Sham Peer Review

[Guest guest]

From _Medscape General Medicineâ„¢_

(http://www.medscape.com/pages/homepages/ejournal/mgm)

Letters

Readers' Responses to the Letter by Chalifoux and the Editorial by Bond in

Regard to " Sham Peer Review "

Posted 02/02/2006

Mark F. McDonnell, MD; Lawrence R. Huntoon, MD, PhD, FAAN; Majerus;

, MD, FRACS, FACS

To the Editor,

I read with interest the recent article on sham peer review.[1] I was even

more interested in the recent editorial by Mr. Bond on the same topic,[2]

because it suggests a very plausible motive for sham peer review to occur,

namely, economic domination of the physician community.

It is obvious that an independent physician community is the greatest

economic threat to the health insurance-hospital industrial complex. Good

doctors

are especially dangerous to this conglomerate, because they put their

patients' interests ahead of the dictates of managed care or of the local

hospital's

economic success. As Mr. Bond elucidates, this health insurance-hospital

industrial complex initially tried to control physicians by purchasing their

practices but found that the good doctors cannot be bought. The " final

solution "

seems to be to eliminate troublesome doctors altogether, with sham peer

review as the ultimate weapon. Denying care to our patients apparently was just

not profitable enough.

I also would strenuously object to this term of " sham " peer review as being

much too mild. With the heinous level to which all of this activity has risen,

I think that the term " bad faith " peer review (with all of its legal

implications) better describes the situation and should be used exclusively.

Victimized physicians need to organize and strike back against the bad faith

actions

of the health insurance-hospital industrial complex and its minions.

Moreover, all physicians must become informed of this latest attempt to

dominate

medicine and must support their victimized colleagues. Bad faith peer review is

a crime against patients, physicians, and medicine itself.

Mark F. McDonnell, MD

Houston, Texas

_mfmcdonnell@..._ (mailto:mfmcdonnell@...)

References

1. Chalifoux R, Jr. So what is a sham peer review? MedGenMed.

2005;7:47. Available at: http://medgenmed.medscape.com/viewarticle/515862

Accessed

November 15, 2005.

2. Bond C. Editorial in response to " what is sham peer review? "

MedGenMed. 2005;7:48. Available at:

http://medgenmed.medscape.com/viewarticle/515869

Accessed November 15, 2006.