Dr Hope Starkman has extensive experience for over twenty years in the practice of rheumatology. She is an Ivy league graduate of Barnard College of Columbia University and Albany Medical College. In 1992 she completed an internal medicine residency at Beth Israel Medical Center in affiliation with The Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, N. Y. Her rheumatology fellowship was completed at Montefiore Medical Center and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in 1994.
Dr.Starkman is Board Certified a Board Certified Rheumatologist and has recently completed the requirements for re-certification and has passed her Rheumatology board exam. She has been in clinical practice in rheumatology in Palm Beach County, Florida since 1994.
Dr Starkman has worked in many different clinical settings including, as a Hospitalist in New York, Emergency Medicine Physician, Walk In Clinic /Ambulatory Care Physician, as a Rheumatologist in a single specialty practice, as a hospital employed Rheumatologist, as a Rheumatologist in a multispecialty group and finally, as a solo practitioner for the last 14 years. As a solo practitioner, she has managed her own medical practice on a day to day basis.
She has extensive knowledge with respect to billing, coding, HIPPA, OSHA, PQRS, EMR and its Medicare incentive program. She has worked as a Civil Circuit Mediator and has been certified by the Florida Supreme Court in this capacity. In addition to her experience performing medical peer reviews, Dr Starkman is extremely involved with many medication research and development market research projects.
As a student at Barnard College, in addition to her major in Biology, she minored in English and served as a editor for her college newspaper. She has prepared and written many articles on medical and non medical topics and her verbal and written communication abilities are excellent.
Dr.Starkman been writing rheumatology Medical Peer Reviews since 2013. Dr Starkman prides herself on her extensive rheumatology background, fairness and high ethical standards which significantly impact the high quality of her reviews.
She is very proud of her ability to write succinct, meticulous peer reviews. Dr Starkman is well versed in appropriate serologic rheumatology testing and has written peer reviewed related to medical testing necessity. She has written peer reviews evaluating the medical necessity of extended hospitalizations, as well.
She is able to perform peer reviews for hospitals, nursing homes, walk-in in clinics, IRB’s, and licensing boards with respect to rheumatology practitioners medical conduct and possible misconduct. Dr Starkman may also be contracted to write peer reviewed with respect to Fraud and Abuse cases.
What are Medical Peer Reviews?
Peer reviews may be required for the purpose of evaluating medical necessity with respect to various rheumatology treatment modalities including but not limited to the use of various medications-Pharmacy reviews( ie. DMARDS, BIOLOGICS, IMMUNOMODULATORS and OSTEOPOROSIS TREATMENTS), physical therapy and device / viscosupplementation use. Peer Reviews may be initiated to help determine if a given prescribed treatment is Experimental or Investigational. They may be required to determine if length of hospital or nursing home admissions are appropriate and/or if level of care billed for is appropriate.
The definition of Medical Peer Reviews as per the American Medical Association is “the process by which a medical professional or professional review board considers whether a practitioner’s clinical privileges will be adversely affected by their competence or professional conduct. The foremost objective of the medical peer review process is the promotion of the highest quality of medical care as well as patient safety. “
Additionally, Medical Peer Reviews determine if a physician treatment decisions have met the standards of care within the current medical community as based on practice and current medical credible literature. Since such standards are constantly changing, and an excellent peer reviewer must keep up with the current medical literature and be able to decipher clinical relevance to specific cases.
Finally, many health insurance plans have a published manual of their coverage policies. Although many treatment choices are within the standards of the current medical community, many insurance plans may have a specific policy in force with respect to preferred, alternative and excluded treatments, medications and services. A medical peer reviewer may be employed to determine if requested services are a covered or excluded based on a review of the policy and procedure manual. A medical peer reviewer may be asked if there are circumstances with respect to specific cases, after reviewing detailed medical records as well as the health insurance policy manuals, that qualify for exemption or exception.