PGY 39, Day # 86

Medicine by the Numbers is Painting an Unacceptable Picture … Strike that

Medicine by the Numbers: Painting an Ugly and Unacceptable Picture of Money and Profit Over Patient Care

These are not new thoughts for me, but, rather recurrent thoughts … triggered by my observations on the front lines of patient care … and the picture gets worse … and worse with every passing day.  With every passing day, it gets harder and harder for the front line providers to give the best possible care.  It is a struggle to say the least, and the bottom line is this: The Business of Medicine DOES NOT equal The Profession of Medicine and The Art of Medicine, and therein lies the problem.  Business guys want to earn money, and Doctors want to … and are obliged BY OATH to take care of patients.  So, as I see it, the Profession of Medicine … the Doctor Patient Relationship …  has been hijacked by the Business of Medicine, so patient care providers are only valued in so much as they can generate $$$ for the business.  In other words, the Business Guys are riding on the backs of patients and providers (AKA the Doctor-Patient Relationship), driving the Doctor-Patient Relationship toward the MONEY, skimming off the top (30-60%) and Patients are falling through the cracks, because their health care needs are not being met.  It is Ugly, Unacceptable, Unethical, Immoral and probably, if not illegal, on the edge of legality. 

But these Business Guys do have excuses for their bad behavior, and they are protected by corporate structure from the bad outcomes that they produce in the process of driving the line toward greater “productivity” and pushing providers into situations that result in cutting corners and lowering quality.  What do Business Guys know about quality patient care?  Nothing!  Do they care about patient care?  No!  They care about the bottom line, profits, bonuses, money in their pockets and corporate profits … that is their business.

I have posted a Top Ten Target (TTⁿT™©) Solution List in the past, and I will post it again in my new blog, but for now, I will share the piece posted on my website blog … in November 2008.  As you review this post, keep in mind one simple fact: The Business of Medicine DOES NOT EQUAL The Profession, Practice and Art of Medicine.  Therefore, The Business of Medicine DOES NOT & CAN NOT PROVIDE for optimal patient care.