Episode 32: When the System Looks Away — Doctors, Boards & the Broken Chain of Accountability

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Guest: Emily Brinkman, Esq. – Healthcare Attorney
Hosted by: Shannen Reyes-Aguayo & Nyleen Flores
IG: @shannensunfloweraguayo | @nyleenfloresfam

What happens when the system built to protect patients… looks the other way?

In this episode of Credentialing Chronicles, Shannen and Nyleen sit down with powerhouse healthcare attorney Emily Brinkman to dissect how dangerous doctors slip through the cracks — and why the people who could stop them, often don’t.

From sealed investigations and “no comment” statements to hospitals paralyzed by politics, Emily pulls back the curtain on a culture that prizes silence over safety. With 20+ years in the trenches — representing hospitals, medical staffs, and even the boards themselves — she exposes the cracks that start small and end in catastrophe.

💥 Inside this episode:

• The red-flag silence that keeps patients in the dark
• Confidentiality laws that protect the wrong side
• How retaliation and reputation shape medical decisions
• What MSPs can actually do when leadership won’t listen
• Why transparency is healthcare’s most powerful disinfectant

🎧 “When the System Looks Away” is a gripping look at accountability gone missing — and a reminder that in healthcare, silence isn’t neutral. It’s dangerous.

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Resources Mentioned:

Open Payments

openpaymentsdata.cms.gov

Verify your Nurses' Credentials:

https://www.nursys.com/

🔎 Verify Your Doctor’s Credentials

✔️ State-Specific Medical Board License Lookup:
Find your state’s board here:
https://www.fsmb.org/contact-a-state-medical-board/

✔️ Medicare Exclusions List (LEIE) – Check if your provider is federally excluded:
https://oig.hhs.gov/exclusions/exclusions_list.asp

✔️ Set Google Alerts on Your Doctor’s Name:
Create your own Google Alert here:
https://www.google.com/alerts

For Medical Staff Professional:

✔️ FSMB.org – Federation of State Medical Boards Physician Lookup:
https://www.fsmb.org/physician-license-lookup/

✔️ Hospital Websites:
Many hospitals have public directories listing credentialed medical staff. Look for a “Find a Doctor” or “Medical Staff Directory” page.

✔️ Set Google Alerts on Your Doctor’s Name:
Create your own Google Alert here:
https://www.google.com/alerts

🔎 Wanna know if your doctor is actually board certified?
Check for yourself right here:
👉 Verify a Plastic Surgeon

Because credentials do matter. 🩺✨

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