From this week's AMNews, a publication of the American Medical Association:
How do physicians prevent special privacy accommodations for famous
patients from bleeding over into clinical care? Could the acceptance of
gifts from celebrity patients -- anything from glossy head shots to
tickets to red-carpet movie premieres or public endorsements --
influence a physician's objective judgment about the patients' medical
care? How does the star patient's fame affect the doctor-patient
relationship?
Physicians can get starstruck too, and may unconsciously try to
please these special patients in ways that are medically inappropriate.
Drew Pinsky, MD, said doctors should check themselves before taking
on famous patients. He is medical director of chemical dependency
services at Las Encinas Hospital in California -- a stop on many a
Hollywood star's passage through drug addiction and recovery -- and is
well-known as a radio talk-show host and star of VH1's "Celebrity Rehab
with Dr. Drew."
"You really have to assess your own liability," Dr. Pinsky said.
"Are you seduced by the opportunity to bask in the glow of celebrity?
Is it particularly appealing to you to have a powerful person say you
did a good job? Will you be able to sustain that same person saying, 'I
can't believe you won't give me what I want'? You had better be
prepared, because that is exactly what you'll get. You have to do
what's best for the patient and not be seduced by the fame."
...Gary Brazina, MD, is an orthopedic surgeon in Marina del Rey,
Calif., who specializes in sports medicine and has cared for his share
of famous patients. His clinic is the official medical center for the
NHL's Los Angeles Kings and the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers.
Some celebrities "are really, really nice" but "others are extremely
manipulative, and there is a lot of drug-seeking behavior," Dr. Brazina
said. "They have a true sense of entitlement where there's a sense of,
'I'm special, I'm different; I don't have to follow the rules.' "
Dr. Brazina recalled one famous patient who refused to fill out
paperwork, saying, "Oh, my assistant does that." The physician took a
stand.
"Well, then, I guess I'll have to treat your assistant, because I'm
not going to treat you until you fill it out," he told the star.
It's a good read. See more here.
