The event drew the largest attendance the society had ever seen on any topic, says Lodise, adding that no physician said it was a bad idea. Strikes or collective bargaining over salary was not part of the concept to begin with, according to Lodise. Nathan Zuckerman, M.D. , president of the St. Mary Hospital medical staff in Bucks County, believes that a large number of his physicians would be interested in exploring a union. Bucks County President Hunter confirms that several hundred physicians have expressed an interest in a union. Lodise warns that waiting could be costly, noting that California's Kaiser Permanente HMO recently affiliated with a union, which will promote Kaiser.
Physicians have a window of opportunity to take that away.
Should county medical societies feel threatened by a union, physicians could consider joining through a specialty society, says Lodise. If unions can't convince county medical societies to join, they must define other organizations to open up the avenue for physician membership, Lodise believes. Another avenue through which unionization is possible, Lodise advocates, is a regional society such as a Delaware Valley Medical Association. Such an option is better than forming numerous smaller organization such as the Committee to Abolish the CAT Fund that arise from specific dissatisfactions, he says. Unless organized medicine does something that tickles members and nonmembers, we'll end up as specialty societies.