As a medical professional, you mustn’t steer away from the Orders of the State Board for Professional Medical Conduct. This is for many obvious reasons, but one of them is for the sake of your physician profile. Follow along to find out what you should expect from New York State’s physician profile and how one of the proficient New York physician defense lawyers at Walker Medical Law can point you in the right direction.
What should I expect from New York State’s physician profile?
New York State’s physician profile may include information about your medical education, in addition to information about any language translation services available in your office. While this information may help gain employment or retain patients, other pieces of information may be disadvantageous.
For example, if there is a medical malpractice complaint filed against you, the New York State Department of Health’s Office of Professional Medical Conduct (OPMC) will be prompted to investigate you. With this, you may have to attend a hearing and face significant punishments. All in all, any information regarding your OPMC investigation will be disclosed on New York State’s physician profile.
Importantly, this information will be available for public viewing. Meaning, your potential new employers and new patients will be able to access it. More often than not, this may deter potential new employers from hiring you, and potential new patients from scheduling an appointment with you.
What else should I know about my profile?
Say, for instance, that you are undergoing investigations from the OPMC. Understandably so, you may want to make this situation go away as quickly as possible. So you may want to avoid a weighty verdict altogether and simply turn to your medical malpractice insurance policy to enter a settlement agreement. Though, you must first understand that all settlements must be reported to New York State’s physician profile.
Of note, there may have to be more than two settlement cases for New York State to begin publicly listing your settlements on your profile. Though, New York State holds the discretion to list any kind of settlement, and any number of settlements, on your profile. Generally speaking, any case that is deemed to have had a “serious” outcome will make its way onto your profile. So, you must consider the circumstances surrounding your case to determine whether it is more beneficial to fight these claims or settle them.
With all that being said, the information disclosed on your physician profile is critical for successfully maintaining your career. For this reason and many others, we recommend that you consult with a talented OPMC misconduct defense lawyer as soon as you get any word of an investigation. Schedule your initial consultation with us today.
