Let me post a question that neither I nor readers can answer. How much of what I do during the course of a day directly benefits patients? Perhaps, I don’t want to really know as I would be dismayed at how much of my effort benefits no one. Ask a nurse who works on a hospital ward, how much of his or her effort is directly applied to patient care. I would recommend that you have a double dose of antacid in hand – one dose for you and the other for the nurse. Just today, I was gently reproved by a hospital physician administrator for a lapse in one of my recent progress notes, which I write after seeing every hospital patient I consult on. Which of the following transgressions do you think I was cited for? Only one answer is correct. I did not perform an adequate physical examination I failed to address the results of an abnormal CAT scan I neglected to write the time of day along with the date of the note. I did not discuss the case with the patient’s family.
MD Whistleblower presents vignettes and commentaries on the medical profession. We peek 'behind the medical curtain' and deliver candor and controversy in every post.