I think what this doctor has to say rings true in many places “I’m obviously a better doctor than I am a businessman”.  The law stated he was supposed to post a imagenotice but he was prohibited in doing so.  He has set up an 800 number to help patients get their records and will fax them to any patient needing them. 

We may be finding more doctors in this situation with the current economic conditions as the office closed due to a slow down and not enough patients and money to keep the doors open.  He states that it is simply too much today to worry about the business side and effectively be able to care for patients in the way that they should be cared for today and that he would rather be an employee today rather than to worry about the business side of the practice – it’s too complicated and the money was no longer there.

You have to give the doctor credit for putting it right out on the line and telling it like it is.  This is sad today and we may be seeing more of this.  We still have the situation of the Medicare cuts pending in Congress without a permanent solution and this has gone on for 9 years, so it’s a world of uncertainties for those who are wanting to keep their private practices going.  On this topic too we have a large number of Congressmen retiring too as when you are not a participant in technology at some level today to develop a basic understanding of the mechanics, how can you understand how to create laws that protect citizens?  What level of confidence does this leave for the doctors in small practices? 

One More Member of Congress Announces Retirement – I Think We are Up to 35 Now – It’s Complicated!

On the patient side, be prepared if you can and get your PHR started so if you get caught in such a situation you have them.  This situation was created by lack of money and had nothing to do with the doctor himself and the video shows a couple of patients stating the were very happy with the care they received.  This is truly an “ugly sign of the times” that is occurring all over the US.  This is nice that the the situation was resolved and as you can see from watching the video it was not done intentionally, but I am guessing some quick decisions had to be made.  It appears the owner of the building also didn’t care about the welfare of others here and just basically wanted his money too, pretty heartless and cold and one more example of how cold the business of healthcare has become today when dollars are due. 

Is it any wonder today why becoming a doctor is not as high on the list as it used to be?  BD  

 

When you become a patient at a doctor’s office, you expect them to take care of your medical records.
But what happens if your doctor closes up shop? And doesn’t give you access to that important information?

Klugewicz, a cardiologist, owned the Tennessee Heart Rhythm Center, just off knob creek road in Johnson City. The contents of that office were sold in order to pay back rent, and other bills.
A local developer that owns the property, allowed Dr. Klugewicz into the office to retrieve all of the patient records, and that’s the last time they were seen.

UPDATE: Doctor located, says he tried to contact patients | TriCities

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