Two Counterintuitive HIPAA Scenarios
Scenario #1: Some doctors believe, incorrectly, that if a patient has already disclosed protected health information on the Internet, his doctor can “correct” the record online. In other words, if a...
View ArticleDeporting Hospital Patients
Illegal immigration is now the buzz of the political ball. Candidates are talking about building a wall, rounding up and deporting undocumented immigrants, and its economic ramifications. What happens...
View ArticleHIPAA Conundrum. War of the Roses After Death.
Remember the movie War of the Roses. Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas play married characters. They hated each other. But, neither wanted to part with their opulent house. So, they stay put. No one...
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NC Medical Board Disciplines Doctor for a Lease Dispute.
I can understand why a Medical Board investigates a practice for allegations related to patient safety. I get it when the Board responds to concerns a doctor may be taking advantage of patients...
View ArticleDoctors Strive to Avoid Being Labeled Outliers – Except When it Comes to...
Every month I receive a letter from my electric company. It shows how much power I am consuming relative to my peers – my neighbors. Studies have shown such data, when presented in a...
View ArticleSuture Around the Ureter. Clip on the Common Bile Duct. Complication or...
Over the years, I have seen many lawsuits where a specific operation ended in a complication. Two come to mind. An ob-gyn performs a hysterectomy or uterine repair and a ureter is sutured. A general...
View ArticleCredentialing and Answering Touchy Questions
I received a call from a general surgeon in California. He was re-credentialing for hospital privileges. He was re-credentialing for his in-network status with insurance companies. And, renewing his...
View ArticleSimple Procedures: An Occasional Multi-Million Dollar Lawsuit
We often worry about complications from difficult procedures. What might happen if a patient has anesthesia for 12 hours. Or, operating on a redo-redo cervical spine. And we’re right to be cautious....
View ArticlePlastic Surgeons as Psychiatrists.
Many years ago, a mentor taught me a surgeon spends an entire residency learning how to operate. Then the surgeon spends the rest of one’s career learning how NOT to operate. This includes when not to...
View ArticleThose Damn Jackson-Pratt Drains
As Shakespeare once posited: “To drain or not to drain. That is this the question.” Perhaps it wasn’t him. Surgeon preference typically dictates whether a drain makes sense. Keeping a hematoma from...
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