ramblings from a healthcare advocate
>> Saturday, September 26, 2009
i'm sure that many of you have noticed that my passion in all things "political" is healthcare. recently i was involved a conversation about healthcare being a "right" vs. a "privilege". i know that lots of people view quality healthcare as a privilege. but to me i feel it should be a right. maybe it falls under "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" from the declaration of independence. the inalienable rights of man. unfortunately this is just an opinion and not one i can make changes with.
being a nurse and a patient has allowed me to see both sides of the healthcare situation. and i certainly think there is a problem. maybe it's me, but i can't bear knowing a person is sick, in pain, and not able to get the treatment they need. as a whole i think our doctors are pretty good. but remember that in every graduating class of doctors, someone was at the bottom of every class. i definitely think that if you have an illness it behooves you to learn as much as you can about it. more than once have i had to lead my own doctors in a direction to help me. and i do think very highly of them. i've also encountered doctors that aren't so great. as i'm sure a lot of you have too.
as for insurance companies? to me they are a gamble...if you have insurance the company is gambling on you not becoming ill. if you don't have insurance you are gambling on not becoming ill. it's a shame that some premiums are so expensive. i can see where people may not be able to afford a major medical policy. one job i had offered a policy that would have cost $1400 a month for family coverage. of course i couldn't afford that. fortunately i was able to find a policy on my own. but even that was not cheap plus it had very high deductibles, no copay system. it was only helpful in the event of a catastrophic situation. during my catastrophic illness, i had a policy with a well known company which served me well at times and not so well at other times. i've had to fight and fight to get things covered, to get medications i need, etc. i haven't won all of the battles. but some i have.
i guess the point of this isn't so much about the political fight going on about healthcare reform is it? my advice as a nurse and patient is this...be your own advocate. fight for yourself! i have seen a friend-a fellow nurse and lymphoma patient-who would no longer be with us if she had not stood up and taken charge of her own care. thankfully she knew that she could do that and right now she's in complete remission!
some strongly believe that our politicians have no place in our healthcare. me? i'm not really sure where i stand. i do know we have a problem that needs to be fixed. but who should fix it? as for politicians, don't we elect them to serve us? it seems to me that fixing our broken system is a way that they could serve us. i do agree with many who feel that they should not be making our personal healthcare decisions for us. only we should be making those decisions. to me it is two entirely seperate issues... making business changes that will allow access to quality healthcare for everyone and those leaders making personal healthcare decisions for us.
please feel free to share your thoughts with me. is healthcare a right or a privilege? do you think we need to make changes to the system? who do you think should be making those changes?
being a nurse and a patient has allowed me to see both sides of the healthcare situation. and i certainly think there is a problem. maybe it's me, but i can't bear knowing a person is sick, in pain, and not able to get the treatment they need. as a whole i think our doctors are pretty good. but remember that in every graduating class of doctors, someone was at the bottom of every class. i definitely think that if you have an illness it behooves you to learn as much as you can about it. more than once have i had to lead my own doctors in a direction to help me. and i do think very highly of them. i've also encountered doctors that aren't so great. as i'm sure a lot of you have too.
as for insurance companies? to me they are a gamble...if you have insurance the company is gambling on you not becoming ill. if you don't have insurance you are gambling on not becoming ill. it's a shame that some premiums are so expensive. i can see where people may not be able to afford a major medical policy. one job i had offered a policy that would have cost $1400 a month for family coverage. of course i couldn't afford that. fortunately i was able to find a policy on my own. but even that was not cheap plus it had very high deductibles, no copay system. it was only helpful in the event of a catastrophic situation. during my catastrophic illness, i had a policy with a well known company which served me well at times and not so well at other times. i've had to fight and fight to get things covered, to get medications i need, etc. i haven't won all of the battles. but some i have.
i guess the point of this isn't so much about the political fight going on about healthcare reform is it? my advice as a nurse and patient is this...be your own advocate. fight for yourself! i have seen a friend-a fellow nurse and lymphoma patient-who would no longer be with us if she had not stood up and taken charge of her own care. thankfully she knew that she could do that and right now she's in complete remission!
some strongly believe that our politicians have no place in our healthcare. me? i'm not really sure where i stand. i do know we have a problem that needs to be fixed. but who should fix it? as for politicians, don't we elect them to serve us? it seems to me that fixing our broken system is a way that they could serve us. i do agree with many who feel that they should not be making our personal healthcare decisions for us. only we should be making those decisions. to me it is two entirely seperate issues... making business changes that will allow access to quality healthcare for everyone and those leaders making personal healthcare decisions for us.
please feel free to share your thoughts with me. is healthcare a right or a privilege? do you think we need to make changes to the system? who do you think should be making those changes?
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2 comments:
I love this post! As a Canadian I was watching the debate on the blog frog and I have to tell you their are some huge misconceptions! I have complete control over my healthcare. I'm married to an American and he was in shock and awe of how misinformed he was regarding our universal health care.
As Canadians we do feel it is a right.
There is a lot of fearmongering I think because a lot of what people are saying is just not true. I've offered to answer people's questions and no one will ask any because they are not educating themselves. Drives me crazy lol.
Anyway, great post and I'm looking forward to hearing more from you as you have a unique view of both sides of the health care system.
Healthcare is a personal responsibility.
It would no different then having a house full of pets. Its your personal responsibility to care for and nurture said animals.
As a grown adult we should not have need for our government to manage our personal responsibilities.
We start with "bailing out" multi million dollar companies, then move on to health care, education, where does it stop?
Does it stop just before the government officially declares you a slave?
If your government runs your private business, runs your healthcare, runs your child's school, are they a government or a nanny?
Why do we as Americans feel the need to have others run our lives?
Are we that pathetic?
Melinda,
Both my wife and I work in healthcare. I have seen our system failing and have learned from my Canuck brothers and sisters about theirs.
I think your system is much better for your people then our system is for our people.
The problem is that your system is by nature a socialist system.
America was founded as a Constitution Republic with a capitalist economy.
When you implement socialist change in a Constitutional Republic begin removing individual freedoms.
One of our great fore fathers was quoted as saying "Give me liberty or give me death!".
I guess what I am trying to say is the we are Americans, we do not think like the Canadians. We do not wish to become Canadian. Nothing against you guys and gals but we love our freedoms more then we need a nanny.
Universal healthcare is nothing more then another way of saying socialized healthcare.
Anything socialized is bad for this country, its history, and its future.
-Capitan America (Mr.H) .. ;)
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