An Afternoon Talk with John Glick, M.D. and Tom Scalea, M.D.
We’ve just spent the early afternoon taking the time to think about things we would like to see in the world.
“If you ask the question, you have to expect that the answer may not be what you want or expect,” says Glick. Taking steps in the direction of what you want to see in health care is fraught with challenges. Participants like me are spending the next three days together, trying on new ways of thinking about the current health care crisis, and how we can individually implement changes that can move us toward a health care system that we want.
I’m enjoying that Glick and Scalea are talking about the need for the eradication of power in the medical system, and suggesting the reframing of medical practices and health care design so that everyone can participate and take responsibility in it. Health care takes incredible skill and ability, as well as collaboration between everybody involved; from doctors and nurses to aides, janitors, administrators and most importantly, patients and families. When everyone is able to do the job of providing care, with singular focus and intense investment; health care delivery can be focused in such as way that job hierarchy doesn’t interfere or impede the ability for patients to learn how to heal themselves or manage chronic illness with less pain and suffereing. The more in need people are, the ability for the body of health care practitioners to work in sync together is more critical.
In this conference, I am exploring an idea around what might happen if when we are sick, we could be in a position to really collaborate with our health care practitioners? My doctor would talk to my husband and friends, and they are talking to my counselor who helps me process the grief from the loss of my mother, and we are talking to the woman who recommends my vitamins at the health food store. Together, if we could be the driving force in bringing together our teams of health professionals, I bet we could figure out how to be healthy. In the world I live in, my team of health care practitioners work together to build and sustain health, and not just for me, but for everyone. Now that’s a false statement I want to work on making true when I get home.