One physician, who is a delegate at the Republican National Convention, says she got involved in politics to try and keep the practice of medicine the way it should be.
The political arena has an impact on the practice of medicine but political decisions should not get in the way of the patient-physician relationship, Sheila Page, D.O., said in an interview with MedPage Today from the convention floor.
“The physicians are here for the patient,” Page said, but when third parties get involved their priority may not be on that patient. "I would like for the politicians and thought leaders to understand that when they allow the corporate practice of medicine to take place in the U.S., which has never been done before, it corrupts the way patients are treated."
Doctors should be accountable to the patient, not to an outside boss, said Page, who is from Fort Worth, Texas. Page also said she likes the fact that the Republican platform includes a “right of conscience” clause that protects doctors from having to do anything that their own conscience does not agree with. In Canada, for instance, a law has been passed that forces physicians to participate in euthanasia or aid-in-dying, she said. Better patient-physician relationships can result in better outcomes, as FiercePracticeManagement has reported.
- here’s the interview