Friday, April 20, 2007

Ghost Writers of Radiology...5/11


Radiology reports are transcribed, but transcription is 10 days behind. Since they use locums, how are they able to review and sign (electronically) their dictation when they bring in a non-regular? Is someone signing for them in Helen Keller mode? Could be a problem---fraud might be rearing again.


........the 2 transcriptionists that are left are hopelessly behind. ....said 250+ inpatient transcripts and 10 days behind on outpatient...even though they're working 12 hour shifts. She said that the radiology staff is sick of saying "sorry, the report's not ready yet".....

And one more point that was brought up: Essent dismissed one locum for being drunk or drinking when she came in to do a breast biopsy, were the reports that were pending her electronic signature re-read, or did they slip away into obscurity, Caspered as it were, suddenly appearing signed?


Thank God they got rid of those nasty, profit-minded radiologists...it's been over a year...haven't things been so much smoother????

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Please come back Red River. You might could name your price. Word is $7K/week / locum. And there are 4. Do the math!

Anonymous said...

The money post was wrong. The word is $14K /wk and there are 4. Do the math. Come back Red River.

Anonymous said...

The rad they have now refuses to come out when requested--said the ER should "avail themselves of the services the hospital offers" (he means the Virtual Rad thingy--but the cases he was called about were ones that got locked up online and VRC couldn't get the images to read them!

Needless to say, ER physicians not happy--nor patients either--hmmm thought the locum docs were also part of the 'services the hospital offers'...

Ahh the good old days when we just called the RRV boys and they read the stuff at home--and if the telerad wasn't working right or it was plain films needing a rad's opinion--they just drove up to the hospital and read them!! Alas...so long ago.

Actually, they are supposed to be part of said services--since their services are billed as part of the hospital. Just goes to show the level of investment in the community....

Since Dickie parks at the Hampton--he's made it very clear to staff that he's divorced--why doesn't he give the guy a lift???....frank

Anonymous said...

The money post was wrong. The word is $14K /wk and there are 4. Do the math. Come back Red River.

Damn.... I went into the wrong profession!!!

Anonymous said...

There are several reasons why doctors work locum tenens jobs:
-Some like to travel.
-Others have too much vacation time and prefer to earn money instead oftaking vacations.
-Still others are near retirement and want to cut back and work only a few weeks out ofthe year.

Unfortunately, there is also a group of doctors who work as locum tenens because they can’t hold down a permanent job. This can be because of a belligerent personality, mental illness, or even habitual substance abuse.

Any hospital that is hiring dozens of locum tenens doctors on a regular basis has probably employed doctors in all of the above categories.

When it becomes apparent that a hospital has hired a physician who is impaired by drugs or alcohol, the hospital has the primary responsibility to make certain that no patients are harmed by the actions of the impaired physician.

This includes removing the physician from the work environment. In the case of an impaired radiologist, this also includes reviewing and rereading all of the studies that were interpreted by the impaired physician.

If the hospital dismissed a radiologist because of on the job alcohol abuse and then did not insist that ALL of the studies that she read while at that hospital were reread by a non-impaired radiologist, then the hospital is also liable for any errors committed by the impaired radiologist.

The episode described in the blog post is actually fairly common knowledge at PRMC. It would appear that PRMC chose the easiest and cheapest way out by simply removing her from the hospital and hoping that no one would find out.

I suppose they just crossed their fingers and hoped that any errors caused by inebriation could be swept under the rug. They weren’t about to suffer the embarrassment and expense that would be caused by doing the right thing and rereading all of her studies.

Anyone who suffered harm due to the actions of an impaired physician has a solid lawsuit against not only that physician, but also against the hospital if it knowingly allowed the reads of an impaired physician to remain in the patient’s medical record.

I would say that comment was rather succinct, wouldn't you? It lays out the liabilities, the responsible parties, and possible repercussions....got a good lawyer???...frank

Anonymous said...

Why do I hear the word "fraud" in the back of my mind when I read this thread? Do I sense an investigation by a regulatory agency (or two, or three) in the future? And how much insulation is Hud and Big Dick gonna put between themselves and any crapstorm that does fall?

Anonymous said...

To the head of Essent:
I just returned from Baylor Plano Heart Care. The minute my husband walked thru the door he was in a room , within five minutes he had an ekg, blood drawn and x-ray on their way, oh, by the way the Doctor was there during this. Last time at Essent a 4-5 hour wait. The mention of Paris Health care, they already knew about it. Wise up more people from Paris and Lamar County are going elsewhere. I paid my last visit to your hospital.

Anonymous said...

....all Essent workforce members shall conduct their business. ethically....

rotsa ruck on that one, Dick!

Anonymous said...

So glad to be out of PRM SH#T!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

RE 2:24 post
Glad to hear that you went to Baylor for care. If you would have gone to the ER at PRM shi t, and waited for the Prince, you would probably still be waiting for the results on tests that could have been ordered, and you would not get those results until you went back to his office.

Anonymous said...

Had a test done 3 weeks ago. My doc still doesn't have the report. Amazing.