As quoted in The Gupta Guide by Sanjay Gupta MD, a recent letter in JAMA Internal Medicine showed that male physicians averaged over $56,000 more per year than female physicians for the years 2006-2010.
"The disparity in annual income," Dr. North stated, "between male and female physicians is sometimes reflective of the workload or ‘man’ hours spent treating patients. However, from a personal perspective, there are other factors such as the incomes of the patient population itself --termed 'the payor mix' by healthcare financial analysts. In my fourth and current novel 'Wiggle Room,' surgeon Diana Bratton finds herself underpaid not because she is a woman or because her patients will not pay their bills, but because she is overworked. One of her senior physician partners is murdered, and she must take up the slack. I used this financial burden placed on Bratton as character conflict that propels her to find the killer of not only the handsome young physician in her Mississippi community but patients as well."
Darden North practices medicine full-time as an obstetrician/gynecologist at Jackson Healthcare for Women, PA, and writes mysteries and medical thrillers. ‘Wiggle Room’ is his recently released fourth novel. His third medical thriller, ‘Fresh Frozen’, is in film development and received five national writing awards: the 2009 National Indie Excellence Awards -- Winner, Best Cover Design and Finalist, Regional Fiction; the 2009 San Francisco Book Festival – Honorable Mention in General Fiction; 2009 New Generation Indie Book Awards -- Finalist, Best Cover Design Fiction, and Finalist, Regional Fiction. North’s first two novels, ‘House Call’ and ‘Points of Origin’, have also received national book awards, most notably an IPPY for ‘Points of Origin.’ His first three books have been nominated in Fiction by the Mississippi Institute for Arts and Letters.
'Wiggle Room' has received high praise. Robert Dugoni, New York Times best-selling author of 'The Conviction', said "A rollercoaster ride of murder, intrigue, and plot twists, 'Wiggle Room' keeps (readers) turning the pages to the final, climactic finish." Carolyn Haines, author of 'Bonfire of The Vanities' called the book "An action-packed, edge-of-the-seat thriller."
“Financial incentives,” Dr. North continued, “for physicians to clock longer hours may vary between fixed-salaried physicians, such as hospitalists or employees of managed care entities, and those doctors in private-practice clinics or other fee-for-service arrangements. However, if those variables are factored in and do not explain any inequity in male verses female physician compensation packages, then the unfair salary differences must be corrected on a one-on-one basis.”
Darden North is available for media interviews, personal appearances and book signings. He can be contacted using the information below or by email at darden@dardennorth.com. All of his books are available at most online book retailers including Amazon and Barnes and Noble. More information is available at his website at http://www.DardenNorth.com.
About Dr. Darden North:
Darden North, MD, is a board-certified obstetrician/ gynecologist who grew up in the Mississippi Delta and now lives in Jackson where he practices medicine. A graduate of Ole Miss and the University of Mississippi School of Medicine and Medical Center, he is a certified DaVinci robotic surgeon and still delivers babies. North’s first novel, 'House Call' was awarded Finalist in Mystery/Suspense by the 2008 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. His second novel 'Points of Origin' was recognized in Southern Fiction by the 2007 Independent Publishers Book (IPPY) Awards. His third novel, 'Fresh Frozen' is in film development by Frank Vitolo and Scott Alvaraz. The screenplay adaptation of ‘Fresh Frozen’ is by Amy Taylor. The novel received Best Cover Design in the 2009 National Indie Excellence Awards and Finalist in Regional Fiction.
North recently presented at the Southern Expressions Conference on the construction of mysteries and thrillers and participated as a panelist in “Murder in the Magic City” (Birmingham, AL), "Author! Author! Celebration of the Written Word" (Shreveport LA), “Murder on the Menu” (Wetumpka, AL), and “Thriller Author Panel – 2008 SIBA Trade Show” (Mobile, AL).
Contact:
Dr. Darden North
darden@dardennorth.com
http://www.DardenNorth.com
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