Interview ?: What change do we need in healthcare

[tele turnin]

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All of us going to interview know that we will be asked the question of

"What is wrong with healthcare in American today and what needs to be done to change/improve it?"

I absolutely dread this question of all questions that I know I will be asked to answer during interviews. I'm not looking to start a debate or argument of any sorts, but am looking for some good ideas on answers that may be safe as we never know which side of the political aisle the interviewers are on. Things that most can agree on and changes that are possible and make sense. Let the fun begin...

 

[Grey Wind]

All of us going to interview know that we will be asked the question of

"What is wrong with healthcare in American today and what needs to be done to change/improve it?"

I absolutely dread this question of all questions that I know I will be asked to answer during interviews. I'm not looking to start a debate or argument of any sorts, but am looking for some good ideas on answers that may be safe as we never know which side of the political aisle the interviewers are on. Things that most can agree on and changes that are possible and make sense. Let the fun begin...

i dont think thats the kind of answer they are looking for. i think they are looking to know that you have developed your own opinions through some type of experience that allows you to make informed decisions that you can confidently stand by. i dont think interviewers are really looking for a candidate that will only agree with their opinions on the future of healthcare.

 

[tele turnin]

i have some opinions and ideas, such as health savings accounts, or allowing employees to enjoy the same tax breaks that employers get for providing health insurance. i know that there is a ton or information out there and have read several great opinions here on sdn, but that thread was about changing careers because obama, so a lot of it came from both sides of the aisle.

my question is mainly what are some problems that are fixable in the near future. i know some people will say a complete overhaul/reform is needed, but i'm not convinced that now is the time for our country to incur more debt. i would love to have somebody share a link/plan that would help people and our country save money. i'll admit that i kind of got bored of seeing the parties argue back and forth over this and haven't kept up on it as much as i could of because of that.

 

[skiddoc]

You guys have it all wrong. It's pure supply and demand. It's the AMA's fault we're in this mess. You tell the interviewers that they're part of the problem, in that they have been purposely maintaining a low supply of doctors, in order to keep salaries high. 😀

 

[lawyerdoc2b]

How to fix the health care mess:

1. scholarships for all D.O. (o.k. M.D.s too) who contractually agree to go into primary care. With no student loans maybe docs can afford to do so.

2. Cut insurance reimbursements in half for all the overpaid specialites and double the reimbursement rate for primary care providers. All the dermatologists and anesthesiologists will become family doctors.

3. Elimate state laws regulating the sale of health insurance and allow insurers to sell in the entire country. Simple supply and demand.

4. Create an insurance company funded assigned risk pool like auto insurance. If you are denied coverage by three companies you go to the pool. The pool assigns, for example, 10% of the uninsured to the insurance company that writes 10% of the area's business. A smaller insurer that writes 2i% of the market share gets 2% of the assigned risk of sick people with pre-existing conditions.

5. Offer five or more levels of coverage from basic to top of the line. If you don't need Obstetrical coverage don't buy it. Want concerige medicine? Then pay the highest premium but everyone gets basic coverage.

6. Take the uninsured and make them buy coverage or pay a tax if they don't and the ER won't be flooded with colds and earaches.

7. Forget going to an M.D. - go to a D.O. so he or she can keep you well and avoid getting sick.

8. Tax cigarettes, booze, beer, burgers, french fries and anything else that you consider self-destructive and at odds with wellness to pay for all this social engineering.

9. Tort reform - you sue a doctor and loose your case then you and your lawyer ought to pay the doctor's legal bills

For you zealots out there, a lot of this was meant as humor so don't crucify me.

 

[pkpHawks87]

http://www.josiahmacyfoundation.org/

Read the two "Just Released" articles

Revisiting the Medical School Education Mission at a Time of Expansion

&

Developing a strong Primary Care Workforce

This is a great place to start, there is a lot of valuable and pertinent information in those articles. TONS of interview material and its fairly interesting reading as well. If you take a look at these two and other related articles, highlight the important points, and commit some information to memory you will be able to knock that question out of the park.

 

[DocHomer]

I don't think an interviewer would ask for specific reforms b/c nobody really agrees on many of them. If you do raise specific points, be prepared to defend them with facts. Don't just memorize some things from Glenn Beck, SDN, or any other place. By the way, I'm sure saying you're a fan of Glenn Beck, Hannitty, and their ilk will get you shot by academicians.

Just keep up with what's going on and have a general idea of some of the issues involved and proposed solutions. Chances are, your interviewer doesn't have a comprehensive reform package in mind either.

This issue is way too complicated to discuss in any detail on an interview. They just want to know more about you and determine if you are serious about medicine. I'm sure there's an oddball here and there, but don't worry too much about it.

 

[jkmph]

I don't think an interviewer would ask for specific reforms b/c nobody really agrees on many of them. If you do raise specific points, be prepared to defend them with facts. Don't just memorize some things from Glenn Beck, SDN, or any other place. By the way, I'm sure saying you're a fan of Glenn Beck, Hannitty, and their ilk will get you shot by academicians.

Whatever you do, do not quote, refer to, or even infer Beck or Hannitty. This will cause you to fail your interview and be rejected from that institution.

 

[tele turnin]

to be honest i think that quoting anybody might cause one to be walking on thin ice in this situation

 

[DocHomer]

Whatever you do, do not quote, refer to, or even infer Beck or Hannitty. This will cause you to fail your interview and be rejected from that institution.

I hope you realized that I was just kidding. Those guys are idiots.

 

[RG73]

I hope you realized that I was just kidding. Those guys are idiots.

I am actually planning on bringing my copy of Beck's "Arguing with idiots" to interviews.

 

[jkmph]

I hope you realized that I was just kidding. Those guys are idiots.

I'm aware, I too was laying it on thick.

 

[Exalya]

I talked about encouraging physicians to become involved politically and in our organizations (AOA, AMA). I've been a political activist, so I really did feel that way. My interviewer seemed very enthusiastic about this response. I googled him when I got home, turns out that he does his fair share of work within the AMA (he was an MD, although I was interviewing at a DO school) and donates to political campaigns.

I got really lucky, I guess. 😛 Moral of the story, go with what you really believe... you can't go wrong if you have well-reasoned, diplomatic answers.

 

[RimpleDoc]

All of us going to interview know that we will be asked the question of

"What is wrong with healthcare in American today and what needs to be done to change/improve it?"

I absolutely dread this question of all questions that I know I will be asked to answer during interviews. I'm not looking to start a debate or argument of any sorts, but am looking for some good ideas on answers that may be safe as we never know which side of the political aisle the interviewers are on. Things that most can agree on and changes that are possible and make sense. Let the fun begin...

I think its not about the answer as much as it is about how you explain yourself. People from both sides have valid opinions. They will ask you this question to get an idea of your reasoning skills.

 

[Lokhtar]

I am for complete and utter single payor and the abolishment of the private health insurance industry.

However, I think they want you to be honest and thoughtful. If I was interviewing someone and asked this question, I would judge them on the knowldge of the industry, the thoughtfulness and the rationality that has gone into that opinion, and their eloquence in arguing their position.

If someone is for the die quickly..I mean, the Republican health care plan, I'd be fine with that, as long as they backed it up with facts, data and argued it eloquently. On the other hand, if someone just blurts out single payer without having thought about the positive and negative consequences of that route, I would not look upon that favorably.

The worst thing you can do is try to guess the political leanings of your interviewers. Aside from the fact that different people on the committee may have different views, what you will do (aside from guessing wrong), is that if you don't believe what you're saying, you'll come off hollow and unconvincing.

Be honest, present facts, present arguments eloquently. All of those are much more important than picking a specific side.

I am actually planning on bringing my copy of Beck's "Arguing with idiots" to interviews.

That's such an ironic title.

 

[n618ft]

Tax the obese and smokers till they can't afford fast food and cigarettes. Not only will they not afford fast food, they wont afford a car. They'll have to walk to work. Problem solved. (this is a joke, people)

1. Tort reform
2. Obesity/smoking/drugs
3. Policies to "triage" unnecessary visits

Also, you can cite that the Canadian system doesn't work either... it's nearing collapse now and the major complaint there is the ridiculous amount of time it takes to see a specialist.

I don't think anyone can argue with that... boy did I misread some of the above posts lol.

 

[Lokhtar]

Tort reform may be a good idea, but it's got very little to do with overall cost:

http://washingtonindependent.com/55535/tort-reform-unlikely-to-cut-health-care-costs