As most doc­tors are aware, the Col­orado Board of Phar­macy main­tains the Pre­scrip­tion Drug Mon­i­tor­ing Pro­gram (PDMP), which pro­vides a data­base of con­trolled sub­stance pre­scrip­tions dis­pensed by Col­orado pharmacies.  Access to the PDMP is lim­ited to a defined set of cir­cum­...

Just like every other seg­ment of the pop­u­la­tion, Col­orado physi­cians are not immune from mak­ing the mis­take of drink­ing and dri­ving.  Unlike other seg­ments of the pop­u­la­tion, how­ever, a DUI or other alco­hol related offense can result in pro­fes­sional dis­ci­pline. So, what do...

Every year or so, the Col­orado Board of Med­ical Exam­in­ers releases a “Board Action Sum­mary” show­ing the num­ber and types of dis­ci­pli­nary actions over the prior decade.  The most recent sum­mary (from June 2009*) reveals a trend towards more severe dis­ci­pline for doc­tors and physi­...

One frus­tra­tion many physi­cians have with their hos­pi­tals is the fail­ure to fol­low peer review pro­ce­dures as adopted in the med­ical staff bylaws.  One such sit­u­a­tion led to a law­suit han­dled by Jones & Keller senior lit­i­ga­tor Tom McMa­hon against Pen­rose hos­pi­tal.  In...