Reader Reviews

Doctor’s Digest appreciates your taking the time out of your busy day to let us know what you think about our publication. Please feel free to send us an email and let us know what is important to you.

publisher@doctorsdigest.net

Personal & Professional Growth

Jeannette,
Karen Childress did a beautiful job integrating my small contribution into the greater whole. The issue looks great and I have forwarded it on to my colleagues at the University of Minnesota’s CENTER FOR SPIRITUALITY & HEALING www.csh.umn.edu) where I am a Senior Fellow. Thanks for letting us take a look at this issue. I would grant Karen an interview any time. She knows her stuff and can really write with clarity and elegance.

Richard Leider
The Inventure Group
601 Carlson Parkway, Suite 375
Minneapolis, MN 55305

Dear Jeannette:
Thank you for sending me a hard copy of the Doctor’s Digest. One thing that stands out was all those smiling faces in your journal, starting with your own photo that conveys a sense of optimism about the theme of the issue: Personal and Professional Growth.

I enjoyed reading your section on Lifelong Learning. Your editor, Emily, had done an excellent job in her honest report of the piece, “Lifelong Learning and the Future of Medicine” (pp. 103-106) about our research at Jefferson Medical College. Medical students, residents, and practicing physicians can certainly benefit from your journal.

If in the future you plan to publish a thematic issue on patient-physician relationships, I will send you some of our published work on “empathy in patient care” for publication in that special issue. Also, information about my book on the topic, and experts’ comments are posted at the following websites: www.springer.com/0-387-33607-9 (publisher) www.tju.edu/jmc/crmehc/medu/patientempathy.cfm (Jefferson Medical College) By the way, the electronic version of the issue is as lively as its printed version! Give my regards to Emily Paulson and Karen Childress for their excellent work! Wishing you all happiness, enjoyment, and lots of smiles in this coming holiday season!

Mohammadreza Hojat, Ph.D.
Research Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior
Director of Jefferson Longitudinal Study
Center for Research in Medical Education and Health Care
Jefferson Medical College
1025 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA

Jeannette, Love the Digest and this issue is especially terrific. Just thought you might appreciate some feedback.

Dr Proulx

Dear Jeanette and Karen,
Firstly, happy holidays! Secondly, thank you for some very nice exposure in the Nov/Dec Doctor’s Digest–I was delighted to get my hard copy in the mail, followed by the online version. I appreciate it deeply.

Have a terrific 2008 and please let me know if I can help you at all again in the future.

And Jeanette, I’d be delighted to be featured as an “expert” on the Business of Medicine in your Vodcasts if that is appropriate. Warmest wishes,

Philippa Kennealy MD MPH CPCC PCC
The Entrepreneurial MD
www.entrepreneurialMD.com

Hi, Jeannette - Yes, I did receive the hard copy. And I have enjoyed it very much! I found the issue more in-depth than I had anticipated, and think that’s wonderful. Karen Childress was great to work with and did a great job. Thanks for including me.

M. Stacia Dearmin, MD, FAAP
Pediatric Emergency Medicine
Cleveland Heights, OH

Jeannette Brandofino, thank you for sending me the copy of Doctor’s Digest. I have only had a chance to read the Flextime Arrangements article which I thought was very comprehensive and informative.

Phyllis R. Stein
Career Counseling and Coaching
59 Parker Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

I think the issue is very good and timely with the holiday season.... Thank you for allowing us to be part of your important venture.

Allan L. Markus MD MS MBA FACP
Director, Campus Health Service
Arizona State University
Clinical Associate Professor
University of Arizona College of Medicine

Health Policy Review

I was reading-skimming Joel Finkelstein’s articles and I did not see certain statistics about the uninsured which really should be added to any article on the uninsured.

There is a lot said on this topic, rarely do I hear certain details which need to be noted: Of the 47 million uninsured Americans, how many have no insurance for a whole year? ... or two years?

I got a masters in Health Administration from the University of Michigan 1992-1994 when health care was a hot topic. At that time I recall that the large uninsured number included a lot of people between jobs or waiting a required 30 to 90 days in order to get coverage again.

I would not want to re-arrange the whole health system if it turns out that the problem wasn’t so dramatic as the initial (deceptive) number suggests. In 1994 it was about half the number that did not have insurance a whole year.

As a family practice physician, my job is a lot harder when my patients don’t have coverage; we do a lot over the phone, try to get samples and fill out forms of various sorts to help. It certainly could be very bad or expensive to not have insurance when a person is in an accident (etc.). But, my own experience is that the problems are much worse when people don’t have coverage for several years.

That’s why I ask, and wish, people who write about this topic would dig just a little deeper. If we really do want to fix the problem, we need to understand just what is going on, where the problem exists and just how bad it is. My job would be a lot easier if everyone had some coverage, but I’m concerned that it may turn out that 90% of the time, things are ‘OK’ and we could make 90% of us worse off trying to help the 10%—if we are not careful.

Scott Duemler, MD
Byron Center, MI

Emergency Planning

Thank you for your e-mail and the opportunity to contribute to this issue of Doctor’s Digest. I have received the issue in the mail, and I think it’s thorough, practical, and well-written. Thank you again.

Daniel J.Barnett, M.D., M.P.H.
Johns Hopkins Center for Public Health Preparedness
http://www.jhsph.edu/preparedness/

Evidence-Based Medicine

The field of medical magazines is crowded but Doctor’s Digest brings a fresh informative new source. The Evidence-Based Medicine issue Jan/Feb is a wonderful resource on EBM.

Jerry Goddard, MD
SIU Family Medicine

It arrived, and looks very well. Well done.

Ronán Conroy
Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
rconroy@rcsi.ie

I have read the Doctor’s Digest. I thought that it was well done. Thank you for the opportunity.

Mary Jo Gorman, M.D., M.B.A.
Chief Executive Officer
Advanced ICU Care

I think the evidence-based medicine issue is excellent. It has a very broad coverage of the topic which is great, and the personal quotes make a subject which can seem dry much more interesting and relevant. I am sure it will be a big success and rightly so.

Dr Charles Young, M.R.C.P.
Editor, BMJ Clinical Evidence
BMJ Publishing Group, London, U.K.

I’ve had a look through this issue and overall I’d say it’s a good introduction and overview of EBM. The arrangement into chapters that match the practical concerns of PCPs is good, although at times can lead to some repetition.

Although maybe not strictly relevant, your audience may also have benefited from being made aware of the whole issue surrounding technology appraisal to inform formulary inclusion, which is a cornerstone of EBM. Take a look at Health Affairs 2004;23(1): 124-134, for a review. One of the key drivers of the adoption of EBM principles into formulary guidelines is the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) format for formulary submissions. Apparently more than 50 health plans representing over 100 million covered lives have adopted this format. This aspect of EBM in practice will undoubtedly have an impact on many PCPs.

Final point: it might have been helpful to have more figures, tables, checklists etc to break up the text and give readers practical tools they could cut or copy to help them implement EBM in their own setting (e.g. how to evaluate a clinical trial).

Hope this helps! All the best.

Dr. Paul Chrisp MRPharmS
Editor-in-Chief
Core Evidence
Tel: +44 1565 752114
e: paul.chrisp@coremedicalpublishing.com
Web: http://www.coremedicalpublishing.com

Guide to Well-Being

I have received the copy, it was a pleasure to be part of the issue!

Molly Morgan, RD, CDN
Creative Nutrition Solutions
www.creativenutritionsolutions.com

Very nice article. Complete beyond my expectations and a useful reference. Good Work!

Dr. Jack Kenny, MD, Retired Neonatalogist
St. Mary’s Hospital
Madison, WI

It is excellent with a lot of great information. Congrats!

Dr. Dennis Goodman, MD, Cardiologist
Scripps Integrated Medicine
Clinical associate professor at the University of California San Diego
www.scrippsintegratedmedicine.com

Dear Jeannette,
Just received my copy of the Doctor’s Digest. Thanks so much! Very impressive booklet. It was a pleasure being part of it.

Mindi McKenna
www.rockhurst.edu/hcl

I wanted to congratulate you on the service you are providing. I have found the digest to be very useful in the past and more so in my current endeavor. Discussions of communications, error-prevention, and overall management are essential to medical excellence. In lecturing to other physicians or healthcare groups I have found the depth of your writers helpful for discussion and slide preparation.

Steven Tucker, MD
Medical Director
The West Clinic Excellence Cancer Center
One Orchard Blvd., 15th & 16th Floor
Camden Medical Center
Singapore

Patient-Physician Communications

I was very impressed with the issue of Doctor’s Digest: Patient-Physician Communications and pleased to see AACH and AACH members given such prominence. I think it is a valuable resource and I wanted to thank you for the offer of online viewing. I shared the offer with our membership and hope that some have taken advantage of it. I will mention it again in our August bulletin board.

Please give Emily our congratulations on an excellent job.

With my best regards,

Chris Pallozolla
American Academy on Communication in Healthcare, Executive Director

From what I’ve read, it appears that your publication is effective in fulfilling its mission. Full of excellent, actionable material which both doctors and medical educators will be able to apply to their practice.

Paul Alexander Clark, MPA, CHE
Senior Knowledge Manager
Press Ganey Associates, Inc.

I was so interested in all the excellent articles, I almost forgot to look for the one in which my comments were mentioned. It was an excellent issue about a very important subject and yes, I thought the article in which my comments were found was very well written and accurate. Our need to express our thoughts clearly is a challenge for physicians since we often assume every one understands the meaning of the words we use both from the vocabulary point of view and from the meaning and gravity sense.

Your staff did an excellent job. Regards, Dick

Dr. C. Richard Guiton
Woodwinds Hospital
St. Paul, Minnesota

Thanks, Jeannette. I had an opportunity to review the July/August issue of Doctor’s Digest the other day, and I wanted to let you know that I was thoroughly impressed by this work. I think you and Emily Paulsen should be very proud. I found the writing clear, compelling and very professional throughout the publication. The book is comprehensive in scope and very well documented by references to important research studies. It is also concise and well edited. I appreciate the hard work that a book like this entails, and I congratulate you on your outstanding work. Please feel free to call upon me in the future for similar efforts.

Best regards,

J. Gregory Carroll, PhD
Institute for Healthcare Communication, Inc.
Chief Exectuive Officer

Emily did a fantastic job of pulling together the literature on doctor patient communication and putting it into a coherent and highly readable story. I will be very happy to share the issue with colleagues and friends.

Keep up the good work.

Yours,

Richard Frankel, PhD, FAACH
The Regenstrief Institute

One of our doctor’s shared his most recent issue on Communication and it was excellent, concise. I will use it with my clinical staff.

Thanks,

Linda Craig LPN
Lead Nurse
PMG Central Point

Managing Your Practice

Doctor’s Digest is the “One-Stop Resource” containing objective, knowledgeable information pertaining to every doctor’s practice. Physicians cannot afford to NOT read this book.

Steven Palmisano
CEO, Emdat, Inc.
Chicago, IL

I was very pleased with the issue. I thought it presented information in a straight forward way. And the information is very useful. I liked the concise and focused format. I’d definitely enjoy reading the journal month by month and will suggest it to colleagues. In my opinion—a job well done!

Charles F. Shaefer, Jr., MD
University Primary Care Physicians
Augusta, GA

Its a fine publication. I like the way it is packaged—size and format. Articles are well-written.

It was interesting to me that when I shared it with several physician practice management consultants in other firms, I received no feedback. I think that they would prefer that their clients rely more upon them than a publication, which almost provides too much good information…if you get my drift.

I was unable to access 2006 issues on your Website…so I can only assess the publication having read the copy you sent by mail and the 2005 issues on line.

As you know, doctors are buried in journals and publications of all stripes. You may want to consider non-traditional advertisements; I think most docs are overwhelmed with pharmaceutical product ads.

Guest Commentaries about healthcare public policy issues near and dear to the hearts of physicians would be an interesting feature. Most healthcare publications tend to feature writers who preach to the choir, which limits physicians’ perspectives of reality.

Terry B. Brauer, CEO
HealthCare Management Consultants
’Dedicated to improving clients’ quality and cost efficiency’ www.healthcare-consulting.com/hcmc.html

I really enjoyed reading the entire issue. Carol did a great job focusing on areas of concern to physicians. If you want comments, I would say:

• Most of my physician clients pride themselves out as being “specialists” rather than doctors. You could almost take the exact same content and create niche publications (the anesthesiologist’s digest, the radiologist’s digest, the plastic surgeon).
• A lot of the people quoted in the issue had really great things to say. Not that I need the publicity personally, but for future issues you might consider a section (at the beginning of the magazine or interspersed) with pictures and profiles of some of the experts—especially the physicians quoted. It would make for interesting reading.

If you need help with future issues, feel free to contact me.

Martin D. Moll
Director, Healthcare Division
Aldrich, Kilbride & Tatone

I did indeed receive the copy of ’Doctor’s Digest’ to which you refer. I found it thoroughly enjoyable and enlightening—an excellent resource.

Kind regards,

Les McKeown FCA, President & CEO
Predictable Success™

Jeannette - Yes, I did receive my copy. Thank you. The publication is very well done, packed with a lot of information. I am glad to contribute any additional information that you need. As well our staff of consultants and accounts would be happy to contribute by way of interviews or however you see fit.

For example, this morning I was talking to one of our accounts about how to handle financial transactions in a practice that are now coming from finance companies. We have an orthopaedic client that is collecting co-pays and deductibles from patients prior to surgery. If the patient doesn’t have the cash or a credit card, they sign them up with GE CareCredit. GE finances the procedure 12 months interest free and the practice gets paid instantly by electronic remittance (less a 3% handling fee), generally before the charge for the procedure is even posted in the practice’s computer system. This requires a new approach to bookkeeping in the practice.

We try to stay abreast of all the latest developments, so please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Thanks again,

Mike Fleischman, FAAHC
Gates, Moore & Company
www.gatesmoore.com

The Financial Planning issue has synthesized a large amount of information into a reader friendly summary of key topics for physicians. Doctors are typically overworked and trying to juggle too many things. The short and simple “Steps to Take” section is a great way to lay out key issues.

Your use of colored “boxes” with key ideas and concepts is a great way to summarize important points. This is particularly well done in Chapter 1. Many people believe that the Financial Planning process is too burdensome or complex and hence don’t set the time aside to work on these areas. Yet at basic levels planning has some fairly simple initial steps. There are no magic bullets and the first chapter clearly sets the stage.

The section on disability insurance, in Chapter 2, is particularly well done. Many doctors don’t consciously think of their ability to earn an income as their major asset. As such, it needs to be protected.

A terrific section in Chapter 3, Building a Balanced Investment Portfolio, is on the value of paying attention to the impact of taxes on a portfolio. Most investors underestimate the value of tax losses. With risk adjusted long-term performance as the first priority, capturing tax losses when they occur instead of just riding the market up and down should also be a major goal. I would have liked to have seen more space devoted to the fiduciary responsibility that doctors have, when they are listed as a trustee on the pension plan for their practice. Many physician trustees don’t understand their liability exposure or what to do about it.

In College Savings, in Chapter 4, you have done a great job in organizing the myriad of ideas that need to be covered. The “box” on page 120, Last-Minute Maneuvering, provides excellent information in a short read.

Although the last chapter on Retirement savings is relatively short, there are several excellent points. Some key ideas for doctors include: (1).work another year, if retirement goals seem unachievable; (2) think about cash flow rather than income and look for total return in the portfolio; (3) take cash from IRAs while in a 10% or 15% tax rate, often before starting to collect pensions or Social Security (4) your power of attorney should have a clause that expressly allows the agent to make decisions regarding IRAs and other retirement accounts. Several very practical solutions are presented.

Given the potential for the vast array of topics in financial planning, Doctor’s Digest has done an excellent job of honing in on some critical topics that impact most doctors.

Marilyn R. Bergen, CFP®
CMC Advisers, LLC

Yes, I did get the Doctor’s Digest—thank you. I thought it was thorough and well written. A good resource for a doc in need of some guidance. I gave it to a friend/ client who is a doc and part of a group practice. Hopefully he will read and share with his associates.

Thanks!

David A. Foster, CPA, CFP
Foster & Motley, Inc.

Technology in Practice

The Doctor’s Digest is outstanding. I really enjoyed its hard-hitting content and unbiased information.

I would like to schedule a call to discuss how we can better collaborate and recommend the Digest to our clients.

I would also like to introduce you to our Publishing and Training department and our Government Affairs division. We are actively involved with monitoring legislation and policy making. I think the Doctor’s Digest could really benefit by having some our published reports on these matters. We are one of the only consulting firms in the United States with devote recourses to government affairs and medical staff education. We have published several books for the AMA and other specialty academy and would welcome the opportunity to do more contributing to the Doctors Digest.

Jeffery Daigrepont, Principal - The Coker Group

I thought the article and the magazine were interesting. I have to bring a copy home to show my wife. She’s a physician but has never heard of it. The content was good, but I was surprised that the articles were so long, I didn’t think physicians would have the patience. I had expected shorter articles on more narrow points.

Martin Shenkman

I have read all the Editions with great interest. Clearly the topics have been chosen appropriately. In the edition on Technology in Practice, I would have liked to see more details on Inter-operability of software and the real problem of getting a functional Lab interface. We have an electronic office for almost 4 years and its has been almost that long since we have been ready and able to implement an HL-7 interface. But Quest Diagnostics (the nation’s largest lab) has been stone-walling. It has been a non-starter with getting similar interfaces with local hospital labs either. It seems to me that labs in general have their own agenda.

For prospective EHR buyers, this can be a very sore problem and should be pointed out in Doctor’s Digest. May be if these are exposed in articles in Doctor’s Digest, the labs will eventually come forward to implement their end of the responsibility. I hope these issues are addressed in future issues.

Later this month I will be speaking at a hospital CME Grand Rounds about using Technology in Diabetes Management and the role of e-medicine/online consults etc. I would like to mention the role of publications like doctorsdigest.net if that is OK with you, as a resource for clinical practitioners.

Look forward to more great issues from Doctor’s Digest.

Arvind Cavale, M.D., F.A.C.E.

The digest covers a lot in 200 pages on all aspects of financial planning and not in an overwhelming way. Each topic is in an easy to read format and in a way that everyone can understand. Some of the areas may seem very basic to some, but it at least gives an overview of everything related to planning, insurance, investment, college and retirement savings. This is a good base for someone (not just doctors) to get started with planning or to make sure they are on the right track with their current financial plan.

Tom Lydon
President, Global Trends Investments
Newport Beach, CA

I just finished reading your latest issue. It was very informative. I found it quite useful. I am a physician who has been using an EMR system for several years. I would like to suggest a follow up article that discussing taking these systems to the edge. In our office we use all of the available technologies for EMR, eprescribe, integrated practice management, and integrated patient portal, interfaced labs and hospital.

Sincerely, Tareq

Ashburn Sterling Internal Medicine and Pediatrics
Tareq Abedin, MD
19415 Deerfield Ave, Suite 213, Lansdowne, VA 20176

Thanks again for the opportunity to participate in this issue. I think the information was well organized and well presented and should be well received by the market.

Again, nice job on the publication.

Jonathan A. Leviss, MD
Chief Medical Officer
Sentillion, Inc.
jonathan.leviss@sentillion.com

I was dismayed that the one e-Prescribing comment highlighted in the article was a Kaiser physician saying prescriptions still go by fax. The majority of e-prescription systems have an electronic connection to the pharmacies’’ computer systems (often bi-directional for renewals, too), but KAISER, whose own pharmacy software does not yet take electronic prescriptions, lags behind in this one aspect (Kaiser is implementing a strong, system-wide EHR and is to be commended for that). Since Kaiser doctors are only 2% of practicing physicians, this lack of electronic connection is not a major issue. Unfortunately, those skimming your publication may come away thinking it is a bigger problem with ePrescribing than it really is.

Dr. Peter Kaufman
Chief Medical Officer
DrFirst

I received the edition of Doctor’s Digest which included the article on the benefits of ambulatory EHRs and the selection criteria when evaluating systems. I thought the piece and the journal as a whole were outstanding and will be invaluable to providers and administrators considering EHRs. Thank you very much for including my comments in the article and including me in your research.

When your editorial agenda turns to the value of RHIOs and the cost and quality improvements that derive from information sharing, please feel free to contact me to provide you any background information, input, case studies or other assistance based on the work we’re doing at Hx Technologies.

David H. Kates
Chief Operating Officer
Hx Technologies Inc.
david.kates@hxti.com

Finding Work-Life Balance

The issue is full of relevant self-care materials for MD’s. This Digest is definitely needed by health care professionals who are overstretched and overwhelmed by the demands of the workplace. To be effective in helping others, MDs should be able to cope with stressors effectively.

Thanks for featuring my CARE Approach.

Best,

Michael G. Rayel, MD
Author (First Aid to Mental Illness-Finalist, Reader’s Preference Choice Award 2002) psychiatrist, and inventor of emotional intelligence games—the Oikos Game Series. For information, visit www.oikosgame.com and www.soardime.com.

I received a copy of the December 2005 issue of Doctor’s Digest on “Finding Work-Life Balance.” Thank you for asking for my comments.

I really like the concepts of Doctor’s Digest—some one needs to take care of them who take care of others.

All the articles in this issue support and nourish physicians as a person and their relationship with their family and the world at large.

Ms. Carol Pattern had done a good job of accurately presenting my ideas and tips on stress management in our interview.

Sincerely,

Vijai P. Sharma, PhD
Director, Behavioral Medicine Center
2150 North Ocoee St.
Cleveland, TN 37311
dr.sharma@mindpub.com

I enjoyed the last issue of Doctor’s Digest that you sent me and thought that the balancing article (for which you interviewed me) was wonderful.

Eliza Chin, MD, MPH
Editor, This Side of Doctoring: Reflections from Women in Medicine

Thanks for paying attention to the topic of work-life balance. It is so easy for physicians to get caught up in day-to-day practice issues that they lose sight taking care of themselves and their own families. Taking care of themselves results in healthier doctors giving better patient care.

Keith Borglum
Consultant
Professional Management & Marketing
http://www.practicemgmt.com

Doctor’s Digest explores the human side of medicine. It gives us the tools and inspires us to see beyond the everyday stressors of life and honor the privilege we hold so dear to practice the art and science of medicine.

Tel Franklin M.D.

I just received a copy of the Doctor’s Digest. I am quite pleased with the result!

I will forward this to our dean, how can we buy more copies as I think our faculty could benefit from this pub.

Prof A Yurvati
Department of Surgery
UNTHSC

Great topics on Doctor’s Digest. I hope your digest can continue as it discusses the honest reality of being a physician in America today. Most physicians’ publications are full of fantasy world hogwash which pretends to ignore the ugly reality of most US MD’s.

I would like to see you report on how big insurance companies force us to sign abusive contracts and then later come in to "audit" your charts to recoup money you earned; I have known colleagues who had punitive audits, then lost money, went to " arbitration" with prostitute MD’s employed by the insurance company and were insulted and then reported to a secretive ’ insurance data bank" that can lead to other plans dropping a MD for one sided allegations from just one insurance corporation. Most states do not have laws that protect MD’s from abuse by corporations, just laws to protect the public from insurance companies.

This is one of the most serious problems we face as physicians and yet I have never seen the spineless medical media report truthfully; I only hear the verbal horror stories from my local state medical societies.

Sincerely,

Ken P. Lee MD

I received the Nov/Dec copy of the Doctor’s Digest. The size and format are easy to read and it is inviting just like Readers Digest. I recognize the other contributors as leaders in the industry and there is a good variety of topics.

Thank you.

Mike Martin
Practice Support Resources, Inc.

Physician’s Legal Handbook

I have read the employment law section and thought that it was well presented and concise. It contained very useful and practical information. It was very helpful to have the red summary boxes and to also give web addresses of important resource information. In summary, I thought that this format presented valuable advice in a format that was easily understood and did not involve a major expenditure of time by the reader.

Thank you again for allowing me to participate in this project.

Paul Cherner
Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP

I’ve only had a chance to skim the book. The monograph looks great, even after a brief review. I hope it does very well for you.

Neil Caesar
The Health Law Center
Greenville, SC

Doctor’s Digest is concise guide to important issues faced by time-stretched physicians in private practice.

Karen Zupko
Karen Zupko & Associates, Inc.

Thank you; I received both copies of the Sept/Oct edition of Doctor’s Digest. It’s a great edition! I’m excited we were able to assist with it.

What a fabulous resource for physicians!

Karen Roney
AMA Insurance Agency, Inc.

Resolving Practice Dilemmas

I was one of the experts interviewed for your latest edition of Doctor’s Digest; we had corresponded because my copy had gone astray. I happened to be digging through some mail after coming back from vacation, and came across your publication.

Have to say, you really did an excellent job on this. It was full of information, engaging and with a minimum of words covered a great deal of what anyone might need to know about handling conflicts within a practice. I was quite pleased to be part of such a professional efforts.

Congratulations. I’m sure you must be pleased. I trust you’ve gotten a lot of excellent feedback.

Andra Medea
Conflict Unraveled: Fixing Problems at Work and in Families
Silver Award winner, Book of the Year from ForeWord Magazine

Well-written, comprehensive and informative.

Jeffrey B. Sansweet, Esquire
Kalogredis, Sansweet, Dearden and Burke, Ltd.

Thanks for the copy of Doctor’s Digest. Before I even received the July issue one of the internist’s on our hospital staff mentioned he had read the article by Carol Patton on Managing Crisis in which I was quoted. Now THAT’S EXPOSURE! I think doctors are reading this publication. There is a real need for practice management information and Doctor’s Digest fills the prescription.

Mark L Friedman MD

While all the clinical publications relating to patient care and practice provide important information and tools for the practitioner, it is refreshing to find a publication that is relationship-centered and designed to solve some of the “human” problems within health care practices. I believe, in today’s practice environment, this component of care is becoming more and more important. Since the advent of managed care, which has changed the doctor-patient relationship in many ways, a new understanding of what patients want from their care and what doctors need to know about providing care, has become essential. Your publication is a much needed continuing education vehicle for the doctor to enhance his/her practice and to serve the patients in a more successful way.

Georgianna Donadio MSc, PhD

With Doctor’s Digest you can be painlessly informed with a minimum amount of time invested to be PROACTIVE! Experts find this is an effective way to help change what may be an unhappy situation into a more satisfying and productive activity…that’s the real reason we entered the medical profession!

Physicians use the Doctor’s Digest website who knew of it simply because THEIR INTEREST WAS STIMULATED BY INFORMATION PRESENTED IN THE DIGEST! They can find additional sources of useful information in an efficient use of their time…by getting through to the crux of the issues as reviewed and discussed by leading experts.

Phillip Bonanni M.D.
Professor of Medicine
Clinical Nursing and Medical Humanities
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry

I received your publication Resolving Practice Dilemmas July/August 2005 and enjoyed it very much. I read it from cover-to-cover non-stop. I am a Board Certified Family Practice Osteopathic Physician & Surgeon for 30 years. I am also completing a Master of Forensic Science degree at Oklahoma State University (OSU)-Center For Health Sciences. I am a Adjunct Clinical Professor at OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine. I am a State of OK Medical Examiner, Child Abuse Examiner, City Police Physician and FAA Senior Medical Examiner. I would like very much to assist in any capacity to advise or contribute to your fine publication.

Regards,

Dr. Mike Ritze
Adjunct Clinical Professor at OSU College of Osteopathic Medecine
State of OK Medical Examiner, City Police Physician, FAA Senior Medical Examiner

I did receive the issue and found it to be very interesting and useful for people in the field and in working practices. My husband is an attorney who has many dentists and psychologists among his clients and it is clear that they have similar needs and issues.

Perhaps this might be a marketing expansion? Some discussion about ways to setting up or changing a practices’ legal entity and reasons for doing so might be a good article. The issue disappeared from my house; I suspect it is with him…I appreciated how you used my discussion and experiences. Thank you for my participation.

Susan R. Levy, Ph.D.,
Professor Emerita and Fellow
University of Illinois at Chicago Institute for Health Policy and Research

I read the digest cover to cover on the plane this week and then gave it to a doctor sitting next to me!! I am now going to be one of your walking ads!!!

Speak to you soon and look forward to meeting.

Andrea Nierenberg, Principal
Nierenberg Group, New York

Great job! I finally had a chance yesterday to read through it.

Heather Roebuck, Physicians East

I looked over Resolving Practice Dilemmas last night and it really is well done. It should be helpful to a wide variety of physicians in their practices.

Thank you again and good luck.

Dr. John William Kinsinger

I received the copy and gave it a quick glance. I think the material is timely and relevant. I like the way the author interviewed, quoted, and named practicing physicians.

Stephanie Barnard
Author of “Speaking Positively,” and “Persuading Others to Change Their Behavior.”

It looks great and reads quite well. Many thanks for sending it along.

Joseph W. Gallagher, JD, LLM
The Health Care Group

Doctor’s Digest is a must read! I started reading it immediately and can’t put it down. Every page is filled with so much information that is useful, practical, and organized in an easy to read fashion. As a communications consultant, I get interviewed by a lot of publications and yours certainly stands out as one of the best--truly professional and a pleasure to know and work with. Anything I can ever do to be of assistance in the future-consider it done. I want to show Doctor’s Digest to all the doctors I know—it should be required reading!!!

Andrea Nierenberg
Nierenberg Group, NY NY

Each Doctor’s Digest is a treasure trove of practical, information-packed articles. Physicians with an interest in more effectively managing both their practice and their personal wealth will find the time invested in reading Doctor’s Digest will be time well spent.

Cheryl R. Holland CFP
President
Abacus Planning Group

Retirement Planning

I was very impressed with the May/June issue of Doctor’s Digest, and its focus on retirement planning issues facing physicians today.

With retirement and asset protection planning concerns on the minds of most physicians that I come in contact with daily as an advisor, I found this issue was comprehensive, in depth, and right on target. Don Korn, as always, was able to take a very complicated topic and made it very understandable for your readers.

Keep up the great work in educating doctors on financial issues!

Joel M. Blau, CFP
President
MEDIQUS Asset Advisors, Inc.

When I received the May/June issue 2005 of the Doctor’s Digest, I briefly scanned the topics and the articles. I quickly realized that unlike most periodicals where a few articles may be of interest to the reader, every article in this issue was put on my reading list.

Marty James

I read Doctor’s Digest Cover to Cover May/June issue WOW! Such detail, yet readable. Now, I can actually understand my lawyers and accountants financial planning techno-babble.

Robert T. Keller M.D.

Doctor’s Digest delivers pertinent information in an easy to read style and handy format. Each themed issue is a comprehensive reference that will be retained by physicians and staff - and read cover to cover. With every good wish for your success.

Jack Valancy Consulting
Management for Health Care

Maximizing Practice Profits

Dear Ms. Brandofino, your magazine Doctor’s Digest had mentioned our company in your last edition “Maximizing Practice Profits” as a source for providing physician groups with a turn-key lab operation. We appreciate the mention, and based on the number of calls we have received from potential clients, we would like to explore advertising in your publication.

Thank you,

Michael W. Dunaway
CEO/Owner of POLESTAR Labs, Inc.

I just received the March/April 2005 issue of Doctor’s Digest. I am very impressed. The articles, charts, and “Fast Facts” are excellent. I believe that Doctor’s Digest is a valuable practice guide for physicians.

Best regards,

J.M.
Chicago, IL

I got a copy of “Error Proofing Your Practice.” I think that it was put together nicely. Last week, I was at the ACP national meeting in San Francisco, and a colleague of mine, from UC Davis, indicated that he received a copy and noticed the chapter on open access and safety…Congratulations again on your success.

M.R.
Loma Linda, CA

Dear Jeannette:

Thank you for the kind comments about the benefits of physician dispensing for physicians and patients and our company, Physicians Total Care, Inc. We were unaware of the article being published until our inquiries and web hits started increasing. I have only heard about the comments secondhand and would like to get a copy of the digest. Could you please direct me? Thank you.

Warren Moseley
President, Physicians Total Care, 800-759-3650

Thank you for your copies of Doctor’s Digest—Your Guide to Practice Management we have been receiving over the last few months. The information in the publication is so informative and yet so easy to read and understand. I find that I read each copy cover to cover adn highlight areas that I plan to implement in our practice right away. I am thankful for such a resource and look forward to receiving each copy. Our practice is a better for the education you have provided me.

D. Perry
Maxwell Medical Group

I am writing to let you know that I thoroughly enjoy your publications, Doctors Digest issue on Maximizing Practice Profits. Naperville Medical Associated is comprised of five full time family practice physicians. For some time I have searched for seminars and/or publications that would provide the younger physicians with the business acumen that I had to learn the hard way.

In a very thorough and concise manner, information is presented in Doctor’s Digest that helps physicians understand revenue streams, including traditional patient care, and potential health services which can enhance cash flow as well as improve the bottom line. Doctor’s Digest is a must read for any physician who wants to understand their true potential worth to a medical practice. I am hoping all the physicians in my practice become familiar with these fundamentals: and become a more valuable participant on the practice management team.

Thank you for your efforts and I congratulate you on the results, as Doctor’s Digest should be required reading for any physician contemplating private practice.

Sincerely,

Matthew S. Carducci, M.D.
Napperville Medical Associates

In addition to quoting the FFM data, you may want to survey some Family Physicians about what is happening in real life! The typical family practitioner in southeastern Pennsylvania earns nowhere near $167,457. With an exhausting schedule of hours, those of us who care about quality are lucky to earn two-thirds of that (and my partners and I average 20 years of practice each). We are on the verge of insolvency because of the duopoly of health insurers starving our bottom line (reimbursements have been flat over the past 11 years, yet costs have risen astronomically). We are careful with documentation for proper reimbursement, and we run a very lean ship with little waste. Any additional costs (such as those of an EHR) will certainly sink us sooner. My stepson, a carpenter, earns more per hour than I do. Without competition, the two major health insurers are unlikely to raise reimbursements (we already have a website and reply to e-mails for which we are not compensated-why would they pay for what they get for free?). The FFM model may falter when confronted with reality.

Adam T. Turk, M.D.

Error-Proofing Your Practice

Dear Ms. Brandofino,

Thank you for your gracious note. I must say that i found the document very thorough and enlightening. You and your staff (particularly Ms Wagner) are to be highly commended.

I was wondering if we could do something to help publicize your journal. We are arranging a local patient safety conference in Buffalo on March 31st that will of general interest but will focus on error reporting and error disclosure. We are expecting about 75 participants. Many will be from ambulatory settings and would therefore be highly interested in reading your document; even those from hospital settings would find it very useful.

At the conference we will be setting up poster displays and tables with relevant patient safety materials/resources. I think it would be a very useful service to our participants if we could make copies of this issue available at the conference.

Dr Ranjit Singh
New York
Ranjit Singh MA MB BChir (Cantab.) MBA
Assoc. Director, Patient Safety Research Center
Medical Director, Skilled Nursing Facility
Assistant Professor of Clinical Family Medicine
School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
State University of New York at Buffalo
462 Grider Street
Buffalo, NY 14215

I have just read the first edition of your magazine Doctor’s Digest and I must compliment you on your product. Business and practice management focused articles that broadly cover a single topic are just what those of us in private practice really need. To many articles and publications attempt to discuss multiple issues superficially rather than deal in dept with a specific topic.

As for future editions, maybe you can discuss issues such as common legal documents encountered in practice and how to handle them/what they mean ( ie. Durable power of attorney for healthcare vs financial matters, bankruptcy notices, subpoenas, or requests for records) or perhaps common issues in practice such as human resources (hiring, firing, documentation for the practice) and finally maybe resources on benefits for practices and how they compare.

Thanks,

Dr J Ulery

I enjoyed the first manual. I am looking forward to the following. I am looking forward to retirement planning as I hope to retire in the next couple of years. The other manuals will of course be helpful until then.

Larry McEachern M.D.

I wanted to let you know how much I appreciated your book. Dr. Cheryl gave it to me to read and I must admit it encouraged me as the manager of this practice. Most of the things you covered we are already doing. The questions that I have been going over in my head and not sure whether to do them or not, are covered in this months book. It has been so timely in coming to our office.

I would like to ask you one question about insurance companies. How do you feel about insurance companies that use a network of providers? For instance United Health Care was under Medcost. So if a UHC patient came in and medcost was on the care we filed to medcost instead of UHC. So a very small company may not be in our network on its own, however, if they are under the Medcost we are under contract. In some ways this is very confusing and I may be the only one that is confused. Can you explain this to me and let me know if it is good to be under this?

I will give you another example to help explain what I mean. We are under contract with Upstate PHO. Under them is Healthfirst, Premier, Medcost, Great West, Southcare PPO, Wellpath, Select Health and Piedmont Health Alliance. So if anyone comes into our office with this insurance card we are under contract.

Please help me on this if you can. I hope I have not confused you with this confusing issue.

Sincerely,

Judy R

Congratulations on your new publication. I just read it and think Lynn Wagner did a wonderful job capturing the important issues in patient safety in a way that will be accessible to practicing physicians. Quite a tour de force, really!

I hope you are successful. Busy doctors need summative material of this sort, and I suspect will like the ""in my pocket"" format you are experimenting with. If they all are of this quality, you should do well.

Lucian Leape MD
Harvard School of Public Health

You have done a fine job with a number of topics.

Congratulations!

Jon Allen, MD
IPC Director, Year 2; Assistant Dean of NE Campus
Associate Professor of Internal Medicine
Office of Medical Education
University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences

Outstanding job, Jeanette. I reviewed the entire issue and found it very helpful. I am often amazed at how well good writers and journalists can summarize complex data and information.

John Hickner, MD, MSc
Professor of Family Medicine
The University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine