Clinician's Roundtable

Is it time to send reinforcements after your delinquent patients? Dr. Jeffrey Hausfeld, associate clinical professor of surgery at George Washington University School of Health Sciences and managing director of FMS Financial Solutions, tells us how to make debt collections more manageable. Find out how to collect more efficiently, and learn if your practice would be better off outsourcing. Are your practice strategies in line with the collection company? Dr. Larry Kaskel hosts.

Excessive alcohol and tobacco use are obvious risk factors for throat cancer, yet new research is revealing that the human papillomavirus (HPV) is also a significant risk factor for the disease. HPV, in fact, is partly responsible for the continuing rise in the incidence of throat cancer over recent years. Dr. Kevin Ault, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Emory Univerysity School of Medicine and one of the clinical investigators for the HPV vaccine, joins host Dr. Cathleen Margolin for a discussion about the link between HPV and throat cancer.

Dr. Baim discusses how to apply the FRAX model in clinical practice. How does the FRAX score combine with local assessments of cost-effectiveness and clinical judgment in order to give guidance on how and when to treat patients with bone loss? Why might a 45 year old with a T-score of -2.5 not need treatment but a 70 year old with a T-score of -1.4 best be treated aggressively?

Dr. Sanford Baim discusses the assessment of patients for bone loss. He emphasizes why relying on bone density data is inadequate to truly treat our patients properly, and provides details on a new approach to assessing the absolute risk of fracture, called the FRAX model. Dr. Lee Freedman hosts.

Barbara Coombs Lee is a nurse, a physician's assistant, an attorney, and the president of Compassion and Choices, an organization dedicated to expanding and protecting the rights of the terminally ill. Ms. Lee discusses the biggest misconceptions doctors have about end-of-life care. Susan Dolan hosts.

Personal financial decisions are often less clear for us than making tough medical calls. How much disability insurance should we carry, if any at all? Should we pay insurance premiums with pre-tax dollars? If we have income outside of our primary working situation, can we--and should we--contribute to a 401k? Host Dr. Larry Kaskel quizzes Bill Cleveland, a certified financial planner from Preston & Cleveland Wealth Management, about key money management strategies.

Where and how should you invest in a down market? What strategies have been used by some of the wealthiest investors over time? Join host Dr. Larry Kaskel as he explores personal finance with Bill Cleveland, a certified financial planner with Preston & Cleveland Wealth Management. What are some of the best strategies for doctors? How do you find opportunities in a down market? What are keys to a well rounded portfolio? Listen in to find out.

Drug industry marketing, a long controversial aspect of a physicians' practice and life, may perhaps be experiencing its tightest guidelines yet. Dr. Joseph Heyman, chair of the American Medical Association board of trustees, tells host Bruce Japsen about his thoughts on the new voluntary pharmaceutical industry guidelines on marketing and gift-giving to physicians, signifynig a departure from prior practices.

By adopting even one change to a health care business practice, some experts believe lives can be saved. How about 5 million of them? Toni Mills, executive director of the Office of Clinical Affairs for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, tells host Bruce Japsen about the group's effort to get pledges from hospitals to follow several safety guidelines that could lead to saving 5 million lives.

Addiction Medicine may be on track to become a board certified specialty in the future, differentiating itself from the current ABMS-approved subspecialty of Addiction Psychiatry. How has the advancing field reached this stage, and what does it mean for us and our patients? Additionally, what will an Addiction Specialist be able to do that an Addiction Psychiatrist cannot, and vice-versa? Dr. Kevin Kunz, Interim President of the American Board of Addiction Medicine, remarks on this developmental trend from the field. Hosted by Dr. Stu Gitlow.