tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post5861771349849997575..comments2023-10-26T05:49:59.824-04:00Comments on Reflections of a Grady Doctor: It's all about the Benjamins, baby.gradydoctorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-33272216922228587152013-09-11T16:47:20.818-04:002013-09-11T16:47:20.818-04:00Annie, yes, I am familiar with The Garden, however...Annie, yes, I am familiar with The Garden, however, the family wanted to stay together and they wanted to stay near a MARTA line.Jillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06744125557101852519noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-19780909630814986382013-09-10T17:48:22.363-04:002013-09-10T17:48:22.363-04:00Wow. Keep on fighting the good fight, my friend.Wow. Keep on fighting the good fight, my friend.gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-91255434953426727952013-09-10T17:47:58.961-04:002013-09-10T17:47:58.961-04:00You know, I never thought about how offensive &quo...You know, I never thought about how offensive "noncompliant" can be as a term. It is loaded with judgement, though. I'm glad you shared your perspective and your experiences. That sounds like an amazing exercise.gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-51160974728954380272013-09-10T17:47:07.368-04:002013-09-10T17:47:07.368-04:00Preach, Sister Moon. Preach, Sister Moon. gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-90838344668216264942013-09-10T17:46:46.058-04:002013-09-10T17:46:46.058-04:00Yup. I was thinking: It would be good for this pat...Yup. I was thinking: It would be good for this patient to go and ring Mr. Romney's doorbell dressed in that work uniform with a prescription bill. gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-76036390036369788412013-09-10T17:45:38.543-04:002013-09-10T17:45:38.543-04:00Yeah, Peachtree and Pine is tough. Fortunately, my...Yeah, Peachtree and Pine is tough. Fortunately, my patient had a home but it's such a hard situation.gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-65606524902599956892013-09-10T17:42:45.457-04:002013-09-10T17:42:45.457-04:00"But we are not illiterate not at all and I k... "But we are not illiterate not at all and I know you didn't write that but your portrayal of ALL THE WAY TO THE TENTH GRADE kind of pinched. Having been homeless for many years I can tell you that we were not at all stupid uneducated or however else you choose to see us."<br /><br />Whoa. Rebecca. You TOTALLY misunderstood me.<br /><br />That had nothing to do with me believing that all people who have been homeless or who are living in poverty are stupid or uneducated. I hope and pray that anyone who has read here long enough knows that about me. I apologize for coming across that way and for the pinch and/or hurt you felt when you read those words.<br /><br />Here is what I meant: This patient was failed by . . . I don't know. . the education system, the government, and just period. I was frustrated because my patient told me that every year she'd just been "pushed on through" even though she couldn't read. I didn't elaborate on that because it could have been an entirely separate blogpost and quite frankly it probably will be. I was mad about that. Like, how can somebody make it all the way to tenth grade without somebody sounding an alarm because they can't read? So I guess I was in my own head and assuming somebody could read my mind because my point was really that if ANYBODY should get a damn helping hand it's somebody who got shoved into high school because she "just got to old to be at the middle school and it didn't matter how much I didn't know, I had to go on up." <br /><br />Jesus. That was so, so far away from what I intended by that. And I deeply appreciate you being honest and respecting me enough to share that. I will be honest, too, and say that your words kind of pinched me, too. Every single thing you said I know. No, not as you do first hand, but because of my patients at Grady. Every story that I burn the midnight oil writing is--hell, the impetus of this entire blog--is an attempt to honor them. It makes me sad that anyone, anywhere would think otherwise. <br /><br />Every day of my life, I choose to see beauty--and I do. And yes, that is a choice.gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-41780792487391976112013-09-10T16:57:50.888-04:002013-09-10T16:57:50.888-04:00Ptree and Pine is a rough place!! Have you tried T...Ptree and Pine is a rough place!! Have you tried The Garden in Smyrna? A good place for families (though if a man is involved, he would be placed somewhere else).*anniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05865546168394192157noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-70986169662702108492013-09-10T12:02:15.919-04:002013-09-10T12:02:15.919-04:00I will make $22,315 this year. While I am uneducat...I will make $22,315 this year. While I <i>am</i> uneducated in terms of academia I am far from being illiterate or pre-verbal. Or dumb. Before I got laid off from my blue collar job I was still below the poverty line. I am not lazy. I have to pay $540 a month for COBRA and $975 a month for rent and in one year COBRA will no longer be an option for me and most likely whatever Obamacare offers will no longer be an option either. We choose. Food. Rent. Or Rent. Food. The car insurance goes. The health insurance goes. We type at the library. But we are not illiterate not at all and I know you didn't write that but your portrayal of ALL THE WAY TO THE TENTH GRADE kind of pinched. Having been homeless for many years I can tell you that we were not at all stupid uneducated or however else you choose to see us. Though a lot of us were mentally ill. And a lot of us were tossed out of extremely abusive households. And a lot of us lost our jobs because of job cuts and the impossibility of finding another job. <br />RebeccaRadish Kinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06534752971317927559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-84049540234991708652013-09-10T11:29:16.922-04:002013-09-10T11:29:16.922-04:00Welcome to my world. I make quite a bit above that...Welcome to my world. I make quite a bit above that 200% line, and I have insurance. But medical care in itself is expensive, and I take 16 different medications a day. Some of them multiple times. If they weren't generics and if Publix didn't give away metformin and lisinopril I'm pretty sure I'd be deciding which ones I could afford. When diabetes educators say that the cheapest strips are unreliable, I say that they are better than not testing. And I have tested them against the expensive strips without seeing much difference. <br /><br />I fear ever being told that I need insulin. I shudder when my son tells me how much a month his wife spends on it. That is what motivates me to watch what I eat and exercise. I want to push that day as far into the future as possible.Lisa https://www.blogger.com/profile/09324961653370110887noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-56444014502466412472013-09-10T09:07:33.678-04:002013-09-10T09:07:33.678-04:00One of the best things I do at my job (in my opini...One of the best things I do at my job (in my opinion) is bring a poverty simulation to campus a few times a year. In it students from across campus (not just med students) are given roles as family members and their charge is to make it through the "month." They must pay bills, access social service agencies, buy food, medicine, etc. I believe it is a real eye opening experience for them. It is my hope that the simulation will help health care providers of all types become more empathetic and understanding toward what many of their patients in one of the poorest states in the nation face on a daily basis. "Non-compliant" has long rubbed me the wrong way - I find it to be overused and many many times incorrectly used. Many patients aren't being defiant in not filling prescriptions. They are indeed playing rock, paper, scissors with their health and health care often loses every round. Anyhoo, I'm rambling. I don't have an answer to this issue, but I do pray for all who go to work on a daily basis, hustle hard for their families, and still cannot afford the medicine and supplies they so desperately need.Nerd Girlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-43074887774870132762013-09-10T09:01:53.469-04:002013-09-10T09:01:53.469-04:00This is the reality.
The stories I could tell...
...This is the reality. <br />The stories I could tell...<br />And that's from the people I love the most who work the hardest who cannot afford health insurance. <br />It's all effed-up and you know it and I know it. <br />And until we get some damn universal health care in this country it's going to be that way. That's what I think. Ms. Moonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09776404747858099919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-77019448681288784872013-09-10T07:41:44.904-04:002013-09-10T07:41:44.904-04:00The "bubble" in Washington D.C. have abs...The "bubble" in Washington D.C. have absolutely positively no idea how it is for the rest of us....and I include myself in this because we are all just one step away from being your patient in real life. ain't for city galshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14938751007704247232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-57500053264463851792013-09-10T07:26:08.017-04:002013-09-10T07:26:08.017-04:00Heartbreaking. I had a similar situation yesterda...Heartbreaking. I had a similar situation yesterday with a homeless family. Besides taking them home with me, their only option was "P'tree and Pine" shelter. Most of the homeless I work with sleep on the streets instead of going to that shelter. Prayers lifted up.Jillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06744125557101852519noreply@blogger.com