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March 1997
Volume 61 |
Number 3
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TO THE MEMBERSHIP
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| Whither Goest
Thou? |
Phillip O. Bridenbaugh, M.D., President
The current issue of the NEWSLETTER has been collated
by N. Ty Smith, M.D., Chair of the Committee on Electronic Media
and Information Technology. As we peruse the marvels of progress
in the area of electronic transmission, we must also pause and
ponder the future of medical practice as impacted by the intrusion
of managed care.
In the September 19, 1996, issue of the New England Journal
of Medicine, Marcia Angell, M.D., and Jerome P. Kassirer,
M.D., address the issue of "Quality and the Medical Marketplace
- Following Elephants." They comment that "the quality
of health care is now seriously challenged by our rapid shift
to managed care as the way to contain costs."
The financial squeeze targets the physician whose profit-and-loss
record is directly influenced by that physician's skill in limiting
(rationing) services to the sick. The situation is further aggravated
in the case of "for-profit" managed care companies wherein
shareholders and CEOs must be rewarded.
The role of the anesthesiologist in cost containment has been
previously addressed in the NEWSLETTER as well as the journals
Anesthesiology and Anesthesia & Analgesia among
others. A novel approach to cost-effective anesthesia is suggested
by an Iowa anesthesiologist in a "Letter
to the Editor". It is recommended for your consideration.
Erwin Lear, M.D.
Editor
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