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Blood on the Sidewalk: A Tale of Cost & Care
By: Margaret Cary, MD, MBA, MPH
A family doctor ponders the conundrum of cost & care in the U.S. healthcare system after she stumbles upon a young woman covered in blood.
Going to the gym in the morning is one of those things I do because it’s good for me and I feel better afterward. That doesn’t change my lack of enthusiasm. I get up early, put on my work-out clothes and then start writing, delaying my gym visit as long as possible.
One morning, my trip to the gym was over icy sidewalks, so I walked carefully on the strip of grass between the sidewalk and the street, which was a little less slippery. I calculated that I had just enough time to get to the gym, get my heart rate up for 30 minutes, and get back to my next call.
A block from my house, I saw a young woman kneeling on the sidewalk. Two policemen hovered nearby as if to protect her. She wore a red coat, her red hat upside down about two feet away from her. As I got closer, I noticed blood on the sidewalk.
A teaspoon of blood looks like a quart, and this was more than a teaspoon. The young woman covered her face with bloodied hands.
Is there anything I can do?
Once I finally head to the gym, I am reluctant to stop for anything that's my…
