At the 2007 annual meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS), investigators from Johns Hopkins University and the University of Kansas reported on a needs assessment that identified a number of issues related to improving the formal assessment of operative competency among otolaryngologists-head and neck surgeons.
Roger L. Crumley, MD, MBA, Professor and former Chair of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, and current President of the American Laryngological Association, has no doubts about the advantages of laryngeal reinnervation over other treatments for unilateral vocal cord paralysis.
Under intense and growing scrutiny of relationships between industry and physicians, academic health centers, medical professional organizations, and physician practices are grappling with how to guide physicians in their dealings with industry.
As evidence accumulates on the benefits and added value of videostroboscopy in the diagnosis of voice problems, many otolaryngologists are turning their attention to whether or not they want to invest in this technology-in terms of both the cost in buying the equipment and the time and skill needed to analyze correctly the many types of lesions one can see using this tool.
This issue’s Special Report is on quality improvement, an increasingly important health care issue not only in this country, but also in many other countries around the world.
Part 1 of a series
With the crisis in the financial markets reaching what many call historic proportions, another crisis long brewing is threatening to surface that, if some experts are correct, could have even greater consequences than the financial crisis for the US health care system.
As of October 1, all audiologists who provide services to Medicare patients must use their own National Provider Identifier (NPI) on claims submitted to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).