Routines and the Cost of Medical Care Today

During a hospitalization several months ago a lab tech came around to draw my blood at about three or four in the morning. When I asked her what the draw was for, she replied that it is their routine. I asked if this routine was carried out on all the people on the floor. She replied affirmatively.

Do all of you notice the signs placed nearly everywhere in our hospitals? Please be quiet so our patients can get their necessary rest. What a joke. They think our family is bothering us more visiting during visiting hours than they are bothering us doing procedures whenever it is convenient for them.

Back to the lab tech. I said, “So if the person down the hall came in with a broken leg they are also getting their blood drawn at this ungodly time of morning?” Again she replied yes. I asked why. She replied, “So we can see if there are any changes.” She thought it was fine that a person had their blood drawn several times per day so they could manage everything better.

I said, “If drawing blood three to four times per day was good, wouldn’t drawing blood every hour be especially good?” Can you imagine this kind of thinking? Obviously our physicians also must feel this way or they would not permit their patients to be exposed to this kind of abuse. Do our physicians actually think they can take better care of this marvelous machine we call a body than God who created us? They certainly must if they hang up an IV to fix all these minute changes in body chemistry that are going on all day long.

Those of us who think we can accomplish something with the above line of thinking are suffering from the height of arrogance, stupidity or both. Or perhaps, could the reason be that we are a little behind in finances this month so why not run a few more tests? Let’s make sure our bank account can withstand the up and coming payment on our new Ferrari.