Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

91–100 of 114 posts

Re: Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

#91

Post by singhrac »

decafninja wrote: post #16

Concierge healthcare. It's also gotten more widespread than when it first became a thing, so even there I would make sure to do due diligence to see what level of service you're getting. But if you're willing to fork over the money, the level of care that you're supposedly given seems far better than even anything in stories you hear about in Europe or Asia. Seems like you should expect to pay five digit amounts per…

It bills itself as "not concierge" medicine, but through a previous employer I had access to Summus, and found them extremely helpful in navigating the healthcare system.

The turnaround from me being told by a med school friend that I should "go get something checked out" to having an appointment with a dermatologist was ~1.5 days, and the total effort I spent was a few minutes filling out a form and responding to someone calling me.

Re: Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

#92

Post by ianai »

Moto7451 wrote: post #83
legitster wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, I mean a fitness instructor. Or perhaps a "personal trainer". There are certain certifications that exist (And some people are both trainers and physical therapists). In my (limited) experience, physical therapists tend to have much broader recommendations. Like a PT might tell you to walk an hour a day, but a trainer might recommend a specific kind of crunch that targets the actual muscles in question. And to OP…

Boosting this comment, you want to talk to someone with a Masters or Doctorate in Kinesiology. Some Physical Therapists will have this or equivalent training. Some other specialists will fit the bill as well but not all. My wife had back pain due to a disfigured vertebrae. That’s something they do not want to operate in until every other option is exhausted. Much of her pain and numbness is caused by imbalanced muscl…

50/50. The problem with going to fitness/sports people is they may get "distracted" with other concerns of theirs and ignore your central complaint. So if that fitness instructor is incredibly informed and clearly taking your priorities straight then, sure, go there. But if they seem to have a chronic case of "jock brain" and seem to be only concerned with your physical appearance then go elsewhere.

Re: Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

#93

Post by [deleted] »

singhrac wrote: post #91
decafninja wrote: post #16

Concierge healthcare. It's also gotten more widespread than when it first became a thing, so even there I would make sure to do due diligence to see what level of service you're getting. But if you're willing to fork over the money, the level of care that you're supposedly given seems far better than even anything in stories you hear about in Europe or Asia. Seems like you should expect to pay five digit amounts per…

It bills itself as "not concierge" medicine, but through a previous employer I had access to Summus, and found them extremely helpful in navigating the healthcare system. The turnaround from me being told by a med school friend that I should "go get something checked out" to having an appointment with a dermatologist was ~1.5 days, and the total effort I spent was a few minutes filling out a form and responding to so…

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

#94

Post by cosmodisk »

I've see this kind of service offered in a few private hospitals in Lithuania. So basically they assess you and depending on the complexity/uncertainty of the problem, they'd form a panel of specialists to discuss the case,etc. This allow to skip that idiotic chain, where you bounce like a ball from one doctor to another whilst none of them talk to each other. I don't know your condition or budget, but I think there are quite a few countries in Europe where you'd get something like this.

Re: Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

#96

Post by spaetzleesser »

I feel you. My ex girlfriend had chronic pain and the US health system is terrible dealing with this. You go from tests to tests, surgeons quickly want to do their favorite procedures and otherwise they happily give you hardcore painkillers.

Two pieces of advice:

- Find a pain specialist who treats you like a real human and not just a science experiment or revenue source. there are some but not many

- My company produces implants for Spinal Cord Stimulation. The main indication is chronic pain that can't be treated with other means. My ex has one of our implants and it got her from seriously contemplating suicide to a good quality of life. A lot of doctors don't recommend the devices based on experiences a long time ago but the tech is way better now. The implant process is fully reversible unlike most surgeries. The main players in this area are Nevro, Boston scientific, Medtronic and Abbott (I work for one of them). Please look into it. I know several people who got their lives back with SCS.

Hope this makes sense.

Re: Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

#97

Post by lastofus »

Consider seeing a doc or PA/NP in Physiatry. They tend to take a much more holistic and thorough approach to diagnosing issues, including neck-spine related pain.

Physiatry is a small specialty which most folks have not heard of. I'd encourage you to research the specialty and what it's about at the very least.

Re: Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

#98

Post by codingdave »

relaunched wrote: post #11

I'd apply to be seen at the Mayo or Cleveland clinic. While it sucks that there is a patient selection process, once you are in, they can line everything up, over a a few days, and get you an answer - at least all the testing will be done. They do have telehealth options and I found the digital experience compelling. I'd second the medical tourism, but I've never done it myself. I'm a patient at the Mayo.

Yes, this is the same answer I would recommend (and I have also gone to Mayo for my own pain problems), but be aware that not everyone just walks in, gets tests, and gets an answer. Some of their departments are more booked than others, so while you can show up for a few days and get a slew of tests, half of your time on those days will be sitting in waiting rooms hoping one of the specialists in a booked department has a cancellation and can see you on the fly.

Also, just because they run all the tests and are great at what they do does not mean they will have all the answers for every patient. They have a fast-paced machine to crank you through which will help many people, but not all. Set your expectations accordingly, and be prepared for any result including more of, "The specialist you need is booked, come back in a few weeks."

I 100% agree to go there and get all you can from it. Just don't walk in expecting a quick easy miracle.

Re: Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

#99

Post by sizzle »

mtalantikite wrote: post #64
orev wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

By “Fitness Instructor” I think you mean “Physical Therapist” (and definitely not a Chiropractor). In the US, a fitness instructor can be literally anyone who runs an aerobics class, while a physical therapist actually has medical training.

It really depends. I know plenty of people that are "fitness instructors" (mainly yoga and Pilates teachers) and I'd recommend them over regular PT in most situations. They know a ton about anatomy, how to read body imbalances, and can work with you to train your body back from injury. Personally, I had a debilitating shoulder injury, couldn't put any weight on my right arm at all, and one of my yoga teachers put me…

I would be careful with shoulder injuries, your body simply can’t repair certain things like rotator cup injuries if I recall correctly.

Re: Ask HN: How can you buy high quality healthcare?

#100

Post by Urgo »

electric_mayhem wrote: post #6

Direct Primary Care might be a good place to start: https://www.dpcare.org/ I gave it a try last fall, and the difference is night and day: my current Dr actually works for me, whereas the last one very obviously worked for my insurance company. Rereading your post, this is exactly what you want. He had me do a whole bunch of tests right off the bat and set about optimizing different things. His job is to keep my bod…

Thank you for this! This sounds like exactly what I've been looking for for years and due to several providers being in my local area right now its been under my nose the whole time!

To anyone who has gone this route, other then needing to fall back on traditional care when its out of the scope of a DPC provider, somewhat limited options in terms of providers compared to the traditional system, and of course additional cost in addition to still wanting to have insurance when you might not need their services often, any downsides to be aware of? Just making sure its not 'too good to be true'.

My favorite feature though is it seems like if you find a qualified provider I might finally get a "Dr House" who actually listens to what I say and does something rather then just following the standard flow chart.

Post reply on HN