Friday, January 9, 2015

Why Maintenance of Certification Is Bad for Doctors and Patients

As a patient I can see no reason why I shouldn't expect my doctor to be up-to-date on all the latest.  But read this doctor/apologist for the reasons why this is bad for you. Shit, I'm totally positive that my doctor hadn't read a single research article in the 25-30 years since medical school. I have probably referenced 10-15,000 articles in the last 5 years. I expect all stroke doctors to have at least the knowledge I have, if not better.
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1407422#t=article
This statement is f*cking appalling. At least every 5 years at a minimum. I wouldn't see any doctor who hadn't been up-to-date within the last month. Ask your doctor what practices they have changed in the last year and what research triggered that change.
Although some members of the medical community believe that it's not unreasonable to ask physicians to formally document their fund of knowledge every 10 years.

More articles on it although I doubt any of these take a patient view.
The Maintenance of Certification Fait Accompli Position and Why I Reject it
Focus Groups Say MOC Has Little Benefit for Doctors, Patients
MOC and the Physician Quality Reporting game hurts patients, physicians alike
MOC Requirements Don't Benefit Medicine



How the hell do we tell if our doctors are any good? Caveat emptor,  "Let the buyer beware".
That's not good enough for me.

1 comment:

  1. I had the opportunity to keep my RN and paramedic licenses up by taking 20 CEUs a year and sending the documentation into the state for recertification. Mind you, I haven't been in nursing or worked on an ambulance in over twenty years! But still the option was given to me. I didn't.

    I'm lucky in that respect with my neurologist. She keeps current by at least a year. We bounce ideas and research off each other. If I can show her documentation, she'll research it further. Yes, the same standards apply to her as other doctors, but she follows through and keeps abreast of what's new and being tried.

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