When the Provider becomes the Patient.
Author: Anonymous posted: Feb. 14, 2018.
Hello everyone! I’ve been getting requests to update the blog so here I am! I’ve got a pretty interesting and somewhat hairy story to share with you…
Last week, I experienced being a patient for the first time in a long time. An hour after eating a baked good during lunch, which I was told did not have certain nuts in it, my face and neck turned red, my eyes were itchy, and my nose enlarged and began to get stuffed. It was starting to get hard to breathe. When I told Dr. Wong, he said I looked like I was having a severe anaphylactic reaction and almost considered stabbing me with his EpiPen! Usually, when I get an allergic reaction, I work through the symptoms easily and I’m ok within a short time. This time, though, all the symptoms started to show and it had me worried. Thankfully, Annie rushed me to the ER and the doctors and nurses took care of me without trouble.
During this experience, I learned what it feels like to be a patient. I was not only worried about my health condition but also the cost of the appointment. The hospital took care of my allergy reaction and was thorough in taking care of me. However, when I asked how much the visit cost, none of the staff would directly tell me an answer. I understand that health comes first but them being unhelpful in explaining the finances was a big turn off for me. However, I think this experience helped me understand how to help people feel comfortable when their health is compromised and have to get medical service. I’m much better now thankfully, and I’m NEVER going to touch anything with nuts ever again! Thanks for checking in on me and I hope to see you all soon in the office!
-Chiaki