News in brief - Nov. 10, 2003

Missouri physicians take "flight" - Surgeons are volunteering - Harvard takes pains to avoid OxyContin controversy - CME group seeks international ties - Web site on resident class-action lawsuit debuts - European Union seeks to stop "transplant tourism" - Surgeons install new president - Student group wins dollars for leadership

Missouri physicians take "flight"

Missouri physicians along the Kansas border made a symbolic journey across the state line to give lawmakers a visual image of "White Coat Flight" as physicians decide whether to continue practice in Missouri.

Missouri is one of 19 states the AMA says is in the midst of a medical liability crisis. The Missouri Academy of Family Physicians organized the demonstration after tort reform talks between Missouri medical societies and the Missouri Assn. of Trial Attorneys broke down.

Surgeons are volunteering

U.S. surgeons actively participate in more than 250 volunteer organizations in and outside the United States, according to a new survey.

And surgeons who volunteer devote significant chunks of time: 80% said they donated an average of four weeks a year to volunteer activities, said Andrew Warshaw, MD, surgeon-in-chief at Massachusetts General Hospital and chair of the socioeconomic issues committee of the board of governors of the American College of Surgeons, which commissioned the survey.

The survey found that 69% volunteered in the United States. The most common reasons surgeons volunteer are that it is "the right thing to do" or that it is "part of being a physician," Dr. Warshaw said.

Findings from the survey were discussed at the college's 2003 clinical congress. As a result of the survey, the college's "Giving Back" project will develop a clearinghouse of information about volunteer opportunities and organizations.

In addition, "Giving Back" plans to involve active surgeon volunteers in future ACS volunteer projects, recognize surgeons for volunteering, lobby to change malpractice laws that may interfere with volunteer efforts and learn more about other barriers that may prevent surgeons from volunteering.

Harvard takes pains to avoid OxyContin controversy

Continuing controversy surrounding the drug OxyContin has led Harvard Medical School to alter its plans to name a new pain research center at Massachusetts General Hospital the "Purdue Pharma Pain Center," the Boston Herald reported.

The pharmaceutical company that manufactures OxyContin will still provide the Boston center with $3 million over two years, but it will be called the "Harvard-Purdue Education and Research Center."

CME group seeks international ties

The Accreditation Council on Continuing Medical Education has adopted a strategic plan to pursue a more global approach to CME.

The goal of the plan is to collaborate with non-U.S. CME systems and work toward integration.

"We look forward to working toward an international network of CME accreditation systems that supports the unconstrained movement of learners and educational activities between nations," the ACCME said in a prepared statement.

Web site on resident class-action lawsuit debuts

Both sides of the antitrust lawsuit against the National Resident Matching Program have taken their arguments to the Internet.

Three resident physicians brought the lawsuit against the NRMP and its participating institutions and organizations, including the American Medical Association, on behalf of all medical residents.

The suit alleges that the program's matching organizations restrain competition by exchanging information on salaries and by eliminating competition in the recruitment and employment of medical residents by assigning prospective resident physicians to positions through the NRMP.

Both the plaintiffs (www.residentcase.com) and the defendants (www.savethematch.org) have Web sites.

European Union seeks to stop "transplant tourism"

The European Union is looking for ways to stop wealthy European and Middle Eastern patients from buying kidneys from poor donors in Asia and eastern Europe, Reuters reports.

Medical studies and police intelligence has reportedly uncovered evidence of a network of brokers, physicians and nurses involved in the "transplant tourism" trade.

Reuters reports that every European Union nation except Austria has banned paying for organs, but only Germany has made it illegal for its citizens to buy organs from someone in another country.

Surgeons install new president

Claude H. Organ Jr., MD, of Oakland, Calif., recently was installed as the 84th president of the American College of Surgeons. Dr. Organ is emeritus professor in the department of surgery at the University of California, San Francisco. He also is editor of the Archives of Surgery, a position he has held since 1989. He earned his MD degree from Creighton University School of Medicine, Omaha. He served in the U.S. Navy Medical Corps, chaired the surgery department at Creighton University and was a professor of surgery at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City.

Dr. Organ became a fellow of the American College of Surgeons in 1961, and has served the college in numerous roles. In 1999, the ACS board of regents presented him with its highest honor, the Distinguished Service Award.

Student group wins dollars for leadership

The American Medical Student Assn., an independent student organization, has been awarded $2 million by the Dept. of Health and Human Services. The money, in the form of a contract, will support the Achieving Diversity in Dentistry and Medicine project, which includes developing cultural competency courses, training leaders in primary care, and promoting health careers among underrepresented minority groups.

"The funding affirms AMSA's commitment to educating the next generation of physicians on different racial and ethnic populations and health care inequities and the skills they will need to care for these patients effectively," said Paul Wright, executive director of AMSA.