Healthcare CEOs must balance the business side of the organization with patient care, and physicians are especially skilled at handling that task, Shakeel Ahmed, MD, CEO of Atlas Surgical Group, argues in an article published July 27 by Forbes.
In the article, Dr. Ahmed highlights the reasons for his argument, pointing to the physician perspective.
"At some point on the Venn diagram of business ledgers, profits and patients have to diverge," he wrote. "Managing that divergence through a delicate balance of business and humanity is only possible if that CEO is attuned to the sufferings of his clients and does not merely see them through the prism of money. The only person with that skill has always been, and always will be, a doctor."
Dr. Ahmed also argues that physicians should not do everything in their power to maximize profit margins, adding it is unethical to do so. He also says physicians have training that "guarantees that the doctor/CEO can seamlessly integrate their knowledge of business with the medical acumen needed to see the pulse behind the wallet."
Dr. Ahmed helms Atlas Surgical Group, a privately owned group of ambulatory surgery centers in the Midwest.
To read the article, click here.