Friday, August 01, 2008
Pass the Baton!
It's official: our medical practitioners are engaging in a pastime that is spreading like wildfire. Curiously, only medical professionals in developed healthcare systems have taken on board this habit.
The catch is, in this particular marathon, only the patient comes out the poorer.
As of today, I have received my third referral, to see a jaw specialist for my partial jaw dislocation. Having been pssed on from doctor, to dentist to specialist, I have become somewhat disillusioned by this so-called highly advanced health care system that so many developed countries now boast about. Hell, my injury is almost minor in nature, and yet I feel as though I'm being pushed across a chess board from square to square.
If it were only one referral, then I wouldn't be in such a ruffled state, but three? It's been 2 months since I'd incurred this injury and all any of the professionals I've met have come up with is a description of what went wrong, and some suggestions. It's a good thing I haven't had to cough up a cent until now. But really, it's only a matter of time.
I'm not the only one suffering from this ridiculous pastime. Take those patients who have to wait in line for major surgical operations. Surely, in an advanced healthcare system, no one would have to wait more than a few days for a heart transplant? With surgeons, nurses and doctors in short supply and a growing number of patients with urgent problems, can doctors still afford to play hot potato? Even with hospitals being revamped and new ones in the works, this will still be too little too late for many patients on waiting lists.
Nevertheless, newspapers seem to echo the government's chant that our hospitals and medical centres are better equipped than ever. Horrific stories of bad hygiene and debilitating diseases in other countries only serve to heighten our complacency that we have a reliable and professional healthcare system that will be there to support us if ever we have a need.
Perhaps even before evaluating our own health, we should extend a magnifying glass and get a glimpse of the rot that is spreading throughout the medical system. The rest of us may be healthy enough, but our support system seems to be ailing. It's time to store away the batons, so that those among us who need help can pass the finishing line without having to race against time.
...is what I said. Savvy?
12:01 pm
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June 2006