Unhappiness With Healthcare

Why can't we make it better?

According to a recent survey, two thirds of Americans are not happy with their healthcare. Complaints are it costs too much, isn’t there when I need it, isn't friendly, and long waits for service and for follow-up are the rule.

This is all old stuff and so far most of us aren’t doing anything to make it better. “Us” means all of us - not just those pontificating poobahs in Washington, but healthcare providers, insurers, and, yes, users of the system.

For all of you who think a program run by the federal government is the answer, I invite you to reexamine that entity’s response to various recent natural disasters. And don’t blame it on the current administration. Bureaucrats of all stripes have been gumming up the works for decades.

Here are some solutions which do not require the services of a brain surgeon (or a lot of federal government employees who can’t seem to hand out water bottles properly) and don't cost much. They relate to primary care, not specialty care, because a good primary provider prevents overuse of specialists:

1. State or local entities could assist primary care medical offices in varying their office hours - why do we all open at nine AM and close at four PM, with no Saturday or Sunday hours? A little tax break or other incentive might go far toward improving availability of care. How about some relief from the malpractice nightmare? That's a huge obstacle between us and an acceptable product. More urgent care centers aren’t the answer. They are NOT the best source for primary care.

2. Use more nurse practitioners and physicians’ assistants for primary care. Patients usually like them better, and they are very capable of handling a lot of the background / routine office visits. In fact, since they aren’t so likely to be grousing over poor Medicare reimbursements, they take more time and are more pleasant than our average primary care physician.

3. Stop (or reduce) Medicare and other insurance payments for visits to uber- (woops! - super) clinics like Mayo and Scripps for annual physical examinations, management of hypertension, and of uncomplicated diabetes. People who use these places love to crow about their excellent care. Let them pay for it, and we’ll see how much they continue to crow. The good clinics should be for tough problems, not for bridge club and golf course bragging fodder.

4. Education. Education. Education. As in prevention. Prevention. PREVENTION!!! Start improving health literacy at the K level and continue throughout life. An educated patient, wise about prevention, uses healthcare resources less often and more wisely.

This is user-friendly and cheaper than building more ERs and ICUs.