An Observer of Life in Bad Poetry

The doctor stood at the ready. A prescription pad in one hand and a referral list in the other

This patient was back for the third time with the same complaint so it was time to shift him from this practice to another

The insurance company was demanding one more meaningless medical trial before allowing the needed surgery to take place

The doc knew that lifestyle changes and better habits were needed to achieve success but here he was telling this obese person that one more pill was not a wild goose chase

Big Food already had years of throwing patient’s digestive tract into total disarray

Now at eighty pounds overweight, this individual cannot walk past any all you can eat buffet

So the ever present penny pinchers from the insurance company were demanding this physician prescribe an antidepressant that has shown to aid in weight loss

Besides, it delays the inevitable as the unscrupulous bean counters at the insurance company are always thinking about profits and costs

In addition, according to their mortality charts, if this person goes on a 90-day course of medication, because of previous medical records, age, and lifestyle, there is a 37% chance this person may die

This also keeps Big Pharma happy. Their TV commercials had netted the gullible and keeps their greedy fingers in the pie

The doctor writes the insurance demanded script and hands that and a referral slip to the patient to see a shrink

Now both Big Pharma and Big Medicine get to bill the insurance company and that pack of pirates then raises the patient’s premium before he can blink

All the pieces had fallen in place. Big food had spent years convincing this individual that their product was nutritious and safe when in reality the food conglomerates were slowly poisoning this person

Addicting him to the disguised high fructose corn syrup and preservatives causing multiple complications and his general health to worsen

The doc was caught in the middle. He had joined a hospital group to avoid the extreme costs of an individual practice

Now with both a required head count and in-network referrals, at the end of the day he feels as if he had been roped and drug through the cactus

But this is today’s modern medicine. To keep the insurance payments coming, fill the waiting room, spend a maximum of ten minutes with each patient and move on to another

Meet the pharmaceutical rep in the back room, agree on purchasing a supply of drug doses, sign on the dotted line and remember that one hand washes the other

Life goes on in circles. The doc is connected to the hospitals, who represent the rules and regulations of Big Medicine, who is connected to Big Pharma, who is connected to the insurance companies who are connected to the patient.

It seems with all these groups fighting for this sick person’s last remaining dollar, he just might need to sign with an agent