Modern Healthcare Delivery, Deliverance or Debacle: A Glimpse From the Inside Out

Ms. Runouta Patience felt it was time to call her doctor. Her sore throat was just not getting any better. She had an earache, a sinus headache, and was congested. With no appointments available to see Dr. Be Well until late the next day, she decides it's off to QuickFix retail medical clinic to get herself feeling well again. Feeling somewhat better after being treated with decongestants and an antibiotic, a week later she arrives at Dr. Be Well's office for a follow-up visit, where the receptionist hands her a clipboard with pages upon pages of endless forms to complete before seeing the doctor. In addition, she is asked if she wishes to join Dr. Be Well's new accountable care organization-an ACO. What? Wasn't she already his patient? Finally after almost getting writer's cramp, she is taken to an exam room, where in walks Dr. Guess Who, ANP-C, ACNS-BC, DNP. At first, Runouta Patience is disturbed that Dr. Be Well himself is unavailable. But Dr. Guess Who is kind, professional in her demeanor, extremely thorough, and even takes a few minutes to test her understanding of the asthma recommendations that she makes. Leaving the office, Rinaouta Patience writes out a check for her office visit co-payment and upon arriving home downloads an app onto her smartphone that will allow her to send peak airflow rates to her doctor to help manage her asthma. Some weeks later, despite everyone's best efforts, her condition deteriorates sufficiently that she must go to the local emergency room, where she receives a breathing treatment and is admitted to hospital. Expecting to see Dr. Be Well, she is again surprised as in comes young Dr. Hyam Here, who introduces himself as the hospitalist on duty today who will care for her for at least the next forty-eight hours while she is hospitalized. Through simulated patient scenarios such as these, Dr. Zema introduces many of the relevant milestones that have occurred in healthcare delivery during the past fifty years. Problems currently faced are discussed and potential solutions provided. While everyone ostensibly someday will be a patient, for many, that exposure is intermittent, often skewed, and largely gleaned from the outside looking in. For those who dare, Dr. Zema provides a glimpse of healthcare delivery seen from the inside, looking out, thereby affording readers additional insights whereby they may navigate outside their comfort zone while achieving a broader perspective of the overall healthcare delivery system.

• | Author: Michael J Zema Md
• | Publisher: Fulton Books
• | Publication Date: January 18, 2021
• | Number of Pages: 352 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Hardcover
• | ISBN-10: 1646543416
• | ISBN-13: 9781646543410