Manage Doctors for Patient Benefit

knead-breadParents can try to control everything their children do, or let them run completely wild. Neither extreme works well.

Politicians can try to control everything in medicine, or let doctors run wild.

Just like parents, politicians tend towards one extreme or another. If we listen closely, most pundits assume doctors should be controlled.

How to Manage Doctors

I spend hours listening to healthcare opinionists: politicians, candidates running for office, administrators, consultants, bureaucrats, journalists, talk show hosts and concerned citizens. They all have different ideas on how to manage doctors. But none of them questions the need for management. Continue reading “Manage Doctors for Patient Benefit”

How to Influence Council

influence councilLaugh tracks win debates.

Political talk shows, like Bill Maher’s, rely on cheers from the audience to boost the host’s views.

Applause directs viewers what to think. No one wants scorn for being out of line with what Bill Maher thinks.

Groups of doctors are no different. We think that we are thoughtful and deliberate, but applause changes doctors’ opinions, just like everyone else.

Influence Council

Almost 300 doctors will take a biannual pilgrimage to a giant basement in Toronto for the Ontario Medical Association Council meeting this weekend. Council delegates will consume tables of carbs and coffee listening to the OMA Board Report and other issues.

Delegates must sift hours of noise for buried scandals. Big issues can slip by in seconds. When delegates find something, they need to speak up. They need to convince the basement mob to think differently. Continue reading “How to Influence Council”