Virtual Mentor. July 2007, Volume 9, Number 7: 471-520. Full Issue PDF

July 2007 Contents

Physician Accountability

Ethics Poll

Your new internist appears to be markedly unfit. Does this influence the way you receive the life style advice he or she gives you?
Not at all
Somewhat
A great deal

Which response best expresses your opinion about the following statement: Patients have a right to expect their physicians to be available on demand?
Agree. Physicians knowingly chose a profession which demands that they put patient interests above their own.
Agree. Society rewards physicians with status and pay for their availability.
Disagree. Physicians who are overworked and exhausted are more likely to make mistakes.
Disagree. As long as I can reach a qualified physician I don't care whether or not it is my primary physician.

The best way to sanction unprofessional physician conduct (that does not reach the threshold of malpractice) is:
Leave it to the marketplace; no one wants a rude physician.
Enforce professional organization codes of ethics.
Use the court system.
Give state medical board the power to sanction such behavior.

View results

From the Editor

The Rise of Physician Accountability
Charles Wells
Full Text | PDF
Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:473-475.

Educating for Professionalism

Clinical Cases

Is the Surgery Necessary Now? The Surgeon's Conflict of Interest
Commentary by Howard Brody and David Zientek
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:476-482.

Avoiding Disincentives to Treat in Designing Pay-for-Performance Measures
Commentary by Meredith B. Rosenthal
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:483-486.

Competing for the Physician's Attention after Hours
Commentary by Richard Gunderman
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:487-490.

Journal Discussion

Outside the (Pill)box: Can Physician Performance be Assessed by Objective Measures?
Sanjiv Bajaj
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:494-496.

Medical Education

Evidence--an Input, Not an Answer
Robert M. Centor
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:491-493.

Clinical Pearl

Diagnosis and Treatment of Viral Meningitis
Alexandra Leigh
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:497-498.

Law, Policy, and Society

Health Law

State Medical Board Attempts to Censure Physician Communication Styles
Garrett Kerr
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:499-502.

Policy Forum

Accountability via Chart Audits
Abraham P. Schwab
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:503-507.

Medicine and Society

Sharing the Pain: A Moral Sketch
James Gordon
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:508-510.

Op-Ed and Correspondence

Op-Ed

The Lifestyle Influence: "Do As I Say, Not As I Do"
Katherine O'Brien
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Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:508-510.

Resources

Suggested Readings and Resources
PDF
Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:514-518.

About the Contributors
Full Text | PDF
Virtual Mentor. 2007; 9:519-520.