Every profession is a respectable one, provided the one who chooses it, performs it dutifully and with utter honesty. Notably, the profession that aims to save lives is always expected to be fair and kind. When one joins the medical profession, he automatically takes an oath to keep the sanctity of this profession by giving his best when it comes to relieving people of their pain or anxiety.
When a person visits a doctor, he always expects to be cured for sure. After God, the doctor is upon whom he rests his belief. But what if the doctor doesn’t show a concerning behavior? What if he doesn’t give satisfactory treatment? And worst of all, what if he doesn’t provide a ‘complete’ treatment at all?
The patient whose hopes were tied to this doctor suddenly feels heartbroken as he again gets into the anxiety of his problem /illness that he was in before he even went to the doctor.
Having proper health insurance for medical, dental and vision is vital for a resident of New York City. Since NY is an advanced city with so much to take care of in which health is a crucial factor as it is essential to cope with the daily race of life.
Good health would determine proper functioning and better performance on which there is no compromise made.
All over the city, there are so many doctors and specialists working under different hospitals that accept health insurances. As a result, the number of patients has grown so much since a few years due to the lifestyle that we are forced to adapt to survive.
Today, diseases are caused and spread so quickly. Hardly anyone seems perfectly healthy.
A sad incident happened with a patient experiencing a significant toothache for the first time. Having unbearable pain, he called the dentist for an urgent appointment. His first visit was based on taking x-rays, and the patient was sent home.
Several weeks passed, and the attempts to contact the primary biller and the person in charge failed. The patient had no one to answer to make him understand why it was taking so long to treat a patient in pain.
Still, plenty of letters from the insurance were arriving showing the approved requested procedures by the doctor and his assistant.
The procedures included five extractions (approved), root canal (in the process), bridge and replacement (not approved). Also, copies were given to the biller and approval department.
Finally, the patient got a phone call asking to go to the Dentist office for a procedure, which ended in another series of additional x-rays. All this seemed to be a clear waste of money, time and energy to the patient. And yet nothing was prescribed about taking care of the pain and treatment.
The patient got very upset and confused after knowing that the procedures were approved but not performed by the doctor’s office.
His pain had already made him feel pretty much frustrated, and now this recklessness on the part of doctors and medical staff were adding his agony.
Several weeks passed by again, and then he got one root canal done and sent home. The doctors did not find it necessary to give an explanation or advice on what to do and how to take care of it. They didn’t even mention the following visit details.
Patient’s last visit consisted of a tooth pulled out. The careless doctor cancelled his next visit appointment with no explanation at all, nor did he suggest any other alternative in case of emergency.
The poor patient was left disappointed and helpless with his pain.
Examples of everyday health care fraud activities are being witnessed a lot these days. Corruption and fraudulent activities in the medical (all types) departments is a relentless thing to observe as the people who are supposed to save people’s lives become the cause of their anxiety.
Billing the maximum to insurance companies while giving indigent services to the patients is a very unfair and wrongful act. Such activities must be taken into notice. Better, improved and complete services should be ensured to all patients.
It is also called healthcare abuse on the part of the doctors that involves practices which generate unnecessary costs for the patients. Such practices prevent patients from receiving services that are medically essential for them as well as meet professionally authorized standards.
But what should be done to minimize such activities?
Suggestions:
Here are some suggestions:
- The insurance companies should keep a close check on the services given by the doctor, and completion of all mentioned procedures should be ensured before providing the billing information.
- In case of any discrepancy, strict accountability is required.
- If required, the criminals should be expelled or even sent to prison as an example for others.
- Someone at the Healthcare centres should be made in charge of checking documentation and billing Processes to avoid illegal activities.
- A complaint cell should be arranged in every health care centre where feedback from the patients should be made compulsory so that action could be taken accordingly to any complaints.
Honesty and passion for unconditional service with utmost devotion are the key factors of this profession. Hence all doctors must be conscientious enough as to not deviate from these.