Monday, July 13, 2009

On fighting sarcasm for the genuine

Sermo, the physicians discussion forum, and the AMA have been fighting.
The issues behind the hair-pulling are not nearly as interesting as Sermo's claim that 75% of physicians on its site aren't even members of the AMA. (The ever wry Dr. Bobbs commented to me that he's surprised 25% of physicians on Sermo ARE members.)

Which raises the question: How can physicians have influence if not through a major lobbying group like the AMA? Read more
One of my first columns for Physicians Practice asked why physicians don't more often try to change their situation, instead of allowing themselves to be victims.

But maybe the little victories are enough: The patient you help. The payer you influence.

In a post-modern society, are little, self-empowering actions all there is?
Obama ran and won on a platform of Hope -- which seemed mostly to mean a sense that every individual can impact the process. Do you buy it?

1 comment:

  1. I am one of the 75% Sermo members that does not consider the AMA as representing me or my beliefs/interests. Logical as it may seem, I do not believe that practicing physicians will ever have a voice under the current socio-political system we have. The AMA has done the profession a great deal of disservice by binding us to this automatic acceptance that this is the only way to practice. Unless and until a new generation of physicians emerges, that will completely turn the practice of medicine upside down, nobody will care. Politicians have created laws that forbid collective bargaining or any other form of collective measures for physicians.

    Physicians by nature are not team players, which is the biggest hurdle. Besides, for every doc that is hurting, there is another that's profiting. So collective action is very difficult. Also, docs are so deeply buried into their work on a daily basis that there is not enough time/energy for another fight at the end of the day. Obama is a lawyer - we need to learn from him.

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