Patient First

I spent an hour and a half at Patient First just to get a strep test. It was negative. I walked out with a receipt description of tonsilitis that wouldn't have told an 8-year-old anything she didn't already know.

Health care is a big issue in America right now. I don't know all that much about it, so I'm not about to give you the answer. But here's what I can give you: It really does start with the patient first:

Pre-illness: The patient (yes, that means you) needs to take care of herself. We need to get away from obesity and heart disease and start thinking vegetables, portion size and exercise.

Post-illness: Why don't they (not really sure who "they" is) let us, the patient, take care of ourselves? I think at least two of those reasons are 1) We're too lazy and don't seem to care about our health as much as we should 2) We would cheat the system.

We've got self-pregnancy tests. And several drugs that used to require a prescription are now being sold over-the-counter. A self-strep test would have saved me over an hour today.

I still think it's time to try a different kind of health care system in America, but it'd be really cool if we all took some responsibility (and the government allowed us that freedom) for our own health. We'd all be a little happier, not worried about our insurance and probably live a heck of a lot longer.