Case study 1

An acquaintance of mine, Wang, was recently admitted to Veterans General Hospital in Taipei When he was sent to the hospital, he had been unconscious for several days and was diagnosed with multiple serious life-threatening ailments. One of the emergency treatments was to amputate one of his legs in order to save his life. Wang, a veteran from mainland China is over 60 years old and has no family or relatives in Taiwan.

        After regaining consciousness several days after surgery, he realized that his leg had been amputated and that he would probably have to stay in bed for quite a long period of time. He became extremely depressed and refused to eat, drink and talk. He just laid on his bad staring into space.

        A nurse, Ms. Lin Chung-tsu, realized what was happening and started spending about an hour a day trying to engage Wang in conversation, though initially without success.

        But Lin was persistent and continued to try every day, even using her own time after work. Ten days after the surgery, Lin came to Wang’s room as usual and started the conversation by asking, “Mr. Wang, don’t you want to get married?”

        To Lin’s surprise, Wang burst into tears and cried, “How could I get married now? I am a useless old man. I can’t even go to China to visit my brother, which I have been planning for years.”

        It was from that moment on that Wang started talking, eating, drinking, and cooperating with medical staff. He is now in good spirits, and is expected to check out of the hospital soon. He still plans to go to China and perhaps find some lovely lady to marry. He said to me, “I owe my physical body to the doctors, but I owe my LIFE to nurse Lin.”

        In my opinion, Ms. Lin can be classified as an “endangered species” ─ hard to find today. It just seems to me that the majority of medical staff today all seem to be in a hurry, for who knows what. They treat patients like they are on an assembly line ─ each patient is just another part to be assembled in their daily routine. And you, as a patient, are not supposed to think or ask any questions. They may care for your body, but very possibly put a serious damper on your spirit.

Case study 2

This reminds me of my cousin’s experience just a few months ago in a Kaoshiung hospital. He was hospitalized for broken bones and had to undergo surgery as well. For the after-surgery care, the nurses came by only three times to measure his blood pressure and temperature the first day after the surgery. Three days later, I sought out a doctor and told him my cousin seemed to be feverish. I then accompainied the doctor to the nursing station to see my cousin’s chart. To my surprise, the temperature graph on the chart was beautifully drawn with indications that six temperature readings were being taken each day. I never knew where the nurses were getting the temperature readings from.

        Also, hanging by my cousin’s bedside was a chart indicating when and how often he had been turned for blood circulation purposes. The chart had turning records perfectly recorded with six turnings a day. However, the truth was the form. But no turning or massaging was done at all.

        I wondered how many other patients were suffering from this type of neglect due to the unprofessionalism of the staff. While I suggested to my cousin that he transfer to another hospital, he simply said, “The situation will improve If you bring a fruit basket or some gift items to the nurses.” And he was right ─ the nurses came by daily with 4-6 temperature measurements each day after that.

Medical care is a service

        Unfortunately, more often than not, we see medical professionals carry the exact opposite attitude:”Hey, I don’t have to serve you! It is you who need my professional skills.” With this attitude, we see patients treated as second-class citizens begging for mercy. Patients are not allowed to ask too many questions, and doctors don’t have the patience to explain their patients’ condition to them.

        In general, medical facilities, though perhaps outfitted with technologically-advanced equipment and well-trained staff, are usually lacking in interpersonal skills and business concepts. Because of this, they are usually far removed from the reality that patients today are getting organizations that are not meeting customers needs.

        That’s why when changes occur, medical professionals seem to be the least prepared to adjust their practices and react more vigorously.

We have seven the closing of many medical facilities in the US after the DRG system was put in place in 1983. Locally, we are now seeing reactions from the implementation of the National Health Insurance Plan. Medical professionals must realize the fact that patients are their customers, and customers deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. For those who cannot or will not grasp this concept, it is likely that they will be out of business like many other businesses before them.

        Good luck, doctors, nurses and pharmacists…! And please remember, “SERVICE” is your raison d’etre.