Franz Kafka wrote about the horrors of bureaucracy nearly 100 years ago. I remember as a student reading his works and getting totally depressed. The world can't possibly be so bad, so corrupt, so full of hateful, lazy people.
He was right. It is.
I was urged to "join in" and get a free software program so that I can partake of an idiotic scheme called meaningful use. The Medicare people have decided that having physicians enter the data for them is much better than them having to pore over data that already exists. And gee, we don't have to pay them for this work, we can dock 2-5% from their pay, in increments over the next 5 years so they won't notice, if they DON'T do it.
The free programs seem all nice, but they're free because they depend on doctors becoming their product, and then you get targeted advertising so they can pay for the scheme. Then later on, they will start charging you for their services.
I'm sick of being victimized and assaulted.
So I'm saying no to this and I'm choosing to be a doctor and care for patients.
I don't have all the time in the world to jump through every artificial hoop. I'm a human being, with a family, with physical and emotional needs, with pressures, with foibles. I'm not perfect. But I won't compromise where I know my talent lies, and I won't cut time away from being a caring compassionate doctor to click through the program to check a bunch of boxes that mean nothing to me.
A patient got married, I sent flowers. A patient's husband died, I hand wrote a letter of condolences. This must continue, or the fabric of humanity will disappear, and it'll become the Paleolithic.
I recently saw a colleague that I hadn't seen in 2 years. He has gained about 50 lbs, gone grey, and was running around his office with a laptop to enter the data and the assistant to room and gather the patients up. I felt so sorry for him. He's imploding. This man went to Harvard, Yale, is a talented surgeon...it doesn't matter. The box must be checked or his livelihood and his family are threatened.
Then I have to witness the brazen bureaucrat telling me what to do. YOU WORK FOR ME.
Read here for some acid producing stuff.
I'm off to fight the man.
Clear Stream
