[HSF] Timing of cardiac surgery

[Tea Acuff]

But she was a nice patient with insurance, Hal..
;<)

tea



----- Original Message ----
From: "Hgrmd at aol.com" <Hgrmd at aol.com>
To: OpenHeart-L at lists.hsforum.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 22, 2008 6:27:21 PM
Subject: Re: [HSF] Timing of cardiac surgery

Michael,
  I realize that it's a "dog eat dog" world, but I'm not sure I would  
readily operate on a patient who was on another surgeon's waiting list unless I  
didn't care what that particular surgeon thought.  It actually depends on  the 
surgeon whose case you would be purloining.
  On a related vein, about 2-3 months ago, I saw a 53 yo lady in my  office 
for severe MR.  I reviewed the TEE and was particularly impressed  that the 
leaflets, particularly the posterior, had rheumatic  characteristics.  I've 
successfully repaired a few of these leaflets with  pericardial extensions, but I 
told her that there was only a 50-50 chance I  could repair the valve.  She 
went to another part of the county for a  second opinion.  The surgeon assured 
her and my referral that it would be  no problem repairing the valve.  Guess 
what?  The pissed off referral  told me a few days ago that, of course, the 
patient returned to his office with  a mechanical valve.  The lesson?  Some guys 
will say anything to get a  case.  However, I prefer stringent honesty, and let 
the chips fall where  they may.

Hal



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