On February 17th, 2012 the Medical Device Manufacturing Association (MDMA) submitted a letter on behalf of the medical device industry to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in response to the proposed rule CMS-5060-P regarding "Transparency Reports and Reporting of Physician Ownership or Investment Interests. MDMA represents hundreds of medical device companies. The commentary submitted by MDMA focused on
- Timelines for implementation
- Expansion of the definition of covered recipients to include manufacturer payments to hospital GPOS
- Recognition of innovation in physician/manufacturer collaborations
Under the PPAC Act medical device companies were required to begin collecting payment recording data on January 1. 2012, yet since CMS did not provide adequate time for companies to provide this feedback MDMA requested that a delay be granted, by which CMS acquiesced. Under the proposed rule, CMS is considering to require companies to begin collecting payment data after 90 days upon publication of the final rule. At the time of this letter, MDMA did not believe that this was a sufficient matter of time to allow manufacturers to comply with the mandate. MDMA contends that the majority of medical device manufacturers in the U.S. are small to medium size companies, and that this would be a tremendous burden on those entities, stating that Section 6022 of the PPACA will place an administrative burden on these small companies as they need to develop the necessary information technology to track payments. The question that TSB must ask Mr. Novelli the signer of the letter, just how much time do any of these small companies really need? It is rather entertaining the Mr. Novelli writes that these companies need time to ensure compliance, since compliance has rarely been acknowledged in the spine industry. As for failing to report accurately, TSB highly doubts that the government is going to be running around checking for accuracy. If companies need 90 days to train someone to manage this mandate, is this a commentary on the quality of the people that work in our industry? Why would anyone entrust their compliance to an outside source? The reason that the MDMA has requested additional time is to buy the smaller to mid-size companies the time needed to clean up the many deals and side deals that exist considering that most small companies in today's environment have a slew of surgeons investors and so-called consultants. You know the surgeon that provides you with volume in exchange for his payola, while placing his imprimatur on another variation to your screwdriver. Since transparency is a word loosely defined in the industry, TSB believes that CMS should expand the criteria so that it will address the various business models that exists to circumvent the lack of transparency. As for hospital GPO's, its a no brainer that they too should be included since they have done their very best to constrain everyone's ability to compete in a free and open market where it comes down to the best price and implant.
TSB suggests that CMS should mandate that all companies have a link on their updated websites (hint, hint people) that includes all consultants, inventors, investors, and honorariums that have been paid out. This would alleviate much wasted time attempting to sell a surgeon that doesn't give a rats ass about your product because he is on another company's payroll. An example would be attempting to sell Andy Cappaccino your lateral device when he is the lead Lanx developer of their lateral device. Money talks, bullshit walks. TSB believes that rather than provide consumers with information on how a product is developed and commercialized, just let the public know how much money surgeons are paid for their services, and the public will understand why the delivery of healthcare is so expensive. Who do you think absorbs these costs? The request by MDMA to include how a medical device progresses from concept to commercialization and how the interactions between the manufacturer and physician/surgeons is smoke and mirrors. No one consumer is going to take the time to read or understand this process. In essence, MDMA is looking to hinder CMS' ability to effect this Act by suggesting unrealistic proposals. The funniest part of the letter is when it states the MDMA opposed any inappropriate relationship between a manufacturer and a covered recipient. SO WHAT? Who care what MDMA thinks? No need to worry about the publics perception based on the numerous stories that circulate on a weekly, monthly or quarterly basis in major publications.
If CMS caves in to MDMA's recommendation in enforcing a provision of how a medical technology is commercialized, CMS will have lost its battle in enacting this in a timely manner as everyone scurries to hide the bodies as quickly as possible, or find creative ways to circumvent the process. Don't believe it? Just look at some of the legal forums that are offered regarding compliance. So in closing, if its transparency that you want, then let CMS enact this mandate and let the device industry stop with their objections to finally putting everything on the table. Besides if the surgeons want the government to keep feeding the beast, then they along with their partners, the companies must make concessions. TSB wants to know what our readers think?
So MM,
ReplyDeleteAre you advocating for even MORE gov't instrusion into our business, already one of the most regulated in the world? Do you think it will stop at simple disclosure?
My friend the candybar distributor has the right to unfettered freedom to run his business (golfing, tickets, etc) but I have Big Brother F-ing with me at every turn. NEVER give Big Brother an inch, he'll take a light year.
The medical industry is not regulated by any entity other than itself and therein lies the problem. The device industry behaves like thugs and well... they are thugs.
DeleteYou in your Republican mentality call human health a business and therein lies the rest of the problem. There was a time when health was a profession. It has now been "corporatized". It's a form of soft fascism and you Rethuglicans are fine with that regardless the harm it causes. Exploiting human suffering is way beyond unethical but to a Republican ethics don't exist and when they do they are erased by legal loopholes.
El, you are soooo off base. Sounds like you want healthcare at the very least to be a non-profit venture for manufacturers. Why don't you check with your local grocer and ask him if he would sell you all food products at cost. After all, food is a necessity.
DeleteLook up the definition of what a corporations purpose is. It is to simply provide a RETURN to it's shareholders.
Your lie of "the medical industry is not regulated" is as ridiculous as the angry mug shot you use on this site. The U.S. medical industry is far more regulated than its European counterpart. Don't believe me, then check out all the products, drugs and medical devices available in the EU that are not in the U.S. due to FDA regulations.
Also, please tell me the last time some politbureau crawled up a pharma companies ass like Grassly and other Senators/Congressmen have done in the States?
You don't think healthcare in Europe is treated as a business. Then riddle me this pud sucker. Why is healthcare rationed in the EU? In England, upon reaching 72 years of age, an individual needing dialysis must either pay out of pocket, have private insurance to cover, or take morphine and die. Quite the dirty little secret now isn't it?
El,
DeleteSince when do people work in "professions" for free? There is no exploitation of human suffering. You, however, think that simply giving everyone an insurance card is going to solve something. It solves NOTHING! It only increases the power of government over the most powerless people. The quality of and access to care will diminish for all of us and the costs will also go up for all of us who actually pay for healthcare.
And if you think people haven't always made money in healthcare, you are stupid. Why do you think radio surgery, the daVinci robot, Stealth stations and C-Arms were developed? Solely for the good of man, or maybe because somebody thought they could take a risk and make a fortune by creating something that helped people. Do you think young students apply to medical school to work on austerity to help people? NO! They expect to make a damned good living helping people because they are the brightest students and they plan to live in poverty being overworked for 10 or 11 years to get there. The difference in healthcare now and in the times you reminisce about is that no one felt that it was a right to get healthcare if they couldn't pay for it. Capitalists have and will continue to risk capital, work hard and try to create something of value to the market in exchange for good compensation. In our market, it has to either help people or reduce cost to be of value. So continue to sit around and dream about the false glories of the past and point your finger at people who actually do something for a living while the rest of us earn our living AND help people.
Hahaha! Funny how initial results indicate those million dollar robots do not, in fact, improve outcomes. If I had a dollar for every time some tool in marketing spun a pointless feature in an effort justify a "premium" price, I'd have more cars than Jay Leno. Point being--you're a joke, and so is this industry.
DeleteWe have no one but ourselves to blame. There needs to be some checks and balances if we are ever going to harness the issues and challenges that are driving up the escalating cost of delivering healthcare in this country. Who do you think absorbs these consulting fees? It is passed on to the consumer whether it be the hospital, the insurance industry or the patient in premiums. Please stop with the free market ideology, if you were a free marketeer you would have advocated for no bank bail outs, and when your 401K and other investments were worthless you would have screamed at the government criticizing them for not taking any action. Get real, this industry has been out of control for years and it needs to get slapped around a little whether we like it or not. Oh and by the way we're not selling candy bars and our margins don't even compare, and the last time at looked at the candy industry the government was not compensating candy manufacturers for delivering candy to the general public.
ReplyDeleteMost repsectfully MM, 3:32 here:
Delete- Bank bailouts were a scam for Wall St donors
- Auto bailouts were a scam for union donors, ask the GM bondholders who got F'd by the Union Thugs (God bless Wisconsin today)
- Let both of the above declare bankrupties like the airlines. Last time I checked, the skies are full of airplanes.
- My 401K sucks, but hey, that's capitalism.
Finally, the only way to reign in small co's is to reign in freedom & innovation. Maybe Obama can pick winners and losers in Spine as well?
Come on MM. The whole problem started decades ago under FDR who made it the governments business to shell money out for healthcare. There is nothing the government gets involved with that doesn't get screwed up and inflated 400%. If individuals dealt directly with their physicians and hospitals as was done years ago before co-pays and employer provided healthcare, the cost of healthcare would be less than half what it is today. Instead we allowed the government to be our personal banker and insurance companies to be our negotiators. It didn't take long before physicians, hospitals, clinics and yes, medical device manufacturers and pharma to pick up on the fact there was a bigger pocket full of cash to pilfer from.
DeleteI know, I know, there has to be some oversight and regulation to protect consumers. You are completely correct in that assertion. The question is, with such a broken system on both sides of the aisle, how much is enough, too much or too little?
Keep fighting the good fight and bringing up relevant issues to our industry.
J
MM,
DeleteWhat do margins have to do with the government intervening? Do you think there is a point of efficiency with candy bar mfgs that if their margins get too high, that is just plain old greed and Obama needs to take that extra margin and give it to the people who can't buy candy bars so that they can then pay more for a candy bar because the price went up? What the hell kind of twisted thinking is that. I did oppose the bailouts, the one started by Bush and all of the ones completed by Obama. There is no such thing as too big to fail. And if public money is available to bail them out then they should be paying for bailout insurance every month.
By the way, the government doesn't pay any manufacturer directly. They pay providers for services which may or may not include our products. Our customers are the hospitals, not the government. The government is the insurance company, and a shitty one at that.
I do agree that the consulting deals need to be harnessed and this regulation may help somewhat, but for you to think it won't put a burden on the companies, you are naive. Ask any company what HIPPA has cost them. Ask any manufacturer, builder, engineer what the cost of ARRA (Amer Recovery and Reinvestment Act) are on their business. It becomes astronomical and devastating. It costs jobs and inflates the prices of products, just like the consulting fees.
These sorts of rules only serve push the illict behavior farther underground. The real problems are the small-time crooked companies and distributors who operate far below the radar. Of course they won't disclose. In fact, they will benefit as crooked docs seek out ever darker corners in which operate.
ReplyDeleteThe sunshine rules will only serve to inconvenience the legitimate companies who are trying to be compliant, while it will be business as usual for the crooks. People just don't seem to get that.
So how do you reign in the smaller companies?
ReplyDeleteThe only way is to go after the demand side of the equation - the docs with their hands out. Without them, these entities wouldn't exist.
Delete7:05....
DeleteYou must be new in the business as it is the Big Companies that started this pay for play and now they are getting beat by the smaller companies that are more nimble and thin in overhead and a heck of a lot more creative! Sounds like you are either a MDT, Zimmer, StrykerNor J&J rep that is getting his lunch eaten by the so called "ankle biters" that are now turning into termites in a woodshed! Surgeons have been getting paid for years way before pedicel screws came around so do not think this will ever go away but just get used to it.
There is a solution for people like DCP. Prison!
ReplyDeleteEnforce existing laws. We all know that the Depuy hip implant should never have made it into clinical trials but some how it did.
We all recall how congress grilled Mr Toyota because a few cars had problems. The heads of these device companies go scott free and they maim and kill more than every other industry combined.
The market will punish Depuy for the issues with the hip. For you to think Depuy spent hundreds of millions of dollars knowing this hip had issues, knowing they would be sued and made it anyway is rediculous. If every business did this they would all be bankrupted by the attorneys. Maybe we should go back to fusing hips and sawing off limbs? People are living longer than ever because of this healthcare system you hate so much. As broken as it is, it is still helping people every second of every day.
Delete100's of millions of dollars? LOL! They knew they would be sued and they had a war chest. The suits are class action and they have already paid up into a fund and the lawyers and the victims fight over the scraps.
DeletePeople are living longer? Gen X will not live as long as the baby boomers. Our infant mortality rates are higher that they were in the 1960's.
This year the the health care industry will kill more people than were killed in all of our wars combined. Anything that has improved quality of life significantly happened back when the health care industry was called the medical profession and run by people who took the Hippocratic Oath to heart.
BTW, you spelled ridiculous wrong.
Maybe we should go back to curing disease instead of managing it and exploiting it.
How many diseases have been cured in the past 50 years?
You lost all credibility with the infant mortality rate argument. Man cannot think by bullet points alone.
DeleteI we gave away our implants for free it wouldn't even dent the cost of healthcare. The problem lies with the patient. A person will leverage themselves to drive a BMW but will bitch about paying for their healthcare. If patients had to pay when they received treatment the costs would plummet. I have a health savings account and I pay every time I see a physician. I can negotiate and take my business the most qualified Physician with the best price. My out of pocket annually is max $5000 with 100% covered after. Since I signed up my annual medical expense dropped 50%. My monthly premiums just doubled because I, a single male, am now forced by the government to have maternity coverage amongst other things. People taking control of their healthcare with drive the cost down more than any other factor......if the government will ever get out of our way.
ReplyDeleteOMFG! Blame the vicitm/patient. I think it's fact time.
DeleteThe cost of health care in Italy is under $3000 per person in the US it is over $9000 per person. Italy is ranked number 2 for quality by the WHO while the US is ranked 37th.
Health care in the US is over 20% of the US GDP. The world average is 6%.
No industry, not even the banking industry is more corrupt than the health care industry. Let's take nosocomial infection. We spend 100's of billions simply treating these easily preventable infections. Some hospitals have very few but these are usually the church owned hospitals. The corporate hospitals like the criminal Rick Scott's HCA group have more germs than a sewer. Treating hospital acquired infections is lucrative but preventing them isn't. If hospital were to employ the the Pronvonost Protocol hospital infections would be as rare as they were in the 50's and 60's.
There is one way to keep cost down and it's called accountability.
Getting back to Depuy's implant. They knew it shed metal during testing. They knew it shed a LOT of metal. The doctors who implanted it knew is shed a lot of metal. An 8th grader in metal shop would know that it shed a lot of metal. The FDA knew it would shed a lot of metal.
What J&J DePuy did was criminal. Somebody is getting paid to treat these victims. The industry is basically paying itself. The patient/victim of DePuy has a lifetime of medical costs and all that money goes to the industry.
The notion that the "marketplace" can fix the problem is is beyond ignorant Republican thinking. That is like saying, let's deregulate the airlines and when planes start falling out of the sky passengers will will fly with the carrier that has less crashes.
The device and the drug industries are not regulated. The FDA does not tell them what to do. The big dogs tell the FDA what to do.
You are clueless as how to insurance works and your Republican hooray for me and screw everyone else is nauseating. You don't have a uterus but your mother, sister, aunts and grandmothers do but you are too Mitt Romney to care about anyone but yourself and you are not to bright.
Did anyone hear Spine Art's biggest innovation??!?!!? They sterilize their own implants. That's their "biggest" innovation. I know it's true because I heard it direct from a Spine Art guy, and he seemed way cool.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny you should mention that. When you get an injection or have blood drawn they pull a needle out of a package and jab you. The have no way of knowing if that needle is sterile. Recently there was a scandal involving Chinese syringes. They were dirty and they broke off in patients. It was a win win for the hospitals and clinics.
DeleteEl, what's your point? Seems you just like to hear yourself type.
DeleteBy the way, stay in Europe and go to Italy for your healthcare needs if you think its so great. Also, you lie and mislead about medical tourism. The fact is the U.S. receives and provides care to more foreign nationals than any other developed country. Costa Rica is number 2 in the Western hemisphere.
Don't forget we (The U.S. of A.) bailed your Euro ass out not once, but twice. And yes, we would do it again - though I would question why for such a self loathing and arrogant culture that is literally self destructing in your own filth of debt and socialistic stupidity.
Cheers from across the pond.
J
Look at El's profile...wow:
Deletehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05479147352816145505
The best way to handle an extremist like El and Fat Bastard is to simply ignore their rants. If we stop responding to their hateful lies they will go elsewhere for their kicks.
DeleteJust in case El claims the US isn't the leader in medical tourism, consider the US provides healthcare to approximately 10,000,000 illegal immigrants. Now add all the documented medical tourist and no other country comes close.
Delete11:11 keep doing what you are doing you filthy pig. If we ask the public if they want brand new Swiss made implants or your dirty nasty constantly reprossessed discolored junk I think we both know what the answer would be. You have sterilization envy.
DeleteWe do not claim sterile implants is our only innovation. We feel we owe it to our customers and patients not to increase their risks of complications and infections. You mock but your company is talking about going sterile right now. If you're good send in your resume.
@ El, CONS hate facts.
Delete@ The CONS: Google medical tourism statistics. People do not come to the US for health care. Americans are leaving the US in droves for health care.
Here's a fact enema for you CONS:
http://www.medical-tourism.com/medical-tourism-statistics.html
According to a recent Harvard University study, overpowering medical costs contribute to almost 750,000 bankruptcies yearly in the U.S., as even insured persons face intensifying high medical expenses. Medical Tourism Statistics say that, in the U.S.A., health-related expenses rise up to 7.6% to $1.68 trillion in 2003. It was the fifth following year that the cost of medical care increased faster than the economy.
More and more countries are becoming medical tourism destinations. Medical tourism statistics revealed an anticipated growth of the industry from about $40 billion in 2004 to $100 billion by the year 2012. The estimate was made by the Confederation of India and the McKinsey Company.
Another report disclosed that an estimated 750,000 Americans seek treatment abroad in 2007. It was also estimated that a million and a half Americans sought healthcare outside the US in 2008.
These medical tourism facts indicate a bright future for this industry. Companies like Hannaford Bros. Co. located in Maine are considering saving up to 70% on medical costs by offering offshore medical treatments for their employees. In a similar manner, insurance companies like BasicPlus Health Insurance at Roswell are collaborating with global healthcare companies to provide overseas options to members with maximum fixed benefits.
This is how the free economy works. In order to compete we will have to do better but it is not implant costs causing this. The hardware in Europe may be $1500 less which would not be the driving factor to leave the country.
DeleteFree economy? WTF it that. I think you mean free enterprise. What we have are monopolies, cartels and a rigged process. Free enterprise cannot exist in that sort of environment.
DeleteThe corporatists look at health care as a commodity when in reality it's a service that should be seen as a profession.
The good ADRs that are used in the rest of the world are the American made NeoDisk, DCI and the M6 but since they are not made by J&J or Medtronics and since they work quite well they are not available in the US. It is more lucrative to keep back patients in pain with failed surgeries, drugs and other mostly worthless therapy.
Patients in the US are cash vending machines.
3:40 I didn't say it was your only innovation. I also didn't say it was or wasn't a better way to go. I also didn't say that I do or do not sell for a company with or without sterile implants. All I did was repeat your statement that SpineArt's biggest innovation is the that they sterilize their own implants. That, to me, is frickin hilarious.
DeleteYou want lower health care prices--make more competition and far better price transparency. Build more dental and medical schools. More docs and dentists to go around to to compare pricing. Currently hospital systems are consolidating the competition and therefore the ability to negotiate pricing between docs/clinics/facilities is getting much worse. Has anyone every been to kayak.com? Anything like that for comparing implants, a medical/surgical procedure or an MRI scan in your area of choice? Well sort of, when you look up MRI's there is (depending on the situation) the ability to compare but its very limited. Let docs get paid for retailing the products they use (xrays, braces, implants, etc.) like any other industry. Not much data saying one cage brand is significantly better than another. Let transparency happen and then the patients can decide for themselves.
ReplyDeleteLet the docs get paid for retailing the products they use? Don't forget this is not a transaction in a convenience store. The "customer" is the patient who isn't paying for the product, so of course they want it all. The doctor is the retailer, but he has the luxury of telling the customer what they must buy but they don't care because they are buying it with someone else's money (insurance company). Doesn't sound like a recipe for cost savings to me.
DeleteIf doctors were ethical that may be OK but their track record sucks.
DeleteThe medical industry is incapable of behaving ethically. Patients are not customers and they should not be treated as such. Anyone who would monetize illness and disability really needs nitric acid enema.
Dear El and Fat Bastard,
ReplyDeleteMSM here, as a major proponent of everyone's first amendment rights I must inform you on behalf of our readers that if you do not have anything constructive to offer and just want to post ridiculous and stupid comments to incite our readers, MSM has the power to limit your access to be heard by our public. We will not tolerate stupidity. On numerous occasions some readers have accused TSB of being like Cafe Pharma, MSM can guarantee you that will never happen. If your intent is an attempt to dilute the quality of comments made on this blog think twice, or post on your own blog. MSM is not concerned about hurting your feelings, I believe you get my drift.
MSM, I probably agree on Fat Bastard, but E! Is making very valid points. He on purpose chooses a slightly inflammatory delivery, but that does not make his points less valid. It would be shame to censor him. American health care is by far the most expensive in the world, and by almost any standard not the best or most effective. By definition it is true that if it consumes almost 20% of GDP it feeds many mouths, and attracts many unscrupulous individuals focused on enriching themselves with no regard for patients' or doctors' well-being. That is not the way it was in the 50s and 60s. Changes are necessary and inevitable.
DeleteReally? El is making valid points that those of us in the industry are thieves and murderers. The last time I looked I nor any of my competitors were forcing hospitals or surgeons to use and/or buy our implants or systems. ASP has dropped constantly over the last 5 years and probably continue for the next 3 to 5 years. As for being murderers, that's a tough one to let pass. I for one got into the industry over 20 years ago and felt it was a privilege to work with surgeons and O.R. staff. I still feel it is a privilege to work in this industry today and strive each day to be an asset in the O.R. The crooked and self-serving in our industry are also easy to spot. How they continue to survive and recycle within our industry is.a shameful indictment to the lack of leadership that will turn a blind eye just to pick up 1 or 2 million in business.
DeleteThe changes you speak of hopefully are referring to individuals taking more responsibility for their healthcare cost instead of holding out their hands waiting for the government to take care of them. Do you really think healthcare becoming a larger and larger part of GDP is an accident? The government has been feeding and nurturing this industry so they can eventually ride in on a white horse to save the day and nationalize the healthcare system. Listen carefully because the thundering herd is approaching.
People are being maimed and killed by Medtronics, Globus and J&J. They broke the law and people died. They get fined. Since corporations are now people it would follow that people are corporations. That means several things. Texas can execute a corporation and person can kill a member of a corporation and merely pay a fine.
DeleteIf the truth inflames so be it. My readers on Medical Holocaust believe that members of the Medical Industry who kill, maim and swindle should face a firing squad. I think they should face justice and if it happens to be do it yourself justice they earned it.
Don't be an Assad, MM. Nothing about their posts warrants threatening censorship.
DeleteNo company ever has ever been guilty of deliberate intent to kill, which is a requisite for a capital murder indictment..and death penalty.
DeleteA good prosecutor could prove murder and enough other lesser included charges for any jury to convict.
DeleteWhen you know something you are going to do will result in deaths its first degree murder. What Medtronics and others have done is tantamount to tossing a live hand grenade into a crowded room.
Right on MSM, you got the power!! Please use the delete button for these clowns
ReplyDeleteMedical Holocaust does not censor.
DeleteIf you would like to advertise send TSB your check, otherwise who care about a medical holocaust you dumbs
DeleteAs a patient who depended on his surgeon to negotiate this mine-field a little tranparency would have been nice. Having had 18 months of pain, grief and unemployment to plow through some of the smoke and mirrors of spinal implants and insurance, I'm disgusted with myself for trusting my now disapeared neuro. The whole system is a farce. I was self-employed for 20 years before this and would have shot myself if I'd done business this way.
ReplyDeleteLet me guess. You are one of Fat Bastard's followers on his blog. Shed some light will you?
DeleteExactly how was your surgeon supposed to negotiate this mine-field? What do you mean by that statement. And what transparency would have enabled you to have had a better outcome?
So you've now had 18 months of pain, grief and unemployment, have you sought out another physician or are you simply taking a daily dose of Fat Bastard? If its the latter, I can certainly understand your last statement about shooting yourself.
Facts are facts, surgeons are human beings. Like all professions, there are those that excel, those that run in the middle of the pack and those that you wonder how and why they got through medical school. You should always seek out multiple references on any surgeon who you are thinking of operating on you. Once you have selected that surgeon, please, please do not try to convince them to use a system that YOU have done research on. Do you really want to be the bell curve for your surgeon? I didn't think so.
I do hope you find relief for your pain and symptoms. Believe it or not, there are physicians out there who truly want to help patients achieve a better quality of life and their first thought is not how much money they can make off you.
No I'm not one of Fat Bastards followers you ignorant, condescending fuck. My surgeon was top dog at a New England teaching hospital who kept telling me everything would be fine. Then he left. Why? I don't know, but he was involved in coming up with a new mouse trap. Something about a carbon fiber cage for lumbar used in the cervical spine instead. Its been migrating and taking those wonderful screws with it. It took them 6 months to clue me in after repeated attempts to get answers. My records were incomplete and I got them after bribing a secretary. It has taken another 3 months to get into another surgeon who I'll see soon. My single level ACDF took just over 3 hours and I was very healthy going in. I think they might have lost something.
DeleteAs a craftsman I would never think of telling somebody else what to use. I had hoped to rely upon the expertise of a top surgeon going in, not to have to educate my self on all this after the fact.
Thanks for the wishes.
@ ist anon,
DeleteThere are people whose job it is to take out terrorists. You can't trust live terrorists.
I know that the VA sucks but compared to many civilian hospitals the VA is better and improving since Obama got in.
What chaps my hide is that a doctor and hospital can screw up like they did in your case and still get paid. I used to respect and trust doctors but I have heard too many horror stories. It's a statistical fact, you have less of a chance of being killed or wounded in a combat zone that you do in an American hospital.
The only questions I ask is do these butchers know how bad they are or are they blinded by their greed and arrogance and how do they sleep at night.
Anonymous said,
DeleteLet me guess. You are one of Fat Bastard's followers on his blog. Shed some light will you?
Exactly how was your surgeon supposed to negotiate this mine-field? What do you mean by that statement. And what transparency would have enabled you to have had a better outcome?
So you've now had 18 months of pain, grief and unemployment, have you sought out another physician or are you simply taking a daily dose of Fat Bastard? If its the latter, I can certainly understand your last statement about shooting yourself.
Facts are facts, surgeons are human beings. Like all professions, there are those that excel, those that run in the middle of the pack and those that you wonder how and why they got through medical school. You should always seek out multiple references on any surgeon who you are thinking of operating on you. Once you have selected that surgeon, please, please do not try to convince them to use a system that YOU have done research on. Do you really want to be the bell curve for your surgeon? I didn't think so.
I do hope you find relief for your pain and symptoms. Believe it or not, there are physicians out there who truly want to help patients achieve a better quality of life and their first thought is not how much money they can make off you.
====================================================================================================================
You got one thing right, facts are facts and the facts show that US spine surgeons are not on par with the ones in the rest of the world and they have no incentive to be skilled. In the US screw ups get rewarded financially. Metal on Metal pointed that out. He also makes a great point about the dangers of US hospitals. It's a documented fact, 1 in 7 Medicare patients are injured by the actions of a hospital.
@Metal on Metal: Most doctors have ignored their oath. Do you still follow your oath.
"I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; That I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God."
Once a Marine always a Marine?
Thank you for your service to your country. If doctors had the honor of the US Marines we would have the best health care in the world the way it once was.