Much has been written about decreasing government reimbursements causing healthcare cost increases. This in NOT about that. Others have written about insurance company greed causing increases, also not about that. Millions have voiced opinions about big Pharma causing the problem, this is not about that either. Those are all major problems, but we all know about them.
I am writing about a lesser known, and lesser effecting, aspect of the ever increasing cost of healthcare. But just because it has less of an affect, doesn't mean it has none. I am speaking about the problems caused by Joe and Jane consumer.
I am not talking here about preventive care, or even the propensity of some to ignore a simple problem until it requires emergency attention. (a stitch in time and all that.) No. Instead I am speaking to the same thing my brother spoke to in his commentary on bad driving; You are not more important than anyone else.
Ask anyone who works with scheduling, or outpatient services and they will tell the same set of stories. Jerk patient forgot appointment. Jerk patient was half an hour late and expected immediate service, jerk patient refuses to return phone calls when an unexpected event (like a Doctor being in an accident) causes a schedule change.
The end result is that everyone else scheduled that day suffers. Even if the person is bumped to the end of the line it results in the same end product. OVERTIME. Yes, you may be surprised to learn that those of us in the hospital biz. expect a paycheck. It is a labor of love, but also one that needs to feed our families. Since we do draw a paycheck, the hospital is subject to the same labor laws as any other business. That means when we work overtime, we get paid time and a half. Do you think medicare and insurance companies reimburse at a higher rate when that happens? Of course not. Remember, a hospital is like a farm, a lot of money moves through it, precious little stays in it.
So, be a decent human being. Keep your appointments. If you can't, call. We'll be happy to reschedule you. Take care of small problems before they become big. You wouldn't let a hole in your roof go until the house fell down. And you wouldn't expect homeowner's insurance to pay for the house if you did. But in general, do your part. Even if we had full on Government run care, taxes would go up to cover ignorant behavior like this. So it holds true no matter what.
Big Pharma, yeah, they are a problem that needs fixing. So is insurance. So part of you being a good person is to go vote too. I'm not telling you who to vote for, but I will demand that instead of just punching a ticket, that you research the voting records of those running. They speak volumes.
Theodore Roosevelt said it best: "A vote is like a rifle: its usefulness depends upon the character of the user."
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Keep it clean and well thought out.