The Ultimate Guide to Personalized Health Care
photo credit: Peter Sheik
What comes to mind when you think of the word “personal”? Something that is specifically yours; something that you need and want, something that suits you and makes you happy? While these might not be Webster’s exact definition of the word, they come close to covering how people feel about thing being made personal for them. The average U.S. citizen spends about $6,280 per year on health care per year. For someone making around $45,000 a year, that is roughly 7% of their salary. While that may not seem like a lot, factor in all the bills and other expenses facing you on a daily basis and you realize that every dollar spent is precious. $6,280 could buy a used car, could help eliminate credit card debt, but in order to keep yourself healthy, it gets spent on health care.
What Does Personalized Health Care Look Like?
This question may be answered differently by each individual, but in short, it’s being able to see the face behind your health insurance and care. Back before insurance companies held all the power and dictated what medicines and doctors were available to patients, doctors and patients had relationships. They knew one another’s first names, shared details about their personal lives. A child might be seen by the same pediatrician his or her entire childhood, and a woman could count on the same OBGYN who first detected her child’s heartbeat to be there catching the baby in the delivery room. This was the norm. There was no middle man to have to work through, no red tape to cut. Patients knew their doctors, and doctors made it a point to know everything about their patients. This standard doesn’t seem like it should be that difficult to achieve. Doctors go to school all those years so they can help heal people, and people seek out doctors because they need help in understanding what is best for their body.
Health Insurance Becomes “Public”
Now days, the United States health care system relies heavily on private insurance. This may conjure up images of coziness and intimacy, but unfortunately that can be far from the case. Often times patients have to navigate the maze of large HMO’s (health maintenance organizations), getting lost in a shuffle of paperwork and glances at the clock. In such large care providers, there are doctors specializing in specific areas, and a patient can get passed from hand to hand without much thought or good organization. Any medications prescribed have to first be approved by the health insurance company, who can choose to charge as they see fit, and HMO’s and other health care providers can’t charge less or they will lose out on their own profit. Health care has become less affordable and less personal.
Often people have health insurance that is provided by and paid for by their employer. This can help immensely with out-of-pocket costs, but the personal aspect of health care can still be missing in action. Because employers have to purchase plans just like an individual would, there are strict limitations as to which doctors and clinics fall under the employers health care umbrella. If someone has been seeing a doctor through their purchased insurance plan for years, they may find that they have to part ways if that doctor isn’t participating in the employer’s purchased plan. That could mean that years of personal health care would have to end just because the employer provided plan chose not to cover your specific doctor.
Is Personalized Health Care Really Possible?
As you’ve read through this article, this question might be weighing heavily on your mind: Is it possible to find or maintain a sense of personal health care within the existing system? Within the existing health care system as it is, it is possible, although a little daunting. Whether you bought your own health insurance from a provider or were given one through your work, do your homework. Pick a doctor whose background you like, maybe one in general medicine, and talk to them. Say you don’t like being bounced around and are looking for someone who will treat you thoroughly and thoughtfully. If they don’t respond favorably, move on. There’s nothing wrong with shopping around as your plan allows to find a doctor you feel can commit.
Changing the way our current health care and health insurance system in the United States works could open up whole new avenues to personalized health care. With the slightest adjustments, you could feel confident about getting the care and afford ability that you need. If the system was changed to put the decision making power in the hands of the doctors and their patients, that could improve things immensely. As stated before, pharmaceutical and insurance companies hold the cards and thus can dictate how much your care ends up costing you.
If decisions about costs of care and medication were given to doctors, you would get a good sense of a doctor based on how they treat what you’re paying them. Or, if health insurance were to remain exactly as it was and patients were simply allowed to choose whatever doctor they wanted, personalized care could be practically guaranteed. Eliminating the restrictions of HMO’s or employee provided plans would allow patients the freedom to choose any doctor they wanted and still pay the same amount for care. Small changes like this could be possible for America’s health care system, and we could all sleep better at night knowing our doctor knows us and is invested in our health.
There are many different types of health insurance available for all demographics: students, families, individuals…to learn about what is best for you, you can take a look at the various health insurance plans described on this site.
What Does Personalized Health Care Look Like?
This question may be answered differently by each individual, but in short, it’s being able to see the face behind your health insurance and care. Back before insurance companies held all the power and dictated what medicines and doctors were available to patients, doctors and patients had relationships. They knew one another’s first names, shared details about their personal lives. A child might be seen by the same pediatrician his or her entire childhood, and a woman could count on the same OBGYN who first detected her child’s heartbeat to be there catching the baby in the delivery room. This was the norm. There was no middle man to have to work through, no red tape to cut. Patients knew their doctors, and doctors made it a point to know everything about their patients. This standard doesn’t seem like it should be that difficult to achieve. Doctors go to school all those years so they can help heal people, and people seek out doctors because they need help in understanding what is best for their body.
Health Insurance Becomes “Public”
Now, the United States health care system relies heavily on private insurance. This may conjure up images of coziness and intimacy, but unfortunately that can be far from the case. Often times patients have to navigate the maze of large HMO’s (health maintenance organizations), getting lost in a shuffle of paperwork and glances at the clock. In such large care providers, there are doctors specializing in specific areas, and a patient can get passed from hand to hand without much thought or good organization. Any medications prescribed have to first be approved by the health insurance company, who can choose to charge as they see fit, and HMO’s and other health care providers can’t charge less or they will lose out on their own profit. Health care has become less affordable and less personal.
Often people have health insurance that is provided by and paid for by their employer. This can help immensely with out-of-pocket costs, but the personal aspect of health care can still be missing in action. Because employers have to purchase plans just like an individual would, there are strict limitations as to which doctors and clinics fall under the employers health care umbrella. If someone has been seeing a doctor through their purchased insurance plan for years, they may find that they have to part ways if that doctor isn’t participating in the employer’s purchased plan. That could mean that years of personal health care would have to end just because the employer provided plan chose not to cover your specific doctor.
Is Personalized Health Care Really Possible?
As you’ve read through this article, this question might be weighing heavily on your mind: Is it possible to find or maintain a sense of personal health care within the existing system? Within the existing health care system as it is, it is possible, although a little daunting. Whether you bought your own health insurance from a provider or were given one through your work, do your homework. Pick a doctor whose background you like, maybe one in general medicine, and talk to them. Say you don’t like being bounced around and are looking for someone who will treat you thoroughly and thoughtfully. If they don’t respond favorably, move on. There’s nothing wrong with shopping around as your plan allows to find a doctor you feel can commit.
Changing the way our current health care and health insurance system in the United States works could open up whole new avenues to personalized health care. With the slightest adjustments, you could feel confident about getting the care and affordability that you need. If the system was changed to put the decision making power in the hands of the doctors and their patients, that could improve things immensely.
As stated before, pharmaceutical and insurance companies hold the cards and thus can dictate how much your care ends up costing you. If decisions about costs of care and medication were given to doctors, you would get a good sense of a doctor based on how they treat what you’re paying them. Or, if health insurance were to remain exactly as it was and patients were simply allowed to choose whatever doctor they wanted, personalized care could be practically guaranteed. Eliminating the restrictions of HMO’s or employee provided plans would allow patients the freedom to choose any doctor they wanted and still pay the same amount for care. Small changes like this could be possible for America’s health care system, and we could all sleep better at night knowing our doctor knows us and is invested in our health.
