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| The Doctor Won't See You Now; he's clocked out | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Mar 15 2013, 08:45 PM (514 Views) | |
| Banandangees | Mar 15 2013, 08:45 PM Post #1 |
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Fire & Ice Senior Diplomat
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ObamaCare is pushing physicians into becoming hospital employees, the results aren't encouraging. (More and more physicians are employed by hospitals. My family physician, a three physician office, is a hospital owned practice. This is a growing trend in our area. This article "suggest" the reasons why.)
"DRGs" (Designated/Diagnosed Related Groups), a diagnosis related system, has been the emphasis from the government regulated system for a number of years. It proved to be a confusing, time intensive and a not uncostly system. Now it will be a "RVUs emphasized system," with emphasis on limits of physician productivity. Problem with health care since the government has been involved in its regulation is that these regulations are so often designed by non-medical people..people who don't have the first clue about the practice of medicine. Health care changes again, like we've not seen it before... it definitely will be an adjustment ... more so for some than for others, I suspect. IMO |
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| Mountainrivers | Mar 15 2013, 08:50 PM Post #2 |
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Fire & Ice Senior Diplomat
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" In the not too distant future, most physicians will be hourly wage earners, likely employed by a hospital chain." I like that idea. It would save enormous amounts of money in eliminating the duplicative costs of renting office space, paying for utilities, fewer clerical personnel, insurance premiums for the doctors and a central place for all our health care needs. What's not to like? |
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| Banandangees | Mar 15 2013, 09:09 PM Post #3 |
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Fire & Ice Senior Diplomat
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The hospital owned practice that I go to hasn't seemed to have eliminated much of any of the things you listed. They have as many ancillary personnel, actually more equipment (hospital owned which is also hospital duplicated) than if they were private practitioners, same billing computers as before. Now what I see in our area, is the competing hospitals are, as rapidly as possible, leasing office space, opening geographically located community hospital based offices at a rate designed to favor their hospital's community exposure over that of their competitor. That's a cost that wasn't there before. It's a race between competing hospitals. A local Osteopathic Hospital a few years back attained approval for a new Osteopathic Medical School (LECOM) with one main goal of producing physician for the "mother hospital's" community, hospital owned out patient offices. But you have put your emphasis solely on cost containment. When you see your surgeon for your prostate problem, are you hoping for his emphasis to be on cost containment or to have more incentive for quality patient care? |
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| Mountainrivers | Mar 15 2013, 09:19 PM Post #4 |
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Fire & Ice Senior Diplomat
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I'm hoping that he will do both. |
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| Mountainrivers | Mar 15 2013, 09:20 PM Post #5 |
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Fire & Ice Senior Diplomat
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"The hospital owned practice that I go to hasn't seemed to have eliminated much of any of the things you listed. " Is that just a personal observation or do you have data that shows that to be true? |
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| Banandangees | Mar 15 2013, 09:37 PM Post #6 |
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Fire & Ice Senior Diplomat
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You "hope" that he will do both. I'm, sure he will.Well, I'm sure in this short period of time of ObamaCare existence, that your surgeon hasn't lost any of his incentive for quality care. But, time has a way of wearing on attitudes when much of the professionalism and freedom of practice as worn on. But yes, that is a personal observation. I know of no studies that have been made in this short period of hospital expanded practices. I'm sure they will come in time. I've worked in healthcare in Erie and Allegheny counties for a long, long time and am probably much more familiar with hospital and medical practice and of physicians than one who has not. I'll leave it at that. |
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| Mountainrivers | Mar 15 2013, 09:44 PM Post #7 |
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Fire & Ice Senior Diplomat
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You asked me what I was hoping for. I told you. If I discovered that the only thing my doctor was interested in was his financial gain, I would look for another doctor. I don't feel my current doctors have that goal. They have accepted Medicare and my supplemental policy to cover their fees. If they weren't making enough money via those plans, I'm sure they would refuse to treat me. I don't claim to be knowledgeable about hospitals or medical practice in general, but if I'm to accept your claims, I would need some data to support them. |
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| jackd | Mar 15 2013, 09:48 PM Post #8 |
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Bull. This trend has been observed almost everywhere in the northern hemisphere since the mid 1990,. This is all happening with or without the Obaba reform passing. American medicine has historically been largely a small business operation where most doctors cared for patients in small, privately owned clinics (in rooms a adjoining their homes or even their basement.) That,s really not the trend for what has become a very high tech field of work * Young doctors are coming out of medical school in the U.S. with a staggering debt burden (average of $600,000 (after subsidies). It is very difficult for any of them to think they can invest (borrow more) in a private business. * Young doctors now love to be surrounded with high tech equipment, fully functionning labs, competent nursing, experienced collegue. None of which is available in a backyard operation. *Young doctors have studied medecine, not business management. They walk away from all tasks not related to medecine (hiring, firing, sending bills, collecting bad debts, office maintenance,... * There is a saving of close 50% on malpratice insurance costs for doctors in hospitals (better back-up if something happens.) * Bigger health care organizations can provide better, more coordinated care, which is a + for the patient. * Younger doctors all want more free time, a better family life... a trend observed in most workers. That is more easily achieved when being a salaried employee. At the end of the day, more salaried doctors, will mean better care for patients. patients benefit from higher quality and better coordinated care, as doctors from various fields join a single organization. In such systems, patient records can pass seamlessly from doctor to specialist to hospital. * Private doctor business are much more likely to be the cause of ''unfortunate slip-ups'' that cost over 100,000 lives every year. Dr Marcus Welby has closed his shop for good Edited by jackd, Mar 16 2013, 01:49 AM.
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| Pat | Mar 15 2013, 10:00 PM Post #9 |
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Fire & Ice Senior Diplomat
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I lost track of my cardiologist last fall and finally located him last week. I have an appointment to see him and I'll ask him about his new job. Yes new, because he went from one Dr. owned medical company to another bigger doctor owned medical company. The owner has four clinics in the region. And a main cardiology center. Business must be good because my Dr. jumped from one to another. If you want to know where the bottom feeders hang out their shingle, just find out where the low income and welfare clients end up. And then avoid them. The better facilities have the best Drs. and specialists and top notch facilities. that's my experience anyway. |
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| Mountainrivers | Mar 15 2013, 10:08 PM Post #10 |
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Fire & Ice Senior Diplomat
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The "bottom-feeders" as you call them are, imo, better people overall, since they apparently eschew the money in favor of treating people who couldn't get care from your high-fallutin group. |
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I'm, sure he will.
3:06 AM Jul 12
