Year End Rush

I am no policy expert but I am smart enough to know a problem when I see one. The reason I know about this particular problem is that my DrH has been missing in action all week. No technically missing, because I know where he is and there is plenty of action there.

You see in the surgical world there is mad rush of people "needing" surgery the week following Christmas up until New Years Eve. What a strange phenomena that so many people would require attention that one week out of 52. Not so strange when you realize that they are manipulating the system to their advantage. They probably needed surgery earlier, but who wants to be in the hospital during the most exciting time of the year (Thanksgiving - Christmas)? They could probably have surgery scheduled later, but they don't for various reasons. No, everyone wants to have their surgery performed at the end of the year before the clock strikes midnight.

OK, in all fairness not EVERYONE. Just the ones who have already met their deductible for the year and want to squeeze in a freebie. And this is what is wrong, in my opinion. I wonder if there have been studies done on this year-end rush. I love google. I put in year end deductible surgeries and this article came up. It's not a study, but apparently everyone is aware of it.

Of course much depends on which side of the operating room you are on. What a rush of patients in November and December means for my family is that DrH probably won't be able to take time off during those months, when the rest of the world wants to take vacations, unless he wants to lose patients.  Well, at least not for the first several years at least.