Yesterday we talked about risk. Risk is mitigated by knowledge and experience. I don’t know who said this, but I’m going to take a wild and crazy guess and say it wasn’t from Terry Pratchett’s wonderful Discworld series. This gives us another way to mitigate risk. Insurance.
Risks come at us everyday in our personal and professional lives. We accept that life involves risk. Risk happens.
‘Life is a risky business, no-one gets out alive’
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Health concerns us all, especially now, and we try to improve our health or at least to manage it. Some risks are foreseeable but some are not. These drive our uptake of health insurance. Health insurance is therefore a bit of a ‘grudge purchase’ – we don’t really want to buy it but we don’t want to do without it. Is it worth the money we pay for it? Some high profile voices say no. A past president of the AMA agrees:
A past president of the RACGP concurred:
if you increase the number of GPs by 1 per 10,000 people the death rate goes down 9%
Dr Bastian Seidel; Past President, RACGP
Your health is your wealth, as the saying goes, and you build wealth by spending wisely.
Some tests, treatments and procedures provide little benefit. And in some cases, they may even cause harm.
Use the 5 questions to make sure you end up with the right amount of care — not too much and not too little.
Do I really need this test, treatment or procedure?
Tests may help you and your doctor or other health care provider determine the problem. Treatments, such as medicines, and procedures may help to treat it.
What are the risks?
Will there be side effects to the test or treatment? What are the chances of getting results that aren’t accurate? Could that lead to more testing, additional treatments or another procedure?
Are there simpler, safer options?
Are there alternative options to treatment that could work. Lifestyle changes, such as eating healthier foods or exercising more, can be safe and effective options.
What happens if I don’t do anything?
Ask if your condition might get worse — or better — if you don’t have the test, treatment or procedure right away.
What are the costs?
Costs can be financial, emotional or a cost of your time. Where there is a cost to the community, is the cost reasonable or is there a cheaper alternative?
Your GP can be a great ally in navigating through the health system, a great support for you in times of need, and a great investment in your health.
“Patients whose care is well managed and coordinated by their usual GP are less likely to cost the health system more in the long run because their GP-coordinated care will keep them out of hospital.
“Supporting general practice to continue managing these patients – who are growing in number each year – is an investment in health care that can help make the health system more sustainable.”
Past AMA President, A/Prof Brian Owler
PartridgeGP works with you to help you make your best health decisions. We pride ourselves on great communication and we’re ready to share our professional skills and knowledge with you. This is only MORE important now, in the time of a global pandemic with a new vaccine on the horizon. The way forward is clear: make your appointment with us conveniently online right here – or call our friendly reception team on 82953200.
Better, for you.
Want more?
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For everyone, we believe that having a usual GP or General Practice is central to each person’s care and recommend that people with any health issues that come to the attention of other health professionals should be advised to attend their usual GP or General Practice rather than a specialised service (ie a place not providing the holistic care a specialist GP would). If they say that they don’t have a usual GP or general practice, they should be helped to find one and to actually attend it. Call PartridgeGP on 82953200 or make an appointment online here.
(Hat tip: Dr Oliver Frank)
(TL;DR – Get a regular GP or General Practice and use them!)
Photo by Miguel u00c1. Padriu00f1u00e1n on Pexels.com
If you’re employed, get a side hustle and get into business. If you’ve already got a business, get a network. Want to get started? Find your tribe here!
If you are a great GP or a great Allied Health Professional, and you want to serve your clients or patients to the best of your ability, without worrying about all the non clinical things that get in your way, lets talk. Call Mrs Hayley Roberts on 8295 3200 and have a coffee and chat with us as to how PartridgeGP can help you to help others.
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