It was awesome…
-Strictly nine to five
-Worked 1/5 weekends
-Performed major surgery my first night on call with no attending present (illegal in US) so good 1st step in gaining confidence.
-Watched an RAF pilot die after a motorcycle accident because could not get a CT scan done on him at 0100 hrs to diagnose a peforated bowel.
-My consultant (attending) left on vacation for three weeks and left me a full surgical schedule to do on my own. A bit touchy with two circumscisions on adult males the first day (never done /or seen one before), quick! where is the library?
-Patients diagnosed with esophageal or gastric cancer had a full 10 minutes to discuss it with the consultant before being scheduled for esophagectomy or gastrectomy.

Well, at least the work hours part of it was awesome.

Also, the labors of Middle Eastern physicians who lived in small apartments next to the hospital (also where I lived) allowed the NHS to function. They were kept as residents (training physicians) for year after year with little hope of becoming consultants in order to supply the care needed. Looks like that is now biting England in the arse.

Also trained for 12 months at a large Veterans Hospital here in the U.S.A. Still remember my first trip on the elevator at 0500 with my drunk surgical attending. Work now with many IHS (Indian Health Service) patients. I hate the surgical complications I have to treat from the Family Practice Physician that the IHS lets do laparoscopic surgery.

My gosh, government run health care, what is Moore smokin?

It would require leaving the guaranteed reimbursement of large, solvent payers. It would require increased education on customer service skills. It would require, at least temporarily, a hiccup in the standard of living of most docs. It would also likely require docs to learn to advertise and to market, and to give the public ways to rate the quality of their services. Personally, I think it would be a good thing, because I think many physicians are insulated from the concept of customer/client service. But I can’t see them breaking away from the reimbursement model they’ve accepted for decades and still gives them that very solid standard of living. Hopefully I’m wrong.

And I would believe the red tape. But that comes with accepting the taxpayers’ money. If enough providers, be they hospitals or individual docs, revolt, that is the most likely thing to stop it.

As to the docs, I think most of them will embrace the market, although there has been some serious grumbling about Walmart clinics and other such innovations.

And will physicians actually embrace the free market?

Deregulation should be augmented by a wholehearted embrace of the free market. For a discussion of that, go here.

Over the top is right when talking about Michelle Malkin. MM = Rush Loudbaugh?