– Stephen Cocksedge, Listening as Work in Primary Care
That’s worth repeating: 85% of diagnoses can be made just by listening to the patient.
It’s clear cut: When doctors do not have enough time to listen the result is that they do not listen.
May 5, 2014
May 2, 2014
5 Common Misconceptions About Healthcare Spending
Let’s talk about healthcare misconceptions. Here’s some corrections to common misconceptions about who pays for healthcare. Read more
May 2, 2014
May 1, 2014
Straight From A DPC Physician’s Mouth: “I’m A Happy Doctor Again!”
Mary Wulfers raised a serious question after reading about ObamaCare Exchange enrollees who can’t find doctors.
She asks, Who wants to see a doctor who is being forced to treat them?
Her husband is a primary care physician and, together, they opened a cash-only practice this year. It took two years of planning, but the couple decided to cut the red tape, and offer affordable, actual care to hundreds of patients.
And, get this, Mary’s husband is 61 years old. He could have easily retired, but the joy and reward of running a cash-only practice has kept him in the practice pool.
April 30, 2014
Why Do Great Leaders Inspire Action? They Share A Compelling “Why”.
Direct Care docs, current and aspiring, do you have a few minutes?
Then check out this TED Talk by Simon Sinek. He shares his insight on how great leaders — from Jobs to MLK, Jr. — inspire action in their supporters.
April 30, 2014
Direct Care Is A Declaration Of Doctor Independence
Originally appeared on KevinMD.com
Yes, it really is time to revoke the health-care mandates issued by bureaucrats who ARE NOT in the profession of actual healing.
Daniel F. Craviotto Jr. writes on WSJ.com, “In my 23 years as a practicing physician, I’ve learned that the only thing that matters is the doctor-patient relationship.”
Craviotto, Jr. is a doctor who embodies the fight of Direct Care. How we interact and treat our patients truly is the practice of medicine. There’s a problem with the rising cost of health care (for starters, Oregon spent over $1,000 per subscriber on just a website to sign up for coverage that might not even provide a doctor).
April 28, 2014
Oregon Spends Over $1,000 Per Cover Oregon Enrollee — Then Bails On Their Broken Website
Oregon went “all in” on health reform, firmly embracing the Affordable Care Act. They launched a very successful Medicaid expansion — a $2 billion federal experiment to prove the state could save money by managing patients’ care better, and, of course, the state’s own online marketplace to sell Obamacare insurance.
But that last point has been a huge problem.
The Cover Oregon board decided on Friday to ditch its troubled website and join up with the federal HealthCare.gov exchange instead.
April 26, 2014
Is This The Start Of A New Trend? Covered California Patients Are Saying They Can’t See A Doctor.
While open enrollment for coverage under the Affordable Care Act is closed, many of the newly insured are finding they can’t find doctors, landing them into a state described as “medical homelessness.”
Rotacare, a free clinic for the uninsured in Mountain View, is dealing with the problem firsthand.
April 25, 2014
America’s Broken Health Care System: The Role of Drug, Device Manufacturers
Health care costs are dramatically higher in the U.S. than in the rest of the world. Yet our health care outcomes – from life expectancy to infant mortality – are average at best. Few dispute these facts.
The real debate starts when we ask why. While there isn’t one single answer, the rapidly rising cost of drugs and medical devices is a significant factor.
April 24, 2014
We Can’t Say No To Patients? I Thought We Were Professionals.
Yes, the customer is almost always right — except if they’re paying cash for healthcare. In this case, yes, the “customer” has the right to take their business elsewhere. But do they have the right to complain when I won’t prescribe a drug I know they don’t need?
No way. And just like I don’t WANT to pay taxes, my accountant provides me with options to address what I need to do and what I should not do.
Of course, I don’t have to listen to my accountant. I can forego paying my taxes.
However, I shouldn’t be surprised when the IRS calls me to demand payment, garnishes my wages, and ultimately closes my practice.