A Doctor by Choice, a Businessman by Necessity

New York Times by Sandeep Jauhar, M.D. | Jul. 7, 2009 (Opinion)

The rising commercialism, driven in part by increasing expenses and decreasing reimbursement, has obvious consequences for the public: ballooning costs, fraying of the traditional doctor-patient relationship. What is not so obvious is the harmful effects on doctors themselves. We were trained to think like caregivers, not businesspeople. The constant intrusion of the marketplace is creating serious and deepening anxiety in the profession. Full Story »

Posted by Kaizar Campwala - via New York Times (Most Emailed)

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Related Comments: Health Care (8)

3.5

by Derek Hawkins - Jul. 7, 2009

Somewhat sappy, but effective. Mostly anecdotal—any raw data behind this?

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3.8

by Fabrice Florin - Jul. 7, 2009

Thoughtful essay about the business of medicine, and its impact on the quality of health care. The author shares his personal struggle to find a balance between commercial and social goals as a Long Island cardiologist. Well reasoned article, supported by factual observations about this complex issue.

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3.5

by Kaizar Campwala - Jul. 7, 2009

Interesting prespective, though far less comprehensive or data-driven than Gawande's New Yorker piece that also looks at Health Care costs from the doctor's perspective (see links)

“Today’s medical students are being inducted into a culture in which their profession is seen increasingly in financial terms.” More »

The Cost Conundrum - 9 Reviews »

Kaizar posted this story.

See Full Review » (13 answers)

3.9

by Samuel W. Velsor IV - Jul. 8, 2009

This is a man who is THERE, he understands the problems and sees the big decline in patient care at the expense of the bottom line, much to his dismay.

Having personally been a billing & IT manager at a multi specialty practice I saw the money problems first hand. One of the biggest was the large/long time delay from billing till payment was received, our states Medicaid averaged over 60>180 days, Medicare was not much better and our ICD-9 coding was excellent. The other side was fighting doctor to place aged accounts in collection- in a timely manner. All that said the costs of a practice are huge and add the paperwork. Doctors ... More »

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4.0

by Kristin Gorski - Jul. 9, 2009

Insightful opinion piece based largely on personal experience and also meaningfully connected to larger issues that doctors around patient care and financial compensation. Very compelling.

I'm heartened to hear a doctor make such a strong case to re-prioritize the "human" side of his profession.

It is a battle for the soul of medicine. More »

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3.8

by Conor Sullivan - Jul. 9, 2009

Point of view is clear. A necessary perspective from an individual with personal experience.

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3.8

by Mark Lison - Jul. 9, 2009

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3.7

Good

from 7 reviews (60% confidence)

Quality

3.6

Facts

4.0

Fairness

4.0

Information

3.6

Insight

3.7

Style

3.7

Accuracy

4.0

Balance

4.0

Context

3.2

Depth

3.0

Enterprise

4.0

Expertise

3.4

Originality

3.6

Relevance

4.0

Transparency

4.0

Responsibility

3.8

Popularity

4.1

Recommendation

4.3

Credibility

4.1

# Reviews

3.5

# Views

5.0

# Likes

2.0

# Emails

1.0

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U.S. | Politics | Health | Health Care

The Cost Conundrum

New Yorker by Atul Gawande | Jun. 10, 2009 (Special Report)

Americans like to believe that, with most things, more is better. But research suggests that where medicine is concerned it may actually be worse.., In fact, the four states ...

Posted by Kaizar Campwala

4.2

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