Re: ?? C-Sections to 'Boost Hospital Profits'
From: art fougner, md (evsono@pipeline.com)
Tue Apr 10 11:37:49 2001
"... The only way to win is not to play."
W.O.P.R re: Tic Tac Toe from "War Games"
art
At Sat, 7 Apr 2001, Braun, R. Daniel wrote:
>
> What a crock of ___________. Sure there are a few jerks out there who
>might do a C/S to "make more money", but I think there are so few of them
>that it makes no diference in the long run. And what few are there are doing
>it because of pressure from the OVERSUPPLY of OBGYN's. (Plus CNM's,
>midwives, Nurse practitioners, etc). IOW there are way too many people
>delivering babies compared to what is needed.
>
>Dan
>Like Art, I could be wrong.
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Marilyn RingstTo: Multiple recipients of list OB-GYN-L
>Sent: 4/6/2001 4:09 PM
>Subject: ?? C-Sections to 'Boost Hospital Profits'
>
>Physician Refutes Study That Says Doctors Perform C-Sections to 'Boost
>Hospital Profits'
>
> A "leading" Colorado physician has disputed a study reporting
>that "doctors
>feel pressured to perform more Caesarean sections to boost hospital
>profits," calling the conclusion "off-base," the Denver Rocky Mountain
>News
>reports. The study was conducted among 200,000 expectant mothers over
>three
>years by a business professor at the University of Colorado. The study
>indicated that "a hospital's bottom line may determine whether a doctor
>conducts a Caesarean section when wards are full." Naomi Soderstrom, an
>
>associate professor in accounting at University of Colorado at Boulder,
>explained, "From an accounting
>perspective, reducing the number of Caesarean sections may not be in a
>hospital's or physician's best interest since reimbursement rates for
>Caesarean sections are higher than for vaginal births." However, Dr.
>Donald
>Aptekar, president of the Colorado Gynecological and Obstetrical
>Society,
>said, "I want to make it real clear that physicians are not making the
>choice for C-sections because we get paid more money. We don't get paid
>
>more money." He added, "It's counterintuitive to do a C-section if the
>hospital is crowded because the patient will have to stay longer."
>Commenting on the increasing rate of C-sections, Aptekar said that the
>upward trend is "driven by the consumer," as more women are electing to
>undergo the procedure. But Soderstrom maintains that
>the study suggests that "more than medical factors are taken into
>account in
>any physician's decision" (Garner, Denver Rocky Mountain News, 4/5).
>
>Marilyn Ringstaff, CNM
>Marilyn.Ringstaff@obgyn.net
--
art fougner, md
A series of 1000 cases begins with but a single anecdote.
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