MedEx Day Eight

Today truly surprised me! I was shadowing at the Business Offices at Greer Memorial Hospital, and even though I expected filing lots of paper work (or less exciting activities), it actually required a lot more! I realize that many of the workers need to be good communicators and like talking to patients as many people went to see the person I was shadowing, Lorie, before their operation. You saw so many different types of people in just one day as some seemed scared/unsure about their upcoming procedure, whereas others seemed happy and talkative! All of the patients were extremely understanding with what I was doing there! In fact, I even got to walk around and see patients in the ICU, which I would have never expected. All of them wereb elderly, so it was sad to see them tied up to tubes and on a heart rate monitor, but they all seemed willing to sign the paperwork that Mrs. Lorie gave them. One of the patients even talked to us for a while about how she actually got into the hospital (a fall), and it was almost like she didn't want us to leave! Even though we weren't actually treating her, I realize that even the business office workers play a part in making a patient's experience enjoyable. I felt sad for this patient because it almost seemed like she felt alone, and that no one visited her. If I become a doctor, I would want to make sure that my patient's don't feel neglected, and that they have someone to talk to if their family won't. It almost seemed like her doctor never came to see her. I now fully understand how important keeping track of insurances, necessary payments, and other paperwork could be so vital to the healthcare system. Since doctors and nurses are so busy trying to heal patients, no one is left to make sure the economic and more practical side of medicine is taken care of. Because of this, it is important that we have workers like Lorie who devote their time to taking care of the necessary legal matters so the other healthcare workers don't have to worry about it! And, it makes the operation at a hospital run much more smoothly! I also got to shadow in the ER for a little bit, which was not as hectic today as I was expecting. However, I can't image how hard it would be for business office workers to get patients to sign important forms after undergoing a trauma! I did see a young woman who was about my age in the ER, which was extremely eye opening. No matter how young you are, your health can be gone in an instant. Luckily, she was able to be discharged. I am not sure I would get as much excitement or joy working in the business office, but after Lorie told me that some doctors won't even look people like her in the eye, I was adamant about one thing. If I become a doctor, I am going to make sure that I acknowledge every worker, regardless if they're performing medical procedures on a patient or not, because every person is important in a patient's experience.