Young, Assured and Playing Pharmacist to Friends

Young, Assured and Playing Pharmacist to Friends NYTimes: Nathan Tylutki arrived late in New York, tired but eager to go out dancing. When his friend Katherine K. offered him the Ritalin she had inherited from someone who had stopped taking his prescription, he popped two pills and stayed out all night.

This is just one of many articles in a series by the NYTimes called "Being a Patient". It's a pretty good series regarding the trials and tribulations of people who find themselves unwell. Most of us know what it's like to not have health insurance for a while and that little voice (prayer?) that says "please, please, please let me not get sick/hurt until my benefits kick in". Some of us, unfortunately, also know what it's like to be in the hospital (or have a loved one be there) at the mercy of the doctors, nurses and the insurance companies. This series addresses these and other issues which are painfully familiar to some and eye-openers to others. The article which hit home with me most was "In The Hospital, A Degrading Shift From Person To Patient". When each of my grandparents were in the hospital, it was amazing how quickly they went from being people to being a number or a case. And it doesn't just happen to the elderly. The same thing occured when a friend of mine was in the hospital for double-pnemonia. He went from being a healthy 30-year old marketing exec to someone who was "being difficult" when he notified the nurse that his fever was spiking and he needed Tylenol. It's hard enough to trust people when your healthy, let alone when your life may depend on it.