Preserving Health and Wellness and Preventing Chronic Diseases
America Does It Very Poorly
This is the 6th article in a series on America’s dysfunctional healthcare delivery system. Here is a link to the last article.
Despite taking 23 — yes, almost two dozen! — prescription medications, my friend Henry did not feel well. Plus, the expenses were beyond his means as a retiree, even with the help of his Medicare Part D drug coverage. Why so many medications? The short answer: He had four different doctors, each writing prescriptions, often for the same diseases, but not in concert with each other. Once Henry got a primary care physician to coordinate his care, it was but a few months until he was down to seven medications. After that, he began feeling much better, and he was saving himself (and his insurer) a substantial amount of money each month.
Henry was fortunate to find a primary care doctor who would devote the time needed to fully understand his many problems, including his social/psychological issues. With an attentive PCP, he had much less need for various specialists, but as the need arose, the PCP was there to coordinate his care.
Unfortunately, most primary care physicians do not have enough time for careful listening and contemplation nor for delving into anxiety and family issues that may precipitate an…
