Ortho collegue asked me to fix this for them this week. Where do I publish my study?
Yep... it a lot of good and bad outcomes all around. "If you're not having complications, you're not doing surgery." We always assume that if we don't see the patient, then the surgery worked well.
The funny part is, at least where I've worked, generally the
local F&A orthos won't bad-talk the DPMs (at least the well trained ones who do a fair amount of surgery). There is basically a silent treatment - but also a guarded interest in what procedures one another is doing when looking at the surgery schedule or seeing patients who had prior surgery at the other. Most of the
classy ones just promote themselves, but the
ortho F&A might have stuff on their website saying they have better training than pods or
pods saying better than F&A ortho (NOT a good look) or whatever, some even do the 'research' articles or derogatory journal commentary. The original article airbud linked is F&A orthos in SCaro, which is basically the most backward of all states for scope (along with Bama).... and that's always going to be tough. The way to win and keep the $ train rolling without wasting time is honestly to not play the ego game... just do good work, be cool with everyone, and treat ppl like ppl.
But in general, terms of actually talking to pts, F&A ortho docs seem to know they have
plenty of their own dirt floating around and DPMs could just as easily talk poorly about their subpar or just plain bad outcomes in return. It has been my exp that there is more mutual respect and less catty behavior (to avoid inciting litigation both ways... but also just to be a decent person and doc for the pt)... sometimes even the occasional exchange of basic small talk in the surgery lounge DPM to F&A ortho. Both well-trained DPMs and F&A fellowship orthos are small worlds. I actually try to chat with the good F&A near me, put a face to the name, and even to potentially send them stuff. Chances are I've heard of their fellowship director or we have at least a bit of common ground. I send them out of my scope stuff like BKAs, tib/fib bumper fx, some pilon... also second opinion, TAR candidates, highly complex recon, etc based on what they like to do (or sometimes other DPMs for some of that). "Knowledge is the antidote to fear." You probably won't be buddy-buddy, but don't be afraid of them. West Penn was probably one of the best ever at having relationships with Myerson, Paley, Pomeroy, etc... or Ohio OFAS with Hyer, Berlet, et al.
The biggest bashing problems and the most vocal anti-podiatry orthos (to pts and other docs or hospital admins, etc) are often actually the gen orthos who are just trying to damage the business of anyone who is the competition for their group's F&A cases/referrals and competing with their F&A guy (usually an ortho F&A but occasionally a DPM or gen ortho who does F&A stuff). That always made me say "hmmm" when surgeons who do total joints or spine or whatever - little or no foot stuff and limited ankle - are vocal and acting like all DPMs belong making orthotics, prescribing toenail potions, and never in the OR.
...This 41F pt below was actually a trauma fellowship ortho who did the ORIF about a year ago; he does pretty fair work in most of his other ankle calc etc I've seen out here so far but left the area (she'd refused to go back to him when I met her a month ago, even before I found out he'd moved away). Who knows if she did weightbearing early after ORIF or whatever; no surgeon comes up roses 100% of the time. This was not his best day, though... she is normal BMI and should've healed better. Another DPM in my area had given inject and told her maybe hindfoot recon and consider TAR (whaaa??). I honestly just play dumb when they get to me and tell them, "it's hard for me to comment since I wasn't there back then when you were getting the other treatments... let's just get you better from here on out." I think she missed her f/u last week, but I will need to fuse it with a fairly complicated case (she can't walk without a CAM boot right now... sad stuff).