Dr. J.'s Jottings: Upgrading Workers' Comp & Disability Benefits Systems

60 Summits Project Diffuses Down Under

2009-08-11T13:30:00-04:00

I'll be in Australia and New Zealand later this month, promoting the new work disability prevention model and teaching doctors clinical decision making in SAW/RTW. An article about the new model and The 60 Summits Project was published today in RTW Matters, an Australian based website. There's a catchy little quote about the Emperor's New Clothes. RTW Matters kindly provided...

The Value of Information in "The Information Age"

2009-08-11T00:24:31-04:00

I'm sure as heck not an economist. But because I run a business that offers internet-based training and continuing medical education, I've been thinking about the costs of developing educational materials, versus the social / economic impact of education, versus the prices being charged for it. The plight of newspapers and magazines is also on the forefront. Ruminating and thinking...

Begging for Improvement: IMEs & Impairment Ratings

2009-06-11T19:43:46-04:00

A recent expose by the New York Times about workers' compensation Independent Medical Examinations in the state of New York, coupled with public debate about the inaccuracy and inadequacy of methods for evaluating (rating the extent of) Permanent Impairment in both California and New York have raised the visibility of these issues. On one of the professional list-servs I follow,...

How Competition Impedes Innovation & An Idea for Forwarding the Action on Healthcare Reform

2009-05-07T16:43:00-04:00

Wouldn't it be fantastic if workers' comp payers moved to "Multi-Payor Portals to Maximize Provider Satisfaction & Streamline Payments"? See flyer below about the Healthcare Payments Solutions Expo of 2009. I know nothing about it, but VERY big players will be presenting. Unfortunately, since commercial payers (insurers, TPAs, health plans, HMO's) are mostly financial transaction companies, they tend to think...

"Out of the Box" Foundation for Healthcare Reform by ACOEM

2009-05-07T16:03:15-04:00

I just sent this message (below) to MoveOn -- and wanted to share it with as many people as possible. Since they must get thousands of messages per day, I have little confidence they will pay attention, read the recommended documents, and reflect on their big ideas -- but maybe you will. I wrote: MoveOn's healthcare reform stuff strikes me...

"Conflict of Interest" in The 60 Summits Project?

2009-04-25T02:02:13-04:00

I got a (reasonable) inquiry from someone, so thought I would make it clear to everyone: Neither I nor the central 60 Summits Project nor Webility Corporation has any economic relationship with the people and organizations I mentioned in my post about the orthopedist who likes the results being produced by the work disability paradigm.... but we ARE philosophically well...

Orthopedist says he likes the work disability prevention paradigm

2009-04-23T20:39:35-04:00

Here are some notes from a voicemail and a subsequent conversation I had earlier this week with an orthopedist from Florida. He had emailed me to ask permission to use some slides from my presentation entitled A New Paradigm for Worker's Compensation & Disability Benefits System: The Work Disability Prevention Model. I gave it at the Florida Summit on Preventing...

Excited about Michigan Summit April 30-May 1

2009-04-19T00:05:07-04:00

I just finished and sent off the Powerpoint for my keynote presentation for the MIchigan Summit on Workability being held in Lansing on April 30 and May 1. This is the first of our events to occur since the economy melted down last fall. The Michigan Summit planning group REFUSED to give up, even when things didn't look good, and...

British Columbia - 1st to commit to a Canadian SAW/RTW

2008-01-27T13:31:22-05:00

A group in British Columbia has just decided to hold a Summit in November, 2008! People from several BC organizations held their own feasibility meeting this week to decide whether it makes sense to bring the 60 Summits Project idea there. The meeting was apparently a great success. There was strong multistakeholder support for the content of the ACOEM work...

60 Summits Project Update

2008-01-15T00:54:19-05:00

Yay! I just learned yesterday that Montana will hold three Summits in April 2008 in conjunction with The 60 Summits Project. The Governor's Labor Management Advisory Council on workers' compensation will be the lead sponsor, along with the State of Montana, the Montana State Fund, the Montana Building Contractors Association and the Sisters of Charity Leavenworth Health System and others....

North Dakota, here we come!

2007-08-30T21:21:15-04:00

We're putting the final touches on preparations before North Dakota's four Stakeholder Summits on Preventing Needless Work Disability the week of September 10-14. These Summits will have a different "feel" than the prior ones in larger states have had, largely because of the small size of the cities we will be in. (If you're curious about North Dakota, go to...

Bringing the 60 Summits idea to Montreal, Quebec

2007-08-11T13:21:46-04:00

The 60 Summits Project is entering Canada for the first time. [The "60" in our name comes from the number of US states (50) plus Canadian provinces (10).] I'll be in Montreal the week of August 20, and among other planned activities have invited a small number of people to join me in exploring the feasibility of creating a stakeholder...