While health care was a hot topic during previous presidential races, not much attention was paid to it in our current one. For the most part, many people think that Obamacare cannot continue as is: It costs too much, only a few insurances are now participating eliminating the market competition and laden with poor coverage with high deductibles. The world watched with bated breath as Donald Trump surprisingly won the …
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In her home country, everything is free. However, there is a catch — certain services are only available to those who pay for private insurance. Those who are on the “free plan” sometimes must wait months for procedures. My patient said she knew many people who died on the list waiting for procedures. So, which is better: Free rationed care where people may suffer consequences waiting in line or overpriced care …
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In our current health care system, doctors should get to decide what medication is prescribed. Typically, the patient and doctor decide what is the best, then the prescription gets sent off to the pharmacy. When the patient goes to pick up the prescription, often they find a different one instead or are told that their health insurance coverage is not covering that prescription. Instead of receiving the best medication for …
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Someone told me that the reason certain others don’t respect my advocacy on behalf of physicians more is simply that I am a woman. I am seeing this the more I speak up on issues facing doctors these days. It is now the 21st century, and there are a large number of women practicing medicine. In fact, the number of men and women entering medical school these days is nearly …
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As with most everyone else, I am watching the presidential race with something akin to amusement and horror alike. And as with many people, I feel that the U.S., as a nation, failed to find a suitable candidate for this presidential election. While there does need to be some test for fitness for office, I remain aghast at the medical speculations and facts being leaked about the presidential candidates. Reading this …
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I recently spent a week with the Floating Doctors in Bocas del Toro providing medical care to the Ngabe people in western Panama. In the jungle, there is little concern about prior authorizations or deductibles. There is also a critical lack of access to services that we have available in the U.S. The Ngabe people do not own much. In fact, some kids do not even have names.
In the Ngabe …
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I was seeing a patient who brought me a bag of supplements she bought from another specialist. I looked skeptical and then she pulled out the list of lab results the other doctor ordered on her. I reviewed the results with her and asked why all these tests were ordered in the first place, some of which I had never ordered in my life. She said she told the specialist …
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Around the U.S., millions of college age kids head back to start their fall semester in college. Their courses carefully selected months ago and their packing completed in a frenzy of activity. But, little thought is given to the most violent crime that happens on college campuses: rape and sexual abuse. Estimates show that approximately 25 percent of college women have been victims of rape. In fact, every 21 hours …
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My medical student found it difficult to get any information from a patient. When she presented the patient’s medical history to me, she was quite flustered and did not know what to say. I went with here to talk to the patient and met the same wall. It is not always an easy task finding the patient within.
Often, when what a patient is saying doesn’t make sense, or it is …
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As a long-distance truck driver, he did not have time to visit a doctor. In fact, the last time a doctor ever examined him was decades ago. When his leg started hurting, he ignored the pain for months before it got too severe and started interfering with his ability to drive. He showed up in my office in severe pain and limping. And while he tried to joke it off, …
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