When Is a Hospital Stay Not a Hospital Stay? Bill Aims to Fix Costly Medicare Loophole
Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) is introducing a bill to change Medicare law so that elderly patients are not charged unfairly...
Read moreWe go to hospitals because we're sick and want to get better, but these days hospitals can make us sicker, or worse. Nursing and other staff shortages, created in large part by stingy reimbursements from managed care, Medicare and Medicaid, mean that patient care can range from spotty to neglectful to life-threatening. According to a 1999 Harvard study, hospitals kill nearly 100,000 people a year because of human or mechanical error.
Increasingly, it's becoming the responsibility of the patient or his or her family and friends to zealously advocate for good care. Responding to this new reality, three new books '“ all by medical professionals '“ offer inside tips on how to not only survive a hospital stay but to come home healthier than when you went in. (Imagine that!)
Dr. Joseph Sacco, author of "Health Smart Hospital Handbook" (Alpha Books, 2003. Price: $1.10 (used) from Amazon.com -- click on book to order.) is a medical director at New York City's Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center. He presents an insider's view of a hospital's workings and how to negotiate the hospital bureaucracy and work with doctors and staff. Dr. Sacco also offers a detailed primer on diseases; outlines the qualifications of various professionals; and describes tests, medicines and equipment. Sacco stresses that patients may have alternatives to a hospital stay. Doctors admit people for many reasons, he says, "not all of which have to do with the need to be in the hospital."
Thomas A. Sharon, author of "Protect Yourself in the Hospital" (McGraw-Hill, 2003. Price: $12.95 from Amazon.com -- click on book to order.) is a registered nurse and a legal consultant for malpractice cases. Sharon's guide offers "insider tips for avoiding hospital mistakes," including how to advocate for oneself or a loved one without alienating hospital staff, ways to prevent common conditions like bedsores and hospital-acquired infections, avoiding mishaps in intensive care units, and how to play the "emergency room waiting game." Sharon arms patients or their families with the knowledge to advocate effectively on their own or a love one's behalf.
Dr. David Sherer, author (with co-author Maryann Karinch) of "Dr. David Sherer's Hospital Survival Guide" (Claren Books, 2003. Price: $9.72 from Amazon.com -- click on book to order.) is an anesthesiologist. Dr. Sherer's contribution to navigating the hospital maze emphasizes surgical hospitalizations, and includes a chapter on what to expect and ask for in his own specialty. He notes that July, when the new interns start, is the most dangerous month to have a procedure done at a teaching hospital. He also presents proven tips for reducing hospital bills and offers a range of suggestions for making hospital stays safer and more pleasant. Sample tip: Request EMLA anesthetic cream to make I.V. starts less painful for children.
Local Elder Law Attorneys in Ashburn, VA
Hammond and Associates, LLC, Elder Law, Estate Planning, Wills, Trusts, Probate
Bethesda, MD
Margaret A. O’Reilly is an estate planning and elder law attorney with over thirty-five years of legal experience. Attorney O’Reilly graduated from Duke University with a degree in psychology, and received her law degree from Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, Massachusetts. For over 15 y...
For Jeffrey Hammond, the practice of Elder Law is personal. Jeff’s many years of experience in law and in business did not prepare him for the crisis he faced in 2005 and 2006 when his father suffered a stroke and both of his parents suffered from dementia and other medical problems. At that time, Jeff began an i...
Mindy Felinton concentrates in the areas of Medicaid planning, Veterans' Benefits, asset protection, nursing home planning, elder law, wills, estate planning, trusts, living wills, powers of attorney, probate administration and trust administration and began her legal career 30 years ago as an Assistant State Attorney...
Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) is introducing a bill to change Medicare law so that elderly patients are not charged unfairly...
Read moreMedicare Part A covers institutional care in hospitals and skilled nursing facilities, as well as certain care given by home...
Read moreIf you are admitted to a hospital as a Medicare patient, the hospital may try to discharge you before you are ready. It is im...
Read moreOnce a resident is settled in a nursing home, being told to leave can be very traumatic. Nursing homes are required to follow...
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