Thurday: July 12, 2007 Dear friend, Sicko System Unfortunately, this week I got to see America’s renowned health care system up close and personal. After enduring a pinched nerve in my shoulder for two weeks, I went to my physician, a neurologist, an acupuncturist and a chiropractor. My physician gave me a shot that made it worse and a prescription that didn’t help. He then referred me to a neurologist at Methodist Hospital. From the moment the neurologist saw me, I got the impression that I was interrupting his day. The fact that he took a phone call while he was examining me confirmed that fact. While my chiropractor was convinced it was in my shoulder, the “real doctor” decided it was in my neck. So, off I went across town to endure a very expensive long test … The result was it wasn’t in my neck. I then endured two more tests in the neurologist’s office and then was sent for another set of tests at Methodist Hospital. Arriving at 7:45 a.m. for what I was told was an 8:00 appointment, I learned that the appointment really wasn’t until 9:00, but they wanted to get the paperwork done so I didn’t keep the doctor waiting ... after all, it is all about the doctor not the patient in pain. So, for an hour I sat in most uncomfortable chairs and waited. I hadn’t been able to eat or drink anything since midnight, so I wasn’t able to take anything for pain. One poor fellow in the waiting room had to sit on the floor and lay his head on the uncomfortable chairs. You’d think with the millions they make they might buy some furniture to make the customers, who are in pain, more comfortable. You can be sure that the doctor’s chairs are comfortable. Ultimately, at 9:45, they finally did the first test. After it was done they rolled me, naked beneath a thin hospital gown, into the hall, where I lay and waited like an unused piece of equipment. By this point, I could have had a sip of water or taken my pain medication, but there was no one to ask. No one spoke to me as I lay on that hard bed staring up into a glaring florescent light. No one told me what was happening to me. No one told me how long I was going to wait. After about 30 minutes, someone, with a cheery voice as if I should be grateful to have spent thousands of dollars to be treated so, finally came to fetch me. After the test, I called for two days to get the results. Finally, at the end of the second day, my neurologist had his secretary call to tell me who I needed to see next. While I thanked her kindly, I also asked her to tell the neurologist and Methodist hospital what a poor excuse for humans they were. After all, I wouldn’t have treated my pet that way, and at least my veterinarian would have made time to call me and tell me what the problem was. My point in all of this is that I am sure I was treated exactly the way they treat everyone else. That is the sin of it. I have insurance, and, by the time it was all said and done, thousands of dollars were spent for very poor service and I am no better. At least with the alternative service that I fortunately can afford, my chiropractor and acupuncturist actually touched me, listened to me, looked me in the eye and treated me like a human rather than just another job to get done. Why am I whining about this? Because the medical system in this country will not change until we realize that WE are the customers. It is our bodies and our money. Doctors are not gods deigning to help us. WE pay THEM and have a right and responsibility to insist that we get what we pay for. There are great and compassionate people in the healthcare system, but the system itself is SICKO and most of us have experienced it. WE must stop being co-conspirators in this dysfunctional system and start to question/challenge everything. Otherwise, it will never change. The other thing we MUST do is tell our politicians that we no longer want to live in the only industrialized nation where healthcare is not a civil right. Just like every citizen deserves clean air and water, every citizen deserves to receive healthcare in order that they can be a healthy contributing member of society. Sincerely,
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