Gift rap: Be careful when handing out holiday largesse

It may be more blessed to give than to receive, but being on either end of the gift can be problematic for physicians.

By Cheryl Jackson, AMNews staff. Nov. 25, 2002.

Holiday gift-giving is fraught with peril -- especially when it involves your staff and colleagues. After all, your family may not like your gift, but they probably won't stop liking you, or ensnare you in an investigation of anti-kickback violations.

If you want to give gifts at holiday time to recognize a job well-done, go ahead. But take care that what you're buying, and for whom, strikes the right chord, not only with the recipient, but also with everyone around the recipient.

For instance, will your staff resent you if you give one employee a better gift than everyone else? Or, if you're a specialist, will a gift to your friend the internist be seen by others as a potential kickback? And is it a good idea to let a pharmaceutical company or outside vendor pay for your office holiday party?

If you're tempted to just bah-humbug the whole gift-giving scene, be advised that may not be the answer either. Consultants say a small gift for employees at holiday time -- even in a rough financial year -- can be a big factor in which physicians get and keep quality employees and which don't.

"I strongly encourage [physicians] to find the money someplace. Word spreads very quickly among the health care community who the cheapskates are," said Kate Kocevar, a consultant with the Health Care Group in Plymouth Meeting, Pa.

Not surprisingly, staffers generally prefer gifts of money, along with a holiday luncheon, dinner or other social gathering, she said.

How much money? The value of the gift should correspond to the length of time the employee has worked with the physician, Kocevar said. [...]