In a case that has troubling implications for all public sector doctors, some of the Los Angeles County supervisors asked for and were granted access to medical peer review documents from Olive View county hospital, which is part of the UCLA Medical Center.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the county’s health services department initially gave the Supervisors access to one year’s worth of peer review cases from the hospital’s neonatal unit, but then balked when the Supervisors asked for two years worth of cases.
The Times also wrote that “Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina told the Times that she doesn’t trust medical staff to police themselves.”
UAPD members in Los Angeles County met with union staff to discuss these troubling events and to make a multi-pronged plan for protecting the sanctity of the peer review process in Los Angeles County and beyond. UAPD has already begun addressing the issue on the political side, and is considering whether a legal challenge might also be required. Members interested in learning more should call the Southern California UAPD office.
UAPD believes that the confidentiality of peer review documents must be maintained to give doctors the ability to fully participate in the review process, whether as reviewers or when their case is under review. When those laws are challenged, UAPD steps up to their defense.
Peer Review Breached in LA County