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| Do You Have A Cage On Your Chimney? |
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by Bob Blumm, MA, PA-C, DFAAPA - March 28, 2011
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April Submission to CM&F-Bob Blumm PA-C, MA, DFAAPA
I live on Long Island, New York in a suburban area on the south shore We have many old and beautiful trees in my community along with the view of the Great South Bay. Long Island flourishes with wildlife of every kind, among them many possums, raccoons and squirrels. We live in a natural wonderland and enjoy the life that we observe as it continues its natural pathway as it has for hundreds of years.
Almost three hundred years ago, my neighborhood was a place of farm houses with chimneys whereas today it is occupied by many dwellings , all with chimneys that bring forth the rich aroma of oak, maple and pine in winter. These chimneys, over the past ten years, have been capped by a cage to prevent “wildlife” from falling or running down the chimney and being trapped or injured or the possibility of causing damage to a home. This past week our close friends and neighbors decided to treat themselves to a cruise for one week. This year has been filled with a surplus of storms and high winds and they lost their chimney cage cap to the ravages of Mother Nature. Like most inhabitants of our area, this was seemingly not a cause for alarm as generally this would certainly not be catastrophic. Sometimes our assumptions become a nightmare due to the realities of life.
Mickey and Kevin returned home after their short vacation, opened the door with their key and were greeted by a horrible odor and a totally disheveled and destroyed living room. Further investigation revealed that every room had evidence of severe damage, broken glass, statues broken, bottles on the floor, pictures overturned and the evidence and the smell of animal feces throughout their 8 room house. A conservation person came to the home and set traps for what was definitely a trapped animal. Four days later the trap was sprung and a squirrel was found in Kevin’s closet. The gentleman that set the traps removed the animal and set it free in the woods that were blocks away but the damage had already been done. It took four outside workers over 8 hours to return their home into a livable state, remove the broken objects and the trails of urine and feces for a cost of over three thousand dollars. There were antiques and other family items that were unrecoverable from the claws, discharges and overall total mess that was created by this one animal. To their dismay they also discovered that a squirrel was not considered an animal but was classified as vermin and therefore their homeowners insurance did not cover the damages. Why this lengthy discussion about a squirrel and a cage cap for a chimney?
There is no substitution for being prepared which is why it is the motto of the Boy Scouts of America. Be Prepared is a motto that needs to be in sharp focus if you are a clinician who practices medicine in a community or a hospital or clinic. The greatest errors and sometimes the most costly are not committed intentionally or from an invasive procedure but rather are errors of omission which take us and more importantly, the patient, by surprise but they leave a path of destruction that may never be corrected. PAs and NPs are human and humans will sometimes make an error in judgment or fail to diagnose a disease process that is far more severe than imagined. When we make errors, someone or an entire family may suffer and there may be lost income, sight, health, mobility or even loss of life. Psychologically, we too are injured as we have tried our best and perhaps were totally unaware of a differential diagnosis. And this is where the “chimney cage cap” comes into focus.
The protection that we need is not made of stainless steel and is not subject to the stresses of the weather. The protection that we require is a personal Professional Liability policy from a highly rated carrier that can protect us and our assets and families if we are unfortunate enough to be named in malpractice litigation and even more so if we are found negligent because of our care or lack thereof. This policy cannot be purchased after the damage is done but must be “in force” while we practice medicine or nursing, whether we be NPs or PAs and the premier product is an Occurrence policy. This covers us 24/7 and also protects us in so many other ways such as representing us, providing loss of pay income while engaged in a litigation, it covers the curbside consultations that we so generously and sometimes ignorantly offer as well as after we leave the job, or community or when we retire and does so without payment of a “tail.” It behooves you as a practitioner to purchase your own protection that is customized for only one person, yourself. This is the insurance policy that is designed to help prevent destruction, loss of finances, reputation ; things that we all cherish.
The winds are always blowing and the storms come upon us without warning, are you personally prepared. If not, don’t be apathetic but call your endorsed professional liability company today and consider it money well spent. There are no second chances when it comes to having this source of protection in your medical practice.
 Robert M. Blumm has received national recognition as a distinguished fellow of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA). He is the past president of the Association of Plastic Surgery Physician Assistants, and was past-president of the American Association of Surgical Physician Assistants, past president of the American College of Clinicians and NYSSPA, as well as Chairman of the Surgical Congress of the AAPA. In addition, Bob received the John Kirklin MD Award for Professional Excellence from the American Association of Surgical Physician Assistants. Along with his associate, Dr. Acker, Bob was the first recipient of the AAPA PAragon Physician-PA Partnership Award. He has been a contributing author of three textbooks, written 150 plus articles and is a sought out conference speaker throughout the United States.
The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
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