Navigating Medicine | Pt. 2

In Part 2, I discuss the first 5 tenets of navigating healthcare.

Photo by Vivek Trivedi on Unsplash

The Goal

For those who missed Part 1 - the purpose of this series is to put together a ‘basics’ of navigating the healthcare industry.

Navigating Medicine | Pt. 1

As many are aware, most of the industry has devolved into a money-making scheme wherein the patient’s interest are considered insofar as they may be used to generate capital and avoid medicolegal complications.

Some of the things I am asked by loved ones when it comes to their health:

• How do I find a good doctor?

• How would I even know a good doctor when I see one?

• How do I go about making [X] decision?

• Is this test or treatment worth it?

With this series, my goal is to arm the reader against the shortcomings and machinations of healthcare.

Few things are as demoralizing as hearing a story from someone who has been hurt by their healthcare encounters, rather than helped - and then left to fend for themselves.

Worse, some of these involve pursuing unnecessary and unjustified options that are, in some cases, pushed on them.

These kinds of stories are failures of both healthcare and doctors.

The First Five Tenets

1. Avoid the healthcare industry, if you can help it.

2. Doctors are not your boss.

3. Do not buy health insurance without consulting your doctor.

4. Get a second opinion - another MD

5. Get a third opinion - another non-MD

The grouping of these 5 tenets will make sense as you read them, but I like to think of them as preventative - like many effective strategies for health.

1. Avoid the healthcare industry, if you can help it.

Assume an orientation toward your health & wellbeing such that you can avoid interacting with the machinery of the healthcare industry.

That isn’t to say you should never go to a hospital.

There are elements of modern medicine which are, truly, awesome. These tend to be in the realm of high acuity surgical interventions.

If I was in an accident or having a stroke, I would 100% want to be taken to a high-volume center that is famous for its handling of the problem.

There is no doubt about that.

This first tenet is to emphasize the need for you to take full responsibility for your health.

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