Medical Superintendent and Doctors

Financial Impact on Universal Healthcare in the U.S

The following letter is written to pass the information that the touches on ethical practices that touch on healthcare professionals particularly with regard to financial, accounting and audit obligations. Professional ethics in healthcare go beyond what is usually emphasised in terms of practice and patient care related issues, to include more indirect practices that may compromise deliver of quality service. Besides medical profession integrity, practitioners are expected to observe other integrity issues that are incidental to the quality of health services delivered to the patients. An interdisciplinary perspective is advocated in the modern healthcare provision, which encompasses more responsibilities. With the recent developments in the interactions that healthcare providers have with drug suppliers, financial and accounting regulations have been given emphasis than ever before. In what has evolved to be commonly known as Physicians-Industry Relations, it is clear that there are a number of risks that the healthcare practitioners might be exposed to regarding dealing with the pharmacy industry. In terms of the two industries interactions, it has been observed that several financial flaws have been happening in several healthcare settings. As a result, serious accounting and audit flaws that consequently emanate from the malpractice compromise the integrity of the healthcare professionals.

Generally, the procurement of drugs for use in the healthcare facilities is conducted depending on the availability of the drugs as offered by pharmaceutical companies. Competition among drugs supplying companies has led to an environment where drugs salespeople and medical representatives for other pharmaceutical products are deployed to woo clients from the healthcare environment. In a competitive market, unfair business deals always find their way into the market in an attempt to keep off competitors. Among the major unprofessional practices that such deals apply is the bargaining element that forces salesmen to supply products at the expense of business fairness regulations. Supply of substandard healthcare products is often embarked on in order to win sales, which compromises the level of healthcare service delivered by healthcare professionals. It therefore implies that colluding is almost impossible to be avoided by healthcare facility management in order to benefit in certain ways. Due to certain conflicts of interests between the suppliers and the healthcare professionals, loopholes in internal control standards guiding procurement of pharmaceutical products are encouraged.

Healthcare professional are misguided to delivering specific medication and prescriptions in order to sustain the deal engaged with the suppliers. In terms of healthcare provision, this practice does not only expose the patients to improper treatment and the associated risks but also exposes the entire healthcare facility to financial crimes. Through the basic internal audit and accounting control standards, healthcare facilities are guided in dealing with procurement and tendering procedures. The aim of the accounting and financial standards outlined in the facility’s policy is intended to facilitate a smooth running of the ordinary operations without challenges such as running into bankruptcy. When such standards are involved in the healthcare setting, it implies that more powerful forces of patient’s health status are involved. Identification of possible conflict of interest in the procurement procedures is the mandate of every healthcare professional. This financial and accounting aspect of the healthcare industry is incidental to the delivery of services with integrity and accountability. Due to the magnitude of the financial and accounting regulations in the healthcare industry, patients’ protection and care which is the sole responsibility of the medical profession is implicated by such conflict.

In light of the above issues, all healthcare professional affected by the financial and accounting element of this matter are advised to ensure that the challenge is handled with the importance that it deserves. However, a number of the practising professionals are aware of the procurement intricacies involved due to the pharmaceutical companies’ presence and lobbying through medical representatives in the healthcare facility. There are legal provisions that may guide the public to act against such improper conduct through legislation such as the False Claims Act, the Medicare and Medicaid Patient Protection Act and Stark Law in the US. Both the healthcare providers as well as pharmaceutical suppliers are bound to act in the protection of the health of the patient as financial, accounting and audit provisions support. It is important that everyone affected by these standards is advised accordingly, in order to remain focused to the medical profession. It is therefore important that any knowledge of this indecorum is corrected with immediate effect and support afforded to the management in order to eliminate improper conduct within our facility.

Work Cited

Coyle, Susan L., “Physicians- Industry Relations.” Annals of Internal Medicine, 136.5(2002):396-402