past year for an infection. I know about the trauma in their lives as well as what they take joy in. They tell me about their trips and tell me their opinions about the healthcare reform bill.
I spend a large part of their visits being social. I can do this because I know their medical situation so well. I am their doctor and have an immediate grasp of the context of any new problems in a way that nobody else can. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Musings of a Distractible Mind*
May 5th, 2010 by JessicaBerthold in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion
Tags: Brochure, Dates of Care, Doctor Ratings, Doctor-Patient Encounter, Doctors Who Sit, Doctors Who Stand, ED, Emergency Department, FAQs, Happy Patients, Hospitalist, Hospitalist Medicine, Internal Medicine, Nancy Mihevc, Open-Ended Question, Patient Discharge, Patient Satisfaction, Patient Surveys, Patient-Doctor Relationship, Patient's Condition, PCP, Personal Letter, Post-Discharge, Primary Care Medicine, Primary Care Physician, Real Postage Stamp, Review Patient's Chart, SHM, Sitting Down, Society of Hospital Medicine, Winthrop Whitcomb
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Some interesting points were raised at a recent Society of Hospital Medicine (SHM) session by Winthrop Whitcomb and Nancy Mihevc on patient satisfaction. To improve satisfaction scores:
1. Review the patient’s chart before you go in the room. It makes a big difference if the patient perceives you know what’s going on without having to bury your face in a chart.
2. Patients are often confused about who they are supposed to see after discharge. This, of course, is a safety issue as well as one that affects patient satisfaction.
3. Sit down when you are visiting a patient. Patients are happiest when they perceive you’ve spent enough time with them, and they are more likely to perceive this if you are sitting than standing with your hand on the doorknob. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at ACP Hospitalist*
May 5th, 2010 by Bryan Vartabedian, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion, True Stories
Tags: Disappointment, Disconnected Physician, Doctor-Patient Connection, Ethical Obligation, Family Medicine, Forgotten Piece of Medical History, General Medicine, Heartbreaking, Internal Medicine, Lost Generation of Medicine, Medical Profession, Older Doctors, Online Conversation, Paradigm of Care, Paternalism, Patient Advocacy, Patient Empowerment, Patient-Doctor Relationship, Personal Boundaries, Physician Control, Primary Care, Quality of Care, Social Health Media, Social Media Platform, Transparency, Younger MDs
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I [recently] visited a small town in west Texas to address a local medical society on the emerging role of social media in healthcare.
My presentation involves social media and the evolving relationship that patients share with doctors. I discuss challenges and opportunities -– especially as it relates to transparency, personal boundaries, and even the ethical obligation to participate in the online conversation. I target the disconnected physician and offer education as well as a compelling argument for involvement.
When I arrived at the venue I found that the meeting was attended predominantly by physicians much older than myself. While waiting to speak, I was concerned that my message of connection and changing relationships would elicit pushback. After all, isn’t it this era of physicians we hold accountable for paternalism and control in dealing with patients? That’s what I’d been lead to believe. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at 33 Charts*
May 5th, 2010 by Toni Brayer, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion, Research
Tags: Association of American Medical Colleges, Baby Boomers, Closed Practices, Family Medicine, Forgivable Loans, General Medicine, Healthcare Reform Law, Higher Reimbursement, Internal Medicine, Long Waits for Patients, Medical Residency, Medical School, Medical School Students, Medical Specialists, Medicare, Nurse Practitioners, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Physician Assistants, PPACA, Previously-Uninsured People, Primary Care Medicine, Primary Care Physicians, Primary Care Residency Program, Primary Care Shortage, Routine Care, Rural Communities, Teaching Hospitals, Underserved Areas
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The new healthcare reform law, which is called the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), will be a huge disappointment to the millions of previously-uninsured people who finally purchase insurance policies when they try to find a doctor.
Primary care physicians are already in short supply and the most popular ones have closed practices or long waits for new patients. Imagine when 2014 hits and all of those patients come calling. Who is going to be available to treat them? Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at EverythingHealth*
May 5th, 2010 by SteveSimmonsMD in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Humor, Opinion, Primary Care Wednesdays, True Stories
Tags: Continuous Restrictive And Punitive Paperwork, CRAPP, DocTalker Family Medicine, Dr. Steve Simmons, Healthcare Insurance Industry, Healthcare reform, Medical Acronym, Medical Paperwork, Patient-Doctor Relationship, Primary Care, Primary Care Practitioners, Primary Care Shortage, Quality of Care, Uncle Sam
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In medicine, hardly a week passes without the introduction of some new acronym, previously unspoken in the average practice, which then grows to prominence — take HIPAA, PECOS, CPT, ICD, etc. — the list goes on and on.
I believe that after 14 years of practice I’ve earned the right to introduce an acronym of my own: CRAPP. For the last several months, my partner and I have used this term to describe the volumes of denials, pre- and prior- authorizations (is there really a difference?), and faxes that seem to grow like weeds on the fertile planting grounds of our desks.
More specifically, in our office the acronym CRAPP stands for: Continuous Restrictive And Punitive Paperwork. To put it blithely, CRAPP could represent any document you wish someone had put on your partner’s desk instead of yours.
On a more emotional level, this acronym captures the visceral response I have whenever my attention is drawn away from my patients and redirected towards some nonsensical busywork — much like someone yelling at a golfer during their backswing.
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