 Alumni Interviews:
William Kridelbaugh, M.D.
"Patients ought to be treated and cared for
in the best possible environment."
William Kridelbaugh, M.D., undoubtedly is better known among his
peers in the American College of Surgeons (ACS) than by the public.
But whether they know it or not, millions of Americans have enjoyed
better and safer health care because of his lifelong service to
the profession.
In 1962, early in his career, Kridelbaugh helped establish a
voluntary mediation panel to hear malpractice complaints in New
Mexico, his
adopted state. Even then, the cost of adjudicating malpractice
cases alarmed many, and the panel succeeded in demonstrating a
practical, lower-cost alternative. In response to soaring malpractice
insurance costs, New Mexico made mediation mandatory in 1976.
"
I'm thoroughly convinced that letting the patient be heard
by a group resolves many, many issues to the benefit and satisfaction
of patients, at far less expense than going into a court of law," Kridelbaugh
said. "Many people who are aggrieved need to ventilate their
grievance, and the panel serves as a relatively inexpensive venue
for this."
Kridelbaugh stressed that patients still have access to the courts
no matter the outcome of mediation. But experience shows the panel's
findings often stop cases without merit from going forward.
Active for many years in surgical societies in the West and Southwest,
Kridelbaugh also rose to prominence in the ACS's New Mexico
chapter. In 1984, he became a regent of the ACS national organization,
and in 1988 joined the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare
Organizations. There he served in numerous capacities, including
terms chairing the organization's executive board and several
of its key committees.
"
I believe wholeheartedly in the accreditation of hospitals, and
I believe hospitals do this voluntarily in order to provide good
patient care," Kridelbaugh said. "Quality medical care
doesn't just happen - it requires the establishment of standards
that need to be adhered to by those who might rather not."
His national standing didn't detract from participation in
Albuquerque's medical community. He served in various offices
on the medical staffs of Presbyterian Hospital and the Bernalillo
County Indian Hospital, both in Albuquerque, and also held a clinical
faculty appointment at the University of New Mexico. Service awards
from the New Mexico Medical Society and Presbyterian Hospital indicate
his colleagues' esteem.
A native Iowan who lettered in gymnastics at the UI, Kridelbaugh
expressed gratitude for the opportunities he's had to influence
the quality of medical and surgical care. "Patients ought
to be treated and cared for in the best possible environment," he
said, "and I've dedicated my career to that."
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