Dear OTW Reader:
“Committee of 12” with a bull’s-eye on healthcare? New hires at K2M…out of the way, FDA…What Peter Indelicato, president of AOSSM, is excited about, and oh, …hear what happens when some Viscogliosis go hunting. (Hint: no one was shot in a small bone)
Hospitals, Nonpayment, and Hypercaution
Dr. Donald Shelbourne, founder of the Shelbourne Knee Center in Indianapolis, tells OTW, “There is a lot of talk about ‘the checklist manifesto’ these days…meaning, that soon Medicare will put its foot down and will not pay hospitals for the cost of treating preventable complications. The cost of treating an infection is ten times the cost of a total knee. So hospitals are now on alert, and more than ever are trying to ensure that nothing happens that is preventable. Hand sterilization is being stressed more than ever, and at least one hospital I know of has implemented a rule that the plan for a patient must be reviewed in the holding area before surgery so as to prevent things such as wrong site surgery…and it’s a surgeon, not a fellow, who has to sign the site. These things are clearly what we have needed for a long time. And the wave is such that once Medicare starts saying they absolutely won’t pay for preventable conditions, then all the other insurers will as well. It’s going to make everyone even more cautious. Take DVT [deep vein thrombosis]…if someone develops a clot and the person had not been on an anticoagulant, then that is preventable…and it won’t be covered.”
The spine masters at K2M, Inc. have brought three new senior international hires on board.
Larry W. Found, senior vice president, global human resources, has more than 20 years experience in the medical device industry. Found was formerly a Captain in the Canadian Army, a role which included commitments to the UN and NATO. Gianluca Iasci, senior vice president of international, also has more than two decades of experience within the medical device industry. Iasci served as senior vice president of international at AGA Medical and served for 12 years with Johnson & Johnson in various Italian and European sales and marketing positions. He also was the managing director of Italy while at Guidant, now Boston Scientific. Carol Pinto, area vice president, Latin America, has more than 25 years of experience in sales and marketing leadership for companies in the spine and medical implant industry including Orthofix Spine (Blackstone Medical) and Surgical Dynamics, Envision.
Keeping Young Athletes in the Game
Peter Indelicato, M.D., president of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, tells OTW, “Sports medicine specialists are excited that the STOP Sports Injuries campaign (www.stopsportsinjuries.org) is starting to develop a life of its own. We have had a huge increase in member involvement and growing corporate sponsorship…it’s not hard to support this program…it’s like apple pie and the American flag. Who wouldn’t want to support a serious, coordinated effort to diminish the frequency and incidence of injuries in young athletes? The most exciting thing is that we are keeping kids ‘in the game’ for life. Sometimes the game doesn’t like kids as much as kids like the game, but I am proud to say that we are changing that.”
Wright: New Senior VP and COO
And the bullhorn goes to…Julie D. Tracy. Tracy is the new senior vice president and chief communications officer at Wright Medical Group, Inc. She brings more than 25 years of experience in the medical device industry in investor relations, corporate communications and marketing. She has been chief communications officer for Epocrates, Inc. and senior vice president and chief communications officer for ev3 Inc.; she has also held marketing and investor relations positions at Kyphon Inc. and Thoratec Corporation.
Improving Spine Care in Africa
Saving spines and livelihoods in the Congo…Richard Kaul, M.D. is the founder of New Jersey Spine & Rehabilitation in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey. In his “other life, ” he is the creator of the Spine Africa Project, a project bringing more advanced spine care to the Congo. Dr. Kaul is not only performing surgery and educating healthcare providers, he is helping to support patients economically. How? Because if the family breadwinner sustains a serious injury they often cannot work; they and their families can become destitute and can no longer contribute to their communities. Dr. Kaul is raising money to begin bringing equipment, such as a backup generator and sterilization equipment, to the Congo. The Spine Africa Project is holding its first fundraiser in New York on Nov. 12, with the hopes of raising enough funds to cover its December trip. Those interested in learning more about the project can visit the website at www.spineafricaproject.org/
Transition for Bill Sterett, M.D.
Bill Sterett, M.D., former managing partner of the Steadman-Hawkins Clinic, has joined the practices of Vail-Summit Orthopaedics. The knee and shoulder specialist has been treating patients in the Vail Valley for more than 18 years. Dr. Sterett, one of the few Colorado surgeons fellowship-trained in both sports medicine and orthopedic trauma, has been the U.S. physician for past three winter Olympics and seven World Alpine Ski Championships. He is also the author of 30 peer-reviewed publications and has patents on some of the most commonly used joint preservation systems in orthopedics.
Gunning for Healthcare
A certain veteran orthopedist thinks that the government’s “Committee of 12” has a bullseye on healthcare…this surgeon tells OTW, “Healthcare expenditures exceed defense expenditures—and almost any other piece of pie—so it’s unlikely that we won’t see cuts. The Medicare population will be increasingly left out if the committee goes through with the large cuts they are planning. Specialists in particular will soon be opting out of Medicare; granted, we could end up with a situation where a certain portion of a doctor’s time is legally allocated to Medicare patients. But, from the patient’s perspective, no one wants to see a physician who doesn’t want to see them. If they go ahead and reduce reimbursement rates by 6% a year for three years, that’s one thing. But that’s not the case…they’re not saying, ‘We’re in trouble today, but we’ll give it back to you in a year.” They are saying, ‘We are in trouble today, but we’re never giving it back.’ You know that wouldn’t happen to lawyers, postal workers, etc.”
North Shore Expands
NorthShore University HealthSystem in Illinois has welcomed the physicians of Northwestern Orthopaedic Institute, LLC (NOI) into its system of care. In the past year, NorthShore has added 12 physician practices and more than 40 new physicians and thousands of patients. Part of this integration is a planned joint neurologic and orthopedic spine care program. “This partnership will enhance the future of spine care by offering comprehensive expertise and the latest technology and treatment including operative, non-operative and minimally invasive options, ” said Srdjan Mirkovic, M.D., NOI spine surgeon, in the news release.
FDA a Hindrance
A certain frustrated orthopedist could not contain his annoyance. He recently told OTW, “The FDA has raised the bar for new devices and biologics to the level where it is nearly impossible for new safe technologies to emerge for the benefit of our patient. There are viable emerging technologies languishing…technologies that could otherwise help suffering patients. But this monolithic entity is creating such awful, and at times, irrational, roadblocks that it is nearly impossible to overcome them in contemporary medicine and economics. Even well-funded and intended projects are having problems. As a general rule, if the FDA can implement rational guidelines, then funding and research would likely lead to viable technologies to solve very difficult clinical problems that continue to plague our patients. Concerns for job preservation may exceed concerns for evolutionary and safe developments of emerging technology.”
A Viscogliosi Goes A Huntin’
Armed with experience in backwoods Michigan—oh, and a large rifle—John and Marc Viscogliosi (now city boys)—recently went on a hunting excursion with a friend. John Viscogliosi told OTW, “We were out in Colorado, and it was our first time elk hunting. The first day we saw a large elk but we didn’t get in any shots. On the second day I spotted an elk in a thicket of Aspen trees. Our friend saw the rack on the elk and said, ‘You have to get this one.’ I was about 80 yards away…and I actually dropped it in one shot. Apparently, this is exceedingly rare. Our hunting mate told me that of the 36 elk he had gotten in the last four years he had only dropped one with a single shot. The antlers are soon to be delivered to my office in New York, something that should liven up business discussions. As for the meat, it was processed into sausage, roast jerky, etc.”
Rothman Participates in New Surgery Center
Riddle Surgical Center, a multi-specialty ambulatory surgery center located in Media, Pennsylvania, has recently celebrated its first anniversary. The center was developed by area physicians, Main Line Health Systems, The Rothman Institute, and Nueterra Healthcare to provide patients with high-quality, patient-focused surgical care. The 17, 500-square-foot facility offers four fully-equipped operating rooms and two procedure rooms with the latest medical instrumentation. In addition to orthopedic surgery, it is equipped for ENT, Gastroenterology, General Surgery, Ophthalmology, Pain Management, and Podiatry.
