I recently read, in one of our local papers, an article about a plastic surgeon in Southwest Florida who was being sanctioned by the state of Florida for performing procedures in a facility that was not accredited by any state agency or institution. In addition, he did not have in place any transfer agreements with local hospitals should an unexpected crisis arise necessitating a hospitalization. The matter came to the attention of state regulators when several of his colleagues blew the whistle on him. The surgeon in question essentially offered no explanation other than to claim that the entire event arose out of jealously on the part of his colleagues.

I applaud those professionals who were forthright and stood up for proper patient care. I am concerned that there may be many missed opportunities for us to monitor our own colleagues--for a variety of reasons. When that happens, no one wins, including the physician who may be causing harm. I believe that if we monitor ourselves, then lawyers and government agencies may find less to poke at in our profession. We may be on the horizon of real malpractice reform with the current administration. Let us not give the opposition an opportunity to run the ship aground--we may not have such an opportunity again in our professional lifetimes.

Stephen E. Pascucci, MD Medical Editor [email protected]