Monthly Archives: December 2014

As Seen in the New York Times: Radiologists Are Reducing the Pain of Uncertainty

12/18/2014

A recent New York Times article by Gina Kolata, was written to address the anxiety-provoking issues that patients endure while waiting for the results of radiological scans. Have you ever had a CT or PET scan and had to wait days to receive the report? Waiting for the results of a scan is stressful under any circumstances but for cancer patients who frequently need scans to check on the progress of their cancer treatment and are worried whether or not their treatment regiment is working to eliminate the cancer from their bodies, it’s especially stressful. Waiting can be tortuous!

Is there any reason that results are typically a private communication between a radiologist and referring physician? Is there any reason that patients end up waiting days, sometimes weeks, for their doctors to reveal what the scans showed? Could radiologists actually talk to patients and give them results immediately? What would it be like if you could speak directly to your radiologist after a scan and have the doctor right there to discuss all of the findings with you directly?

Until recently, many people have never considered asking to speak to a radiologist and many referring doctors don’t seem to have relationships with radiologists — they just hand patients a prescription for a scan and let them get it wherever they want.

At SecondOpinions.com, we encourage our patients to communicate with our radiologists after a scan is read. This valuable service has been offered to our clients for quite some time. If a patient has a scan at an imaging center, for example, the Center gets permission from the referring physician for the radiologist to speak directly to the patient. In general, referring physicians welcome this type of interaction between a patient and a radiologist. This direct communication eliminates third party involvement and the patient has the opportunity to discuss all of the information from the radiologist and can address any questions or concerns they have at that time. This interaction alleviates the wait times for receiving a report and reduces the anxiety levels that accompany the lengthy waiting periods. Typically, a referring physician receives a written report from the radiologist and will simply either tell the patient they’re fine or give them a brief explanation from the written report. For many patients this is simply not enough information and they have questions that don’t get answered leaving them very frustrated.

For our patients that need radiological second opinions, SecondOpinions.com connects patients globally to top U.S. physicians in any specialty and sub-specialties.  Within hours, patients receive a second opinion from a board certified physician. Patients simply upload their DVD  images (MRI, CT etc) to a HIPAA regulated, secure, confidential platform and receive a report in the privacy of their own home or office specialty. Obtaining a second opinion decreases medical errors, saves lives, and keeps healthcare costs down by preventing unnecessary surgeries and procedures. It gives patients the peace of mind they need and deserve. SecondOpinions.com provides a service that is easily accessible and affordable. The convenience and recognized benefits of this service is capturing national attention as patients are becoming more and more insistent on knowing how and why doctors make decisions about their care.

If you are not getting the attention you need from your radiologist, contact us today at www.secondopinions.com or call 855-573-2663.

 

 

 

Consumer Advocacy Group Watchdog, Calls On California Gov. Brown to Audit Reports of Thousands of Medical Errors at Hospitals

12/4/2014

Following a report that thousands of medical errors were reported by California’s hospitals in the last four years, Consumer Watchdog, a national consumer advocacy group, called on Governor Jerry Brown and state health regulators to audit hospitals for failures to report many instances of patient harm and for full public disclosure of these events.
California hospitals are required to report adverse events, like surgery on the wrong body part, surgical items left in patients or unexpected deaths to the Department of Public Health. However, 6,282 unreported adverse events were collected in the past four fiscal years by the California Department of Public Health such as surgery on the wrong body part or unexpected death. It is also estimated that 44,000 Californians die every year because of preventable medical errors. Hospitals need to be accountable for reporting their medical errors and SecondOpinions.com has a plan to help.

At SecondOpinions.com, we offer hospitals and medical facilities independent Quality Assurance (QA) & Peer Review Programs that are implemented to assist with the reduction of medical errors, avoidance of unnecessary procedures and surgeries, improvement in quality of healthcare and overall physician performance. Ultimately, this will make an important difference in patient care, enhance outcomes and lower healthcare costs. We are also uniquely positioned to partner with individual physicians, hospitals and all medical facilities to provide independent, around the clock, second opinion services via our consumer division. Due to the complexities of medicine, this service is invaluable when dealing with time-sensitive, diagnostic challenges or when there is uncertainty as to the course of treatment that is recommended. Consultations are available in all medical specialties and obtaining a second opinion is simple and affordable.

SecondOpinions.com, Quality Assurance Programs are expanded into all areas of medicine, including radiology. With an existing national network of board-certified specialists and subspecialists, SecondOpinions.com possesses the infrastructure to offer Quality Assurance/Peer Review Service on a national and global level. Our expert physicians provide comprehensive feedback, detailed reporting, and offer medico-legal information as part of their communication efforts with referring physicians. This service benefits physicians and medical facilities by enhancing performance and measuring improvement on a quarterly or annual basis.

At SecondOpinions.com, simply upload digital images (MRI, CT etc.) to a HIPAA regulated, secure, confidential platform and receive a report within hours. In addition, doctors in virtually every medical specialty are on standby to provide consultations via phone or video chat. Obtaining a second opinion decreases medical errors, saves lives, and keeps healthcare costs down by preventing unnecessary surgeries and procedures. It also gives patients the peace of mind they need and deserve.

Two Canadian Hospitals ‘deeply sorry’ for Lung Cancer Misdiagnosis – Surprised to hear this?

12/4/2014

At SecondOpinions.com we always encourage our clients and readers of our blog to obtain a second opinion regarding their health. Second opinions not only save lives, they can prevent unnecessary surgeries and procedures due to misdiagnoses. We all know that doctors can make mistakes and diagnosis medical problems incorrectly, but would you expect a hospital laboratory to misdiagnose? Unfortunately, it’s not all that uncommon.

Recently, a Canadian man was wrongly diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer, told he would die within 12 months and was referred for chemotherapy. Four months later, he was told by the same doctors at 2 hospitals where he was being treated that he was actually suffering from sarcoidosis, a rare, but treatable lung disease. The lab admitted that a specimen from the patient’s lung biopsy was cross-contaminated with another patient’s, who has terminal lung cancer.

While the two hospitals in Hamilton, Canada have apologized for getting the diagnoses wrong and are “deeply sorry” for the error, is an apology enough? Shouldn’t medical laboratories check and re-check their lab results before issuing an incorrect report to a patient? Especially one which tells a patient he has a terminal disease and only has months to live? How often do misdiagnoses occur in a high-tech laboratory setting? How many more patients have actually been misdiagnosed, wrongly treated and perhaps even died?

Fortunately, this patient was fortunate enough to come to the US for a second opinion and have another biopsy performed which confirmed the tumor was indeed not cancer. So the moral of this unfortunate story is we must always get a second opinion even when having a biopsy because as you see, even labs can make mistakes and probably make them more than we are aware of. Unfortunately it is not easy to obtain a second biopsy because insurance companies most likely will not pay for it, but we must be proactive with our healthcare and ensure that we are properly diagnosed and treated. Starting with obtaining a second opinion is the best way to achieve this.

Let’s face it, mistakes can happen to anyone but you owe it to yourself to double check your diagnosis and get a second opinion. In this case, the hospital owned up to their mistake and the patient will be fine, but how many hospitals and labs brush mistakes under the rug? You owe it to yourself to be your own health advocate and SecondOpinions.com enables you to be your own healthcare advocate because we have radiologists and multi-specialists on board 24/7/365 to assist you with obtaining the proper diagnosis and best treatment plan.

At SecondOpinions.com, it’s as easy as it can be. We’re completely online, right at your fingertips. No unnecessary tasks such as driving to the doctor’s office or sitting in a waiting room, you remain in the comfort of your own home. It’s simple. Just request a consultation from SecondOpinions.com and that’s it, our experts will take care of the rest. You’ll have an accurate and reliable second opinion, you’ll not waste any time getting your second opinion, and you’ll be amazed at how little your second opinion will cost.

Remember, our second opinion could be your first line of defense!

SecondOpinions.com is Giving Consumers More Control Over their Healthcare and its Costs.

12/4/2014

Michael Yuz, MD, MBA, Founder and CEO of SecondOpinions.com, a division of USARAD Holdings, Inc., notes during a recent interview, “U.S. healthcare spending is out of control. This is despite many efforts to resolve the problem, including the Affordable Care Act.” Dr. Yuz continued by pointing out, “Billions of dollars continue to be spent on antiquated, inefficient health practices and misdiagnoses.” SecondOpinions.com’s segment will air on Bloomberg International at 7:30am GMT (as pd. prog) on November 23, 2014. Check your local listings for airtimes.

In response to a question concerning how to address this growing problem, Dr. Yuz replied, “SecondOpinions.com serves to provide a comprehensive solution to many healthcare issues in the U.S. and globally. We connect consumers with top physicians in all medical specialties and partner with both medical centers and insurance companies.”

Lorna Backhaus, Chief Business Development Officer of SecondOpinions.com, adds, “Active consumerism is now a major element of receiving proper healthcare. Giving access to proven and accepted second opinion services is providing consumers with significant control.”

SecondOpinions.com serves as a global telemedicine and teleradiology platform to provide medical consultation and second opinion services in all areas of medicine. Customers from over 40 countries have received second opinions from its U.S. based physicians. SecondOpinion.com’s unique approach has been featured on more than 50 television stations and in major U.S. markets from Los Angeles to Chicago to Washington, DC.

In his concluding remarks, Dr. Yuz summarized his company’s services by pointing out, “SecondOpinions.com has a seasoned and talented management team committed to providing solutions to improve health outcomes and reduce medical costs. We achieve that with highly trained physicians who utilize our revolutionary telemedicine approach, use of unique ideas, innovative technology, and intellectual property that includes multiple registered trademarks and patents.” To learn more about SecondOpinions.com tune in to Bloomberg International (as pd. prog) on November 23, 2014. Check your local listings for airtimes.

Noting the significance of the SecondOpinions.com offerings, J.L. Haber, Vice President of Programming for Corporate Review, observes, “Healthcare costs are a major concern to many Americans and businesses. Innovative solutions such as those offered by SecondOpinions.com are a major part of what our viewers tune in to be kept abreast of.”

About Corporate Review

Corporate Review is an award winning business and health program that is independently produced by MMP (USA), Inc. The show provides its viewers an in depth opportunity to find solutions to the industry problems from some of the top business leaders from across the world. With more than 5,000 companies participating on over 500 shows, Corporate Review continues to be the premier and targeted outlet for the latest business and health stories. Corporate Review airs on cable networks to over 100 million potential television households.