Texas’ Third District Court of Appeals in Austin has affirmed a lower court’s order confirming an arbitration award despite that no transcription of the arbitration hearing was created.

Zachary D. Clopton, Assistant Professor of Law at Cornell Law School, and Verity Winship, Professor of Law at the University of Illinois College of Law, have published “A Cooperative Federalism Approach to Shareholder Arbitration,” 128 Yale L.J.F. 169 (2018).

The Eighth District of Texas in El Paso has affirmed a district court’s order denying arbitration in a workplace discrimination case. 

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi has ordered a nursing home dispute to arbitration based on an individual’s oral consent to her daughter’s agency.

By Holly Hayes The American Medical News published this week Jazz offers lessons for doctor-patient interaction. This article discusses the use of jazz music to help physicians hone their patient communication skills. Dr. Paul Haidet, president-elect of the American Academy on Communication in Healthcare says”Jazz is all about harmony in communication. When jazz musicians play, they play in a way that goes along with [how] the rest of the band is playing.” Dr. Haidet and Gary Onady, MD, PhD, an internist and pediatrician, led a session at the annual meeting of the American College of Physicians to educate physicians about using jazz characteristics to improve patient and family communication. They described a physician’s range of skills within his specialty as his instrument. They compared a patient’s chart with song sheets. The riff, they said, is a physician’s rapid recall of knowledge. A physician needs to be ready to improvise when he or she walks into an exam room and encounters unexpected aspects of a patient’s illness, Dr. Haidet said. But once in the room, physicians should not think of themselves as the only person in charge, Dr. Onady said. Rather, he recommends doctors “assign solos,” allowing the patient and others in the room to discuss their concerns one at a time. Doing so makes the patient realize the physician is listening. It also enables the doctor to hear more about symptoms and possible causes and gets a more complete picture of the medical problem or concerns, said Dr. Onady, professor of pediatrics and internal medicine at Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine in Dayton, Ohio. He also urges physicians to pay attention to patients’ body language. For example, if the patient is staring blankly while the physician summarizes medication instructions, it’s time to try a different approach, said Dr. Onady, a jazz musician in the Eddie Brookshire Quintet. “The doctor needs to think, ‘I’m not harmonizing with the patient. What is it going to take? Am I too technical? Is it my inflection?’” He acknowledges that physicians’ limited time makes thorough discussions with patients a challenge. But he points to jazz musicians who, when improvising, have to determine very quickly where they are going to take the music. Communicating efficiently in a small amount of time is a learned skill, Dr. Onady said. Read more on our post on how patients engage more in their own care when they are encouraged to do so by their physician. We welcome your thoughts on physician/patient communication. Holly Hayes is a mediator at Karl Bayer, Dispute Resolution Expert where she focuses on mediation of health care disputes. Holly holds a B.A. from Southern Methodist University and a Masters in Health Administration from Duke University. She can be reached at: holly@karlbayer.com.

By Holly Hayes After hearing Dan O’Connell speak earlier this month, I found this on-line presentation by Dan titled, Bad behavior — preparing for and dealing with disruptive behavior by providers. Dan is a clinical psychologist who works as an educator, consultant, clinician, department chair and executive director in medical and behavioral health settings. He suggests health care organizations develop a positive, proactive statement of expected physician behavior to address any behavioral concerns that arise and gives an example: Members of the group behave as healers, leaders and partners. As healers they attend to the emotional as well as the technical needs of their patients. Patient needs are foremost in shaping their response in any situation. As leaders they positively work on solving problems and reject blaming, cynicism and divisiveness. Their behavior and attitude exemplifies maturity, respect, ethical sensitivity and self discipline. As partners they contribute to an attitude of collegiality, cooperation, civility and foster trust and transparency. Dan references The Joint Commission code of conduct and recommends applying the code formally and informally by making “physician or nurse behavior discussable by any member of the group or staff by teaching and rewarding assertiveness and crucial conversations” and utilizing a “facilitator/intermediary much more readily” in resolving conflict. He suggests utilizing a “consistent and equitable reporting system” that applies to all staff and respects due process, as well as establishing a “progressive discipline approach” that is consistent with existing staff bylaws and labor agreements. Read more about our posts on disruptive behavior in health care here. We welcome your comments. Holly Hayes is a mediator at Karl Bayer, Dispute Resolution Expert where she focuses on mediation of health care disputes. Holly holds a B.A. from Southern Methodist University and a Masters in Health Administration from Duke University. She can be reached at: holly@karlbayer.com.