Doctors are refusing to operate on smokers. Here’s why the trend will grow

Disturbing trend, look at the last quote in this thread. I see the point, but when you introduce money into or loss of money on how someone recovers, the sickest will not get treated. Knowing our medical system in the US, this is going to get bad, or should I say worse.

There is research that points to the fact that smokers don't recover as well as non smokers. This is influencing some Dr.'s to not operate on them unless they quite smoking.

Most of us know that smoking is linked to heart disease and cancer. But in recent years, research has shown that smoking also inhibits wound healing because it decreases blood flow. As a result, smokers don’t do as well as non-smokers after having spinal fusion surgery and joint replacements.

www.macon.com...

Infection is another thing smokers encounter more than non smokers. One study says 80% higher chance of an infection with joint surgery, this means more surgeries.
This is the reason that it is a growing trend to have the patient quit for 6 months before and stay off cigs for an additional 6 months after surgery.

One study found that smokers who got joint replacement surgery had an 80 percent higher chance than nonsmokers of needing repeat surgery because of complications from infection.

For this reason, surgeons who do those procedures have begun asking patients to quit smoking – or at least stop for four to six months before and after surgery.

“We want the best results possible,” said Dr. Bryan Edwards, head of orthopedic surgery for Novant Health. “We’re not denying you a surgery. We’re preventing you from having a complication.

Some hospitals use bundle payments for each surgery. This means the hospital gets a set amount for the entire surgery, and keeps any money that is not used for the treatment including complications. This of course will lead to letting the sickest patients go with out treatment/surgery. The US medical system is based on $$$ and only $$$$.

In Charlotte, some surgeons who perform spine surgery and knee and hip replacements have begun using a “value-based” system that means accepting a single “bundled payment” for each patient encounter. This gives doctors an incentive to provide the best care for each patient.

If all goes well and care is delivered for less than the contract price, the doctor or hospital keeps the savings. If there are complications and the patient needs more care, the doctor or hospital absorbs the extra cost.

So, operating on smokers, with potentially expensive complications, could hurt the bottom line for physicians.

Read more here: www.macon.com...#storylink=cpy

What about morbidly obese patients? They have very high complication rates, tend to not heal well, etc. If surgeons refuse to operate on smokers, I would think the same logic would apply to morbidly obese patients too.

Which you might either think is justified or a slippery slope, depending on your perspective...

Considering that you have to pay insurance in the US this is mental

I could quite believe that Virtue Nazis would try and introduce such a thing in the NHS, but in a country where people individually pay for their healthcare? Bizarre.

a reply to: VegHead

The story covers that, the obese will just have to have barbaric surgery BEFORE the other surgery. See simple.

originally posted by: VegHead
What about morbidly obese patients? They have very high complication rates as well, tend to not heal well, etc. If they refuse to operate on smokers, I would think the same logic would apply to morbidly obese patients as well.

Which you might either think is justified or a slippery slope, depending on your perspective...

That would make sense. They obviously have all the data collected on smokers, not sure if they do on obesity.

a reply to: SprocketUK

We pay, (God do we pay) and we get sh!t service and Dr.s who have no time, and are driven to make $$$, patient care is somewhere near the bottom of the to do lists.

originally posted by: seasonal
a reply to: VegHead

The story covers that, the obese will just have to have barbaric surgery BEFORE the other surgery. See simple.

Sorry I only read the quoted portions and not the entire article, thanks for pointing out the article mentioned obesity. Yeah, that does sound like a surgeon's logic. Surgery is the solution for everything.

a reply to: VegHead

When you have a hammer every problem becomes a nail.

Good. Smokers want to die. Let them.

Next?

smokers already pay higher insurance premiums because they smoke,if they have to quit smoking before they receive treatment then they shouldn`t have to pay higher premiums.

originally posted by: VegHead
What about morbidly obese patients? They have very high complication rates, tend to not heal well, etc. If surgeons refuse to operate on smokers, I would think the same logic would apply to morbidly obese patients too.

Which you might either think is justified or a slippery slope, depending on your perspective...

Already happens in the UK, morbidly obese people sometimes will not be given a gastric band operation until they reach a target weight of their own accord.

a reply to: seasonal

I may no agree with this, because people have the right to be treated for their ills, smoking side effects should not be a deterred

Now the thing that bothers me the most is how organs are given to people that are sick due to the type of health habits they have.

Smoking one of them.

Smokers should just lie when they file for health insurance. Since they want to charge them more for being a smoker and then not cover them for the same reason. Just another reason ACA should be repealed. The ACA was just Obama's way of paying back his special interests.

What about alcoholics ?

Then the bastards better stop taxing my cigarettes .

Been decades since been to docs and that was getting patched up after being shot while was in army .

President Obama said just give the "Blue Pain Pill" to some people and keep them comfortable, until the end.

a reply to: carewemust

If the Dr will even treat you and write the script for the pain pill.

a reply to: carewemust

If the Dr will even treat you and write the script for the pain pill.

originally posted by: ThePeaceMaker
What about alcoholics ?

What about patients that have been prescribed harmful narcotics for a good portion of their lives?

I just had two surgeries within the last 12 months the most recent being in January and yes smoking is a concern going into surgery. However I was told by one of the nurses that they are more concerned about heavy smokers who smoke more than 5 cigs a day every day. I'm an occasional smoker and usually don't smoke more than the 5 a day and not everyday. I was told that stopping all together for about a month prior and month after surgery should be fine. I 'm on my second pack in a month and am recovering just fine. Always stay hydrated too as it helps with just about everything, water is life especially good clean low acidity water.