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On top of everything else...a shortage of doctors???

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  • On top of everything else...a shortage of doctors???

    This phenomenon is not just unique to Hawai'i...the number of doctors who deliver babies is plummeting nationwide, partly due to the high insurance premiums they are having to pay. And the reason why their insurance rates are escalating is because of the multimillion dollar lawsuits that are being filed. So even doctors who have spent years and years delivering babies with no mishaps still get to pay the same premiums as the ones who might have had a lawsuit or two.

    Young women who want to have babies will have to resort to midwives or doulas, which is probably a good thing, because then there would be more natural childbirths and fewer C sections (except when the life of the baby and/or the mother is threatened).

    This is one time when I think tort reform is going to be required in order to reign in the cost of healthcare.

    Miulang
    "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

  • #2
    Re: On top of everything else...a shortage of doctors???

    Its the lawyers that are making this into an epidemic. I can understand suing to cover medical bills but it's the huge amounts that lawyers take that ups the damage awards. That's where the problem lies.
    Life is what you make of it...so please read the instructions carefully.

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    • #3
      Re: On top of everything else...a shortage of doctors???

      Originally posted by Miulang
      Young women who want to have babies will have to resort to midwives or doulas, which is probably a good thing.
      If I was married and my wife was giving birth, I'd definitely want a doctor there instead of a midwife. If something were to go wrong, I wouldn't want to waste precious time while the midwife called someone else for help. If a doctor was present from the outset, he/she would be right there if something happened.

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      • #4
        Re: On top of everything else...a shortage of doctors???

        Originally posted by Palolo Joe
        If I was married and my wife was giving birth, I'd definitely want a doctor there instead of a midwife. If something were to go wrong, I wouldn't want to waste precious time while the midwife called someone else for help. If a doctor was present from the outset, he/she would be right there if something happened.
        Cynically, then, you couldn't live on the neighbor islands where the obstetricians are few and far between and the chances of getting an appointment would be slim to nil because the docs are so overbooked now. Hmmm...interesting way to practice birth control. No obstetricians=no babies. There are so few family docs or GPs who have experience in birthing babies that that route might be more risky than going with the midwives.

        Miulang
        "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

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        • #5
          Re: On top of everything else...a shortage of doctors???

          It's not just the lawyers. It's the HMO insurance situation. The surgeons and anesthesiologists I worked with today were discussing that same article and put a lot of blame on the insurance and their paltry payouts. I too have done medical billing, and it's one of the many reasons I chose not to become a doc myself.

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          • #6
            Re: On top of everything else...a shortage of doctors???

            Originally posted by Miulang
            Hmmm...interesting way to practice birth control. No obstetricians=no babies. There are so few family docs or GPs who have experience in birthing babies that that route might be more risky than going with the midwives.Miulang
            That's certainly one way to look at it...another possible problem with birth control here:

            The Libido Killer (MSN TV)

            If we use enough long-term birth control, then maybe the need for obstretricians will decrease and everything will even out.

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