Among physicians, who are the best golfers?
Among all those serious studies in medical journals, the BMJ tackled a lighter topic: golf habits among physicians and surgeons.
So who plays the best game? Turns out it's surgeons—specifically those in thoracic, vascular and orthopedic specialties, the study found. They were the best golfers—or at least, they said they were—reporting about 15% better performance than specialists in endocrinology, dermatology and oncology.
It's a well-known stereotype that many doctors spend Wednesday afternoons on the golf course. But, of course, not all physicians are into golf. Among over 1 million physicians in the Doximity physician database, only 4.1% logged golf scores in the U.S. Golfing Association amateur golfer database. Far more men (89.5%) than women (10.5%) make up those physician golfers. (Study)
Six Michigan doctors charged in $464M opioid scheme
Six Michigan doctors were charged in a $464 million healthcare fraud scheme involving unlawfully prescribing opioids and subjecting patients to unnecessary injections.
A grand jury returned a 56-count indictment charging the doctors in the scheme that involved over 13 million unlawfully prescribed opioids, according to an announcement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the eastern district of Michigan.
The indictment charges Rajendra Bothra, M.D., 77, of Bloomfield Hills, who owned and operated a pain clinic in Warren, Michigan, along with five doctors who worked at the clinic. Those doctors prescribed opioid pain medication to induce patients to come in for office visits, prosecutors said. Once there, to receive the highly addictive prescriptions, patients were forced to undergo ancillary services, such as painful facet joint and facet block injections, according to the indictment. (Announcement)
Trump administration seeks public feedback on how to fix HIPAA privacy rules
Among regulations in healthcare, perhaps none is more well-known—or loathed—than HIPAA.
Now, the Department of Health and Human Services wants to hear from the public about how to fix what are officially known as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) rules.
Specifically, they are looking for feedback on how to reform the HIPAA Privacy Rule to remove barriers to organizations trying to share data in an attempt to improve healthcare delivery. (FierceHealthcare)
How one pediatrician found herself at the center of Flint’s water crisis
ORLANDO, Fla.—Pediatrician Mona Hanna-Attisha, M.D., knows a thing or two about being told to stay in her lane.
When the physician at Hurley Children’s Hospital in Flint, Michigan, was lauded by public health officials for putting out the research that revealed children living in the city had elevated levels of lead in their blood as a result of the region’s contaminated water, political figures chastised her for stepping outside a physician’s typical role.
“I went into healthcare and pediatrics not just to treat ear infections but to treat injustices and inequalities,” said Hanna-Attisha, an assistant professor of pediatrics at Michigan State University.
Hanna-Attisha was one of dozens of speakers at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s National Forum on Quality Improvement in Healthcare this week and a panelist in a session featuring women calling for physicians to be stronger advocates on issues of social justice. (FierceHealthcare)