Search

A prominent vascular surgeon is approached by a representative of a large medical device company with a proposal to implant a new self-sealing patch for closing open carotid endarterectomies. The patch is made of a new synthetic material that establishes immediate hemostasis and inhibits restenosis in animal studies. It has just been approved for human use by the Food and Drug Administration. The cost of the new patch is much higher than for established comparable products, even when potential long-term benefits are considered, but using it would reduce the operative time required for achieving hemostasis. The manufacturer's representative tells you that the company will pay a selected group of vascular surgeons $500 apiece each time they insert the patch on their patients and complete a one-page report. Surgeons with the highest volume of cases utilizing the patch will be offered a paid clinical consultancy with the company. You've used another company's product for several years and found it entirely satisfactory, but have followed development of the new patch with interest and considered trying it in your patients having carotid endarterectomies. What should you do? A. Join the study. You probably would have used the new patch on your patients anyway. B. If the early data warrant, implant the patch on a trial basis without enrolling in the project, and finally decide whether to continue using it based on your clinical experience and additional published reports. C. Call some of the other investigators who have already enrolled in the project and ask them about their experience. D. Decline the invitation immediately. Refuse to ever speak to the representative again. E. Estimate the ability of your patients to sustain the high cost of the new product and decide accordingly whether to use it.

A 300-bed general hospital in a mid-sized city has a busy cardiac catheterization laboratory, with 12 invasive cardiologists and more than 4000 annual procedures. An invasive radiology suite, the only one in town, is staffed by a single invasive radiologist and two vascular surgeons. They perform about 150 diagnostic angiograms and endovascular procedures each year, about half of which are generated by consultation requests from the cardiologists. The invasive radiology team has worked together for the last 5 years, since an endovascular fellowship-trained vascular surgeon joined the staff. The invasive radiologist helped to develop an endovascular team and mentored the more senior vascular surgeon until he could accumulate the requisite number of procedures to become credentialed. The program's finances and work schedule have been arranged to the satisfaction of all three participants. Until recently, whenever cardiologists found evidence of vascular occlusive disease during catheterizations, they changed host arteries; if symptoms and signs indicated a need for therapy, they referred patients to the invasive radiology clinic. Lately, the cardiologists have begun to perform terminal angiograms on all their patients to detect injuries. They have requested clinical privileges to perform peripheral endovascular procedures as well as traditional cardiac work. The hospital administrator is fearful that the cardiologists may leave the hospital if their request is denied. The invasive radiology staff are concerned that the caseload is insufficient to maintain quality if they must divide it with the cardiologists. You are the hospital Chief of Staff and must decide whether to grant the cardiologists privileges which have thus far been reserved to the endovascular team. What should you do?

An elderly, widowed man with early dementia has required several surgical procedures for treatment of peripheral vascular disease over the years. Each of the operations has been performed by a single surgeon, for whom the patient and his family have developed enormous respect and admiration. The patient is quite wealthy, and at the urging of his unmarried adult daughter, his guardian, has endowed a professorship and directed that this surgeon be the first appointment to the new position. The surgeon has recently divorced, and soon after he accepts the medical school offer the daughter invites him to dinner alone at her apartment. What should he do?