I had this older patient in one of my rooms with her husband. When I went in there to perform an assessment, the husband asked me if she was going to live.
"Umm, yes. I'm thinking she's got a chance."
Hubby: Well, she's getting up there in age and if she lives, she may get her "ultimate shot".
"Her what?"
Hubby: If she get's too old, then under Obamacare, they're going to decide she's too old and put her down.
Pt: Shut up honey! Hopefully, they won't do that today. <smiles>
I'm sure they were joking, but I asked.
Hubby: Well, the way that we're headed, I wouldn't doubt it. Obama already said old people don't need a lot of care - just give them a pill. I think it'll be a shot - the ultimate shot.
Later after I went through her discharge instructions, she asked, "so no ultimate shot for me today?"
"No. They were going to give it to you, but I pleaded your case and said you had at least a good year left and they were satisfied with that."
Hubby: After next year, they're going to put all of us oldies down. We're looking to move to South America and finish retirement down there.
Oh, yeah. Let them go down to South America. My parents just came back from a two months stay down there to visit family. My mother worked in healthcare for over 40 years. She said the healthcare quality down there was nothing like here!
ReplyDeleteI wish them luck!
I've heard some things about Ecuador and Costa Rica. Supposedly, there are areas where Americans become ex-pats and line comfortably down there.
DeletePerhaps they saw the same show on International House Hunters on HGTV!!
With your sense of humor and quick wit I would so love to see you interact with patients.... on those rare occasions that you have the luxury of enough time to actually converse with them.
ReplyDeleteI do love talking to my patients....well, not all of them, of course! ;-)
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