When Colleagues Steal Patients, Redirect Tests

Patient theft isn’t technically theft. Or even a crime for that matter. It’s unethical, but it happens all the time.

Here’s an example: My patient lands in a hospital I don’t go to. Even though it’s clearly documented in the chart that they see me as an outpatient, I see notes from the neurologist there saying, "Follow-up with Dr. X in 6 weeks." It’s people like this who give all of us a bad name.

I’m not talking about situations where the other doctor doesn’t know that the patient sees me. In those cases, any of us, when follow-up is needed, would tell the patient to see us in the office. But to try to take a patient knowingly from another physician? That’s wrong.

I share call with three other neurologists, and we addressed this issue long ago. If another person’s patient is seen in the hospital, we make it clear that their regular doctor will resume care when they return, or they should follow up with them.

Sometimes I’ll hear, "But I like you better." In those cases, I tell them that they need to follow up with the established doctor to discuss it further. If they want to look me up and transfer care as an outpatient, I’m not going to stop them, but I’m not going to help them do it, either.

Equally irritating, and perhaps even more unethical, is patient redirection for tests. I see this more often than I care to admit. Two weeks ago, a pain specialist referred a patient to me for hand numbness. I scheduled her to come back for electromyogram/nerve conduction velocity testing, and I sent the specialist the usual letter.

What did he do? He had his staff cancel her EMG appointment with me, and then scheduled her to see one of his partners who did the test. I didn’t know about this until the EMG report showed up on my fax machine with a note saying that the patient would be returning to me to discuss the results.

Likewise, there is an internist in my area who, if I order an MRI on one of his patients, immediately cancels it and redirects the patient to a facility in which he’s a part-owner. I don’t like the place because they use a low-Tesla scanner and don’t have a neuroradiologist. (Disclaimer: I have no financial affiliations with the facility I normally use.)

The sad part of these games is that people are downgraded to pawns, used by physicians as an item of monetary value rather than someone who is seeking care. And that isn’t good for anyone, especially the patient.

Dr. Block has a solo neurology private practice in Scottsdale, Ariz. To respond to this post, e-mail him at [email protected].

Patient theft isn’t technically theft. Or even a crime for that matter. It’s unethical, but it happens all the time.

Here’s an example: My patient lands in a hospital I don’t go to. Even though it’s clearly documented in the chart that they see me as an outpatient, I see notes from the neurologist there saying, "Follow-up with Dr. X in 6 weeks." It’s people like this who give all of us a bad name.

I’m not talking about situations where the other doctor doesn’t know that the patient sees me. In those cases, any of us, when follow-up is needed, would tell the patient to see us in the office. But to try to take a patient knowingly from another physician? That’s wrong.

I share call with three other neurologists, and we addressed this issue long ago. If another person’s patient is seen in the hospital, we make it clear that their regular doctor will resume care when they return, or they should follow up with them.

Sometimes I’ll hear, "But I like you better." In those cases, I tell them that they need to follow up with the established doctor to discuss it further. If they want to look me up and transfer care as an outpatient, I’m not going to stop them, but I’m not going to help them do it, either.

Equally irritating, and perhaps even more unethical, is patient redirection for tests. I see this more often than I care to admit. Two weeks ago, a pain specialist referred a patient to me for hand numbness. I scheduled her to come back for electromyogram/nerve conduction velocity testing, and I sent the specialist the usual letter.

What did he do? He had his staff cancel her EMG appointment with me, and then scheduled her to see one of his partners who did the test. I didn’t know about this until the EMG report showed up on my fax machine with a note saying that the patient would be returning to me to discuss the results.

Likewise, there is an internist in my area who, if I order an MRI on one of his patients, immediately cancels it and redirects the patient to a facility in which he’s a part-owner. I don’t like the place because they use a low-Tesla scanner and don’t have a neuroradiologist. (Disclaimer: I have no financial affiliations with the facility I normally use.)

The sad part of these games is that people are downgraded to pawns, used by physicians as an item of monetary value rather than someone who is seeking care. And that isn’t good for anyone, especially the patient.

Dr. Block has a solo neurology private practice in Scottsdale, Ariz. To respond to this post, e-mail him at [email protected].

Patient theft isn’t technically theft. Or even a crime for that matter. It’s unethical, but it happens all the time.

Here’s an example: My patient lands in a hospital I don’t go to. Even though it’s clearly documented in the chart that they see me as an outpatient, I see notes from the neurologist there saying, "Follow-up with Dr. X in 6 weeks." It’s people like this who give all of us a bad name.

I’m not talking about situations where the other doctor doesn’t know that the patient sees me. In those cases, any of us, when follow-up is needed, would tell the patient to see us in the office. But to try to take a patient knowingly from another physician? That’s wrong.

I share call with three other neurologists, and we addressed this issue long ago. If another person’s patient is seen in the hospital, we make it clear that their regular doctor will resume care when they return, or they should follow up with them.

Sometimes I’ll hear, "But I like you better." In those cases, I tell them that they need to follow up with the established doctor to discuss it further. If they want to look me up and transfer care as an outpatient, I’m not going to stop them, but I’m not going to help them do it, either.

Equally irritating, and perhaps even more unethical, is patient redirection for tests. I see this more often than I care to admit. Two weeks ago, a pain specialist referred a patient to me for hand numbness. I scheduled her to come back for electromyogram/nerve conduction velocity testing, and I sent the specialist the usual letter.

What did he do? He had his staff cancel her EMG appointment with me, and then scheduled her to see one of his partners who did the test. I didn’t know about this until the EMG report showed up on my fax machine with a note saying that the patient would be returning to me to discuss the results.

Likewise, there is an internist in my area who, if I order an MRI on one of his patients, immediately cancels it and redirects the patient to a facility in which he’s a part-owner. I don’t like the place because they use a low-Tesla scanner and don’t have a neuroradiologist. (Disclaimer: I have no financial affiliations with the facility I normally use.)

The sad part of these games is that people are downgraded to pawns, used by physicians as an item of monetary value rather than someone who is seeking care. And that isn’t good for anyone, especially the patient.

Dr. Block has a solo neurology private practice in Scottsdale, Ariz. To respond to this post, e-mail him at [email protected].