US DOCTORS & THE HEALTH SERVICE
Obviously, I understand that we are living with a deadly global virus and doctors and scientists the world over are scrambling to cope with something so new and contagious. So it is totally unreasonable to expect definitive answers, and I certainly am not taking this opportunity to criticize them for this and the tremendous work they have done and continue to do for our benefit. I do feel somewhat disrespecting to write this at this time but it is all true!
What I am going to criticize is doctors' sense of entitlement and lack of courtesy in normal times. What is the point in making an appointment? Almost always, the doctor is late. Occasionally, he might have a good reason for being late. Never does he apologize. Why is his time so much more important than ours?
For several years, I have been suffering with a swollen left hand. It’s not killing me and I have learned to live with it after years of consultations with a ‘leading’ hand clinic. I have had multiple X-rays, MRI scans and CT scans. I have had physio, heat treatment, ice treatment and electricity treatment. Many many thousands of dollars later and absolutely no difference or improvement whatsoever. Sorry to criticize but, thankfully, I did not report a complicated brain injury or rare cancer - just a swollen hand. And they have all the equipment in the world to see exactly what’s is going on inside. So why haven’t I been cured, or even diagnosed? Frankly we are conned every time we enter a facility with an injury. Instead of actually being a doctor and examining the patient, we are sent for imaging after imaging at outrageous costs are often without any telling results.
I needed a 'female procedure'. A simple 15 minute procedure requiring local anesthesia as an out-patient. It was an elective procedure so I asked how much it would cost. I was told $700 and so I agreed. The moment I checked in, I was asked to pay. I asked how much and they confirmed, $700. I told them to bill me upon completion and not in advance. A few days later I received the invoice. $32,000 for the procedure but the fantastic news was that my insurance company had paid $27,600 on my behalf and so I only owed $4,400 before taking some deductible into account. LEGALIZED FRAUD in my opinion. There is no way that this procedure cost $32,000. There is no way that my insurance company paid $27,600 and if they did, why can the hospital possibly expect to get paid any more? In business, lying to your customers is called fraud! If the health service here was 10% as good as it thinks it is, it would be great! And in the meantime, the nurses who work the longest hours, in often unpleasant conditions and at the front line, get appallingly paid - OUTRAGEOUS!
The simple truths are that for reasons no one can justify, the cost of procedures in the USA are many times higher than for the identical procedures anywhere else in the world. Why? They are supposed to be ‘Health Centers’ not ‘Profit Centers’! Also, 30% of the nation is paying for 100% of the healthcare costs. Why? The cost of health insurance is at least ten times more expensive that the rest of the first world - why? Why are providers not chastised for claiming they can’t take individual plans when they are contracted to do so? As we know, there is no nationalized health care system here and unlikely to be one because it would be unaffordable but there needs to be some radical legislation that stops doctors working three and a half days per week for $1million salary per year and stops hospitals from outrageous billing practices. Oh, and another thing - the rule of law provides for the presumption of innocence until proven otherwise, so how on earth can a doctor / hospital simply report a patient to credit bureaus for non-payment of extortionate and unfair charges which affect our credit ratings, without ever proving or justifying their charges? OUTRAGEOUS! Yes, I know we sign something when we walk into the ER with our fingers in a bag of frozen peas but we are not best placed to renegotiate those contract terms at those precise moments!!!
My son has been misdiagnosed on multiple occasions by multiple ‘experts’ from Harvard, UCLA, Cedars, USC etc for what turned out to be a very simple condition.Why? On one occasion, he sliced his thumb and the bleeding wouldn’t stop so he had to go to the ER. After five hours of sitting in the waiting room with a blood soaked towel and passing out from loss of blood, he was finally seen by a nurse. The bleeding had stopped and stitches were deemed not necessary. A band-aid was applied and he was discharged with a bill for $575 - OUTRAGEOUS!
In closing, when I get sick, I am rushing to my doctor and praying he / she can help me but I want to be treated with respect, dignity and honestly. I don’t want to be kept waiting. I don’t want to be made to believe that his / her time is more valuable than mine and I don’t want to be ripped off. Currently, this is not the case and so I believe a major overhaul is required. And BTW, I know you worked very long hours and studied hard to become a doctor but I assure you that you didn’t work any harder than me and very many others. I thought you chose the world’s most admirable profession to help people first - not to line your pockets first.
Stay safe by staying home.
Wishing everyone great health.