MSC named DMS

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

IgD

The Lorax
15+ Year Member
Joined
Jul 5, 2005
Messages
1,897
Reaction score
6
My friend told me today a Medical Service Corps officer was named Director of Medical Services at a small Navy MTF. What do you think? Seems pretty silly to me.

Members don't see this ad.
 
My friend told me today a Medical Service Corps officer was named Director of Medical Services at a small Navy MTF. What do you think? Seems pretty silly to me.

Peter Principle?

How about MBA's with no clinical experience whatsoever becoming CEO of a hospital or of a managed care organization? It happens all the time.

I think physicians should be in charge of health care, but it seems like not too many physicians are interested in holding an administrative position for fear of eroding their clinical skills.
 
I think physicians should be in charge of health care

Hospital administration doesn't necessarily require any clinical knowledge, merely the ability to know who is the best clinicians. A hospital administrator (an MBA-, MHA- or MPH- trained person) is able to manage the business, hiring, government and institutional relations, not the clinical practice or any individual patient (unless, of course, they have to liaise with governments, other hospitals, etc.).

A medical service corps officer in the Navy could be an MHA/MBA/MPH-trained administrator, or a PharmD, etc. The MSC is quite the diverse group in terms of the different people and levels of training it includes, no?
 
Last edited:
Members don't see this ad :)
My friend told me today a Medical Service Corps officer was named Director of Medical Services at a small Navy MTF. What do you think? Seems pretty silly to me.

This appears to be common at smaller commands. Sounds a bit odd, but the alternative is more non patient care collateral duties for physicians. At my hospital, the DNS and DSS are the same person (an O6 nurse). I haven't been there long enough to see if that's the source of any problems, but AFAIK it's been working out OK.
 
Peter Principle?

How about MBA's with no clinical experience whatsoever becoming CEO of a hospital or of a managed care organization? It happens all the time.

I think physicians should be in charge of health care, but it seems like not too many physicians are interested in holding an administrative position for fear of eroding their clinical skills.

I think this is part of a recurring theme. How many times have we complained about docs who have gone the admin route? While I will certainly agree there are many docs who rise to the top of the admin pile that do so because they are not adept clinically, but is it a natural selection process? Are competent clinicians shunning the admin roles to focus on patient care thus allowing MSCs, Nurses, and less than stellar Physicians to assume those roles?

I dislike admin, but I like being in a position to direct policy and raise the BS flag :bullcrap:. I would rather spend 8+ hours a day seeing patients and doing the job I spent so many years in training to do, but there is a line that must be drawn and defended. I am unwilling to abdicate it to non-clinicians.
So, I suffer a bit of admin weenie time.

With the MSC in question. I wonder if there were other Docs who passed on the job, or if they were so junior as to not have the skills. Putting an O3 in a job when you really need an O5 doesn't help anyone. This does happen at small commands.
 
Hospital administration doesn't necessarily require any clinical knowledge, merely the ability to know who is the best clinicians. A hospital administrator (an MBA-, MHA- or MPH- trained person) is able to manage the business, hiring, government and institutional relations, not the clinical practice or any individual patient (unless, of course, they have to liaise with governments, other hospitals, etc.).

A medical service corps officer in the Navy could be an MHA/MBA/MPH-trained administrator, or a PharmD, etc. The MSC is quite the diverse group in terms of the different people and levels of training it includes, no?

True, but it also depends on how they determine who the best clinicians are. Is it based on RVU's or is it based on patient surveys and compliance with the national clinical guidelines?

Also, it seems like there is some concern that the MSC rising to the top would encourage or perpetuate favoritism for those in MSC as far as promotions go.
 
This appears to be common at smaller commands. Sounds a bit odd, but the alternative is more non patient care collateral duties for physicians. At my hospital, the DNS and DSS are the same person (an O6 nurse). I haven't been there long enough to see if that's the source of any problems, but AFAIK it's been working out OK.

Most physicians can't stand administrative duties. That's why there are usually three full-time equivalent employees (receptionist/scheduler, biller, and office manager) per physician in the private practice model of health care. The office manager is usually someone with very little clinical experience.
 
I think this is part of a recurring theme. How many times have we complained about docs who have gone the admin route? While I will certainly agree there are many docs who rise to the top of the admin pile that do so because they are not adept clinically, but is it a natural selection process? Are competent clinicians shunning the admin roles to focus on patient care thus allowing MSCs, Nurses, and less than stellar Physicians to assume those roles?

I dislike admin, but I like being in a position to direct policy and raise the BS flag :bullcrap:. I would rather spend 8+ hours a day seeing patients and doing the job I spent so many years in training to do, but there is a line that must be drawn and defended. I am unwilling to abdicate it to non-clinicians.
So, I suffer a bit of admin weenie time.

With the MSC in question. I wonder if there were other Docs who passed on the job, or if they were so junior as to not have the skills. Putting an O3 in a job when you really need an O5 doesn't help anyone. This does happen at small commands.

Are the admin docs given the option of seeing patients?
 
My friend told me today a Medical Service Corps officer was named Director of Medical Services at a small Navy MTF. What do you think? Seems pretty silly to me.

This has been common fro a long time. Smaller MTFs give command opportunities for MSC officers that would otherwise have no opportunities for promotions to command. With the exception of newsworthy NC promotions in the Army--WRAMC, most recently--most larger facilities are open to MC only, at least that appears to be de facto policy.
 
Top