Kevin Pho, MD

Hospital bullying requires everyone to share in the blame and solution

June 12, 2011Jun 12, 201111

The following column was published on May 28, 2011 in FoxNews.com. Theresa Brown’s New York Times op-ed, Physician, Heel Thyself, recently introduced hospital bullying into the national health care conversation. In it, she recounted a hospital vignette while working as…

The following column was published on May 28, 2011 in FoxNews.com.

Theresa Brown’s New York Times op-ed, Physician, Heel Thyself, recently introduced hospital bullying into the national health care conversation.

In it, she recounted a hospital vignette while working as an oncology nurse. A patient asked a doctor who should he blame for a late test result. The …

Medical education

ABIM Maintenance of Certification (MOC) internal medicine exam tips

June 10, 2011Jun 10, 201110

This past spring, I took the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) exam. 7 weeks later, I received my results. Thankfully, I passed. This was not entirely a surprise, as the pass rate for first-time test…

This past spring, I took the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) exam.

7 weeks later, I received my results. Thankfully, I passed.

This was not entirely a surprise, as the pass rate for first-time test takers was 88%. But it definitely requires some studying. It’s not a gimmie.

Considering that I last took my board exam in …

Conditions and diseases

Do doctors have more influence than the media in cancer screening?

June 6, 2011Jun 6, 20119

Not all cancer screening saves lives. I alluded to this recently in a New York Times' Room for Debate piece, discussing why Medicare shouldn't pay for prostate cancer screening in men over the age of 75. And, when it comes…

Not all cancer screening saves lives.

I alluded to this recently in a New York Times’ Room for Debate piece, discussing why Medicare shouldn’t pay for prostate cancer screening in men over the age of 75.

And, when it comes to ovarian cancer screening, a recent study showed that annual CA-125 antigen testing and transvaginal ultrasound did not save lives. In …

Medical education

Would free medical school be enough to save primary care?

Medical school should be free.

May 31, 2011May 31, 201133

Medical school should be free. That's an argument made by physicians Peter B. Bach and Robert Kocher in the New York Times. This isn't a new concept. I've discussed whether medical school should be free for students who choose primary…

That’s an argument made by physicians Peter B. Bach and Robert Kocher in the New York Times.

This isn’t a new concept. I’ve discussed whether medical school should be free for students who choose primary care. And, for some in the country, it’s already happening. Like at Case Western Reserve University, for instance. The Cleveland Clinic …

The tension between physicians and health policy experts

May 24, 2011May 24, 201153

There's an underlying tension between physicians and health policy experts. Health policy experts take subtle jibes against physicians in their analyses, with many feeling American doctors are overpaid, which exacerbates health costs. They tend to be politically progressive, and generally…

There’s an underlying tension between physicians and health policy experts.

Health policy experts take subtle jibes against physicians in their analyses, with many feeling American doctors are overpaid, which exacerbates health costs. They tend to be politically progressive, and generally dismiss the issues that most doctors care deeply about. Medical malpractice, tort reform and the cost of medical education, for instance.

And …

Doctors should know how much lab tests cost

May 17, 2011May 17, 201124

According to a recent study, providing physicians with the cost of lab tests cut costs. As reported by the WSJ's Health Blog, A new study finds that simply making physicians aware of the cost of regular blood tests cut the…

According to a recent study, providing physicians with the cost of lab tests cut costs.

As reported by the WSJ’s Health Blog,

A new study finds that simply making physicians aware of the cost of regular blood tests cut the daily bill for the tests by as much as 27% … At the beginning of the program, the daily cost per

…

How malpractice hurts doctors and their future patients

May 16, 2011May 16, 201189

Little has been written about the impact a malpractice lawsuit has on physicians. But physicians who've been sued have a higher rate of suicide, and emergency physician Edwin Leap wrote about how doctors are emotionally scarred from the grueling ordeal…

Little has been written about the impact a malpractice lawsuit has on physicians.

But physicians who’ve been sued have a higher rate of suicide, and emergency physician Edwin Leap wrote about how doctors are emotionally scarred from the grueling ordeal of a trial.

A recent piece from American Medical News puts faces on the toll:

The key to surviving is having

…

Doctor bashing and confronting physicians in the media

May 9, 2011May 9, 201148

It's certainly been fascinating monitoring the response to Theresa Brown's New York Times' op-ed on physician bullying. Predictably, most physicians were outraged, while the rest of the population generally supported Brown. As alluded to in a comment, whenever you have…

It’s certainly been fascinating monitoring the response to Theresa Brown’s New York Times’ op-ed on physician bullying.

Predictably, most physicians were outraged, while the rest of the population generally supported Brown. As alluded to in a comment, whenever you have an aggrieved party accusing another one in a national forum, controversy is what you’re going to get. The piece was the …

Theresa Brown unfairly blames doctors for hospital bullying

May 7, 2011May 7, 201179

Bullying is a problem within health care. Stung by a physician's rebuke, Theresa Brown, an oncology nurse, takes to the op-ed pages of the New York Times to address the issue. In it, she cites several vignettes that paint doctors…

Bullying is a problem within health care.

Stung by a physician’s rebuke, Theresa Brown, an oncology nurse, takes to the op-ed pages of the New York Times to address the issue.

In it, she cites several vignettes that paint doctors poorly:

But while most doctors clearly respect their colleagues on the nursing staff, every nurse knows at least one, if not

…

End of life care is being influenced by politics

May 3, 2011May 3, 201111

A version of this op-ed was published on April 12, 2011 in USA Today. “Would you like to discuss your end-of-life plans today?” It’s a question that I ask my patients, although not as often as I would like. Talking…

A version of this op-ed was published on April 12, 2011 in USA Today.

“Would you like to discuss your end-of-life plans today?”

It’s a question that I ask my patients, although not as often as I would like. Talking about death may be uncomfortable, but it’s a conversation that needs to happen more often.

We can never know …

Patient satisfaction should not influence how doctors are paid

May 2, 2011May 2, 201130

Medicare is thinking of using patient satisfaction scores in part to determine bonuses to hospitals. According to Kaiser Health News, ... patient gripes soon will affect how much hospitals get paid by Medicare. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services…

Medicare is thinking of using patient satisfaction scores in part to determine bonuses to hospitals.

According to Kaiser Health News,

… patient gripes soon will affect how much hospitals get paid by Medicare.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is finalizing details for the new reimbursement method, required by last year’s health care law. Consumer advocates say tying patient

…

Should nurses be fired for fatal medication errors?

May 2, 2011May 2, 201131

Kimberly Hiatt was a pediatric critical care nurse who accidentally gave an infant a fatal overdose of calcium chloride last year. By accounts, it was a calculation error. A human mistake. After the incident, the hospital fired her. This past…

Kimberly Hiatt was a pediatric critical care nurse who accidentally gave an infant a fatal overdose of calcium chloride last year.

By accounts, it was a calculation error. A human mistake.

After the incident, the hospital fired her.

This past April, she took her own life.

Although it cannot be concluded that the tragedy was directly responsible for her suicide, the incident clearly …

Health reform will drive up ER visits, like it did in Massachusetts

April 28, 2011Apr 28, 201113

Whenever I get asked about how the Affordable Care Act will impact health care, I always say, "look at Massachusetts first." That's because Massachusetts serves as a model for what's coming ahead for the rest of the country. As I…

Whenever I get asked about how the Affordable Care Act will impact health care, I always say, “look at Massachusetts first.”

That’s because Massachusetts serves as a model for what’s coming ahead for the rest of the country.

As I wrote in 2009, Massachusetts did not provide the primary care infrastructure for near-universal care, which I predicted would drive up emergency room …

Why denying ER care to patients is bad policy

April 27, 2011Apr 27, 201113

It's commonly thought that rising emergency department expenditures could be curtailed if we could eliminate non-urgent visits. In Washington state, for instance, lawmakers are proposing limits to the number of times Medicaid recipients can go to the ER. But what,…

It’s commonly thought that rising emergency department expenditures could be curtailed if we could eliminate non-urgent visits.

In Washington state, for instance, lawmakers are proposing limits to the number of times Medicaid recipients can go to the ER.

But what, exactly, is a “non-urgent” visit? And how can patients …

A medical malpractice system that reduces errors and improves quality