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This past weekend my local PBS station had a discussion on heart disease hosted by Larry King. A number of heart experts talked about what you can do to preserve the health of your heart and the changes you can make in your life to support good heart health.
One of the suggestions was to make sure that your diet includes healthy portions of proteins, fruits, vegetables and grains. I am sure this comes as no surprise if you have been following what’s being said about this topic. I always wonder, however, if doctors are aware that people don’t live their lives in a vacuum and that just, maybe, we are not eating properly because we can’t afford the type of foods we need. For instance, many experts recommend eating organic to avoid some of the toxins that are being used on produce. Realistically, with the prices you have to pay for everything today, how is a family supposed to keep itself healthy by purchasing organic? Organic ain’t cheap, folks!
Maybe, doctors need to show more sensitivity to the circumstances that face the patients they are advising. In today’s health environment it is impossible to let your doctor know about your particular circumstances when all you get is, maybe, 15 minutes to tell him or her what’s wrong with you. Patients do not get the opportunity to fully explain the circumstances of their lives. We are all advised to come with questions for the doctor. But, how are patients to know what questions might be pertinent to the disease they may have?
The social environment in which people live should be taken into account when doctors give health care instructions. For instance, how does a physician tell a patient he or she has to take a substantial amount of time off from work when that doctor does not know the patient’s financial circumstances? To be more effective, I think health care providers need to, first, understand the social circumstances in which a patient lives, then give their advice accordingly.
