MD Whistleblower

Why do smart people often do dumb things?  Would you plagiarize a speech that you know is going to be carefully scrutinized?   Would you respond to a robocall that congratulates you on winning a free cruise?  Would you keep eating sushi that didn’t smell right?  I’m certainly not judging anyone here.  I’ve had plenty of my own misadventures and I periodically add to the list.  Our presidential candidates fall prey to human error and misjudgments surprisingly often.  Aren’t these folks supposed to be pros or at least managed by honed handlers?  Why would Donald Trump have insulted nearly every constituency and rival during the primary election process knowing that this might render him unelectable in the general election?  Why would Hillary Clinton demand unconscionable speaking fees from special interest groups when she knew that she would pursue the presidency and her payoffs would be publicized? I’ll leave it to readers to...

I have written about pain medicine previously on this blog, and it generated some spirited responses.  Let me be clear that I am completely against all forms of pain, whether foreign or domestic, physical, spiritual, psychic or even phantom.  The medical profession has superb tools to combat and relieve pain, and physicians should utilize them, within the boundaries of appropriate use.  We now have an actual specialty – pain management – who are physicians with special training on the science and treatment of all varieties of pain.  I utilize these specialists when necessary and I am grateful for the help they provide to my patients.  There are two forms of drug abuse in our society – legal and illegal.  The latter has become a health scourge that is shattering families across the country.  A few days before I wrote this, I read the stats of overdose deaths in my state of Ohio.  I was shocked to learn that in our state alone, we lose thousan...

Years ago on Cape Cod, my kids and I stumbled across a man who had spent the day creating a sand sculpture of a mermaid.  It was an impressive piece of art.  “How long did it take you to make it? ” we asked.   While I can’t recall his precise words, the response was something like “25 years and 7 hours”.  I’m sure my astute readers will get his point. We are transfixed now watching Olympic athletes performing in Rio.  So much depends upon their brief routines which can last seconds to a few minutes.  While a diver’s acrobatic plunge may take 2 seconds, it would not be fair to leave aside the years of work and training that prepared the athlete for this moment. The same point can be made for anyone who has worked and trained hard to reach a point where the action performed seems easy to a spectator or a customer.   If an attorney prepares estate documents, we can assume that the fee for this reflects the prior training and research th...

Ok, readers.  I know how many of you fantasize about being part of the high drama and glamor of the medical profession.  Believe me, it’s even more exciting than the medical TV shows that have been part of pop culture for generations.  Remember Ben Casey?  Marcus Welby?  Dr. Kildare?  Dr. Seuss?   Rescuing folks hovering over the Grim Reaper was just another day at work for these guys. The Grim Reaper Here’s your chance to play doctor for the duration of this post. A patient wants a colonoscopy, but it is not medically necessary.  Assuming he cannot be convinced to withdraw the request, should you perform it? A physician wants you to perform colonoscopy on his patient, but it is not medically necessary.  Assuming the physician cannot be convinced to withdraw the request, should you perform it? An elderly patient’s son wants a colonoscopy performed on his father, but it is not medically necessary.  The patien...