thesecondopinion provides free second opinions to adults diagnosed with cancer by providing a multidisciplinary format of four to seven physicians.
The heart of our program is the gift of service from our volunteer roster of Board Certified physicians representing eight medical disciplines and whose experience in cancer treatment practice is critical to our mission.
Requests for our service are increasing and we are seeking more physicians to volunteer on our Review Panels. We strongly encourage applications from pathologists, radiologists, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists and surgeons with oncology sub-specialties. Our volunteer physicians come from medical facilities all over the Bay Area.
How Easy Is It to Volunteer?
You can volunteer at the convenience of your calendar. While some physicians are able to participate as often as once a month, others attend a few times a year or only when a particular expertise is needed.
Panel sessions are currently held on Wednesdays or Fridays from 12:30 to 2:30 pm and we provide lunch. Three panels are held each month, and three patients are seen at each session, with four to seven physicians taking part.
We provide medical liability insurance.
Case materials are prepared by a Panel Chairs for review and sent to volunteer panelists well in advance of each session. On the panel day, records, radiology and pathology are jointly reviewed by the panel physicians, recommendations are made then discussed with patients and family members who are able to ask questions or express concerns.
We tape the session and the patient keeps the tape. A consultation letter is prepared by the Panel Chair and is sent to the treating physicians and to each patient as well.
This is a valuable and rewarding experience for doctors and patients alike. Whether we confirm what their own physicians have recommended, offer a different opinion, or provide additional suggestions relating to diagnosis or treatment, our patients are profoundly grateful for the information we provide. Our format also has the added value of providing physicians from diverse practices an opportunity to share their knowledge and experience with each other.
Volunteer physicians must have an active California license and be board-certified in your specialty. For more information about our requirements and how you can get involved, please contact the Medical Director at (415)775-9956 or email: mail@thesecondopinion.org.
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Most Often Asked Questions by Doctors
How Often Can I Volunteer? You can volunteer as often as you like. Generally we would like your help about every 6 weeks. We try to make this as easy as possible, we even provide Malpractice Insurance and lunch!
Who Else Volunteers? We attract physicians from all over the Bay Area. View a list of our current volunteer doctors
How is This Different from a Tumor Board? Tumor Boards are convened to answer questions from physicians in cancer care and rarely actually engage patients. Our process is convened to answer questions from patients and their family members; in fact, patients and family are in the room with the panel to facilitate this discussion.
What If I Want to Participate But Cannot Get There? The true value of our program is that patients get to speak directly to panel members. We realize that sometimes this is problematic and are developing the capacity to involve some disciplines from remote locations by using Skype or similar approaches.