Recent (much more
personal) events have made me even less [confident] about our American
healthcare system, and after the [Dallas Ebola debacle], methinks there is good
reason for us all to become greatly concerned.
For we witnessed a complete breakdown in the system, with human error
playing a very large part.
You see (hopefully)
a man with Ebola from Liberia was treated and released (TWICE!) for the wrong
thing, and no one was able to connect the dots until after it was too
late. This is the very same system that
we are depending upon to correctly diagnose and properly treat our own somewhat
mundane conditions in comparison to Ebola, such as various cancers and impending
organ failures.
No, not all of the
blame should rest at the feet of administrative oversight. Although, I can see where much improvement
needs to be made in the distribution and use of now readily available
information. For a doctor no longer
needs to pour over medical journals in his office to help diagnose a condition
when the sum-total of all medical knowledge can be accessed over the internet with
the click or two of a mouse, but getting more doctors to do this is a problem.
What is much more
of a problem is staffing in the lower ranks.
For the vast majority of those under the age of 30 could not care less
about any problem not biting them on the buttocks at the time, and among them,
far too many have no idea they are actually being bitten.
Yeah, it may very
well be that Arlynda is right about me getting older and crankier by the
second, but let us take the Dallas Ebola debacle for an example. For the man told the people at the hospital
that he had just flown to the area from Liberia, and no one at the admissions
desk sounded the alarm.
Another much more
personal example to me is the recent “fun” we have been having with our
pharmacy. For one of the main reasons
why we are with them is that they have a program where all of one’s continuing prescriptions
are made possible to be picked up at the same time. This is an extremely valuable service to me
since I am the one who fills my wife’s and her mother’s pill boxes each month,
and having all of the different medications available when the time comes saves
me a lot of extra work. Well, all was
going splendidly until the one in charge of their Sync Program decided to go
off and have a baby, and this left a blithering idiot to fill her shoes.
Please, I do not
mean to sound so mean, but it blew the blithering idiot’s mind that I expected
her to call doctors back when they (or their office) were failing to refill a
prescription on time, which was resulting in half of the medications being
ready. No, I am not kidding a bit about
that, and she is a full-fledged pharmacist.
If you still have
your doubts, please take the following commercial into consideration. For it was made to primarily appeal to those
under 30, and these are the people taking your medical information, checking
your vitals, filling your prescriptions and processing the data. Oh, and this is not just in our healthcare
system, neither.
Be assured that I
know, which goes far beyond merely believing, that our Heavenly Father truly is
in full control of all that happens, and that even the apparently really bad
things are for His glory and our ultimate good—even if neither one is made
manifest anytime soon from our perspective.
The thing is, however, that He is not going to ease the overall pressure
until enough want to truly have a very close and personal relationship with Him
while they can in this world, and the hardness of far too many hearts is indeed
exceedingly great.
‘Tis in the absence
of any assurances that I will not have to endure much more suffering in this
world where all of those exceedingly hard hearts (naturally) make me want to panic. How about yourself? Are you really tough
enough to take what is clearly upon the horizon?
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I don't feel tough enough, but I'm taking this scripture at its Word: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Being able to do all things and endure doesn't really have to be easy. Just possible, right? I'm a bit of a wimp when it comes to pain and discomfort, misery and trauma, etc., but if just know it won't completely destroy me, I'll have to be ok with it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, my dear Penny!!! There was one day years ago, while I was still out on the truck and trying to make a drop in Jacksonville, Florida before emptying out in Tampa, when everything was going wrong. Being who I naturally am, I was next to hysterics when I screamed out-loud as I drove down the highway, "WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE SO HARD?" Almost immediately, I "heard" inside of my mind, "After all, why do you think it is called suffering?" Well, that cracked me plumb up, and I wound up obtaining a very special memory from a very bad day (from my perspective). I would still rather not have to endure such, though. (LOL?)
DeleteOh, and He just instructed me to point out that you have exactly the right kind of attitude and great will be the reward of those like you, who are willing to humbly take what He sends their way, come Judgment Day. When it comes to people like me, His grace is sufficient, thankfully. Of course, since even our attitudes are by His hand, all of the glory goes to Him, but we are given a choice of where we want the line drawn between where He ends and we begin in ourselves. Blessed are those who do not want any of "themselves" left intact--be assured.
Tough enough? Hard to say but since I don't have much choice I'll deal with it all one day at a time. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, my dear Ann!!! I hear you.
DeleteI've been afraid of Ebola for years. It wasn't an issue in an age when people died before they could leave the jungle where they'd contracted it, but modern air travel has now put us all at risk. I'm truly concerned about the spread of this, as of yet, incurable disease.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, my dear Stephen!!! I had Ebola mixed up with the flesh-eating disease out of Africa (I think) that I do not know the actual name of until my wife set me straight...again. Sigh.
DeleteSpeaking of spreading disease, how has enterovirus 68 spread almost completely across the country so fast? According to the last news report I remember, I think only Kentucky has not had a reported case yet in the lower 48, and I figure this is because of them just not admitting to it.
Jerry, I am a nurse and I share your concerns. I can tell you that there are far too many government rules and regulations that end up taking more time from the patient because of charting and procedures. Then there are the insurance companies that tell us what can be prescribed and what procedures can be done. I've been a nurse for 32 years and although some things have changed for the better, a lot is getting worse. As you said - I'm so thankful to know that God is in control!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, my dear Mari!!! Yes, I can see where those things make it all the more worse. My wife was a nurse years ago and worked as a claims processor for United Healthcare, and she said that HIPAA rules keeps a lot of information from getting to where it is needed as quickly as it could. Oh, and I suspect that the reason why most (if not all) of the doctors I have told that I have felt like I have been suffering from a fairly severe case of the flu every second of every day since 1993 act like I did not say a thing is on account of being told to not pursue diagnosis that the insurance companies will not pay for. Still, there are an awful lot in the medical profession who are only there to collect a paycheck and will only do what is absolutely necessary to keep getting paid when I think the medical field should be much more of a calling than just a job.
DeleteI am steadily losing faith in the medical field. From doctors, to pharmacists, to hospitals and their staff. The ability to diagnose (correctly), the 'rules' that apply that make absolutely no sense, the medical schemes who change their benefits yearly to suit themselves (and their pockets of course), is becoming a frustration I no longer feel like dealing with. Only option IS to stay healthy, if that were possible.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, my dear Shadow!!! Yes, that would be a very good plan. (LOL--to keep from crying?)
DeleteJerry, I agree. The situation in our country at this very moment is not a comforting one. I am not at all reassured that anyone really knows what to do. I see a huge void of common sense running rampant at the moment and no one stepping up at saying so.
ReplyDeleteBlessings, Catherine
Thanks for stopping by, my dear Catherine!!! Methinks we should adopt Shadow's plan and just not get sick. (LOL?)
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