On Dec 16, 9:06 pm, wrote:
Like anything else, there are some very good doctors out there, and there
are some very bad doctors. Unfortunately, there aren't many good ways to
find out which is which.

Yes, there is. First resource (in fact i would recommend this to Skip)
is the state medical review board. Find out how many problems any
particular doc has had with the procedure you're considering, how many
times they've been sued, etc etc.

The next is to get a list of board-certified MDs in the specialty
you're interested in. Although it isn't a guarantee, some real lu-lus
get thru board certs, but at least you're not going to a doc who once
heard about your procedure over pizza & beer back when he was a
resident, and hasn't even read a magazine article about it since.

Remember, lawyers make more money from the American health-care system
than doctors do. And the gov't wants to keep it that way.

DSK

wrote in message
...
On Dec 16, 9:06 pm, wrote:
Like anything else, there are some very good doctors out there, and there
are some very bad doctors. Unfortunately, there aren't many good ways to
find out which is which.

Yes, there is. First resource (in fact i would recommend this to Skip)
is the state medical review board. Find out how many problems any
particular doc has had with the procedure you're considering, how many
times they've been sued, etc etc.

The next is to get a list of board-certified MDs in the specialty
you're interested in. Although it isn't a guarantee, some real lu-lus
get thru board certs, but at least you're not going to a doc who once
heard about your procedure over pizza & beer back when he was a
resident, and hasn't even read a magazine article about it since.

Remember, lawyers make more money from the American health-care system
than doctors do. And the gov't wants to keep it that way.

DSK



Some states have hospital comparison information available, such as is
starting to be the case in Cal.

http://www.calhospitalcompare.org/


--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com

Remember, lawyers make more money from the American health-care system
than doctors do. And the gov't wants to keep it that way.

Dave wrote:
Good line. And it would be truly scary if it were true.

One could quibble over accounting details, but the scary thing is that
lawyers *do* make more money from health care than doctors. For
example, check how many MDs are on insurance company payrolls, and how
many LLDs.

I sympathize with
the thought, however. There are too many law suits, including malpractice
suits.

Definitely.

OTOH there is too much malpractice. The question is, should your
health care risk (which is never zero, regardless of the procedure) be
turned into a lottery?

DSK

"Capt. JG" wrote:
Some states have hospital comparison information available, such as is
starting to be the case in Cal.

http://www.calhospitalcompare.org/


Another excellent resource, thanks.

It's over due for a discussion of how cruisers manage their doctors
visits, not to mention insurance.

Fresh Breezes- Doug King

On Tue, 18 Dec 2007 14:53:13 -0800 (PST), wrote:

It's over due for a discussion of how cruisers manage their doctors
visits, not to mention insurance.

Interesting point, especially when headed for an international
destination. Fortunately we've never needed medical care while on our
5 and 6 month east coast cruises but it could certainly happen.

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 18 Dec 2007 14:53:13 -0800 (PST), wrote:

It's over due for a discussion of how cruisers manage their doctors
visits, not to mention insurance.

Interesting point, especially when headed for an international
destination. Fortunately we've never needed medical care while on our
5 and 6 month east coast cruises but it could certainly happen.



D.A.N. offers medical insurance and emergency evac... www.dan.org.

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com

wrote:

Remember, lawyers make more money from the American health-care system
than doctors do. And the gov't wants to keep it that way.

More accurately: The lawyers pay the government to keep it that way.

As soon as someone comes up with something more powerful than what the
lawyers pay, the laws will change.

Stephen

On 2007-12-18 23:09:41 -0500, Wayne.B said:

On Tue, 18 Dec 2007 14:53:13 -0800 (PST), wrote:

It's overdue for a discussion of how cruisers manage their doctors
visits, not to mention insurance.

Interesting point, especially when headed for an international
destination. Fortunately we've never needed medical care while on our
5 and 6 month east coast cruises but it could certainly happen.

A few of the stories I've heard over the years indicated that
outpatient service in many places costs less than the co-pays we have
come to expect.

But, evac for major stuff is quite expen$ive! Guy on one of our BVI
trips jumped off of the other boat onto the dock and broke both ankles.
Airlift to St. Thomas for major surgery and thence back to England was
"not trivial". Seems the UK system covered most of his costs, but I
believe he was out-of-pocket for some. And at least one on this list
can relate the story of a heart attack requiring a trip back to the US.

DAN is good for some stuff, but I believe there's a plan through the
SSCA that sounded better when I investigated.

--
Jere Lull
Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD
Xan's pages: http://web.mac.com/jerelull/iWeb/Xan/
Our BVI trips & tips: http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/

On Wed, 19 Dec 2007 07:10:01 GMT, Jere Lull wrote:

But, evac for major stuff is quite expen$ive!

You bet. One of our neighbors had to be emergency airlifted out of
Haiti several years ago at a cost of around $10K.

wrote in news:0b8e6938-6582-4832-82f8-7c32a33aadf0
@e25g2000prg.googlegroups.com:

OTOH there is too much malpractice. The question is, should your
health care risk (which is never zero, regardless of the procedure) be
turned into a lottery?

DSK




I got a better question, Doc. Where in the oath does it say every doctor
has to be a millionaire on the backs of the patient victims of the health
care system? Is $600/hour fair, $1200? $2400? .....to see a doctor
educated at PUBLIC expense?

Larry
--
QUOTE OF THE MONTH:
"I have been to several major Chinese cities and have seen first hand shops
crammed with obviously fake American products." - Jon Dudas, Undersecretary
of Commerce for Intellectual Property Rights.

How can they be fake? The Chinese make all "American Products" I use!