Medical Care in the United States - What has Gone Wrong?

What is on my mind this week...

I am new to this, but I thought it would be fun to try my hand at blogging. I love to keep up with current events, entertainment news, and any news in general. I thought I might post some of my opinions about what is current and see other people’s replies. I welcome and invite replies to my thoughts and always love controversy. So here goes…

I am starting out with a rather serious topic. Like many others, I have been considering the state of medical care in the United States. There has been a lot of commentary about this issue. It is all over the news, it was a big topic during the elections, Michael Moore’s documentary Sicko covered this issue, Oprah and other talk shows discussed this subject. I guess my next thought is when is Obama going to do something about the health care crisis? Yes, there are proposals/plans, but when is something going to happen?

This is a very disturbing situation that has affected me personally. Everyone blames the insurance companies, but they are only one part of the problem. Does anyone consider the doctors and administration in hospitals? I have always thought it was interesting that doctors get paid regardless of whether they make an accurate diagnosis or solve the problem. If a service person performed a job, and did not solve the problem, they would have to correct it. We do not expect this for a much more important commodity, human life. I do not expect miracles, but doctors charge you for their time, and often waste the patient’s time unless you have a common cold. In other words, if it is an easy problem, they solve it. If the issue is more complex, good luck and hopefully you have a lot of money! I find it interesting that we put up with this nonsense. I have encountered doctors who do not even perform an examination and bill high level claims. Why should people put up with this?

In addition, doctors and hospitals are now calling patients consumers. This is reducing human life to a business. This benefits doctors and administration monetarily. However, the opposite is true for the “consumer.” In a typical business, the goal is customer satisfaction, not true at the doctor’s office or hospital. You have no say so, but the insurance is still billed and the consumers are responsible for what the insurance does not pay. Imagine what it is like if you have no insurance.

In this situation, many doctors or hospitals try to avoid treatment. I have a friend who has a heart condition. Before it was discovered, she had dizzy spells, her heart rate and blood pressure were erratic, and there were numerous other symptoms. She had no insurance and went to the ER trying to get help. They knew there was a problem, but would not admit her. The ER doctors suggested she see a specialist and make an appointment. The problem was she did not have the money for the initial $250-350 office visit that was expected up front. The credit system at the doctor’s office was not an option either. She was seeking employment after graduating college and was in between temp jobs at the time. She also could not afford to pay for tests that the doctor may order. She returned to the ER on several occasions with the same outcome. Finally, she fell down. At this point, she was admitted to the hospital by a family doctor, who ran tests and discovered the heart condition. She is medicated and okay physically. However, she went bankrupt due to medical bills. This is a young woman in her twenties, who never had a credit card. Yet, her credit rating is ruined. This is another wonderful system. If you pay your medical bills, you do not get a good credit rating, but if you cannot pay medical bills, your credit rating is ruined. Even so, I believe she is one of the lucky victims of our health care system. Many people have died due to negligence and insurance companies, doctors, and hospitals that refuse to treat patients without insurance or money.

Another friend had an uncle who was dying of cancer. The doctors were aware that the man was going to die, but the day before he died they were taking unnecessary tests. This is an example of hospitals making money off of people in a weakened state. This is a profession that used to be about people, but has turned into a business that takes advantage of people at their most vulnerable. We are told that hospitals, doctors, and scientists are making advances in healthcare, but are they really? We have advanced machines that can identify an illness, but are there advances in treatment? If anyone has statistics on this, I would love to know. For example, many people are dying of cancer today, as they did years ago. These are people with money, i.e. celebrities, the rich and famous, people who can pay. The medical profession, their advanced machines, and medicines are not curing the most serious of illnesses.

My grandmother died last year in a hospital after numerous operations for heart disease. The doctor suggested that these operations were the correct course of treatment. She had major heart surgery, which did not turn out as expected. The surgery was not successful and she had multiple organ failure. She hung on for days after the surgery with tubes in her mouth and unable to talk to her family. She was suffering and it was evident. She went into cardiac arrest twice and they revived her. The doctors put in a temporary pacemaker. This did not do any good. There was no improvement, but they scheduled surgery the next day to insert a permanent pacemaker. I asked the nurse what the difference was between the temporary and permanent pacemaker. She had to admit there was not a difference between the two, and really no point in putting in the permanent pacemaker. This is another example of the medical profession attempting to make money off of people in vulnerable positions. My grandmother died that day. She did not undergo the surgery, but the doctor’s intent was clear.

Not only do we have to put up with obvious attempts to con patients into unnecessary treatment in the doctor’s office or hospital, we are bombarded on the television or on billboards with ads for medication, hospitals, doctors, and hospice care. I don’t know about you, but I do not look forward to going to the doctor. I am tired of advertised medicine. I do not want to be manipulated with illness and guilt. I think the hospice advertisements are the worst and I feel terrible for people in this situation, who have to endure this advertising. At the time you are in this situation, you and or family will seek out treatment or a hospice for care; it does not need to be advertised.

There are so many examples of people being taken advantage of by the medical profession. I would like to hear other people’s stories. I wonder if others feel the same way or have the opposite opinion. I don’t know what the answer is to solve this problem. Many are afraid of socialized medicine. This may not be the best solution. Although, I think we need change. The cost of seeing a family doctor is outrageous. People should not have to beg for medical care or fear going to the doctor when they are sick. Have we forgotten that we are talking about human beings? Everything is not about money. Healthcare should be a basic human right, not a privilege. Doctors and hospitals should not consider themselves businesses. This is the wrong path. Some say doctors are experts and deserve to be paid to compensate for their knowledge. What advancements have they really made? I think this is largely a con. Yes, they have education and knowledge, but is one doctor any different than another? I think it is like any other job. There is an illness and a course of treatment. If the treatment works, great, if not, well, you know the outcome.

I think that there should be regulations enforced and practices monitored closely. Maybe there should be stricter limits on what can be charged. What about the fact that insurance is not made available to all? Preexisting medical conditions anyone? I also do not believe that Medicare patients should be turned away from a doctor’s office. I wonder what we are doing to people. What will the future look like? Really, how much worse can it get? Doctors are making life and death decisions, but not always in your favor. Often it is in favor of profit.

I guess that is enough of my soapbox. I could go on forever about this topic because it eats at me. Does anyone have any thoughts? Differences in opinion? I guess I would like to know how others feel about this situation. I wish I had the answers. I don’t. I just hope someone does something soon. Thanks for listening to my ramblings. Until next time…