If they’d killed him quicker …
Danny talked me into talking to a lawyer about the horrible treatment Mike got at Memorial Health in Savannah, Ga. Apparently it isn’t malpractice unless the patient dies then and there. Because Mike suffered terribly but survived their mistreatment for a couple of years, there’s no lawsuit.
It may be immoral to not tell a patient about a life-threatening condition, but it isn’t actionable. It may be immoral to take a wait-and-see attitude for weeks when a patient is starving and you know there’s a colon blockage, but you can’t sue over it. You can let an infection fester until it’s weeping pus and smells of death, but it’s not enough to sue over.
I don’t want their money, but I can’t believe what they did to Mike isn’t worth more than a shoulder shrug and a smug “you can’t touch us.”
People without insurance are being told they have to pay up front for lifesaving treatments or they can’t get them. People go to the emergency room and are sent home without the treatment they need. Insurance companies cancel policies for no good reason.
And they get away with it.
I have to admit I’m pretty angry right now. There are hundreds of thousands of people feeling all the frustration and grief I’m feeling, and we all seem to be powerless to motivate people in power (who have the best medical coverage anywhere) to do a damn thing about it.
Patient Pals & Family Friends
Life o' Mike has a new peer support program for people newly diagnosed with chronic or serious illness or with a new disability and their caregivers.
Patient Pals are people who have experience with various illnesses and disabilities, who can help someone newly diagnosed or with a new disability work through the fear, frustration, confusion and grief often experienced in the first few months.
Family Friends are there to help caregivers and other family members grow into their new role.
People with new illness or disability fare better when they have a role model -- someone who can help them negotiate their new path in life.
We need volunteers, who are asked to donate a minimum of one hour a week. Training is free and includes information on active listening, ways to help and when to know more help is needed.
And of course, we need funding.
To learn more, call Leslie Boyd at 828-243-6712 or e-mail lifeomike@gmail.com.
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