Las Vegas Sun

May 9, 2008

SUN EDITORIAL:

A conflicted governor

Gibbons’ poor handling of hepatitis C scare rightly draws opposition from leading politicians

Tue, Mar 25, 2008 (2:07 a.m.)

Nevada’s leading politicians disagree with Gov. Jim Gibbons’ bizarre response to the hepatitis C scare in Southern Nevada. This month the governor called for the resignations of three doctors on the Nevada Board of Medical Examiners.

Gibbons has blasted those who have called for more inspections of surgical centers and fought past attempts to hire more inspectors. Instead, he has focused on the politically expedient answer — get a few resignations and blame somebody else.

He says the doctors should resign because they all have some connection to Dr. Dipak Desai, whose Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada is the epicenter of the crisis.

The doctors say they won’t. They had already done the right thing, recusing themselves from hearing the board’s pending investigation into Desai’s role in the matter. Gibbons’ fellow Republicans, Sen. John Ensign and former Gov. Kenny Guinn, say the doctors’ recusals are enough, echoing the sentiment of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

In a story by David McGrath Schwartz in Saturday’s Las Vegas Sun, Guinn was quoted as saying there is no “overt cause” for asking them to resign, and pointed out the problem with Gibbons’ “logic.”

“If you do it for one group (of appointees), you’d do it for every group,” he said.

Nearly all of the governing boards, councils and commissions in the state — not to mention the Legislature — are made up of part-time members who have day jobs that often cause conflicts. When there is a conflict, members are expected to recuse themselves — not resign.

The doctors’ conflicts are not a surprise. Desai is well-known in the medical community and served on the Board of Medical Examiners. Politically connected, Desai also served on Gibbons’ transition team.

As we have said before, Gibbons was foolish to call for the doctors’ resignations, especially with his own conflict. Before he bungles this any more, he should follow the doctors’ example and recuse himself. Or he could follow his own belief that those with conflicts should resign. Either way, it would be good for the state.

Discussion: 10 comments so far…

  1. By susanekg
    3/25/08 at 5:19 a.m.
    Suggest removal

    While Gibbons is plagued with his own questionable connections, medical board member Daniel McBride and board president Anwar should resign, not only because their ties to Desai have rendered them ineffective, but because their personal business interests directly contradict their capacity to fulfill the Medical Board's mandate to place the rights of patients above the interests of the medical profession. McBride has resigned from his position as chairman of Nevada Mutual Insurance, but the public deserves to know how he handled malpractice claims against doctors insured by his company while he served on the medical board. Likewise, after he steps down from the board, Anwar should provide details of his consulting company's evaluation of Desai's clinic last year. In their business dealings, Anwar and McBride clearly put doctors first. If these conflicts of interest had nothing to do with the medical board's current ranking as one of the 5 worst medical boards in the country, then Anwar, McBride and their colleagues need to offer some other explanation for the board's long-term failure to ensure public health and safety.

  2. By Nevadaphile
    3/25/08 at 8:53 a.m.
    Suggest removal

    California recalled Gray Davis for much less incompetence than has been exhibited by Gibbons thus far in his term. Recall is the most effective way for the voters to correct a bad situation. Perhaps it is time to send Mr. Gibbons home.

  3. By Judy
    3/25/08 at 9:09 a.m.
    Suggest removal

    Bizarre is such a good term for Gibbon's response to this issue. His best response whould be to announce his resignation.
    This governor continues to PROVE his incompetence on a more and more frequent basis. Every time he needs to deal with a subject important to Nevada, he proves that he is inept.
    BIZARRE, yes.

  4. By JohnF
    3/25/08 at 10:25 a.m.
    Suggest removal

    To Susanekg,

    I agree that there are conflicts of interest on the Medical Board, but I'm not sure what we can do to eleiminate them. Where are we going to find the people with the detailed and nuanced knowledge of medicine required to effectively regulate the medical industry if not from the ranks of physicians? It represents a catch-22 for the citizenry. There is no such thing as a physiscian who is detached from his/her colleagues and other industry professionals, whether in pharmaceuticals, insurance, or other more tangential lines of work.

    Jim Gibbons is so obviously devoid of intellect and incompetent that the question should not be whether he should be recalled, but why it hasn't happened already. The state faces real and more lasting consequences the longer this man is allowed to occupy the Governor's mansion.

  5. By Beezie
    3/25/08 at 10:58 a.m.
    Suggest removal

    To JohnF,
    If you watched the hearing last nite there were approximately 3 persons who stated they still support Jim Gibbons even though they have been personally impacted by this crisis. With support like that he will not be recalled.

  6. By susanekg
    3/25/08 at 1:06 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    I certainly sympathize with Nevadans' unhappiness with Gibbons, but incompetence in one part of government should not excuse incompetence in another. As evidenced in the Med Board's dismal record, the people in charge of disciplining doctors should not also be involved in protecting them from malpractice claims. The death toll and rate of injury caused by the board's long-term refusal to reign in unfit physicians--witness the murder conviction of Dr. Harriston Bass a couple of weeks ago--is mounting (as you can see if you visit http://faculty.uml.edu/sgallagher/NSBME....).

    The question is, how many more patients need to be injured or killed before the current med board members are replaced by physicians whose first priority is to safeguard public health and safety? Surely there are doctors in Nevada whose business dealings would not encourage them to minimize malpractice, as the Med Board has done for so many years, and as former? board president Anwar recently did in defending the board's 2005 decision to remove info on malpractice from its web site.

  7. By Beezie
    3/25/08 at 2:32 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    To susanekg,
    Thanks for posting the web site.

    Q: How much incompetence can a physician subject the public to before his license is pulled by the board in Nevada?

    A: As much as he wants to-it's as though there is no board.

    Re: Buzard -A dog collar and a sheet??? This would be funny if it weren't so damn tragic.

  8. By localcitizen
    3/26/08 at 6:25 a.m.
    Suggest removal

    Posting malpractice info on a website does not tell the whole story. Read this from the California Business and Professions Code: "The Medical Board of California, the Osteopathic Medical Board of California, and the California Board of Podiatric Medicine shall include the following statement when disclosing information concerning a settlement:
    "Some studies have shown that there is no significant correlation between malpractice history and a doctor's competence.To make the best health care decisions, you should view this information in perspective. You could miss an opportunity for high-quality care by selecting a doctor based solely on malpractice history.
    When considering malpractice data, please keep in mind: Malpractice histories tend to vary by specialty. Some specialties are more likely than others to be the subject of litigation. The incident causing the malpractice claim may have happened years before a payment is finally made. Sometimes, it takes a long time for a malpractice lawsuit to settle. Some doctors work primarily with high-risk patients. These doctors may have malpractice settlement histories that are higher than average because they specialize in cases or patients who are at very high risk for problems. Settlement of a claim may occur for a variety of reasons that do not necessarily reflect negatively on the professional competence or conduct of the doctor. A payment in settlement of a medical malpractice action or claim should not be construed as creating a presumption that medical malpractice has occurred. You may wish to discuss information in this report and the general issue of malpractice with your doctor."
    This sounds reasonable to me. The number of malpractice cases filed in Clark County alone during 2007 was 824. I believe we have less than 5,000 docs in the state. The number of malpractice cases filed in the entire state of California for fiscal year 2006-07 was 873 out of a total of 124,000 physicians who have California licenses and who are required to report. Something is rotten in Nevada and it's not fair to blame only the docs, the medical board, the health division, or the government.

  9. By Beezie
    3/26/08 at 11:54 a.m.
    Suggest removal

    To localcitizen,
    I agree the public is litigation happy and looks for opportunities just as Desai and co.have done.
    If you look at the cases posted on susanekg's site, it points out these men clearly should NOT be practicing medicine however the door has been left open by Nevada for some to get their licenses back at a later time? This is why Nevada ranks so low. This ranking is NOT related to the number of malpractices cases filed it's related to the incompetence of a board and their failure to act in the best interest of the public. These clowns should not have their licenses restored. Period. Buzard ended up before the board in Colorado on more than one ocassion and when he continued to screw up due to his addiction they decided rightfully to suspend his license. Buzard decided I'll just get my fix on in Nevada and continue on where there is less oversight. This man did not just have a coke bender or a lost weekend, he is an addict who couldn't get it together in Colorado and ended up here in Nevada to practice medicine. Sorry but I don't want him taking a laser to my eyes or anyone elses. Insurance companies,their lobbyists and politicians have screwed docs out of adequate compensation for services rendered. Why does it have to go to the extreme,criminal and bizzare before anyone with any authority steps in to protect the public at large during a crisis?

  10. By Beezie
    3/26/08 at 5:52 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    Correction re Buzard: 2 strikes at the Nevada board and 1 in Colorado. Again, how many strikes in how many states does it take?

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