ER Doctor Tells About Emergency Room Realities
I was about to get off the computer to head out to help my wife prepare her dishes to take to our friends’ home where we will be having Thanksgiving Dinner. I was doing my last perusal (for the morning) of the DailyKOS rec list when I came across this ER Doctor’s gem below.
An ER doctor gives a firsthand account of what it is like in his ER. This is the ER reality throughout the country. He gives two poignant examples of what our lousy healthcare system has allowed to happen to two unfortunate souls. This ER doctor is on the front lines and knows the issues much better than any politician objecting to the Affordable Care Act (ACA/Obamacare).
For those who claim there are doctors that do not support the ACA, it is important to note that most who are in healthcare to serve the sick and make a decent living, have no problems with it. My sister is a doctor, a university assistant dean, and community involved doctor. She works with many doctors that understand the necessity for this humane law. In fact to many of them it does not go far enough.
Dr. Chris Lillis, one of the founders of Doctors For America is an avid supporter. He spends much of his available time teaching and making other doctors aware of the benefits of Obamacare. I interviewed Dr. Chris Lillis a few weeks ago on my show Politics Done Right. Back in 2012 I interviewed both Dr. Mona Mangat, another founder of Doctors For America, and Dr. Chris Lillis.
Check out this ER Doctor’s article below. It is well worth the read.
How ACA can save lives: let’s visit my Emergency Room on Thanksgiving morning
One of the more hackneyed and deceptive statements throughout the Affordable Care Act debate was how we have “the best healthcare delivery system in the world”. I’ve been an ER doc for about a decade, and I know from first-hand experience that it just ain’t so.
But what really stuck in the collective craw of emergency physicians was the glib response to the lack of insurance coverage for millions. More than one politician suggested that people could always go to the Emergency Room. Uh huh. News flash: Emergency Rooms are for, you know, emergencies. When folks visit the ER for conditions not deemed to be life threatening, well-intended providers often don’t fix the problems, or even dig deep to figure them out – there just isn’t time or resources to do it. And poorly-treated, less dangerous conditions can sometimes blossom into full-blown disasters. Without insurance, and therefore without access to non-emergency providers, these situations become very expensive, and… they can kill. The ACA, bringing many patients under the umbrella of coverage, will avert the severe outcome for many.
Consider the orange squiggle the front door to my Emergency Room on this Thanksgiving day. Push through, and let me introduce you to a few patients (of course, all names and details are altered from actual cases, but I assure you, people just like these are extremely, painfully real).
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