A Valuable Life

It isn't often that attending a professional conference alters your perspective completely, but that's what happened to me a few years ago. It was an Ohio Association Medical Staff Services session that dealt with physician impairment.

What made this session noteworthy? In addition to the educational speakers from OPEP, several recovering physicians bravely faced an audience of medical staff credentialers (and we, as you may know, tend to be a cynical and suspicious lot; it's a job hazard) and told their stories. Each was at that moment 'clean and sober', some for a few months, others for many years, but each had a compelling, poignant, exceedingly human, story to tell.

I walked out of that room with far more understanding and compassion than I went in with.

My paradigm shift?  It remains our responsibility to protect patients, but it is accompanied by an equal responsibility to extend help and care to afflicted practitioners. Not all will accept it, but evidence shows that a significant percentage will.

Consider this account. A resident was called in late one night to care for a patient because the attending had shown up at the hospital drunk. Concerned for the attending physician, the next day the resident approached a senior member of the medical staff and asked what could be done to help him.

"Don't worry about him," was the reply. "As soon as we get one more documented instance we're getting rid of him."

Of course, that documentation soon followed and the physician was dismissed from staff. Several months later he died from an alcohol overdose.

A valuable life carelessly tossed away.

About 15% of physicians will suffer from some form of addiction during their lives. However, those who receive treatment also have a phenomenal rate of recovery; they are intelligent, educated, and highly motivated.  With treatment between 80 and 90 percent recover and learn to live sober.

As a conservative estimate at least 4% of your professional staff members are currently abusing alcohol, drugs, or both. Get educated. Find out how to help those who will accept help, and how to protect your patients from those who won't.

Federation of State Physician Health Programs
Ohio Physician Health Program

Comments

[Flea]

I appreciate that credentialling committees do valuable work getting help to impaired physicians.

I wish my experience with at least one committee that will remain nameless was more favorable.

I am not impaired. I don't do drugs or drink on the job (a glass of wine or two on the sabbath, that's it).

My sin is that I was sued twice. Both suits are pending. That is to say there have been not judgments.

My credentialling committee has refused to approve me for more than provisional staff priveleges until they can prove I am not a danger to the children to of Massachusetts.

Who's looking out for me?

best,

Flea

[Rita]

Since I've been reading physcian blogs I have a whole new appreciation for the impact that getting sued has on most doctors.

It must be frustrating to have your staff status limited, especially since the final outcome may be in your favor, or the suits may simply be dropped. However, I also sympathize with your colleagues on the Credentials Committee - they carry a heavy responsibility and often have limited information on which to base decisions.

Patient safety, a topic that's certainly on the minds of everyone in healthcare these days, begins with effective credentialing and privileging.

Assuming that the Credentials Committee members at your hospital are simply concerned about handling their responsibilities well, and it has been my experience that this is far more often the case than you may think, share any information with them that you can. It will probably make this difficult situation slightly more bearable for everyone involved.

It would also be good to talk with your Hospital Medical Staff Director/Coordinator. Since they work with the Credentials Committee they may be able to advise you as to the best way to reassure the group that you really are okay.

Rita

[entlord]

We also still have administrators who are busy empire building who have found that Disruptive Physician Committees are a handy way to keep fractious medical staff members in line.
What I have found in several days of research is that many institutions have "switchbacks" between their "impaired physician" and "abusive physician" policies.
Not all impaired physicians have substance abuse problems but may have very real DXs that not only impede them professionally but make life in general very tough. There is nothing more frustrating than to try to get ADA accomodation from MEC, only to be told you are fabricating an impairment to evade disruptive physician bylaws, and then to have members of MEC quizzing your personal physician on routine preventive testing you have done on a regular basis.

[sober living for women]

I agree it will probably make this difficult situation slightly more bearable for everyone involved,thank you for sharing this you have a very informative blog.

cletsey