Three Areas of Health Care Conflict Being Reported by the Media

1. Physician alignment conflict reported by Hospitals and Health Networks

Whether through employment or contractual means, exclusive relationships with a high-performing “group” of clinicians unafraid of risk, receptive to team-based delivery and accomplished in the use of clinical and administrative information technologies is the most difficult challenge facing hospitals. Clearly, transitioning from a facilitycentric brick-and-stick operating model to a regional care management organization with a wide scope of products and services requires physician input and active engagement. But conflicts with physicians take a toll: Physicians are increasingly dispassionate about their hospital loyalties. They want financial security and professional autonomy, and they’ll listen to any party that can deliver.

For more information, read What to Expect in 2014 by Paul Keckley.

2. Conflict between employed physicians and hospital physicians as reported by Modern Healthcare 

The conflict between the staffing firm and one of its employed doctors highlights a growing problem for hospitals and other healthcare institutions that have turned to outside vendors to supply critical physician services. While the outside firms bring greater efficiencies and standardized practices, their growth has ratcheted up tensions, especially among those physicians who used to belong to independent practices or who enjoyed greater professional autonomy as direct hospital employees. Some of these newly employed doctors say they are being pressured to generate increased revenue or put up with conditions that impair quality or patient safety. There sometimes are similar issues between hospitals and doctors they directly employ. Among those who feel most under the gun are hospital-based specialists such as emergency physicians, anesthesiologists and hospitalists. Many now work for contractors that may find it easier than hospitals to fire them if they speak up about professionally unacceptable conditions.

For the full article, go to Firings, whistle-blower suits surface as employed docs speak out about problems on the job by Andis Robeznieks.

3. Ethical conflicts for doctors from Forbes

The vast majority of doctors take their ethical responsibilities very seriously. Prior to ObamaCare, only a relatively few “bad apples” have chosen to compromise their professional ethics for financial gain. However, ObamaCare creates new ethical conflicts for doctors. We’ll examine some common physician conflicts of interest before and after ObamaCare, and discuss how patients can best protect themselves.

Read more in How ObamaCare Creates Ethical Conflicts For Physicians And How Patients Can Protect Themselves by Paul Hsieh.