[HSF] double negatives

[Mitch Lirtzman]

Well said, sir. Well said. Here, I'll finish your statement for you...
"...people expect their lawyers to be sharks, a**holes, and rat b**tards." 
Sorry for the indelicate posting. I hope I haven't offended those with too 
fragile sensitivities. Happy Fourth. Tea, stay dry up there.
Mitch
>The short answer is that we are easy targets.  We keep taking it on the chin
>and coming back for more.  Everyone complains that we make too much money
>and yet (at least in the US and probably everywhere else) they want instant
>access to top doctors, top health care, top everything 24 hrs a day.  Here,
>in the US - July 4th - national holiday, took me an hour to drive to work
>(usually 15 minutes) to meet with a family about an upcoming operation - at
>their convenience.  Try calling your lawyer today (even if it is a crisis)
>or your stock broken, insurance agent, real estate agent, plumber, etc.
>Sure, you may get ahold of them (at their vacation homes, on the golf
>course, trout fishing) - but just wait for the bill for that 15 minute phone
>conversation.  Besides, they dont even have to pay for their health care -
>again, people do not appreciate or even understand the value of the services
>that they require/want.  Then, on the other side we work our butts off and a
>fluke accident happens or something out of the ordinary (so what if the
>patient is a non-compliant overweight poorly controlled diabetic smoker) and
>everyone wants to place blame.  Now CMS (medicare/Medicaid) is publishing
>AMI/CHF 30 mortality statistics, patient satisfaction results, and I guess
>the latest is that patients must sign a form agreeing 2 days in advance to
>getting discharged - and if they disagree then it goes to a unbiased
>moderator (hmm - who is going to pay for that???)  We take a stand on
>something and we get marked for abandoning our patients, our hospitals, or
>oaths.  And, yet here on this National Holiday - just try to get ahold of an
>administrator or supervisor if you have a problem.  I am not complaining,
>that is the way things are and that is why we chose this field.  My
>patient's families hug and thank me for saving their loved ones in their
>time of need - that I why I do this.  We are expected to be perfect - at
>times I dont mind that reputation as I strive for it and families at times
>recognize that is not the case when the see how hard we work and how much we
>do care.  It sure beats the alternative - people expect their lawyers to
>be...... (fill in the blanks).  If people are satisfied in life being
>mediocre and having other expect that of them and expect to live and die by
>a timecard/hourly rate/billable hours then fine.  I am looking to buy a new
>condo to live and the developer "does not negotiate on price" - fine, when
>he comes in the hospital and needs "my" services then he can pay full price
>also.  OK, enough rambling.....We are not the bad guys in all of this - the
>system is - yes there are bad, greedy, apathetic doctors (and probably a few
>that can be classified as "terrorists") - but in the end, are we not all
>passionate zealots - if not martyrs for our causes?
>
>
>-michael
>
>
>On 7/4/07, Tea Acuff <tacuff at swbell.net> wrote:
>>
>>Speaking of double negatives has anyone noted the sense of incredulity in
>>the reports on the Muslim doctors in the UK who played a part in the
>>terrorist attacks. This is from the same media sources that usually talk of
>>our (as physicians) failures, negligence, and greed. The concept of killing
>>healers is really a contradiction deep in the psyche of the West despite its
>>mouth piece preference for jaded pseudo sophistication.
>>
>>tea
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