Health Care Crisis
The Health Care Crisis – Does Anyone Really Know What It Is About Or Care?
Author: Linda K. Christy, D.C.
A recent visit to a medical clinic elicited such a visceral response within me, that it started me thinking about the subject of the health care crisis. After all, at least once a week we hear something on the news regarding the health care crisis, yet rarely are there ever any details exposed.
First, let me share a recent experience I had when seeking medical services for my husband, who had recently experienced what I would describe as a moderate-to-severe persistent flu-like condition.
We do not have a primary physician as we are new to the area, so I got the Yellow Pages out, and proceeded to contact a health care group. It took several calls before I could find anyone with an available office-call opening. The medical office we went to had no openings either, however the receptionist informed me that they accepted walk-in patients. I questioned the length of time we would be waiting in the office, and the receptionist informed me that if we came in after 1 P.M. it should not be that long before we could be seen between scheduled patient appointments.
We arrived at the clinic about 1:05 P.M. and walked directly to the walk-in window to sign in. The young lady ( I would like to say the young lady was the receptionist, however she had no name tag on, nor did she introduce herself to us) that was at the window greeted us with, “What type of insurance do you have?” My husband replied, “ I am a cash patient.”The young lady ask if we had an appointment. My husband replied, “No, I am a walk-in, and a new patient.” We were instructed to be seated until she finished handling the paper work from the previous walk-in.
As we sat there waiting I could not help but observe the number of elderly patients seeking care. A young woman in scrubs came out of the door that lead back to the patient exam rooms, and called “Maude.” I watched this elderly woman who’s age I would guess to be late 70s early 80s, rise from the chair, grabbing her belongings, and head toward the woman in the scrubs. I had two thoughts run from my head as I watched this situation occur: (1) what was the position of the young woman in the scrubs, and (2) why did she not address “Maude” by “Mrs.” instead of by her first name, which would have been more respectful to this elderly patient.
A lady at the walk-in window then called my husband’s name, and he went to the window to obtain the paper work with instructions on completing the forms. We were rather amazed at that lack of paper work requested considering he was a new patient. He had to write the reason for the office visit which was only a quarter of a page, then the second page requested the usual information such as name, address, Social Security, emergency contact person, phone numbers, employer, and insurance information. He returned the paper work, and was told to be seated, which we were for approximately 2 ½ hours.
At one point, a woman in scrubs came out and called for “William.” My husband proceeded to stand and walk toward the woman as another man also stood and proceeded in the same direction. Then she announced a last name, and my husband realized it was not his turn.
As we sat there my husband leaned over to me, and asked, “Have you notice all the girls behind the front desk are not wearing any identification tags, so how do we know who they are and what they do?” I responded, “Maybe it is a game, and we are supposed to guess who they are / what they do.”
As we sat there patiently waiting and watching the other health care consumers a few elderly women obviously familiar with one another happen to meet up, and began engaging in conversation. They spoke rather loudly so I did not feel as if I was eaves dropping.
They began sharing what their scheduled appointments were about. One of the elderly ladies announced loudly she was there for a mammogram, and I could not help but think what could her medical history be that at her age she would still have to endure that procedure. Another woman spoke of the change in three of her four prescriptions, then seemed to lose interest in any of the conversation going on around her as she stared out through the glass windows.
Finally, my husband was called by a young woman in scrubs, and we proceeded back to an exam room after they weighed him. In the exam room the young woman took his temperature, blood pressure, and a very brief past medical history requesting, “Are you on any prescription drugs or have you had any surgeries I should know about?” My husband responded to her questions, then she proceeded to walk out informing us that the doctor would be there shortly.
We sat in the exam room for about 20 minutes waiting for the doctor. He enter the room, shook our hands, and proceeded to ask my husband questions. Luckily, his name was on the lab coat so we knew how to address him. The doctor did a brief exam then informed my husband that there was a flu going around that was of a gastroenteritis in nature, and the symptoms lasted from 5 to 7 days. He wrote two prescriptions one an anti diarrheal, the other an anti nausea (which nausea was not a symptom), and stated,
“Keep hydrated with sports drinks / water, and if the symptoms persist over the next couple of days to return to the clinic for lab work.”
As we proceeded to the car we both looked at one another, and stated, “If we had known the flu lasted 5 to 7 days, we would have just continued what we were doing, and ridden it out.”
It seems as though many medical facilities these days are owned by conglomerates, and the physicians / staff have no vested interest. Unfortunately, this lack of interest tends to be interpreted by health care consumers as revenue generating facilities, as opposed to health care facilities. It makes me wonder, what if the 42 million citizens who don’t have health care coverage suddenly did.
Then there is the issue with insurance carriers utilizing a variety of tactics to deny reimbursing claims, making it more difficult on the health care providers to sustain an independent practice. It appears that most medical providers are groups of doctors. It is rare to find an independent practitioner these days, much less if a practitioner wanted a private practice could they sustain themselves in this present-day climate of health care.
Health care providers are not exempt from contributing to the health care crisis when they order expensive medically unnecessary diagnostic testing or perform questionable surgical procedures negating the oath they took to above all “First,do no harm.”
As health care consumers, we all need to play an active role in our health. After all, we only get this one body, and we should be masters of our own ship. Do not be intimidated to question a procedure or course of treatment. The more you understand what your treatment plan is intended to do, the more you can be aware of what is occurring within your body, and can prevent further crises if the course of treatment initiated is not effective.
In conclusion, there are many good medical facilities, health care providers, and insurance carriers out there. I truly believe there is a solution to the health care crisis. I just think we need to be clear about what the actual issues are that are creating the crisis, and clearly define the issues so that we can initiate the steps to resolving this crisis.
