Allegations that a doctor gave potentially fatal doses of a painkiller to 27 patients in the Mount Carmel Health System have shaken the Columbus medical community. But cases of medical staff members intentionally causing harm or death are very rare, say those involved in the matter.
Dr. Penny Wheeler, president and chief executive of Allina Health in Minneapolis, has a message for her 29,000 employees, especially those who are 50 and older and comprise about one-third of its workforce.: “We want you for a marathon, not a sprint.”
When Yale University announced in summer 2018 that the renowned cardiologist Michael Simons had received a prestigious endowed professorship, his colleagues at the university’s medical school did not rush to congratulate him. On the contrary, they were outraged. “I was appalled,” says Nancy Ruddle, an epidemiology professor. Nina Stachenfeld, another researcher at the medical school, got the news from a friend who had also just received an endowed chair, one of the highest honors a university can bestow. “We were both absolutely shocked,” she recalls.
Privately insured patients have been asked to rate their medical providers for years. Now, for the first time, Massachusetts is seeking the opinions of thousands of Medicaid recipients about their experiences in the doctor’s office. Beginning this month, nearly 250,000 low-income and disabled patients will be asked questions such as whether they or their children were able to get appointments when they needed them, whether doctors and office staff communicated respectfully, and whether their mental health treatment actually improved their ability to work or attend school.
A former White Plains Hospital exec died suddenly — at his retirement party. Ossie Dahl, 64, was one week into retirement as vice president of facilities at the Westchester County hospital and being feted by co-workers, friends and family at a party Friday when he gave a speech — and then succumbed.
As many as 100 health care workers have lost their license to practice in Florida because they can’t repay their student loans – a new crackdown potentially putting hundreds out of work, the I-Team found. The move to suspend health care licenses comes after federal student loan companies spent years lobbying states to adopt laws to punish those who default on student loans by taking away their professional licenses.