Terminal Degree? Doctor? Felon?
The AMA may be going bananas about the evolving world of healthcare and the evolving role of physicians. Larry implored the AMA to forget their proposed movement to restrict the use of the terms "doctor," "resident," and "residency" to physicians and just go golfing instead. Well, it seems that some must have hit the links, but not all. Ultimately, the AMA chose to abandon that resolution and instead adopted a resolution which calls for legislation that requires health care professionals to "clearly and accurately identify to patients their qualifications and degree(s)" and make it a felony to "misrepresent one's self as a physician."
Insiders at the meeting feel this resolution could be used by some state chapters to move through legislative efforts to limit the use of those terms, perhaps making the "misrepresentation" a felony! Illinois, watch out, as it was that state's delegation that introduced the initial resolution.
I found this letter from the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (pdf) commenting on the proposed resolution, which apparently played some role in the movement away from the restriction of the term "doctor".
This article contains a list of other actions taken by the AMA at their recent meeting which serve to protect a physicians right to control your healthcare. Remember when the AMA acted to make it a felony for any physician to voluntarily associate with an osteopath? You can read about the AMA history with Osteopathy at Wikipedia.
When considered historically, how can we trust all these actions that serve to protect physicians' scope of practice? Is it possible there are cheaper, more efficient ways to obtain good health?
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