Technology and Improvements in Healthcare

Let’s look ahead in time. Why, with the new technology, is the life expectancy remaining essentially the same? Why with the United States leading the entire world in health care costs, are we now ranked 38th.

Part of this is due to the severe compartmentalization of medical care. Specialists have lost the ability to treat even little things outside of their specialty. Within the past hour I called a nephrology office. I have pyelonephritis. This is an infection of the kidney. The office said they do not handle infections. They could however give me an appointment in another 21 days.

Several months ago I was discharged from a heart hospital in Plano, Texas following an ablation procedure of the heart. I needed to go home on some medications. The young physician or assistant said they did not prescribe. This is a procedure hospital, not a prescription facility. When I asked what I was supposed to do, he replied, “Go to the emergency department the same as everyone else.” I replied that I was going to give them a large amount of free publicity that I did not think they would want. He then prescribed enough medication to get me through the weekend.

It is one more debacle of the American healthcare system. The physicians are so restricted in their own specialty that they cannot take care of the basic needs of their patient. Some specialists will not or cannot prescribe a pain or sleeping pill. You go to a pain clinic for that, or a sleep clinic for insomnia, not to mention the expensive sleep studies.