Sana Goldberg

In the world where everyone receives basic life information in standardized formats (how to pay taxes, how to talk to landlords or realtors, how to vote, how to deal with insurance/utility/credit card companies) this book is required reading. The author opens by discussing common stereotypes about medical practitioners and why we as a society associate white coats and men with the best sort of health care, when a variety of studies demonstrate that women are frequently better at various health-related tasks. I don't have a hard time believing that doctors started wearing white coats instead of black because they were trying to borrow the credibility of scientists 175-odd years ago - which makes those old cigarette ads with white-coated doctors in them even funnier.

There is an abundance of good information in this book, but one of the most important bits is this: don't be passive just because somebody is wearing a white coat. You have the ability to affect your own care and you need to - the system as it exists in August of 2019 is not wired to do that for the average patient. I expect that I'll be rereading it in the future - I received this book through Early Reviewers, and I may have to join the camp of at least one previous Early Reviewer and buy a copy with a completed index.… (altro)

This is a comprehensive, well-needed book that can help readers navigate the modern healthcare system. I kept thinking that I was going to find topics that were ignored or left out, but they are seemingly all there – from primary care physicians, to specialists, to ER visits, to prescriptions, to insurance billing. The only real complaint I have has more to do with my own reading habits than the author. Because the book is so comprehensive, I had a tendency to skim over the parts that I already felt comfortable with, though in doing so I often had to backtrack because there’s a lot of more advanced information tucked in among the basic stuff.… (altro)

Reading and discussing this book with my husband and a sick friend or two, has already changed several decisions in my life and there will surely be a ripple effect. One in particular: always take someone else with you to visit a doctor. I've been taking notes for a sick friend and we listen differently. I'm not interacting with the doctor - I'm taking notes and this changes what I hear and what she hears.
I've also decided to change doctors, based on her recommendations. That could have far-reaching consequences.
The websites are not as helpful as I had hoped. Possibly things change too quickly to keep up, but we did find a few of them worth the price of admission.… (altro)