[pachyderm]

This is an article mostly about the support one gets when having a terminal illness, but I think it might be relevant here too.

“I don’t know if there will ever be a health care system that affords the time to talk through this kind of despair,” Dr. Meier said during the hectic aftermath of her $500,000 award. “And it’s naïve optimism to think we can set public policy that will protect vulnerable patients” from end-of-life decisions made by doctors who spend “ten minutes per patient.”

...

“Everything important in health care has to do with the relationship, and that requires space and time,” Dr. Meier said. “We ask them what’s on their minds, what distresses them the most, what their hopes are, and then we work to move the barriers out of the way.”

http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/2...ing-is-sacred/

[KathyM]

I am truly concerned about our health care system. I worked in a hospital for 13 years, working with physicians who knew how to care for and about their patients. I watched the industry go from a business of caring for people to a business of caring for business. If physicians nowadays care about their patients as much as mine did back then, my heart goes out to them because their hands are tied. They have no time to do what they do best - care. Skill and expertise should be a given. What makes a doctor good is one who can maintain a sincere relationship with his/her patients. Unfortunately, that kind of caring can't be taught in medical school.

I am blessed with three wonderful doctors, even though they can't do anything to fix me. What makes them so special is the time they take to listen and fully comprehend my needs. They show their respect by not treating me like a child or making me jump through hoops. They show me they care by not rushing me out the door or turning their backs on me. If our conversations ever turned to assisted suicide, they would be the ONLY people I would trust in consultation because our relationship has proven to be solid.

[nightbird]

I agree... I am also fortunate with my specialists right now ... they even hug me!

I do understand overall though, how this industry has changed and how the changes have affected the practitioners.

From the family Dr. to the ER staff, from over-booking for the banking and investment opportunities, to the loss of authority on treatments needed for patients, medical doctors are either challenged by the system, or are engaged in it, sometimes to our detriment.

Wish we could get the insurance industry OUT of the approval market, where a profit matters when it comes to our health. It is a disgrace.

The more we fight back, and stand up to the system, the better we are. Afterall, sunshine is the best disinfectant! The light we shine on these practices, and how the profession lost it's way because of it, the more opportunities we have to clean it up ... and bring the Dr.s that truly are gifted and care, and are in it to heal and better our lives, more power to operate their practices with total concern for the patient, not what insurance companies need to make their quotas!

Peace and Support,
night

xoxox