November 9th, 2010 by KevinMD in Better Health Network, News, Opinion
Tags: American Medical News, Dana Lewis, Doctors and Social Media, Dr. Kevin Pho, Engaging Patients and Physicians Online, Facebook, General Medicine, Healthcare Human Resources, Healthcare Social Media, Hospital Social Media Managers, Hospitals and Social Media, KevinMD, Lee Aase, New Hospital Position, Patients and Social Media, Physician-Driven Online Visability, Seattle Children's Hospital, Social Media In Medicine, Social Networking For Doctors, Social Networking For Patients, Swedish Medical Center, The Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media, Twitter, Wendy Sue Swanson, YouTube
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A social media manager is becoming an imperative position for hospitals.
Medical institutions are waking up to the fact that they need to engage their patients and physicians online. Nowhere is there more fertile growth than in the various social media platforms that are prevalent today — like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
American Medical News recently profiled the phenomenon, highlighting the position of social media manager, which some institutions pay between $60,000 and $80,000 per year.
As it stands, many hospitals are tiptoeing into the world of social networks, guided by the able hands of select online mavens like Mayo Clinic’s Lee Aase and Swedish Medical Center’s Dana Lewis. However, convincing executives of the return on investment remains a challenge. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at KevinMD.com*
November 9th, 2010 by Edwin Leap, M.D. in Better Health Network, Opinion, True Stories
Tags: Anger, Doctors Who Lose Their Tempers, Doctors Who Treat Others Badly, Doctors' Behavior, Dr. Edwin Leap, General Medicine, Immaturity, Inappropriate Professional Behavior, Medical Staff Behavior, Physician Behavior, Rage, Rudeness
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When we physicians don’t get our way, or don’t get the response we desire, we can be intimidating. I have seen this play out many different ways. I have been treated rudely by other physicians. I was once threatened by a very prominent one, who told me (in response to the fact that I dared question his tone): “Be careful son, you’re digging yourself a deep hole.” I don’t know what kind of hole, or where it would have taken me, but he was certain I was digging it. Oddly enough, I rather like digging holes. (Very zen.)
Physicians yell at one another, or curse. Physicians stomp around and slam down charts. I don’t like it at all. I think it suggests immaturity. I always tell students and residents that in the ER, especially, the physician is “Captain of the Ship,” and the Captain must never lose his or her cool.
But physicians, sadly, do the same to non-physicians. Nurses, in particular, earn their ire as they scream, curse, stomp and engage in all sorts of negative behaviors. It also happens to paramedics, unit secretaries, dietary workers, therapists, administrators and all manner of persons. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at edwinleap.com*
November 8th, 2010 by Bryan Vartabedian, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion
Tags: 33 Charts, American Physician, Dr. Bryan Vartabedian, Future of Medical Practice, General Medicine, Government-run Healthcare, Healthcare Economics, Healthcare reform, Hospital-Owned Practice, Institutional Medical Service, Institutionally-Employed Doctors, Medical Practice Ownership, New Doctors, Physician Ownership, Private Practice Medicine, Private Practitioners, Texas, The End of Private Practice, Wall Street Journal
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I didn’t need the Wall Street Journal to tell that the days of “private practice” are numbered. According to recent numbers, fewer and fewer medical practices are under the ownership of physicians. Even in my corner of the economically secure State of Texas, small practices are folding faster than beach chairs at high tide.
I was driven out of private practice in 2004 by rising malpractice premiums and plummeting reimbursement. In Texas at the time the trial attorneys ran the place and medmal insurance carriers simply couldn’t keep up with the greed.
Medical practices are just too expensive to run and the services that physicians provide are dangerously undervalued. You do the math. Sure it’s a complicated issue. But the end result is institutionally-employed doctors with institutional pay and the risk of institutional service. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at 33 Charts*
November 8th, 2010 by Happy Hospitalist in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion
Tags: Abusing The System, General Medicine, Happy Hospitalist, Healthcare Policy, Healthcare reform, Medicaid Thieves, Medicare Fraud, Pre-Existing Conditions, Sharing Health Insurance Cards, The Future of American Healthcare, U.S. Healthcare System
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Are you wondering about a glaring unintended consequence of healthcare reform? Read on to learn how everyone becomes a criminal.
By now you’ve all heard of the government reports of Medicare fraud being three times higher than 17 billion dollars a year previously thought. How you ask? Because an illegible doctor signature is considered fraud and Obama is out to make things right and transparent and accurate. You can pretty much count on every physician in this country being a fraudster.
But what about Medicaid? Does the same fraud problem exist with the Medicaid system? Probably, but you also have to worry about the patient abuse aspect as well. Here’s an angle of unintended consequences you may not have considered with healthcare reform by making pre-existing conditions a thing of the past.
I have been told Happy’s hospital has a handful of repeat offenders using their family member’s Medicaid card to get free healthcare services in the ER. Why is that possible and why would anyone let their family member use their insurance card? The question you should ask is not “why,” but “why not?” Why wouldn’t every family with Medicaid share their card? Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at The Happy Hospitalist*
November 8th, 2010 by DrRob in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion
Tags: Dr. Rob Lamberts, Election 2010, Fixing American Healthcare, General Medicine, Healthcare Policy, Healthcare Politics, Healthcare reform, Hope For Healthcare, Musings of a Distractible Mind, Obamacare, Patients' Opinion, Patients' Perception, Patients' Viewpoint, U.S. Healthcare System
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“So, what do you think about the election?”
“So, what do you think about Obamacare?”
“What do you think about this healthcare situation?”
I get these questions throughout my day. My patients are mostly suburban and white, so their view is overall on the conservative side. Yet I have found that few see the results of the election as a hopeful sign for healthcare. I don’t either.
Anyone who reads this blog regularly knows that I am a “flaming moderate” when it comes to politics. I don’t have much faith in anyone who identifies too strongly with one party of the other. I am really angry with congress and their lack of gonads to work on really coming up with solutions. Interestingly, my patients, regardless of their political leaning, agree with much of what I say. Here are the things they all seem to agree with:
1. Congressional politics is hurting us. Members of congress (both sides are equally guilty) are more focused on what is good for their party than what is good for those who they represent. If a democrat is elected to this district, I expect him/her to represent all of the people in that district, not just the democrats (the same is obviously true for republicans). This doesn’t mean they must lose all of their ideology, but ideology should be a means, not an end. The reason to hold an ideology is to come to solutions to problems with that ideology as a vehicle. The goal is to help the people you represent through your ideology, not bang them over the head with it. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Musings of a Distractible Mind*
