Posts by melloworca6

Andrew Wood5 said:So, you're saying that front desk staff aren't even medical professionals, like nurses or technicians?

No, they aren't medical pros. They’re administrators who really should have backgrounds in business or office management, but in this country, anything goes. You end up hiring just about anyone for those roles.

Honestly, I don't care. I just want them to show some basic decency if I'm being decent to them. I haven't said anything yet, but next time? I'm not staying quiet.

Alright people, what exactly were they supposed to do? Tell her, "Hey, you're being an idiot, so we're just not going to bother trying to save you"?

She isn't the first, and she certainly won't be the last, to pull something this stupid. When someone gets drunk or high behind the wheel and slams into a wall, what's the protocol then? What do we do with people like that?

There are endless examples if you look for them. If we start judging who deserves medical care based on their own screw-ups, we’ll end up being worse than the US.

Maria Gomez4 Asks:

That already exists! If you smoke, drink, or carry too much extra weight, you’re going to pay more for your health insurance. Of course, that isn't how things work here in America.
I’m not sure that’s really the right way to look at it. To me, that lady who loves mushrooms is just a reminder that in America, we actually do some incredibly advanced, high-level work that costs a fortune. In her case, her life was saved, and nobody blinked at the price tag. She received the kind of care you'd only find in a handful of places on this planet.

Anyway... since we've already started wading into all this ethical territory: here's one for you.
It’s the same hospital; a young woman attempted suicide and took a pill that completely wrecked her liver. Since she didn't die instantly—meaning they actually managed to start life-saving measures in time—they decided to go ahead with a liver transplant. For that kind of poisoning, it’s the only way to fix it, and it's a total emergency procedure.
No... did that 17-year-old—I think that was her age—actually deserve a life-saving organ? She attempted suicide, after all. Because of her, someone else didn't get that organ.

Look, if we're going by that logic, half the population shouldn't even have health insurance unless they're willing to pay through the nose for it. I mean, come on. Some people are just plain stupid.

And what about the hypochondriacs? Honestly, it drives me insane when I realize someone is just a total hypochondriac—getting every single damn test and specialist referral handed to them on a silver platter, only for it to turn out that absolutely everything is perfectly fine.

I know that stuff already exists overseas, and honestly, I’m fine with that. If you’re making a conscious choice to do something you know is going to wreck your health, then go ahead—just be prepared to pay a higher premium on your State Farm policy.

Maria Gomez4 said:I suppose you might be surprised by just how much your doctor actually knows; perhaps you should try asking her.

I asked her, and honestly, there are things she just doesn't get. I’ve gone through this mountain of immunological data myself, and while she has a vague idea of what's going on, if you actually sat her down and asked, "Hey, what does this elevated antibody level actually mean?" she wouldn't have a clue. But look, I get it. That's exactly why specialists exist. You go to the expert when you need someone to actually break down the details.

My immunologist looked at my labs—considering everything I’ve had removed and all those elevated markers they explained to me—and pointed out just one thing that was seriously high: the ANF. As for the rest of the antibodies? Honestly, I didn't have a clue what any of them actually did until I started doing some digging online. There are still several on my list where I don't have the slightest idea what they even mean.

Samuel Morgan40 said:

Kyle Lee7 Asks:
Here is my definitive ranking:
Regarding Milinović and the whole IVF situation—it’s a complicated mess, I suppose. There’s a lot to unpack there, especially when you consider how much policy shifts can impact something as personal as fertility treatments. It feels like one of those issues where the bureaucracy moves much slower than the actual needs of the people involved. Maybe it's just my take, but the intersection of government oversight and medical advancement always seems to create this strange, awkward friction.
So, I suppose we’re back to the topic of Milinović and this whole business regarding the merger of hospitals—as if we haven't heard enough about it already. It feels like one of those bureaucratic maneuvers that sounds perfectly logical on a spreadsheet in some high-rise office, yet leaves everyone else wondering how exactly it's supposed to work in practice. I guess there's a certain level of administrative efficiency they're chasing, though, in my opinion, it often feels more like a way to consolidate power than to actually improve patient care. Maybe it will streamline things, maybe it won't—it's hard to say given how these large-scale reorganizations usually play out in the US healthcare system. But then again, that's the nature of dealing with the Department of Health and Human Services, isn't it? Everything is always moving, shifting, and merging, while the actual people on the ground are just left trying to figure out where their appointments went.
Regarding Milinović and Vuk Vrhovec—it’s an interesting dynamic to observe, I suppose. There is a certain way they operate that warrants a bit more scrutiny than most people seem willing to give. It isn't just about their individual roles, but how they seem to navigate the complexities of the current administration—though, one might argue, whether they are actually navigating it or simply being carried along by it remains a point of debate. I guess you could say there's a distinct lack of transparency in how they coordinate, which, given the circumstances, shouldn't really come as a surprise to anyone paying close attention. Maybe it's just my cynical view, but it feels like a carefully choreographed dance designed to keep the status quo intact while avoiding any real accountability.
I need number 4. control Specialist (as a chronic patient)— The standard procedure—if you want to follow the manual—is to start with your primary care physician to get the referral, then handle the scheduling, followed by the actual exam, and finally, circling back to the doctor once the results are in. General practitioners handing out prescriptions and referrals for specialist follow-ups—I mean, seriously, why? It’s almost as if they assume I can't just go to the specialist for my very first appointment and then have them handle all the subsequent orders for whatever *they* decide I need. It seems like an unnecessary extra step, doesn't it?
5. scenario where things just sort of... unfold. It seems like they’re just handing out prescriptions by the pound at the outpatient clinics these days—as if medication were some kind of bulk commodity you'd pick up at a wholesale club. I guess we've reached a point where the sheer volume being written is almost absurd.It’s a question of what should be covered and what shouldn't—especially when you consider the reality that people suffering from chronic or severe illnesses are left constantly fearing whether their expensive medication will actually be approved. I mean, why can't people just pay out of pocket for their own nasal sprays or a simple course of antibiotics (which, let's face it, are overprescribed anyway)? It seems like a massive oversight to have some people worrying about minor things while others are genuinely terrified for their very lives.
6. It seems we have encountered a particular breed of gynecologists—those who don't see any reason to bother sending women in for routine swabs. I suppose, from their perspective, if there isn't an immediate, screaming symptom, why go through the trouble? It’s a rather dismissive approach, if you ask me. They seem to operate under the assumption that if everything looks fine on the surface, there's no need for deeper investigation—which, frankly, feels like a bit of a gamble when it comes to preventative care. It’s almost as if they believe skipping these basic screenings won't make a difference in the long run, though medical consensus would suggest otherwise. Perhaps they just prefer the path of least resistance.It isn't just about that one specific screening test—it’s more than that. At least once.It’s not just about the period before pregnancy, either.
If I’m on a long-term treatment plan—meaning I need the exact same prescription and the exact same referral sent over every single month—how does that actually work? I can’t help but wonder why I’m forced to trek down to my primary care physician every single month just to sit there and wait for two hours—as if they couldn't simply issue a standing prescription or some sort of semi-permanent order. It seems like an incredibly inefficient way to manage healthcare, though I suppose that's just how things work sometimes.
8. The sheer audacity of it all—honestly, I’m almost impressed by the nerve required to pull that off. It’s one thing to be wrong, but to be aggressively, unapologetically incorrect? That takes a special kind of confidence. I suppose some people just wake up and decide that basic etiquette is optional. The sheer laziness exhibited by certain segments of the medical staff—it’s becoming hard to ignore. I suppose one could argue that burnout is a factor, but there comes a point where "exhaustion" starts looking more like a blatant lack of professional initiative. It’s a frustrating reality to witness. Nurses—it’s a profession that deserves a much more nuanced discussion than what we usually get in the media. I suppose, if one were to look at it objectively, the role is far more complex than just "helping doctors." It’s a massive, multifaceted pillar of the American healthcare system, though people rarely seem to grasp the sheer weight of the responsibility involved. I mean, you have the frontline staff at places like the Mayo Clinic dealing with life-or-death decisions every single shift, while others are managing the bureaucratic labyrinth of Medicare. It isn't just about administering medication—though, given how many protocols there are now, that alone is a logistical nightmare—it's about being the primary observer of a patient's decline or recovery. They are the ones who actually notice when a patient's vitals start trending in the wrong direction before the monitors even catch up. Then again, maybe I’m being too idealistic. There is also the burnout factor—which, let’s be honest, is rampant across the country right now—and the systemic pressures from the Department of Health and Human Services that leave many feeling like they're just cogs in a very large, very expensive machine. It’s a delicate balance between clinical expertise and emotional endurance, and I guess most people only see the surface level of that struggle. It’s honestly laughable—you walk up to the service counters and there’s already a massive line snaking out toward the entrance, all because they only have one person actually working the desk. Meanwhile, the other two employees are apparently too busy selling trash bags to handle a single customer. It’s just ridiculous.
9. The current standard of hygiene—not to mention the general quality of what we’re actually putting into our bodies—is, frankly, a bit questionable. I suppose one could argue that standards have shifted, but if you look closely at the data, there's a noticeable decline. It feels like we've traded nutritional density for convenience, and in the process, lost a significant amount of oversight regarding sanitary protocols. I mean, maybe I'm being overly cynical, but when you consider the sheer volume of processed goods hitting the shelves, it makes you wonder just how much care is actually being taken behind the scenes. It's all quite a mess, really. The state of the facilities in these hospitals is honestly appalling—we're talking filthy, foul-smelling restrooms and cafeteria food that’s essentially unidentifiable mush. It’s completely inadequate for anything, let alone providing the kind of targeted nutrition that actual patients need to recover.

I find myself in complete agreement with all of this—though I’d like to zoom in specifically on those last two points. In my view, they are areas where we absolutely can, and frankly *must*, take action. To illustrate my point, I’ll touch on a few things regarding my neck of the woods—St. Louis.

1. Surface-level thinking and a total lack of interest in actually fixing anything—it’s becoming quite a pattern, isn't it? There seems to be this pervasive sense of apathy toward resolving core issues; instead, we get this shallow, performative approach that barely scratches the surface. It’s almost as if the goal isn't to find a solution, but merely to manage the appearance of having tried. I guess we shouldn't be surprised, given how often we see this kind of half-hearted effort from those in charge, but it remains incredibly frustrating. Maybe if people actually cared about the underlying mechanics of these problems—rather than just treating the symptoms—we wouldn't be stuck in this endless loop of mediocrity. We are all painfully aware of the reality that doctors are absolutely overwhelmed with patients—so much so that you often find yourself walking out of the exam room almost as quickly as you walked in. We’ve essentially been reduced to mere numbers on a conveyor belt. The idea of actually being able to ask questions and receive high-quality, satisfying answers is becoming a rare luxury, particularly when dealing with most specialists. Some practitioners don't even bother making eye contact; they just mutter under their breath, tossing out the shortest possible sentences just to get you out the door. Others seem content to offer nothing more than a vague, educated guess. I’ve personally experienced—both with myself and within my own family—how rushed, superficial examinations can lead to incorrect diagnoses that were nearly fatal. This happens precisely because the doctor is glancing at a single lymph node for maybe sixty seconds before deciding, "Well, if you want surgery in four months, we can do that, since it's just a simple adenoma," without any real investigation into whether it might actually be something malignant. It's all happening because there are seventy-eight other people waiting in the hallway for their turn.

2. The sheer audacity of it all—honestly, I’m almost impressed by the nerve required to pull that off. It’s one thing to be misguided, but to be this brazenly disrespectful? That’s a whole different level of entitlement, I suppose. Maybe some people just wake up and decide that basic decency is optional, though I can't say I find it particularly charming. When I think about this, my mind goes straight to the nursing staff at the hospital first—everyone else follows. I’m not trying to generalize here, but let’s be honest: you encounter all kinds, including some truly frustrated, high-strung types. I realize they see just about everything in that environment, but at the end of the day, they chose this profession. I know, I know—the working conditions aren't exactly a dream, but it's not like they need to be the center of the universe. I have met some lovely nurses, truly, but then there is the treatment of patients. It’s the way they deliver food—literally tossing a bowl of soup at you so it spills everywhere while you’re stuck in bed unable to move—it leaves you wondering how anyone could function like that. Then there’s the issue of leaving wet, soiled linens untouched for hours, sometimes even days; throwing clothes and slippers around; snapping at people over the smallest trivialities; and, frankly, bullying the elderly and the infirm. There are times when you beg for help and they simply won't come, leaving your fellow "roommates"—who are just as sick as you are—to step in and assist instead. And don't even get me started on the contradictory "orders"—one nurse tells you one thing, another says something completely different, and then the doctor comes along and says something else entirely. I remember being absolutely appalled by the staff in the ICU once. They had the window to the balcony open, and there they were, standing right by it, puffing away on cigarette after cigarette, while patients were actually bringing them chocolate as gifts. It was surreal. No matter which medical spa or facility a patient visits, everyone acts shocked when they see what the patients look like, yet they give zero credit to the actual people suffering.

3. (un)hygiene — honestly, the hospital is probably the absolute best place to pick up infections, especially for new mothers. Given how our healthcare system operates, and since gynecologists seem to think a Pap smear is somehow the Alpha and Omega—instead of actually sending patients for proper swabs—things frequently get passed around, complications arise, and so on. To make matters worse, I’ve personally witnessed a situation in a OB/GYN office where the sanitary paper on the exam table wasn't even changed; they’d just leave it for every 5 or 6 patients until it literally started falling apart or someone finally noticed and demanded a change. The prevailing philosophy seems to be "APP"—as in, "if it works, it works"—because apparently, we have to cut costs everywhere. You can literally see imprints on the paper. Here’s a fresh one for you: a guy went in for a minor procedure on his penis, ran into a staff member in charge of shaving with a razor, and the guy says to him, "Oh, since you're already here, I'll go ahead and grab a fresh razor for you." Is there anything else I need to say about that? And don't even get me started on the bathrooms. That’s a whole other saga. Maintenance and cleaning? Zero. Your entire day is derailed just because you have to use the restroom.

4. Food — look, I’m not expecting a gourmet spread or a multi-course meal served with French precision, but you cannot serve patients this kind of garbage. Instead of providing actual energy or vitamins, it just leaves you starving and feeling empty. Honestly, if you weigh under 100 pounds, there's no point in even checking into a hospital. We're talking soup that is essentially just murky, foul-smelling water (boiled in massive vats with a few bones) with three tiny, barely visible bits of pepper floating in it. Apple compote that is really just water with a faint hint of apple. Meat that is tougher than a work boot—I try to imagine the people who don't even have their own teeth left trying to eat it—instant mashed potatoes from a packet, and salad that was probably made ages ago. They are cutting corners everywhere, while I suspect the good stuff gets sent home, since it's perfectly normal nowadays for people to cook a full meal at home and bring it to their loved ones in the hospital.

I'm referring specifically to the local VA hospital, where some older folks might remember how things used to be at the old Veterans Hospital (which is now the Mayo Clinic). Of course, it varies by department and facility—this doesn't apply to pediatric wards, for instance—but back at the old VA, the food was actually decent and incomparable to today's "service." Some might say I’m dissatisfied with every little detail... well, yes, I am. That's what happens when you get burned multiple times in all the wrong places, and health is, after all, the most important thing in the world! Am I satisfied overall? NO, not even slightly!
We'll just have to wait and see how this new electronic health record system functions. Given our wonderful domestic conditions, I don't have a great feeling about it.

As for gynecologists, I’ve already repeated myself enough times on a related subforum, so I don't wish to waste another word on them.

My mind immediately goes to the administrative staff. The attitude those women have is just unbelievable. I’ve always been polite and decent; honestly, I’ve never walked into a place and snapped at someone just because I was having a bad day. It’s beyond me how someone can be that rude for absolutely no reason. You show up and ask a simple, standard question—which is literally what those people behind the desk are there for—and they practically tell you to get lost.

Like, sorry, I feel bad that you're having a rough day, or that you're stressed out, or that your job sucks... but I don't care. If I come in asking something nicely, I expect a nice response back. If I were being rude and someone snapped at me like that, I wouldn't say a word, but this kind of behavior is just incomprehensible to me.

One of these days, I am seriously going to lose it on that woman at the front desk. Either I'll snap, or I'll go straight to her supervisor and make a massive scene. You can have one bad day, but it can't be every single day. She is constantly rude, but last time, she almost sent me flying when I asked if she knew where a certain doctor was; she just slammed her little glass window shut in my face.

And besides, we have this centralized scheduling system at the hospital that's supposed to work by letting you call in to book an appointment. Do I really have to mention that those people act like they can't even pick up a phone? Or they just hang up because the line is "busy," forcing you to drive all the way down to the hospital just to schedule something. I can't wait for the online booking and email system to actually start working so I never have to deal with these people who refuse to do their jobs again.

I have to admit, regarding the medical staff itself, I haven't had any negative experiences yet, at least in terms of kindness. My only gripe so far is with the specialists; they don't seem to have the time to explain things properly before rushing you out the door. But then again, they aren't the ones to blame—it's the system.

I was actually going to say the exact same thing. There’s a massive thread over on the Psychology forum that’s packed with people sharing their own experiences and actual advice.

Here are the links:
Panic Attacks - Mega-thread

Panic attacks right before bed

Dealing with panic attacks and how to stop them

Panic Disorder

I’d handle this a bit differently. 🙂

The folks in the Government actually had one decent idea: take a percentage from every single pack of cigarettes sold and earmark it specifically for the Department of Health and Human Services. I have no clue why they didn't pull the trigger on it, because honestly, the concept was solid. You could easily do the same thing with alcohol or junk food—if people want to indulge, fine, let them.

But what you're suggesting is just impossible. How are you supposed to determine who qualifies for premium coverage versus basic care? And how would you ever prove if someone is actually drowning themselves in booze or smoking five packs of cigarettes a day?

I'm saying it again: how is this woman any different from someone like XY, who completely wrecked his liver with alcohol and ended up needing a transplant?

Look, you can't look at it that way. It’s all or nothing: either Medicare covers stuff like this for everyone, or they don't cover it for anyone. Sure, the woman was reckless and she messed up, but she isn't any different from anyone else out there who constantly trashes their health and ignores what their doctors tell them.

You see a ton of cases where someone has sky-high blood pressure—we're talking imminent stroke or heart attack territory—and they just flat-out ignore it. They keep eating greasy, salty, heavily seasoned junk food despite every warning from their doctor. Then, inevitably, they suffer a stroke, and suddenly they’re demanding rehab, expensive meds, and all that. So, what's the move? Should we actually deny healthcare to people who refuse to help themselves?

Maria Gomez4 said:Can I ask a somewhat blunt question here—did you ever actually ask anyone to explain things to you?
In my experience, people have always been willing to walk me through everything (provided I actually asked), though I suppose that isn't always the case.
Maybe it is just an attitude issue, or perhaps I am wrong, but I suspect some people simply prefer to stay detached and avoid getting too involved with their own health. Or, I guess, maybe they are just intimidated by doctors, which might explain why they tend to corner interns to interpret their results, since interns usually don't mind helping out.

Take my immunology labs, for example. I asked my primary care doctor. She could explain some stuff, but not all of it. I can't expect my GP to give me a deep dive into every single thing I bring in; she isn't a specialist. She knows the basics of certain diseases, and that's it.

And who else was I supposed to ask? An immunologist? You barely make it through the door before you're being ushered out. You don't even get a chance to list your symptoms, let alone grill them with questions, because there are 50 to 100 patients waiting in the hallway.

I'm not blaming the doctors here. There are way too many patients per doctor. Of course they don't have the time to sit down and answer every single question we have.

Nicholas Chavez70 said:No... But the sheer level of effort they poured into this was something money simply cannot buy. I recall a case where surgeons actually hopped on Air Force One to get to Ancona just so they could perform a liver extraction and a transplant all within the same day. They were operating for at least ten hours straight, working with absolute, hyper-focused intensity on some elderly woman who essentially drove herself into this crisis through her own sheer negligence. To make matters even more complicated, the liver wasn't even a compatible blood type, so they had to spend weeks separating plasma to strip out the antibodies just so her body wouldn't reject the organ immediately. And now, she’s stuck with a lifetime of incredibly expensive immunosuppressant therapy. It really isn't any wonder that our hospitals face such massive losses when people don't take even the slightest bit of responsibility for their own health, only to fly into a doctor's office with the attitude of, "Well, fix me." 👎

Well, you could look at it that way too. Why bother treating smokers who got lung cancer, obese people who developed diabetes or strokes, or alcoholics who trashed their livers?

How is someone poisoning themselves any different from the examples listed above?
🤷

To all those people who are so obsessed with praising the American system, I’d suggest you actually watch Michael Moor's documentary *Sicko* first. Then maybe we can have a real conversation about how things work over here.

It’s unbelievable—you’ve got people who survive a car wreck without decent health insurance, only to get kicked out onto the street two or three days after surgery. 😢 I honestly have to wonder if anyone actually wants a system like this. 🤷

You totally misunderstood me. It’s not that my doctor ever refused to run a test or give me a prescription a specialist actually wrote—if she had done that, I would have lost it on her. My issue was just getting an appointment with a specialist in the first place because she wouldn't send me for any testing.

The woman figured out my thyroid was enlarged, asked me about it, and I just told her I didn't know—I hadn't noticed anything. So, she didn't bother sending me to get my hormone levels checked. It took six months for me to realize I had a thyroid problem, and that only happened because an immunologist finally caught that my thyroid was swollen and sent me for bloodwork.

I spent six months suffering for absolutely nothing because she wouldn't hand over one damn referral. Expecting a layperson like me to self-diagnose stuff like that is just ridiculous.

And don't even get me started on how I only saw that immunologist because my mom stepped in, took charge, and basically bullied my way into appointments. If I had just waited for this doctor to snap out of it, I'd still be waiting.

You can't have someone walk into your office, tell you their joints are aching and their fingers are turning blue and white, and then just send them off to check their white blood cell count and ESR. What the hell are you supposed to see from that? In the four years I've been dragging myself from doctor to doctor, my CBC comes back perfect every single time, yet my immune system is a total disaster.

Oh, and there's one more thing that drives me absolutely insane. Not one single doctor has actually sat down with me to explain what is going on. I've had to go online and hunt down what my own lab results actually mean. It’s pathetic that as a patient, I have to educate myself on my own illnesses by scouring the internet and digging through medical books.

Looks like a solid debate broke out while I was away. 🙂

Regarding that segment on FOX, the only person who commented was some old lady complaining that her doctor is stingy with referrals. She didn't get why the doctor would care, since the doctor isn't paying for those referrals out of her own pocket anyway.

The truth is, most people have zero clue how primary care actually works. A few years back, I was floored when I found out Medicare actually penalizes general practitioners and gynecologists if they issue too many referrals in a single month. It makes sense—you have tons of patients coming in for nothing, getting unnecessary tests just to find out they're fine, and that ends up draining the resources meant for people who are actually sick.

If my mother hadn't pulled some strings and gone with me to demand specific testing from my—now ex—primary doctor, I wouldn't even know half of my diagnoses today.

Up until I was 22, I barely saw a doctor. Most of my visits were during high school just to get a note for being absent, because our parents could only cover one day before we needed an official medical excuse. Then, when I actually *needed* my doctor, she started rationing the referrals.

Look, I’m not happy with a system where I have to fight just to get the tests I need, or play the "who do you know" game just to see a specialist without waiting months, or hunt for connections just to get basic screenings done so I don't wait a year for a follow-up. The more I look at our healthcare system, the more it feels like we're sliding toward the American model. 👎 It's starting to feel like the rich will get treated while the poor just die.

I feel terrible about it. 😢

I’m not from New York City, so I have no clue how things work in your neck of the woods since you guys have hospitals everywhere. Where I'm from, we basically have one main hub, so there's zero confusion about who covers what. Out here, things get messy if you're in a wreck out in Napa Valley—then you've got different jurisdictions fighting over which district is responsible for you.

I actually know a girl who was injured out in the Meadowlands and had to wait forever for an ambulance because the departments were too busy arguing over whether she fell under Indianapolis or some other jurisdiction. Honestly, I don't even know if she made it. 😢

Christian White3 said:And honestly: if I’d known they were going to take forever, I would've just dragged him to my car myself. I drive like a maniac—I could've been at the Highland hospital in five minutes flat. Now I’m just sitting here spiraling, thinking if I hadn't waited, things might be different. Who knows how much longer this weight is going to stay on me.

How long did you actually wait for the ambulance?

Stop blaming yourself. It isn't on you. The real question is whether you driving him yourself would have even made a difference in getting him there in time. 😢

It’s totally possible for your immune system to take a hit right before your period starts. Usually, whenever I catch something, it hits me right before my cycle begins, and honestly, most of my girls tell me they deal with the exact same thing. 🤷

First off, let me make one thing clear: I’m not here for any petty arguments or insults. Let's keep it civil.

I want to hear from both patients and medical professionals—how satisfied are you all, honestly, with our healthcare system? And if you could change one thing, what would it be?

I was watching this segment on FOX the other day about the healthcare industry. They were out on the street interviewing people, asking if they were happy with how things are run, and almost everyone said yes. I don't know if I'm living in some parallel universe or if those people just rarely ever have to see a doctor. 🤷

Also, a question for the patients: how much does this whole new electronic medical record system worry you? Do you think your privacy is actually going to be compromised with them?

mellowbison9 said:I'm 17... plus I have some thyroid issues. Could that be part of it? 😕 My endocrinologist always asks about my cycle.

Thyroid stuff can definitely mess with your cycle. Before I started my medication, mine were a total disaster—sometimes I'd be late by a month or two.

It’s actually pretty easy to catch them red-handed just by auditing the bills. Honestly, for these kinds of stupid, trivial things—like if someone didn't have a chair for three days 🙄—I’d be all for handing out fines. You'd see order established overnight if people knew they couldn't just call 911 for every little nonsense moment.

Look, it’s obvious to me that if you only have one ambulance, that vehicle can't be in ten different places at once.

But what about those situations where you drive someone to the ER yourself, only to have them practically brush you off? What's the excuse there?

Take my friend's mom, for example. She felt off all afternoon, then started vomiting in the evening. She couldn't even stand up—just terrible dizzy spells—so they drove her to the emergency room. Once she got there, the staff just pumped her full of sedatives and sent her straight home without doing a single actual exam. Of course, that cocktail of drugs knocked her out for the whole night, and by morning, when it wore off, she felt ten times worse. They rushed her back to the hospital, only to find out she'd actually had a stroke yesterday before she even showed up. If they hadn't just drugged her and actually looked at her, maybe they would have caught it.

So, what do you do when things like this happen? Do you just let it go like my friend's family did, even though her mom is dealing with health consequences today because of it? Or do you sue? Or do you take matters into your own hands and kill God in someone?

Because they aren't allowed to. If heaven forbid something actually happened to a kid after they sent them home, they’d be the ones held responsible.

goldennomad6 said:Unfortunately, you didn't actually read my post. You missed the point entirely. I was trying to highlight deep-seated systemic issues—stuff people outside of the medical field don't see, which is exactly why the whole system is broken.

I finally pulled myself out 😁 and I'm working privately now. You can't just call my cell and threaten me anymore. Now, you book an appointment, pay the fee, and we have a civilized conversation. I’m going to do what I love on my own terms. 🙂

Look, I know exactly how this entire machine works. I see it from the patient side—because unfortunately, I am one—and I see it from the healthcare provider side. I know the working conditions are a total disaster. There aren't enough nurses, not enough doctors, not enough meds... and patients? They're all over the map. Some lie, some exaggerate, some are just plain rude and aggressive.

But none of that justifies the real tragedies. It doesn't justify an ambulance not showing up, or someone dying while nobody takes responsibility. You didn't tell me what *you* would do in that situation, yet you attacked me for saying I'd want to beat some of these people senseless.

And if you had actually bothered to read my previous posts on this thread, you'd see I mentioned that I'd make sure everyone who calls 911 for nothing—every single hypochondriac who wastes a doctor's time with fake symptoms—gets billed for every single test, including the actual time the doctors and nurses spent dealing with their nonsense. Maybe then people would stop flooding the ER for every little thing just because they can't stand waiting two hours in a clinic line.