Hospital policies make it tougher to get high-quality inpatient mental health Like many Americans, I have a family member with a major mental illness who sometimes needs inpatient hospital care. Because I have been a healthcare researcher and journalist for 25 years, I’m particularly well prepared to help him navigate the system and get him […]
What if a surgeon had complications or deaths in five out of the ten times she operated? Sounds like she’s a dangerous hack, doesn’t it? Well, maybe not. “What if that surgeon only saw the sickest patients, and the five that did well would be dead or dying without her skills?” I asked her. “Wouldn’t you rather see her than someone who can only handle easy cases?”
Unfortunately, providers can take an assertive patient who’s fighting to engage in smart self-care and make them feel small. Cranking out sarcastic or patronizing remarks, ignoring or under-responding to a patient’s requests for information or unfairly minimizing their worries can be a gut punch to patients who want to take an appropriate level of control.