out of the basement / radiation medicine

- ASTRO President, discussing ROCR, during the Advisors to the President [Biden] on the National Cancer Program meeting, 9-7-2023 The inaugural "President's Cancer Panel" meeting took place recently and boy...that was something. Lots of concern over rural cancer care - from people not engaged in rural cancer care. Coincidentally, I am actually involved in rural cancer care. Join me f...

On Friday at 4PM, the first "live" presentation of the alternative payment model "ROCR" took place. Though questions were not actively fielded from attendees, several concerns that have been brought up since the ROCR announcement were discussed. This special Basement episode breaks new ground with a "reaction"-style commentary on the ASTRO Town Hall. A discussion on t...

In this episode, we unravel the intriguing story of a 2015 correspondence that pulls back the curtain of medical billing. Prepare to be riveted about everyone's favorite topic: CPT code bundling. How and why does the government consider "CT Simulation" (77280-77290) a part of "IMRT Treatment Planning" (77301)? Was it always like this? Does everyone agree and is everyone hap...

In this era of massive consolidation, it is incredibly confusing to discuss the different ways doctors can practice medicine in America. In discussing payment reforms, supply, professional vs technical fees, and so on - are we talking the same language? This episode aims, in extremely general, broad strokes, to define the "other" ways to practice medicine, beyond "academic faculty a...

The theme of 2023, between workforce studies and payment models, is everyone's favorite: the RVU. Who's got 'em? Who needs 'em? Does it matter? Do we care? Join me in digital nerd town for a general overview of yearly metrics! --- Earn free CME for this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi www.becktamd.com www.photonmedia.org Twitter: @drbeckta

For years, the "white whale" of Medicare reimbursement has created many "Captain Ahab" impressions among policymakers and professional societies. In a movie script written in the style of George A. Romero, the Radiation Oncology Case Rate Program (ROCR) was unexpectedly published on June 28th, generating significant buzz among the RadOnc (RadMed) community. The model projects $...

Who knew that using liquid radiation could be so complicated and confusing? --- Earn free CME for this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi www.becktamd.com www.photonmedia.org Twitter: @drbeckta

What does it mean to talk about "on beam" numbers in a Radiation Oncology clinic? --- Earn free CME for this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi www.becktamd.com www.photonmedia.org Twitter: @drbeckta

What has prevented open and in-depth analysis of the RadOnc workforce over the last decade? To paraphrase Fight Club - you are not your job. Does the 2023 ASTRO/HMA study make sense in terms of the existing data? Do we even know how many linear accelerators there are in America? Spoiler alert: we do (sort of) know! Earn free CME by reflecting on the content of this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi...

On a recent, LIVE episode of The Accelerators, the question of "what happened to RadOnc" was answered, in part, by referencing the unusually high failure rate of board certification exams. It has now been 5 years since those events, and medical students/junior residents are unlikely to know "the story". This is my version of a documentary/editorial on "the 2018 exams"...

Crawling Out of the Basement for the first time in 2023 with The Accelerators, The Todd, and Birkenstock Beckta (now based on the set of Super Troopers, looking for Bernie's mittens). The ASTRO Workforce Taskforce paper, the final version, dropped last Wednesday. In terms of "ambitious projects", forecasting supply and demand is akin to eating not one but TWO elephants. We discuss almost exclusive...

Join me as I meld prior ASTRO abstracts, Red Journal publications, CMS Medicare Part B data, and phone pics of slides live-Tweeted from San Antonio...to discuss the job market. No, I don't have "regular" hobbies, why do you ask?  Earn free CME by reflecting on the content of this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi www.becktamd.com Twitter: @drbeckta

My Twitter feed is an explosion of posts about airports and hotels and registrations and...it's that time of year again. The ASTRO conference. Which means senior residents gearing up for the legendary "ASTRO Job Interview" marathon. Employers are gearing up for new grad prospecting and "the arbitrage of talent". This episode is 30 minutes of advice I wish I could give to my younger self on the fir...

You're a doctor, not a writer! Stop pretending your consult note needs to cite the PACIFIC trial and join me to talk about Evaluation and Management CPT codes, wRVUs, time-based billing, and how I write my notes: BEAM-IT. The most innovative acronym in medicine. Here are the slides/figures from the episode https://figshare.com/articles/figure/BEAM-IT/21334053?file=37860630 https://figshare.com...

General societal opinion says doctors + $$ = bad. This attitude means non-clinicians command American healthcare. Ignoring the business of medicine doesn't mean we’ve taken the ethical highroad. It means we have surrendered an essential component of caring for the sick. I want to learn more about the nuts and bolts of the Healthcare Machine. Do you? Earn free CME by reflecting on the content of th...

In the first half of the 20th century, radiation therapy was used for a huge range of medical maladies. X-rays cut the mortality of gas gangrene from 50% to 5% and treated skin manifestations of lupus as early as 1905.  Then American culture shifted, and the fear of atomic power chased radiotherapy to the dark basement of hospitals, the pages of comic books, and political crises detailed on t...

Have you or someone you know been exposed to the insidious claim that any lotion, cream, or topical agent left on the skin before radiation treatment can have a bolus effect? You may be entitled to compensation. Basement Brothers, Attorneys at Law, have filed a class action lawsuit...  Earn free CME by reflecting on the content of this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi www.becktamd.com Twitter...

Yes, it really is as simple as it sounds. Yes, it really is popular worldwide because of the results. Yes, you can start doing it...tomorrow. On the heels of Austin Dove's wonderful webinar, Matt Spraker (our favorite Basement Buddy) and I do a "curbside consult" on starting to use low-dose radiotherapy (LDRT) for osteoarthritis in his practice...and maybe yours? Earn free CME by reflecting on the...

The final installment of another long conversation about IGRT. Earn free CME by reflecting on the content of this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi www.becktamd.com Twitter: @drbeckta

Continuing on with our practical discussion regarding IGRT choice, immobilization, so on and so forth. Earn free CME by reflecting on the content of this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi www.becktamd.com Twitter: @drbeckta

Matt Spraker returns for a PowerPoint-fueled romp through IGRT choices. Slides are on Twitter and FigShare: https://figshare.com/articles/figure/IGRT_Slide_1/20493393 https://figshare.com/articles/figure/IGRT_S2/20506833 Earn free CME by reflecting on the content of this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi www.becktamd.com Twitter: @drbeckta

Matt and I talk again. Earn free CME by reflecting on the content of this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi www.becktamd.com Twitter: @drbeckta

Matt Spraker joins us to talk about details of what an actual attending job in Radiation Medicine looks like, RVUs, medical director roles, etc. Earn free CME by reflecting on the content of this episode: https://earnc.me/E9XHPi  www.becktamd.com Twitter: @drbeckta