How Will We Let This Pandemic Change Us? A Call To Action For All Of Health Care

When this is all said and done, when the smoke has cleared, when the pandemic subsides, when we move forward, we need to start to open our mouths. We need to band together. The American Medical Association (AMA), the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA), every medical and subspecialty organization, every tech, every medical assistant, every medical school, every residency program, every nursing union and every single person need to join together to enforce meaningful, long-overdue changes to reinvent health care in this country.

We will not be scared of administration, hospital administrators or insurance companies.
We will not accept a peer-to-peer ruling because we, the providers, make the rules.
We will not accept an unpaid visit from insurance companies because our patients’ lives matter.
We will not accept non-coverage of a drug when a patient needs it. We deem it necessary.
We will not accept a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE)  because we DESERVE PPE.
We will not bow down to the electronic medical record (EMR).
We will refuse to "click" boxes on these EMRs just so we have a chance to get paid.
We will get paid because we deserve to get paid for rendering care and using our skills.
We will not unnecessarily prolong conservative treatment just because insurance says we must “fail” this treatment first. We decide when a patient needs surgery.
We will not allow insurance companies to run medical care.
We as a country should open the economy after a pandemic based on a doctor's recommendation, not recommendations from a President, a governor nor a random chief of staff person.
We will mandate vaccinations.
We will penalize those who "choose" to not vaccinate for non-medical reasons.
We will be able to refuse to treat those who "choose" to not vaccinate for non-medical reasons.
We will be able to speak out to the person who wrote a "one star review" without merit and caused a practice to suffer.
We will be able to press charges when punched by an unruly patient.
We will be able to fight back to protect ourselves from that unruly patient.
We will put our staff, our security guards and our receptionists before our unruly patients.
We will not consider our patients consumers.
We will open up more mental health facilities.
We will graduate more medical students and nursing students regardless of their ability to pay the tuition.
We will force the government to forgive a portion of our financially crushing loans.
We will not live paycheck to paycheck. Contrary to popular belief, many of us do so.
We will not practice out of fear but instead treat to the best of our abilities.
We will feel protected by our societies and our government.

The list goes on …

This pandemic is going to change businesses.
This pandemic is going to change our families.
This pandemic is going to change the world.

More importantly, how will we let this pandemic change us?

We change together,
as one,
for the better,
for the sake of our families,
for the sake of our practices,
for the sake of medicine,
for the sake of future health care.

Dr. Levick is a Diplomate of the American Board of Foot and Ankle Surgery and the American Board of Podiatric Medicine. She is in private practice in Chicago.