Information and Critical Thinking for Your Health
(Snippets from the frontline) Medically wise, fiscally responsible She passed away last week. I didn’t know her, but for 6 years I would say hello as I visited patients at … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Age discrimination Some want to retire at 65, while others are forced, relegating many viable older adults to the trash heap. This may be age discrimination. … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) The moral gray zone After eating a steak dinner paid by a pharmaceutical company, is it acceptable for a doctor to prescribe their new marketed drug? … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Staving off suffering I have patents who are in pain. Some had catastrophic events like motor vehicle accidents, or major illness resulting in immobility. Many are … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) An effective doctor office visit for patients Business interests have taken over healthcare, so most physicians are on a tight schedule. For patients, time is not … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) An effective doctor office visit for physicians Healthcare has changed in the past decade, making the doctor office visit integral in sustaining patient medical care. Here … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Aging and losing one’s drivers license The restaurant was crowded, so we sat next to a couple while waiting. He noticed I was watching him tinker … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Medicare-for-all Medicare Part D is a government prescription plan enacted to help seniors pay for medication, but was written by pharmaceutical lobbyists. It is intentionally confusing … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Game plan: Business takeover of healthcare Time: 30 years ago. Strategy: Streamline care into business algorithms controlling medical decision-making; eliminate physician time to listen and ask … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) The 4-day rule If you are a Medicare patient and reach the 4th day of hospitalization, a plan is launched to jettison you out of the … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Doctors are detectives A patient was referred to the emergency room for a clot in his swollen left leg. The ER doctor and I agreed the … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Jumping through hoops Healthcare costs continue to escalate, and hand-in-hand is the rising price of drugs. Pharmaceutical companies justify expense at Congressional hearings, while behind the … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Choosing a hospice agency You can’t kick the tires, look under the hood, nor take a hospice agency for a test drive. Online, you can crowd-source, … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) How is hospice care paid? Hospice under Medicare costs about $20 billion per year. The criteria to admit a patient is blurred, leading to financial abuse. … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Aging and the palliative care white knight Aging: Moving slower, sleeping more, vision and hearing woes, weakened strength, imbalance, memory problems. Consequences: Less vacuuming, … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) The morality of targeting ICU Medicare patients Some hospitals target every Medicare patient admitted to the ICU pushing palliative and hospice care. The diagnosis doesn’t matter … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) They prey on medical ignorance She arrived in the emergency room with nausea and vomiting. Labs were drawn, and a CT scan of the abdomen was … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Lured into palliative and hospice care The difference between palliative and hospice care is confusing. (See graph below.) Palliative care patients selectively choose treatment to avoid … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Actively dying A few years ago, four of my patients died within 6 months. All were in their 90s, widowed, lived in their home, and chose … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Hospice care? Really? I was asked to evaluate a patient for hospice care by an agency. Arriving at her home, she was sweeping the porch as … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Dying from hospice Compassionate care must be provided at end-of-life minimizing pain and suffering. Inexperience, poor training, and greed by some hospice agencies though reveals an … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Hospice is a business Two decades ago was a scary time to fly as airplanes were crashing because some manufacturers and suppliers were using faulty nuts … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) “Your loved one is on life support” 40 years ago when I started in medicine, the term “life support” meant a patient was tenuously alive on … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Your doctor advocate is under attack When you are ill in the hospital, you must have someone who will be your advocate. Until recently, your doctor … Continue Reading →
(Snippets from the frontline) Elmer and Edie He was born and raised in Tennessee, married his high school sweetheart, fought in WWII on a battleship, and returned with a Purple … Continue Reading →