Taking Charge of Your Health

Did you know the number of people that die in the U.S. every week from medical errors is greater than the total number of people killed in 9/11?

And did you know that the U.S. ranks last among 19 industrialized nations in a measure of preventable deaths (deaths before the age of 75 that were potentially preventable with timely and effective healthcare)?

I recently stumbled across this information in a fascinating presentation given by Elizabeth L. Brewley, entitled Consumer Driven Healthcare: Consumers Need to Become CEOs of their Own Health and Health Care (you can download her presentation from this website).

In her presentation, Ms. Brewley advocates individuals take a more active approach to their medical care—shop around, ask your doctor more questions (Why are you prescribing me this drug? What are the side effects?), and practice healthy habits to prevent illness and minimize trips to the hospital.

According to President Obama, every 30 seconds an American files for bankruptcy because of their medical bills. Surely some of this debt could be avoided by following Ms. Brewley’s advice and taking charge of your healthcare to make sure you’re getting the right treatment, quality, and advice for your money.

Sometimes insurance companies have limits on which doctors they will pay for you to see or which treatments they will cover. And while it may be tempting to stick to the paradigm prescribed by your insurance company, sometimes after you’ve weighed the pros and cons it may be worth it to pay out of pocket for a certain doctor or treatment that best suits your needs and lifestyle. (I really like Health Savings Account insurance plans, as they allow for a greater deal of personal choice in healthcare).

At MedTrava, all of the patients that come to us have already done a great deal of research before coming to the conclusion that going overseas offers the best value for their money. Medical travel is not the right option for everybody, but all Americans could learn a thing or two from the people that choose to travel abroad for healthcare—namely to interview several doctors before finalizing your treatment plan.