Medical Whistleblower’s Canary Notes

Medical Whistleblower Premier Issue

We, as citizens, must demand open discourse regarding problems in the medical community of Medical Fraud, Abuse and Neglect. The civil liberties of Medical Whistleblowers should not become casualties. We must not pun-ish the “Truth Sayers” but instead create laws to protect their right to provide timely accurate information. Our government and medical commu-nity should acknowledge mistakes rather than seek to conceal them. We need to learn to value human ex-pertise and analysis of information. We need to build a better a better network of communication between the Medical Whis-tleblowers and those whose help we need. Our partners in this struggle to expose Medical Fraud, Abuse and Neglect come from many professional disciplines – law en-forcement officers, legislators, social workers, therapists, patient advocates, the media and attorneys. We must as medical professionals understand our own professional culture and the pro-fessional cultures of those other agencies and individuals we need to interact with. Of-ten our own professional biases places limitations on our ability to understand and re-spond to law enforcement, legislators and attorneys. All medical professionals might benefit from learning more about the role of law enforcement and opening a more meaningful communication on areas of common interest. It is my belief that cross training between law enforcement and the medical community would reap benefits to both, and add to our overall understanding of how to address prevention, detection, and response to Medical Fraud, Abuse and Neglect. Medical Profession-als are often unaware of their vulnerability to organized crime and have a strained relationship with law enforce-ment over drug enforcement. But increased reporting and response might benefit both the medical and law enforcement communities.

Bridging the Gap —

Communication Across Professional Disciplines

Bridging the Gap 2-3

Guiding Principles for Communication

3

Relationship Traps 4

Inside this issue:

Volume 1 Issue 00

“Tell me and I'll forget. Show me and

I'll remember. Involve me and I'll

understand.” - Confucius

“Whenever two good people argue over

principles, they are both right.”

Marie Ebner von Eschenbach

We need to address cultural differences between organizations and governmental agen-cies. Medical Whistleblowers need to cultivate cooperative sharing between organiza-tions and learn to bridge the differences between them. We must understand how to initiate change in the system, most importantly cultural change. While government and medical community leaders say that they are open to the issues of change, few are able to translate that understanding into successful action. Knowledge is power. The greater the Truth, the more psychological obstacles, people and organizations may have to overcome, before accepting it. This highlights the need to strengthen free speech protections for those who raise alarms. It is a sad fact that sounding the alarm has usually resulted in punishment, not reward for Medical Whistle-blowers. This reaction to unwelcome truths persists even when the urgent concerns are discretely expressed through proper channels. It is important to our nation’s public health that we not let restrictive measures weaken the already tenuous free speech pro-tections of Medical Whistleblowers who have the critical access to field knowledge. They must be acknowledged as being our first line of contact for gathering information about criminal activity, medical malpractice, human rights violations and even terrorist threats. Our national decision makers must replace long-term thinking over short-term thinking. Decision makers often want the rewards, but do not welcome the challenging process of changing their orientation in order to successfully integrate the information given by Medical Whistleblowers. This information is often a double-edged sword that must be handled with maturity, for the bare truth is not always easy to face. Politicians or execu-tives may fear the Truth that the whistleblower brings especially if it threatens their own career plans. It is best to approach with humility the change necessary to bring mean-ingful insight of a problem to a government or organization. Government officials and corporate executives need to know where they are headed. Those with coherent goals and a willingness to adapt to new information will gain the most. Developing a responsive community or organization is as much a psychological as an analytical or logistical process. The challenge is not just about acquiring valuable information but also about rethinking the organization's accepted beliefs and practices. Both go hand in hand. Accepting the lessons learned from Medical Whistleblowers re-quires learning how to learn.

Bridging the Gap Page 2 Medica l Whist leb lower ’s Canary Notes Volume 1 Issue 00

“The truth isn't the truth until people believe you,

and they can't believe you if they don't know

what you're saying, and they can't know what you're saying if they

don't listen to you, and they won't listen to you if

you're not interesting, and you won't be

interesting unless you say things imaginatively,

originally, freshly.”

- William Bernbach

“The relationship is the

communication bridge between

people.”

-Alfred Kadushin.

Developing an effective organization to serve Medical Whistleblowers is therefore about building an organization of learners. Becoming an intelligent learner is not only about find-ing valuable information, but also being open to new ideas and concepts. Equally impor-tant, is understanding the limitations of one's own cultural or professional framework, transcending one's biases, and recognizing the value of best information sharing practices across cultures. By integrating these practices we will redefine the world in a new way, as a consequence of recreating our relationship to it. Different beliefs lead to different atti-tudes and practices, which, in turn, create different abilities and disabilities. Professional cultures evolve, that foster or inhibit intelligence. Often these professional cultural influ-ences are powerful and are shared across religions, levels of education, social networks, companies and agencies. Despite the sophistication and size of the medical community, there is still the tendency to “Group Think.” Each individual's cognitive process is dominated by different affinities and avoidances. Every person, and by extension every organization, has a natural affinity for certain con-cepts and ideas. While some persons or organizations are fact- oriented, others prefer to use their intuition. Some may be satisfied with creative approximation, while others may need specific details. Preferences and avoidances along key ideas and concepts reveal a person's or organization's approach to the analysis of information. Because in any bureaucracy there are limited resources, medical bureaucrats, like man-agers of any type, strive to please their policy bosses and often have a narrowness of per-spective. Creative analysis of whistleblower information often requires “Out of the Box” thinking and a willingness to accept change with all its inherent risk. Creating a culture of change requires continuous integration within the organization. Such meaningful change finds its power in people, not in logic. It rests on a shared emotional understanding and so there is a deep human side to social change. It connects and unites people, offering them something larger than themselves to be part of. It gives them the chance to build something important and to do it with others. Emotions and intuition play a large role. This can be a constructive or a destructive force. We need a better, more robust, efficient social network. We must face the obstacles that divide us and build those bridges to better understanding. Communicating information is most valuable to the public interest when it constantly educates policymakers in a compelling manner.

♦ Trust is easier to destroy than build.

♦ Both sides are always accountable in communication.

♦ Focus on influence not control.

♦ Be constructive and give away credit.

♦ Use your own passion to ignite relationships.

♦ Institutions are the way individuals reach their full potential.

♦ The quality of the founders determines the potential size and influence of the organizational network.

♦ Quality in the communication protocol is important to its sustainability.

Page 3 Medica l Whist leb lower ’s Canary Notes Volume 1 Issue 00

Bridging the Gap

Guiding Principles for Communication

“The most important

thing in communication

is to hear what isn't

being said.”

- Peter F. Drucker

“The problem with

communication ... is the

illusion that it has been

accomplished.”

George Bernard Shaw

Dr. Janet Parker P.O. Box C Lawrence, KS 66044

We are on the Web!

MedicalWhistleblower.googlepages.com

“Insecurity” Lack of self confidence

“Narcissism” Focusing on what you get out of the relationship as opposed to mutual benefit. Superfi-cial relationships.

“Benign Neglect” Ignoring the personal side of the relationship, instead focusing on the problem exclusively.

“Booby Traps” Hidden resentment expressed through passive aggressive actions.

“Use or be Used” Manipulative, lack of trust, submissive behavior to authority

“Holding Back” Refusing to give people autonomy so that they can be participants in their own way.

“Falling Short of Scale” Burn out and collapse due to depletion of energy.

“You messages” Focusing on oneself, blaming others for problems.

Relationship Problems

Phone: 360-809-3058 Fax: None E-mail: MedicalWhislteblower@gmail.com

Supporting the Emotional Health of All Whistleblowers and their Friends, Supporters and Families.

Medical Whistleblower

Websites of Interest

Www.coopcom.org

Www.workteams.unt.

edu

Www.oxfordchallenge.org

Www.pon.havard.edu

Www.openbookmanag

ement.com

The information contained through the Medical Whistle-blower Canary Notes Newsletter is provided for general information only. The information provided by the Medial Whistleblower Canary Notes does not constitute legal or professional advice nor is it conveyed or intended to be con-veyed in the course of any adviser-client discourse, but is intended to be general information with respect to common issues. It is not offered as and does not constitute legal or medical advice or opinion. It should not serve as a substitute for advice from an attorney, qualified medical professional, social worker, therapist or counselor familiar with the facts of your specific situation. We encourage you in due diligence to seek additional information and resources before making any decision. We make no warranty, express or implied, concerning the accuracy or reliability of the content of this newsletter due to the constantly changing nature of the legal and medical aspects of these issues .

“When we have the courage to speak out – to break our silence – we inspire the rest of the "moderates" in our communities to speak up and voice their

views.”

Sharon Schuster