Saturday, September 8, 2012

Exclusive Contracts: Are we losing our moral compass?


Exclusive Contracts: Are we losing our moral compass? 
                        As physicians and surgeon we are trained to withstand extremes of adversities inside and outside the operating rooms. Through long years of training we remain focused on the science and art of medicine as applicable to our patients. We all have stayed away from our loved ones during the long years of medical or surgical residency. Subsequently we go through a stringent written and a grilling oral examination to obtain the final Board Certification. In a complex field like Cardiac Surgery this training may be inadequate to practice independently. Therefore many of us underwent low paid concentrated training in a high volume center to sharpen our skills. In Cardiothoracic Surgery this could take anywhere from 13 to 17 years of our lives.  How does one react to the decision of the hospital administration to grant Exclusive Contracts to a group of surgeons that excludes you from practicing the art that took a lifetime to master.  The Certification of American Board of Thoracic Surgery or State Board Licensure seems to have no meaning if the recipient cannot practice the chosen art freely.  While Exclusive Contracts may be legal, they are unjust and unethical.  The Hospital CEO’s are completely justified in granting Exclusive Contracts provided they are done scrupulously to serve the patients and not the privileged group of physicians. Therefore the CEO’s must think harder and deeper before granting Exclusive Contracts. While taking all the factors into consideration they must use appropriate moral compass to guide such decisions exclusively in the best interest of the patients.  -- 
logo  Pankaj Kulshrestha, M.D.Dayton Cardiac Surgery
East Medical Plaza
627 Edwin C. Moses Boulevard, Suite 5J
Dayton, OH 45417
www.daytoncardiacsurgery.com


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