Policyholder Services

I have been asked to take call at my hospital but I practice in a reduced scope. Can I still take call?

Your OMIC policy will cover you for direct patient treatment you render within your defined coverage classification, including call activities. Before agreeing to accept call, however, you should consider the following issues: Will I be able to stay within my coverage parameters whenever seeing and treating patients? If a patient requires services that I am not qualified or not covered to perform, will I be able to refer the patient to another physician? Can the referral take place in a timely manner such that the patient does not suffer a delay that would contribute to a worsening of his or her injury or medical condition? If you feel that the quality of care or patient safety will be adversely affected by your decision to render call given your limited scope of practice, you should discuss with an OMIC risk management specialist whether you should accept call responsibilities. For more information on this issue, please refer to the Policy Issues Article in the Winter 2008 Digest.