An interesting day at work

As you know, I work in healthcare. I have had the opportunity to work in many different arenas and in many different facilities; such is a blessing of my profession, flexibility.

Something that I have noticed in the last few years is the change in a few patients’ expectations. There are those that expect to have pain free surgery. They want to be seen now and they insist on every test and procedure imaginable. More often than not, the people with these attitudes are unwilling to pay for ANYTHING. I recently took care of a woman recovering from elective surgery. While I was in her room giving her pain medication and taking her vital signs I listened while she visited with her family. She mentioned that they had just returned from a trip to Disneyland and that they were looking forward to their future trip to Hawaii in the summer. This woman talked about going to a tanning salon to get “ready” for the sun. She talked about needing to get her hair and nails done (yes, some people talk about this kinda stuff while they are recovering) I noticed that she had a couple of large detailed tattoos. Later in the day I heard about their small living room (I was asking if they had stairs in their house that she would have to deal with) but now that they have the 52 inch flat screen TV they had more room, and she intended to stay in the recliner and watch movies during her recovery. This same patient told me that her husband was out of work and they have 4 children and that they couldn’t wait for “nationalized healthcare” because they couldn’t afford insurance (she was receiving all of her care for free).

I know this story sounds amazing and made up because what person would say all this while I was working right there but this is exactly what I am trying to point out. Some people have the expectation that because they want a service and need that service that it is a RIGHT.


Well, not to brag or anything but we don’t own a big TV, we don’t have cable or a dish, we rarely eat out and my husband drives a 39 year old car to work (and believe me it is NOT considered a classic, but don't tell him that:) we don’t have the latest and greatest cell phones, laptops, iPods or iPads and the reason we don’t have these things is because we make CHOICES.


All my life I was taught to work hard and save money and that I could be successful if I learned a “marketable skill” (my dads favorite term). We are extremely blessed. Neither my husband nor I went to expensive universities or hold impressive degrees but we have those marketable skills and we try hard to be good stewards of the gifts God gives us and to be charitable to those less fortunate. We are living the American dream.


Oh, and when my patient was finally ready to go home and she had met all the discharge criteria, I wheeled her out to the front of the hospital and her husband picked her up in a brand new car.

gm


 en•ti•tle•ment

Pronunciation: \-ˈtī-təl-mənt\

Function: noun

Date: 1942

1 a : the state or condition of being entitled : RIGHT b : a right to benefits specified especially by law or contract

2 : a government program providing benefits to members of a specified group; also : funds supporting or distributed by such a program

3 : belief that one is deserving of or entitled to certain privileges


very interestig, check it out when you have a minute
http://www.helium.com/items/316120-a-history-of-american-entitlement-programs



 
kinda fits:) 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRgB2eeHZEw
pretty funny