Allies or Adversaries

Since its inception in the early part of the 20th century, the medical staff organization has allowed physicians to have some say in the running of hospitals and has acted as an overseeing body for granting credentials and privileges in the hospital system. Physicians and hospitals worked hand in hand throughout most of the century, and medical staff organizations proved to be an effective way of coordinating the interests of the two groups. However, the 1980s saw changes in the ways that healthcare organizations were paid and regulated, resulting in a de-alignment of physician and hospital interests. In Allies or Adversaries, Craig E. Holm discusses ways to revitalize the medical staff organization in order to improve physician-hospital relations.