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Patient voices

1,315 articles · Since 2005

Articles, page 33

My mother fell through the cracks of the system and died

97

Recently, my mother died. She was giving, kind, funny and would do anything in her power to help those who needed her. As a single parent divorced from a drug addict, she was all that I ever truly had in…

Recently, my mother died.

She was giving, kind, funny and would do anything in her power to help those who needed her. As a single parent divorced from a drug addict, she was all that I ever truly had in the realm of parenting and, as a result, she was everything to me. And she touched and was loved by so, so many people. She also had asthma and, most years, …

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My mother fell through the cracks of the system and died

Shared language between doctors and patients

8

A while back, my brother-in-law was experiencing low back pain and my sister told me that the doctor had diagnosed it as a “herniated disc.” The conversation eventually evolved into a discussion about the difference between a “herniated” disc and…

A while back, my brother-in-law was experiencing low back pain and my sister told me that the doctor had diagnosed it as a “herniated disc.” The conversation eventually evolved into a discussion about the difference between a “herniated” disc and a “ruptured” disc. My position was that ruptured was worse; my sister’s that they were the same thing. Since inquiring minds want to know these things, I decided to look …

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Shared language between doctors and patients

Why physicians should care about Amanda Trujillo

214

For the past month, the case of Amanda Trujillo has resonated deeply among nurses, triggering an avalanche of postings on Facebook, Twitter and in the nursing blogosphere. Trujillo is the Arizona nurse who was fired in April 2011 after providing…

Amanda TrujilloFor the past month, the case of Amanda Trujillo has resonated deeply among nurses, triggering an avalanche of postings on Facebook, Twitter and in the nursing blogosphere. Trujillo is the Arizona nurse who was fired in April 2011 after providing education and making a hospice care consult request for an end-stage liver disease patient. This patient was slotted for pre-transplant evaluation …

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Why physicians should care about Amanda Trujillo

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Why patient engagement is reciprocal

21

It is said that "turn around is fair play." So if providers (physicians, hospitals and other health care professionals) expect patients to become more engaged in their own care, isn’t it fair for patients to expect their physicians to also…

It is said that “turn around is fair play.”

So if providers (physicians, hospitals and other health care professionals) expect patients to become more engaged in their own care, isn’t it fair for patients to expect their physicians to also get more involved in their care?

If you look closely at “proxy measures” for physician engagement, you will see that this is a legitimate if not equally important line of inquiry.

Hello? Hello? …

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Why patient engagement is reciprocal

Question the price of drugs and medical procedures

15

Hypertension was the trigger that forced medical cost awareness to the forefront. My doctor decided that with my rise in blood pressure it would be prudent to prescribe a blood pressure medication and order a nuclear stress test. With only…

Hypertension was the trigger that forced medical cost awareness to the forefront. My doctor decided that with my rise in blood pressure it would be prudent to prescribe a blood pressure medication and order a nuclear stress test. With only a catastrophic insurance policy and a $5000 deductible it was imperative for my financial health to know the cost of both the drugs and the procedure up front.

The prescription was …

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Question the price of drugs and medical procedures

In love there is a life giving force

6

Here is a toast to the miracle of love. Not to the romantic, chocolate, dance club nightlife type of love. Not warm sandy beach vacation, new bigger home and grand Thanksgiving dinner love. Not even baby’s first words love. I…

Here is a toast to the miracle of love. Not to the romantic, chocolate, dance club nightlife type of love.  Not warm sandy beach vacation, new bigger home and grand Thanksgiving dinner love.  Not even baby’s first words love.  I mean power passion that gets us through the hard times, type of love.

Edna and Ken are 90, married and both have active cancer.  They have been partners for 62 years.  …

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In love there is a life giving force

How to get ready for death

8

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it…

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because death is very likely the single best invention of life. It is life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new.
-Steve Jobs, …

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How to get ready for death

The long term cost of a pain in the neck

16

One morning this May, I woke up with a stiff neck. I applied hot and cold therapy all day and took an Advil before bed. By the end of that week, I was unable to comfortably move my head and…

One morning this May, I woke up with a stiff neck. I applied hot and cold therapy all day and took an Advil before bed. By the end of that week, I was unable to comfortably move my head and I was feeling numbness down my left arm to my fingertips. I saw my doctor within 24 hours of calling his office. After a brief exam, he was sure of …

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The long term cost of a pain in the neck

Preparing for your visit with someone in hospice care

4

Visiting someone who is dying or critically ill is an experience many of us will have in the course of our lives. Whether your visit is to be in the person’s home, a hospice or a hospital, there are a…

Visiting someone who is dying or critically ill is an experience many of us will have in the course of our lives. Whether your visit is to be in the person’s home, a hospice or a hospital, there are a few rules of thumb to guide your time together so that it can be mutually satisfying.

This post introduces some of the basics.

1. Call ahead. Find out what prime visiting times …

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Preparing for your visit with someone in hospice care

Why we need to go from e-patient to i-patient

10

I found a recent Associated Press article on an aspect of the new health care law that many of us may have overlooked. It requires consumer-friendly summaries of what insurance plans cover, a provision that now seems to be at…

I found a recent Associated Press article on an aspect of the new health care law that many of us may have overlooked. It requires consumer-friendly summaries of what insurance plans cover, a provision that now seems to be at risk. The insurance industry is up in arms about implementation costs and added regulatory burdens. (There’s a good story at NPR, which includes a link to an example of what …

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Why we need to go from e-patient to i-patient

Good communication in health care is about listening

7

A great deal of effort in the current health care environment is being put into improving communication - between patients and families and members of the health care team, among family members, and among members of the team. The case…

A great deal of effort in the current health care environment is being put into improving communication – between patients and families and members of the health care team, among family members, and among members of the team. The case can be made that good communication is at the heart of patient safety, cultural sensitivity, and the pillar of palliative care — aligning patient’s wishes and goals with treatment plans.

So …

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Good communication in health care is about listening

How will the Baby Boomers age and die?

7

I love listening to life stories. As a hospice chaplain, I loved sitting with our patients and their loved ones engaging in what many hospice teams call “life review.” When did you meet your spouse? When was Reggie born? What…

I love listening to life stories.  As a hospice chaplain, I loved sitting with our patients and their loved ones engaging in what many hospice teams call “life review.”  When did you meet your spouse?  When was Reggie born?  What is your favorite holiday?  When did you learn you were ill?  A few simple questions and the stories come pouring forth.

Of late, I’ve been listening to the life stories of …

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How will the Baby Boomers age and die?

Patient engagement is the holy grail of health care

39

For health care professionals, patient engagement is the holy grail of health care. It is the key to patient adherence – a prerequisite to achieving better outcomes, fewer ER visits and hospitalizations and more satisfied patients. It is easy to…

For health care professionals, patient engagement is the holy grail of health care.  It is the key to patient adherence – a prerequisite to achieving better outcomes, fewer ER visits and hospitalizations and more satisfied patients.  It is easy to recognize an engaged patient – they do what their health care providers recommends …what their health care team knows what is right for them.

But doesn’t engagement depend upon your perspective?

In …

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Patient engagement is the holy grail of health care

Why do doctors delay hospice referrals?

12

This is a response to Deb Discenza's article requesting a one page informational sheet informing a patient about hospice or palliative care. This would allow the patient and their family to make decisions regarding end of life care before it…

This is a response to Deb Discenza’s article requesting a one page informational sheet informing a patient about hospice or palliative care.

This would allow the patient and their family to make decisions regarding end of life care before it becomes a necessity. I am a crisis care hospice nurse. I am the one who comes to your home, whether it is  a million dollar beachfront mansion, or a single wide mobile …

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Why do doctors delay hospice referrals?

How touch can calm patients

20

So, Megen at Not Nurse Ratched wrote post recently about therapeutic presence. The following passage really caught my attention: "Question is: are there more things in nursing, Horatio, than science can explain? Can we touch patients and zap them with…

So, Megen at Not Nurse Ratched wrote post recently about therapeutic presence.  The following passage really caught my attention: “Question is: are there more things in nursing, Horatio, than science can explain? Can we touch patients and zap them with calmness or take away their pain? Can we, by our mindset during our provision of care, substantially affect our patients’ outcomes? Can any of this be taught? Can we do …

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How touch can calm patients

How I became a hospice volunteer

People often ask me how I became a hospice volunteer. For the record, nobody is more surprised than I am. You know how some people can walk into a patient’s room, plump pillows, and make all the right comments? Years…

People often ask me how I became a hospice volunteer. For the record, nobody is more surprised than I am. You know how some people can walk into a patient’s room, plump pillows, and make all the right comments? Years ago, I was not that person. I never really felt comfortable visiting sick people. Working in the healthcare arena seemed depressing. Besides, I had made a conscious decision to become …

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How I became a hospice volunteer

How well does your child play?

All play is not equal. With the power of marketing, play has become increasingly associated with toys, electronic gadgets, television, and video games. Just think about the amount of ads for children’s toys over the holidays. Just think about the…

All play is not equal.  With the power of marketing, play has become increasingly associated with toys, electronic gadgets, television, and video games.  Just think about the amount of ads for children’s toys over the holidays.   Just think about the things your child might have asked for and the latest trends that become the new must-have of the season.

Without realizing it, we may be intervening in a child’s most natural form of …

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How well does your child play?

Granting rights to a fetus at the cost of the mother

111

While I, as a physician, would not perform an abortion unless there was an extreme, medical rational, abortion is a choice. It is a woman’s determination of how best to live and manage her life. Also, while the issue of…

While I, as a physician, would not perform an abortion unless there was an extreme, medical rational, abortion is a choice. It is a woman’s determination of how best to live and manage her life. Also, while the issue of viability is an important medical topic, and while I believe that any life, from the moment of conception, is of supreme value, some women do not. If they are the …

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Granting rights to a fetus at the cost of the mother

How patients can avoid medical errors

8

Most of you are quite familiar with the rather astounding facts regarding medical errors. There are many reasons why medical errors occur in healthcare. There are errors in omission, there are errors because of poor communication, there is the ever…

Most of you are quite familiar with the rather astounding facts regarding medical errors.   There are many reasons why medical errors occur in healthcare. There are errors in omission, there are errors because of poor communication, there is the ever present risk of human error and perhaps the ever increasing stress on physicians to see more and more patients in less and less time. …

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How patients can avoid medical errors

Overcoming tragedy requires a team

When tragedy strikes, one looks for comfort in many places. When traditional resources--relatives, physicians, clergy members--do not completely satisfy, one may reach out for comfort from unexpected places. Increasingly, people turn to online health and wellness support communities. My family’s…

When tragedy strikes, one looks for comfort in many places. When traditional resources–relatives, physicians, clergy members–do not completely satisfy, one may reach out for comfort from unexpected places. Increasingly, people turn to online health and wellness support communities.

My family’s tragedy occurred when my father suffered a Sudden Cardiac Arrest, or SCA, in 2010. As I watched him lay lifelessly on life-support in that hospital bed, the man who was undoubtedly …

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Overcoming tragedy requires a team

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