Healthcare corruption: What's your take?

Here’s my take... I’m not denying bribery exists, but generalizing all doctors because of a few bad actors isn't right. Bribery happens in plenty of other industries too; people just don't make as much noise about it because it isn't life-threatening. For example, someone paying off a city official to move a greenbelt zone so they can build a house on the edge of a local nature preserve, or bribing an aunt to leak exam questions with a box of chocolates—which happens all the time—or professors running private tutoring sessions where you basically can't pass the class unless you pay them extra. Not to mention straight-up buying degrees.

Why does nobody complain about that???
I could list a billion examples.

Everyone only starts screaming when there’s a LEGAL OR MEDICAL ISSUE, because those are LIFE-THREATENING.

So, apparently, it doesn't matter if you can buy diplomas at half the universities out there.

Bribery and corruption will probably always exist, but if we want to function like a civilized nation, we need to squeeze it down to as close to zero as possible.

My own family was forced to hand over $100 to a nurse just to get her to answer the call button while my grandfather was dying. She wouldn't even step into the room to let me see him, only to be seen at a nightclub later that same night. I honestly felt like punching her.

I’m hoping things improve as we integrate further with the European Union and healthcare quality goes up. But that only happens if we raise our standards as a nation and actually invest in expertise.

Why is no one here questioning the actual competence of medical staff? Why doesn't anyone see how many college-educated professionals are essentially bought and paid for? Personally, following my faith, I'm always ready to help others. But if my future as a specialist—after six years of school, a year of residency, and four years of fellowship—is called into question, I won't be in this field anymore. I don't want that to happen, but I do think $2000 the salary for a specialist doctor is nowhere near enough.

To be clear, I am strictly against corruption in every single part of society. (Don't come at me thinking I'm defending my profession; I still look up to the shining examples—the people who helped me as a student and went out of their way to explain things without expecting a dime, just out of pure goodwill. I'm grateful for them.)

Betty Bennett10 said:placidjackal97, there's no legal way to do it—what I mean is, you can't just walk into a hospital and demand a C-section if there isn't a medical reason for one.

Maybe people are paying for them under the table (though, honestly, I’d love to know why anyone would actually *want* a C-section, but hey, whatever)—if they are, it makes sense that they're paying—it's essentially illegal, so it's no surprise there's a price tag attached.

Exactly—legally, it's just not an option.

I mean, why would anyone even want a C-section?

Over in Hollywood, it seems like celebrities request them all the time—they always claim it's just faster and easier.

One big factor could be pure, unadulterated fear. Early in my pregnancy, I was absolutely convinced I'd need a scheduled C-section.

Then my OB sent me to see a psychologist who specializes in childbirth anxiety—seeing how many other women struggle with the exact same thing really helped me get my head straight, and luckily, I ended up having a natural birth.
I'm not defending paid C-sections, but those might be some of the reasons behind why people try to order them.

You hit the nail on the head, Hannah Scott69. 👍 People tend to be hypersensitive when dealing with doctors because we’re talking about health, illness, and the very thin line between life and death.

Beyond that, there's this bizarre duality in American society where people seem to oscillate between deep reverence and pure resentment toward physicians. I remember a thread on this forum regarding a doctors' strike a while back, and the sheer amount of bile people spewed at medical professionals was almost hard to wrap my head around. Honestly, I think doctors ought to take a long, hard look in the mirror and ask themselves why they elicit such a reaction.

Personally, what bothers me far more than bribery or corruption within the healthcare system is the frequent rudeness and indifference displayed by doctors and nurses. There is often a total lack of empathy, and quite frankly, when someone is sick and vulnerable, the last thing they need is a professional looking down their nose at them.

Of course, it would be unfair to paint everyone with the same brush—I’ve personally had some excellent experiences in our American hospitals. But it only takes one bad encounter, one instance of being treated poorly, to leave you with a lasting, bitter taste in your mouth.

placidjackal97 said:Exactly, there isn't actually a legal provision for requesting one.

I honestly can't wrap my head around why anyone would specifically demand a C-section.

Out there, it’s mostly celebrities and influencers who push for it, always claiming they just want everything over with quickly.

One significant factor might simply be overwhelming fear. Early on in my pregnancy, I was absolutely convinced that I needed to schedule a C-section.

My OB-GYN eventually referred me to a psychologist specializing in childbirth anxiety, where I realized just how many women struggle with these exact same terrors; that experience gave me the mental tools to ultimately opt for a natural birth.
I'm not defending elective C-sections, but these could be some of the underlying motivations for those who insist on them.

I truly find this impossible to understand. These days, you can have an induced labor with an epidural, so if I were going to spend money on anything, I'd pay for that instead. A C-section is by no means painless, and the recovery takes incomparably longer. Since I'll most likely end up needing a C-section myself, I really don't see the logic in anyone choosing it voluntarily.

Betty Bennett10 said:I honestly don't get it. Since you can just opt for an induced labor with an epidural these days—and if I’m shelling out money for anything, it’s definitely that—it makes zero sense to me. A C-section isn't exactly a walk in the park, and the recovery time is just way longer. It looks like I'll be heading for a C-section myself, so I really can't wrap my head around why anyone would choose that route.

I’m starting to see things that way now—though I definitely didn't used to feel this way.

That was the exact plan for one young mom I was pregnant alongside here—but things moved so fast that by the time she wanted an epidural, it was already game over.

She told him it was basically a coma—she’d mentally checked out to prep for the episode—and then she just powered through the whole thing with total intensity. 😁 We’ve drifted way off track here—but back to that C-section business. Since they usually do them "cold" (not heated, obviously), I was reading some moms on a German forum who suggested it feels more secure to have it scheduled. They feel like if everything is set in stone ahead of time, they can actually breathe easy knowing exactly how it’s going to go down.

It’s essentially the same thing as an induced vaginal birth, where everything is scheduled ahead of time based on a prior agreement.

Betty Bennett10 said:Even an induced vaginal birth is basically "on demand"—it’s all part of the pre-arranged plan.

Sure, but there's still a massive difference in how the process actually unfolds. 😉

Look, I think every woman just picks the delivery method she feels is best for her—you know, doing your homework and making a choice. But unfortunately, despite all that prep work, things don't always go according to plan for a lot of women.

If it isn't too intrusive, why does it always have to end in a C-section?

If fear of labor is really the driving force behind opting for a C-section, then it honestly seems more logical to just schedule an induced vaginal birth with an epidural—that’s my take on it.

Betty Bennett10 said:If fear of labor is the reason someone would opt for a C-section, then it seems more logical to just request an induced vaginal birth with an epidural—that’s my take on it.

I'm actually looking at a C-section because I have some awkwardly placed fibroids.

Is that actually a thing people do here in the States? In Germany, people rarely "order" a specific type of birth like that—personally, I don't know anyone who requested an induction paired with an epidural. Most people I know just ask for the epidural once things get moving during a natural labor.

Thanks for the input on the other matter!

It isn’t some established medical protocol, nor is it something people discuss with any regularity—it's more like my own personal observation. Typically, an induction is only triggered if the membranes rupture prematurely or if a woman hits her 41st week without going into labor. But if you can just schedule a C-section on demand, then I suppose you could theoretically order an induction the same way.

Inductions usually happen if the water breaks early or if things just aren't moving along by week 41.

Yeah—I know one mom who went through an induction without an epidural (basically because the baby was being stubborn and wouldn't come out after her due date). It was her second kid, since her first one arrived totally naturally, and she said those induced contractions were pure hell.

It actually reminds me of back when I was pregnant—there was this show on ABC 😁 called "Making a Baby" that I used to watch with another pregnant lady from this forum. They’d go into such graphic detail about the births; you could see everything, which honestly gave you a much clearer picture than any textbook ever could. It was super educational, though I found myself tearing up every single time they finally held the baby.

I’m not in anatomy, and thank goodness I’m not in pathology either! 😁
It’s actually physical therapy 🙂

I’ll likely be starting work toward the end of this year, and once I finish my residency, I’m planning to jump straight into private practice... so you'll all be more than welcome 🙂

Honestly, I just don't have the stomach for working within the state healthcare system. I want to do my job with integrity, focusing on making sure both my clients and myself are truly happy with the results.

Studentica said:so it doesn't matter WHAT DEGREES CAN BE BOUGHT AT MANY UNIVERSITIES AND OTHER THINGS LIKE THAT

You’ve got a point there, Studentica. I know corruption exists everywhere, and unfortunately, it creeps into our schools too. I'm not trying to excuse it—and I know you aren't either—but I actually started this thread out of pure curiosity. On another forum, people were really coming after me for bringing up bribery, arguing that you rarely ever find a doctor who takes kickbacks, whereas lower-level medical staff almost never 😲 but my own experiences have been 100% different from that!

Studentica said:I hope things change once we fully integrate into the European Union and healthcare quality improves. But that will only happen if we, as a nation, establish higher standards and actually start investing in education and expertise!!!

Sadly, I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon. It’s going to take an entire generation before people's perspectives shift and we see a real change in the collective mindset.
Just to give you some context, through a stroke of luck, I ended up attending a specialized college in Belgium for the same major I studied back home in America. At the start of the semester, they gave us a full list of all the professors, including their private addresses, phone numbers, emails, and everything else, along with a note saying we could consult with any of them at our own discretion. Honestly, I can't even describe how kind and helpful those people were. You can truly feel how much they care when you show interest in their subject; they share their knowledge with such genuine passion. Long story short, I got all the help I needed and finished right on schedule! I'll never forget that experience, whereas my memories of college in America are mostly just of struggling through while TAs acted condescendingly whenever they felt like it, and the professors were completely unreachable, acting like they were gods!

placidjackal97 said:is that common practice here in the States? In Germany, that kind of delivery is very rare, and personally, I don't know anyone who requested an induction with an epidural. They just ask for the epidural to be available when the time comes, and then they go with natural labor.

Around here, it's almost the norm and pretty much the only way people do it. Almost every woman opts for an epidural; it's been the trend for the last decade or so. Generally, you coordinate the delivery method with the OBGYN who handled your pregnancy and oversaw the birth.

Around here, that’s pretty much the only way people do it—it’s almost become the standard. Over the last decade, an epidural has basically become the go-to move for everyone. Usually, you just hash out the details with the OB-GYN who’s been managing the pregnancy and handling the delivery.

Actually, more women here opt for an epidural than they do for a natural birth.

I was specifically saying that they aren't really opting for induced labor.

copperridge912 said:Fine then, just strike a pose, get your damn paperwork finished ASAP, and boom—I’m heading over to your place.😁>
Ugh, go away! Get back to studying! What are you even doing online??😁 😁

Oof, my bad. I honestly thought you were still in college, but turns out you're actually out there grinding at a real job...
😵

copperridge912 said:Oof, my bad! I honestly thought you were still hitting the books, but turns out you're already out there in the trenches working...
😵

No special treatment here—you've actually managed to end up on my bad side now! 🙂

placidjackal97 said:Yeah, I actually know one mother who went through it without an epidural—it was specifically because the baby wouldn't turn or descend after her due date had already passed. This was her second child, since her first delivery had been perfectly routine, and she described those induced labors as being nothing short of pure hell.

That’s exactly why I’m bringing up the combination of induction and an epidural.

Anyway, this really doesn't have much to do with the actual topic at hand 😛

Casey Palmer5 said:I always try to flash a smile. Always.

👍
That’s my golden rule, too. I don't care how stressed or moody I might be feeling—my patients shouldn't have to deal with that.

The other day, a patient actually complimented me on it, and then even one of the nurses did 🙂. Probably the most unprofessional thing I’ve done was when a patient's wife refused to hand over some paperwork because she was worried I'd "lose it." I just told her, "Fine, whatever you think is best, it's for his own good," 👎 though I probably could have handled it differently.

Corruption honestly makes my skin crawl 🙂.

Shame on them.

copperridge912 said:Oof, sorry about that! I totally thought you were still a student, but turns out you're already out there working...
😵

Well, I actually am still a student—just counting down my final days before graduation. Thank God for that! Honestly, after spending three hours today (yeah, on a Sunday, ugh) just waiting around to get a signature, I’m officially done with the constant commuting all over town and juggling a 50-hour work week...

Betty Bennett10 said:Honestly, I’m pretty skeptical when it comes to these stories about doctors I hear second or third-hand. It feels like people just love to gossip about bribing physicians. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but the idea that doctors are out there demanding cash and refusing care if they don't get it... I think that's way more exaggerated than it actually is.

Yeah, I agree. It usually plays out more like what you described... just haggling over things... and too often, medical procedures that are vital for a child's health end up getting pushed back because of it...

I don't buy into the rumors either, but all it takes is one bad experience with my own family for me to stay wary...

And from what I've heard, those "gifts" and "tokens of appreciation"—you know, things other than straight cash—can be even worse than just bribery. It's honestly disgusting...👎