Medical Treatment in America – Expensive and Substandard
June 25th, 2009It has been interesting to watch the Obama administration attempt to tackle the notion of healthcare. Whereas both the exorbitant costs and the poor standard of care flew under the radar for years, both elements seem to be getting greater and greater scrutiny these days.
At the same time there has been a strong push back from the system to retain the status quo. But after a report like the recent one from the Archives of Internal Medicine, it is clear that our healthcare system is in vast need of a major overhaul.
Substandard Care
The issue of quality healthcare came under discussion again this week with the release of a new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. One startling result involved abnormal patient test results.
The study revealed that 7 percent of such results aren’t reported to patients. That means one of every fourteen patients that undergoes some form of medical tests, often extremely expensive in their own right, may have health issues yet they never are apprised of the potential problems.
Generally, anyone undergoing such tests likely assumes that if they do not hear from their doctor the results must have been routine. Clearly, this new report indicates otherwise.
According to the study, nearly one third of the practices reviewed did not report testing results to patients. This finding came despite the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality insistence that doctors should inform patients of all test results, normal or abnormal.
Fortunately, the study did not appear to reveal any missed cancers. But there were instances of where women were not told of the need for a follow-up Pap smear or mammogram to review an abnormal finding.
The Real Issue and What to Do?
Many insist that the real issue here involves the payment practices of the American system. Here, doctors don’t get reimbursed for the time taken to review test results but do get paid for ordering tests.
Others insist that the issue simply involves doctors that are just too busy to keep up with the demands of the profession. Yet another group insists that the reason that doctors are too busy stems in great part from the system’s structures.
The bottom line is that any patient not receiving test results from their physician must take the basic step of calling to follow up themselves. To have a sense as to when to call, begin by asking when you can expect to hear from the doctor regarding the test results. When you get home, mark that date on your calendar, then if you have not heard call the office.
You should insist on such contact even if the office reports the use of electronic medical records. While systems are designed to safeguard test results, the study found that both practices using electronic records as well as those using paper record keeping missed reporting. In fact, the worst came from those practices using a mixture of the two forms of record keeping.
Lastly, if you cannot get your doctor or the office to return your call, vote with your feet and switch doctors. Experts suggest that if you do not hear within three days then it is a sign that the practice you are using is simply not well-managed.
Healthcare Reform
The more we hear the clearer it has become that we are in need of healthcare reform. What makes the issue so challenging is that even though our care system has been costly, once upon a time that care was considered the best in the world.
Not so today.
And while it is clear that we are in need of healthcare reform, it is imperative that as we wait for must we take the steps necessary to ensure our own health. In the case of the latest data, that means following up on test results whenever your physician fails to contact you.
