Neil H. Baum, MD

Grand Rounds in Urology Contributing Editor Neil H. Baum, MD, Professor of Urology at Tulane Medical School, offers advice to urologic clinicians on leading during uncertain times. Through the lens of adventurer Ernest Shackelton, Dr. Baum illustrates how providing excellent patient care involves responding to new information, maintaining morale, and leading by example.

Grand Rounds in Urology Contributing Editor Neil H. Baum, MD, Professor of Urology at Tulane Medical School, provides thoughtful advice for generating patient referrals from physicians and non-physicians. He encourages physicians to personally meet all referring physicians, share up-to-date practice information, and offer value-adds such as providing a brief written summary to a medical question.

Grand Rounds in Urology Contributing Editor Neil H. Baum, MD, Professor of Urology at Tulane Medical School, presents on the impact distractions have on the doctor-patient relationship. Dr. Baum reviews data on the role distracted driving plays in fatal car crashes before drawing a parallel to distractions in the exam room. He concludes that physicians should avoid and eliminate distractions in their practice by using technology to avoid data entry during an exam and setting criteria for permissible interruptions.

discusses effectively communicating with colleagues through patient referral letters. He observes that promptly reporting back to the referring physician is the second most common reason why a physician will receive referrals in the first place. Equally important to swift response is sending clear referral letters that provide the physician with valuable information. Dr. Baum contends that the traditional referral letter is typically too long, slow to arrive, and can be expensive for transcription. Similarly, an electronic copy of patient’s electronic medical record can require too much time to review. Instead, an effective referral letter contains three simple components: diagnosis, medications, and treatment plan recommended. Additionally, physicians should strive to turn around a referral letter before the patient returns to the referring physician for follow up. Dr. Baum offers tips on creating a template referral letter to simplify the process with either preprinted forms or through the patient’s electronic medical record.

Grand Rounds in Urology Contributing Editor Neil H. Baum, MD, Professor of Urology at Tulane Medical School, discusses techniques for managing chronically late patients. He explains that every practice has a problem with late patients, and it is an issue which can wreak havoc with a practice’s schedule, impact productivity, cause stress to the physician and their staff, and negatively affect other patients who are on time. Dr. Baum recommends creating a written policy regarding lateness, advising patients to arrive early to complete paperwork, and explaining the impact of lateness on the physician and staff. He also suggests seeing chronically late patients at the end of the day. Dr. Baum notes that physicians and staff should listen to the reason for the delay, and give some “slack” to patients who typically are punctual. He observes that doctors must set a good example and make a commitment to being on time themselves. Dr. Baum advises against trying to solve the problem by overbooking, since that can result in significant delays in seeing patients. He also notes that charging patients who are late is difficult and rarely works. Dr. Baum discusses the rare process of discharging a chronically late patient, explaining that the physician must allow the patient several weeks to find another doctor. He concludes that medical practices cannot tolerate chronically late patients and must develop and implement a policy regarding lateness.