My visits to the doctor, lately more frequent than I’d like, are nonetheless enlightening for various reasons. He spends time with his patients, doesn’t seem to be in a hurry, which is a gift in itself—even if it means you sit and wait your turn.
On occasion, we’re liable to end up chatting about other things, often tangentially related to the reason for the visit. This morning, he talked about the state of medicine in America, and the gist of it is that it’s a rather sorry state. Disconcerting, even. No money, mismanagement, unwieldy mergers and acquistions, disinterested and disconnected ownership, incompetence, greed, a dwindling pool of dedicated people who want to wear the mantle of caregiver in all its varied manifestations, from front desk greeters to scheduling to PCAs to RNs to surgeons and mental health experts, and all the other jobs and specialties that keep a healthcare establishment running and providing its much-needed services.
The doctor mentioned that there used to be a time, a while back, when the endoscopic ultrasound that I have scheduled for the middle of April would have been scheduled for much closer in—maybe even next week. But not anymore. I asked him about solutions, about what needs to happen to turn things around, and he was not at all optimistic that a turnaround—a reimagining, a reboot—is even possible. He made it sound like that train is too far down the track to do anything about.
I suppose I could talk to a different doctor and get a rosier outlook, but I read and listen and look around and know that healthcare in the U.S. is an out-of-control beast.
And it’s not just healthcare that’s teetering on the edge. There seems to be a general “brain drain,” a nagging futility and fatigue leading to a not-so-gradual ebbing of talented, qualified people. Education—teachers—comes to mind. The critical personnel, the critical infrastructure, the glue that we assume holds society together, seems to be letting go.
Blame it on Covid, blame it on burnout, blame it on the state of the world that appears to be ticking closer to midnight. Blame it on a certain softness that comes from indulging ourselves in the distraction du jour, spending time doing whatever the hell one feels like doing in search of some good life that we feel we deserve. If everyone is on that mission, then it’s no surprise we appear to be heading for a cliff.
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