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Index
Cover
Title Page
Dedication
Author’s Note
Contents
Preface
Part One: When All Is Well
Chapter 1: Where to Start
Patient Power Is Ultimate
Chapter 2: Unlearn What You Know about Being a Patient
Why I Use the Term “Provider”
White-Coat Syndrome
Paradigm Shift: From Reaction to Prevention
Adopt Rituals: The Art of Being a Patient
Increase Your Health Literacy
Advocate for Yourself During Appointments
Be an Upstreamist
Chapter 3: Appoint a Team
North Star: How to Choose a Primary Care Provider
How Are We Doing It Now?
Logistics of the Hunt
What to Look For
Do Away with the Term “Bedside Manner”
Is It Better to See a Woman?
Primary Care Models: The World Is Your Oyster
Other Medical Professionals
Get a Mental Healthcare Provider Before You Need One
Eyes and Teeth: The Medical Silos
Befriend Your Pharmacist
Alternative Care
Choosing an Advocate: Don’t Go to Appointments Alone
Who Should It Be?
How Can They Help?
Special Circumstances
Chapter 4: Gather Provisions
Create a Medical Dossier
The Healthbook
Your Medical Records
See What You’re Made Of
Friends in the Digital Age
Your Smartphone as a Medical Device
Virtual Toolbox
Genetic Testing: Is It Worth It?
Interpretation
Counseling
Stay on Nodding Terms with Reality
Choose an ER
Advance Directives
Living Will
Healthcare Power of Attorney
POLST
Chapter 5: Drugs 101
Drug Nomenclature
Polypharmacy
Antidepressants
Part Two: When It’s Routine
Chapter 6: Making Your Way into the System
Tricks of Scheduling Appointments
Dress Up for Better Care
While You Wait
Intake Forms
Making the Most of Your Time at Appointments
The Intake Conversation
Chapter 7: How to Talk to Providers
Louis Washkansky and the Western
The Golden Tentacle
The Unique Role of Questions
Stories: Giving Yourself Context
Don’t Go in Blind: There’s Not Enough Time
Part Three: Making the Most of Each Medical Encounter
Chapter 8: When Something Is Wrong
Creating an Elevator Complaint
Realities About Diagnosis
Chapter 9: Navigating Touchy Territory
Preventive Care Screenings
Standard Recommendations
Determining Your Risk Profile
Vaccines
An Ode to the Flu Shot
Viruses and Bacteria
Is This Viral or Bacterial?
Antibiotics
Suprainfections
Should You Take the Full Course?
Sex
Trauma-Informed Care
Myths About Weight and Health
Chapter 10: How to Avoid a Wild-Goose Chase
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Headaches
Lower Back Pain
Part Four: When It’s Chronic: Navigating Long-Term and Ongoing Medical Problems
Chapter 11: Brewing Problems
Specialists and Referrals
When You Can’t Get a Diagnosis
Chapter 12: A Field Guide for Pain
Describing Pain
Using Narrative to Communicate about Pain
Pain Management in an Opioid Epidemic
Other Pain Management Options
Chapter 13: Mastering Disease
Wading into the Literature
Clinical Trials
How to Be a Conduit
Peer Support
Part Five: When It’s an Emergency
Chapter 14: ER vs. Urgent Care vs. Wait Until Monday
Choose the ER If . . .
Choose Urgent Care If . . .
Can It Wait Until Monday?
Emergency Room Tips
Chapter 15: Am I Dying? (Emergency Preparedness, Extended)
Adverse Medication Reactions
Cardiac Emergencies
Chapter 16: Are They Dying? (Pedestrian Emergencies)
In These Situations, Time Is of the Essence
If You Witness an Emergency
Part Six: When You’re Having a Procedure
Chapter 17: Choosing If, Where, and Who
Second Opinions
How to Choose a Hospital
Care Pathways
How to Choose a Surgeon
The Days Leading Up to a Procedure
Informed Consent
Right Before Surgery
The Importance of Follow-Up Care
Part Seven: When You’re in the Hospital
Chapter 18: Bring Your Own Pillow
Elevated Homeostasis
Composition Book
Patient Mentality and the Spectrum of Assertiveness
Chapter 19: Culture, Checks, and Balances
Hospital Currency: The Order
Too Much Testing
Chain of Command
Take as Needed: The PRN
Bedside Report
Be a Good and Memorable Human
Before You Leave
Chapter 20: How to Be Vigilant
Storm of Errors
Medication Safety
Keep an Eye on Vitals
Nosocomial Nightmares
Wrong-Site, Wrong-Procedure, Wrong-Patient Errors
When No One Is Listening
Part Eight: When You’re Not the Patient: Family Members, Partners, and Friends
Chapter 21: You Define Family
The Patient’s Rights
How to Get Updates in the Hospital
Provide a Baseline
Resources for Caregivers
Chapter 22: When It’s Your Kid
Finding and Working with a Pediatrician
Vaccines: Myths and Facts
Pediatric Hospitalization
When Should I Take My Kiddo to the ER?
Recommended Reading
Chapter 23: When You’re Getting Older (or When It’s Your Parent)
Switching to a Geriatrician
Questions Specific to Older Adult Patients
Too Many Medications
Symptoms in Older Adults
Get the Shingles Vaccine
Recognizing Delirium
Mental Health Support: A Cavalry for Loneliness
Communicable Disease and Compromised Immunity
Factor in Frailty
Familiarize Yourself with the Best Treatment Models
Getting to and From
End of Life
Part Nine: When You’re Not a Straight White Male
Chapter 24: The Female Patient
Pain and the Gender Gap
Gender Differences in Heart Attacks
Reproductive and Sexual Health
Chapter 25: When You’re Having a Baby
Choosing Who, Where, and How
If You Feel Like Something Isn’t Right
After Delivery
Chapter 26: Health Advocacy for LGBTQ Patients
Transgender Patients
Chapter 27: Implicit Bias and Systemic Oppression
Institutional Racism
If You Don’t Speak the Language
If You’re a Vet
If You Have a Substance-Abuse History
Part Ten: When You Have to Stand Up to the Industry
Chapter 28: How to Deal with Insurance
Insurance 101
What Plan Is Best for Me?
Radical Ways to Save Money
Healthcare Bluebook
Comb Over Your Bills
Over-the-Counter Savvy
Getting Care When You’re Uninsured
Chapter 29: Big Pharma and the FDA
Drug Reps and Olive Garden: Conflicts of Interest
Evidence-Based or Marketing-Based?
Acknowledgments
Appendices
CDC Pediatric Vaccination Schedule
Routine Exam Schedule
What Type of Patient Am I?
Common Hospital Staff
Medical Jargon
Free Screenings and Services
Useless Tests
Medications Given Before, During, and After Procedures
Opioid Types and Side Effects
Notes
Index
About the Author
Copyright
About the Publisher
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