Disclosure

[Gthompson]

The AMA recommends that all physicians disclose a conflict of interest when making recommendations. Can we know how much each doctor is paying to be part of the network?

[Gthompson]

The AMA recommends that all physicians disclose a conflict of interest when making recommendations. Can we know how much each doctor is paying to be part of the network?

[Dewayne]

Originally posted by Gthompson:

The AMA recommends that all physicians disclose a conflict of interest when making recommendations. Can we know how much each doctor is paying to be part of the network?

 

I'm sure Bill will tell you exactly, or point you to the appropriate section of this site. But obviously, he and Bill have to get paid some way. And the way I understand it clinics pay a monthly fee to be apart of this community, which is educational first and foremost. There have been some kicked out as well, and they tend to get forum member input before recommending a doc.

 

There is a possibility that money becomes the primary issue, and the owners would let anyone who will pay be a part of this community. However, in my experience so far I've found Bill and Pat to be much too smart for that.

 

Best thing to do is determine your choice of surgeon, and then vet him out on here. This place saved me from going back to the same place I went before, and for directing me to Dr. Cooley I will be forever thankful.

[badger_01]

I have read on other forums that doctors do pay a fee to be a part of HTN, and I think thats fair.

But what you should really rely on when making your selection , besides the fact that Bill and Pat are meticulous in their choices for recommended docs, are the opinions of independent posters who've gone down this road and know what they're talking about.

[Gthompson]

Your answers are not meeting the standards of AMA ethics.

[Gthompson]

What I do not think is fair is if a surgeon does good work but does not want to pay to be part of Pat's group, there appears to be an automatic prejudice against them. I have seen people write, if they were good they would be mentioned on this site. Why? Sounds to me like if one pays they are promoted. Hmmmm

[Tubs]

"The AMA recommends that all physicians disclose a conflict of interest when making recommendations"

 

A few questions:

 

1. From the above statement, not sure who the physicians are recommending, - the site?

 

2. Can you paste the disclosure requirement to which you refer. "Recommends" is not a particularly strong term, I would be interested if it actually requires disclosure of amounts paid (as per your original question).

 

3. Whilst on the subject of disclosure, which physician do you work for?

 

Most posters are aware of that doctors recommended on the forum pay fees, if a doctor posted poor results / no results the "patients" would comment accordingly. If a doctors results are good they are praised, by forum members, irrespective of membership status.

 

Out of interest whats your business model for a forum and how would you pay its running costs?

 

Tubs

[the B spot]

The physicians are recommended by this site--which is NOT run by doctors--therefore the AMA rules do not apply.

 

BTW--does it actually matter exactly what each doctor pays?

 

Would it matter if its 100.00 or 10K a month?

 

The fact that a fee is paid and the presence of such fee is disclosed is enough.

 

You took the long way around the barn to get to you actual purpose for posting--which is fine with me, but nice to see you got to your point.

 

This community is good form of marketing AND a place where efforts are made for transparency which MOST clinics do not like.

 

Then there are clinics who would love to pay to be included--most of these clinics do not have the body of work or consistent results to be included.

 

It is not a perfect system, but it isn't too bad either.

 

At the end of the day, this site promotes its doctors, and allows ALL doctors to share their work, so ANY doctor who believes his or her work is as good as any of the doctors promoted here is welcome to share.

 

Take Care,

Jason

[Dewayne]

Get him Tubs!

 

Gthompson;

 

If you're referring to me, I have no desire to meet the standards of AMA ethics. I have enough a problem meeting my wife's standards. And that's enough of a burden for me to carry right now....

[thanatopsis_awry]

This reeks of a "troll"...IMO....excellent answers by all, however; you have more patience than I!

[Bill - Seemiller]

GThompson,

 

This community is ran by and for patients. How we recommend surgeons, recommendation standards, and the fact that surgeons recommended pay a sponsorship fee is clearly stated and well documented on our site here. See also how our community collectively chooses to recommend hair transplant surgeons.

 

Surgeons recommended on the Hair Transplant Network do pay a sponsorship fee which supports and funds this community. Surgeons however, are invited to be recommended based on quality of service. Consider an elite university that rejects prospective students when they don't have what it takes. Those that are accepted still have to pay the University fee to fund the organization.

 

At this time, we have no interest in going over with you the specifics of our private financials which includes how much recommended and Coalition surgeons pay to sponsor this community. Fees paid by surgeons help pay for services and those who work hard to keep this patient community running.

 

You have referenced on another thread that you work or did work for PAI medical. I expect that if you still do, that you will disclose your affiliation with them in your signature as per our terms of service.

 

See alo my response to you on this thread.

 

I hope these answers satisfy you and give you a better understanding of our patient driven community.

 

Regards,

 

Bill

[Clive McQuire]

Gthompson

 

You have obviously come onto this website to promote the surgeoon who pays your wages, and not to assist the balding patients with their h/t concerns.

 

I use this site because the guys on here care about patients, and fees paid by doctors to the site , do not enter into the equation!!

 

To promote YOUR employer you need to approach it from a different angle, post RESULTS on here!! cos as we all say it's these that count!!

 

And as for qouting rules and regs, i for one hav'nt got a clue what your talking about!!

 

Post some post / op and grown out results, then i will take notice of you!!

[Tubs]

Dewayne

 

From your post above: "I have enough a problem meeting my wife's standards."

 

Give up man, it can't be done!

 

Tubs

[wishicouldgoback]

i dont think this site is run by patients. its run by the mods. i know for a fact that when patients write something that the mods dont like its deleted. if patients ran this site they would have the freedom to say what they want. i for one regret my procedure which was done one yr ago with the newest methods. and with all the repair stories ive read on here it seems most people regret their decision to have transplants. my insecurity of my hairline before the procedure pales in comparison to my insecurity about my scarring on the back of my head and the unnatural hairline. and from the pics that ive seen on here by the best doctors are no different from mine. and sense im a patient i should have the right to post this..

[Bill - Seemiller]

Wishicouldgoback,

 

Since you started posting here, you've been blinded by your own experiences. Though I feel bad for you, and expressed that I'm willing to do anything I can to help you both publicly and privately, your bitterness with our community is misdirected.

 

You've had a bad hair transplant experience and I feel bad for you. There is nothing I want more as the Associate Publisher of this community than seeking patients to get a first-rate hair transplant. That is why we recommend only those with a proven consistency of excellent results.

 

To correct your misinformation:

 

I dont think this site is run by patients. its run by the mods.

 

Both the Publisher (Pat) and the Associate Publisher (Me), are 3 time hair transplant patients and very satisfied with our experiences. You will find the majority of posting patients here are satisfied with their results after selecting a surgeon recommended on this site.

 

i know for a fact that when patients write something that the mods dont like its deleted

 

This is a lie! However, we do have the right to remove any post at any time as stated in our terms of service. I am pleased to announce that this is a rare occurence and this is only done when there is a valid reason. None of your posts have ever been removed, nor have any since you have registered, so I'm not sure where this statement is coming from. I did move one of your topics to a more appropriate section of the forum once, and I sent you a private message informing you of this, to which you snapped back a very sarcastic and misdirected bitter response.

 

and from the pics that ive seen on here by the best doctors are no different from mine

 

You are entitled to your opinion, but many hold a different opinion and are quite impressed by the impressive they results they see from top physicians in the field on a regular basis.

 

As for blatant lies, I expect these to stop if you expect to be allowed to continue posting here.

 

Regards,

 

Bill

[wishicouldgoback]

you just proved my point. now im told to stop giving my opinions or ill be banned from posting on here. tell me where i lied.

[kman]

wishicouldgoback, how did i just read your opinion if the mods delete opinions they don't like?? Bill, and some of the others have been very sympathetic to your situation so, no need for sarcasm, innuendos and exaggerations. Another question might be how were you able to get a HT at such a young age...you are still a teenager, correct?? Just kidding. It's just that this discussion seems to be degenerating into something I expect from forums populated with teenagers. I'm just trying to make a point with humor so I hope you can take it. If not, fire away...I can.

I am sorry you had a bad experience and I'm not diminishing it when I say I am happy with my experience and expect to be down the road as well. Your experience will not cause others to turn away from viable options to evercome hairloss, or any other cosmetic procedure to improve thier appearance, for that matter. It may be vain, but that's up to each individual to work out for themselves. Besides, we're all a little vain in one way or another.

I hope you find some peace with your situation. I for one am curious about what happened in your case and think it might be of value to you and this community to share what happened, hopefully with pics. I think you would get support and possibly some options, if you were interested.

No offense intended and i wish you all the best.

[folicallychallenged]

Originally posted by wishicouldgoback:

you just proved my point. now im told to stop giving my opinions or ill be banned from posting on here. tell me where i lied.

 

Boy i do feel for you, but you've gotta stop being a whiney lil bitch. I know your not happy but the fact of the matter is that you can't go back, so you have to deal with your situation and either seek to find a solution or move on, constant negativity and bitterness will do nothing.

[Gthompson]

So let me understand something: comments which are not true are questioned and if the poster continues they are banned from the forum?

[folicallychallenged]

Originally posted by Gthompson:

So let me understand something: comments which are not true are questioned and if the poster continues they are banned from the forum?

 

Thats not what Bill said, but if someone challenges the integrity of both Bill and the forum by telling lies, then as the moderator i think he would be well within his rights to do so.

[Dewayne]

I'm just glad we have the ignore feature; and I encourage everyone to use it when appropriate.

[Tubs]

Gthompson

 

You seem to struggling with context of Bill's comment, perhaps the following analogy will help:

 

If you invite some friends round for a barbeque and one of your guest's pisses in a bush you might raise an eyebrow, if that same friend pisses on your hot dog you would ask him to leave the party.

 

As this was your thread originally, would you care to continue its original theme or confirm you misunderstood the structure of the site?

 

Dewayne ??“ I sympathise with your "ignore" feature, but if we do not respond, new readers of this site may be swayed and therefore lose the benefit that this site has to offer in researching HT's.

 

I am defending this site not because it is perfect and not because I agree with everything that is posted, what the majority of members would agree (IMO) is that it is a great research tool and has benefited many of us.*

 

 

Tubs

 

*edited - changed the "we" for "I" (realised what a sanctimonious ****** I was sounding)

[Bill - Seemiller]

It is sometimes necessary to defend this great community against adersaries who seem to have nothing better to do than attempt to smear our good name and the patient revolution. Patients holding doctors accountable for their actions is not popular with clinics who don't continue to evolve to the newest, latest, and greatest techniques.

 

Thanks to the majority of the members who can see through the masquerades of a few agenda driven posters.

 

The "GThompson's" of the world will occasionally make an appearance trying to discredit what we stand for. But we have stood for ten years helping hair loss sufferers find real solutions from only the best surgeons. We will continue to stand against and tolerate our critics, including physicians who have sued us because we wouldn't lower our standards and recommend them.

 

Thanks to all of you who support our efforts and help balding men and women find real solutions on a daily basis.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[Gthompson]

Bill_

Just as physicians and clinics should be accountable for their results, moderators of health based blogs need to create an environment which permits people to exchange accurate information. You have been down right rude and accusatory. This only serves to make you appear insecure in your opinions and just reinforces what your signature states......not backed by any medical authority, even the clinic you work with. Last Friday's PBS New Hour sited the internet as the number one cause of misconceptions because of posts on blogs. If the internet is going to develop into a true and trusted source of information for health care consumers, it will only be by support of true experts and citations. I know you will dismiss this as me trying to discredit you. So be it!

 

Tubs- I appreciate your questions and believe you want to develop a dialogue of understanding so everyone can benefit. But, I am tired of being attacked for asking some questions.

[Bill - Seemiller]

GThompson,

 

You continue to expose your ignorance since you apparently think I work for a clinic.

 

From your first post, you've been defensive of a clinic you claim to no longer represent and condemned anyone that disagreed with your opinion. You've also proceeded to make misleading claims about the Coalition, to which I addressed respectfully.

 

It's sad really, because someone who's worked for a clinic could have constructively added their insight and expertise rather than try to condemn patients for recommending surgeons based on high standards.

 

You apparently have a lot of misplaced anger toward this community and it has become quite clear that you have no interest in adding anything constructive to this forum. Therefore, it is time for you to say goodbye.

 

Regards,

 

Bill