Diabetes Blog Week 2016 (Day 4): From the Mouths of My Endocrinologists

http://type2diabetestreatment.net/diabetes-mellitus/diabetes-blog-week-2016-day-4-from-the-mouths-of-my-endocrinologists/

The fun of Diabetes Blog Week 2016 continues, with today"s topic being The Healthcare Experience.

As a community, we"re asked to share what we might improve when it comes to dealing with our healthcare team or health insurance companies, perhaps in the form of a " Healthcare Wish List" or list of "Biggest Frustrations."

From our humble POV, there"s just so much wrong with the American healthcare system that it"s hard to know where to begin!

Our own ongoing coverage (rants) about the most pressing issues include these recent highlights:

• What We Want Our Doctors to Know - a piece on why I "fired" my endocrinologist after he demonstrated palpable resistance to listening and working with me.

• If We Could Bill Our Doctors for Diabetes Patient Services - all about the time, effort, and publicity charges I would levy against my doctor if I could. Moral of the story: your resources are no more precious than mine.

• Letter to My Insurance Company: I"d Rather Not Die Today - on why it"s so @$$-backwards to only cover a life-saving device if I can demonstrate that my life is teetering on the edge. What about proactively working towards positive health outcomes?!

But then we thought, an interesting take on today"s prompt would be to move beyond our own patient stories and actually ask physicians what they might like to improve about the healthcare experience, if they could.

So I reached out to my past two diabetes doctors -- my current endo Dr. G and my previous endo Dr. "Health Bug" (who remains anonymous) -- to ask them this very question posed to the DOC during D-Blog Week.

Here is what they said:

Dr. George Grunberger

"I would like to be the doctor again, who decides, after a consultation with my patients, what is the best and safest course to take to achieve optimal glycemic control. No pre-authorizations, no interference by people who didn’t go to medical school and were not present in the exam room with my patient… my wish is to have the patients actually use the therapy we jointly agreed on.

"My biggest frustration is the inability of my patients to use the approach that we have agreed is the best and safest, but rather being forced to deal with the approaches suggested by for-profit outfits whose top priority is anything but benefit to their clients who pay the health insurance premiums."

We should note that Dr. G happens to be the outgoing president of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) and next week during the group"s annual meeting in Orlando, he will hand the reigns over to Dr. Pauline Camacho in Illinois.

We like Dr. G, a true diabetes advocate who has his patients" choice and access in mind. Access is of course a hot topic at the moment, with the recent brouhaha about UnitedHealthcare making Medtronic its "exclusive" preferred insulin pump brand. The issue goes beyond that incidence -- to Dr. G"s point above -- that doctors and patients should lead therapy choices rather than the Big Guns manipulating the market to their financial advantage.

Personally, as a patient of Dr. G"s, I like the way he helps me manage my diabetes, leaving the really heavy decision-making up to me, as it"s my life, after all! He asks me what I want and need at any particular visit. That empowers me to do better, and I very much appreciate that approach!

We also appreciate him raising his voice on this issue with AACE and individually in his own practice, and we hope to see more endos doing the same as we all coordinate responses to this bigger healthcare cost issue.

Dr. "Health Bug" (my former endo):

"In seeing people with diabetes, my goal is to learn about their lifestyle, primarily exercise and eating habits in order to help them set attainable goals and to design interventions that they can realistically implement. The same is true when it comes to medications if/when those are required. I seek to first get the patient"s perspective, then work to both clear up misconceptions and work together to design a treatment and follow-up plan in the spirit of shared decision making. Sometimes in medicine, we are too prescriptive in making recommendations.

"We might conceive what we believe to be the most evidence-based and effective treatment plan, but if the person with diabetes doesn"t understand it, doesn"t agree with it, or for some reason simply cannot implement it, we generate frustration, unnecessary expense, and delayed success in reaching treatment goals."

Glad to hear such talk from an endo of my past. While his remarks don"t exactly constitute a Wish List for change, if he and other HCPs regularly acted on this advice, it could revolutionize diabetes care!

btw, while we disagreed some in our final days together, the fact is my move back to Michigan was the main reason for not seeing this endo anymore.

What Does Your Doctor Say? So, Dear Readers & DOC Friends -
We encourage you all to put the question to YOUR doctor or diabetes educator:
How would they improve the healthcare experience if they could?
What a great conversation starter for your next appointment, ay?

This is our fourth post for this year"s Diabetes Blog Week. You can see what others are sharing here and by following the #DBlogWeek hashtag on Twitter.

Disclaimer: Content created by the Diabetes Mine team. For more details click here.

Disclaimer

This content is created for Diabetes Mine, a consumer health blog focused on the diabetes community. The content is not medically reviewed and doesn"t adhere to Healthline"s editorial guidelines. For more information about Healthline"s partnership with Diabetes Mine, please click here.

Type 2 Diabetes Treatment
Type 2 Diabetes Diet
Diabetes Destroyer Reviews
Original Article
#DiabetesMellitus