health advocates and navigators

Oh, It Was Nothing, Really

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As advocates working for clients with grave medical problems, or clients who battle their insurance companies to get what they need for their care, or could lose their entire financial foundations due to overwhelming medical bills, our work results in lifesaving and quality-of-life saving outcomes every day. That’s what we do. And then, when someone thanks us, way too many of us deflect the compliment. “Oh, it was nothing, really.” Nothing? It’s as if we are embarrassed to have been thanked, even though we are – secretly – pleased. This disconnect in our response to being thanked and recognized came …

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Saving Your Clients from Jerks, Crooks and Malintents

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(Apologies for the lists that no longer work in this post. In early summer 2014, About.com deleted almost 1000 posts and articles I had written. The points below are still valid, but I wanted you to know why the links may not produce what you expect.) I’m angry. And I’m appalled, too. And I think that you, as advocates, can be effective gatekeepers, guarding your client-patients from these kinds of providers. I’ve just finished blogging at About.com about two situations that have come to light recently. A third belongs here, too – from the general news. The story of an …

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RIP Ramona – With Appreciation for The Lessons She Taught Us

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Ramona – whose real name was Rosemary – has died. She did it (mostly) her way. I first shared Ramona/Rosemary’s story with you a few months ago. She had contacted me through my patient empowerment work asking me to help her die. After a heinous surgical medical error many years ago, she could no longer be treated to provide (by her own definition) any quality to her life. So she wanted to put an end to her misery. Her primary care doctor, fearful he would be arrested, refused to help her. After thinking about it long and hard, I decided …

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Contractors, Kick Backs and Clarity – That’s Why We’re Here for Advocates

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(updated January 2017) We’ve seen fireworks in the APHA Forum before. And we’ve dealt with them. The beautiful thing about the Forum is that allows free conversations on every topic imaginable. But of course, as with any group of highly intelligent, motivated and capable people, we’re not always going to agree. We experienced that again this week. One of our very active and valued members had visited her attorney to work on her contracts. She raised the idea of working with independent contractors, and her attorney immediately advised her against it. As she reported in the Forum, “He advised me …

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Asking WTWTTCH Helps to Overcome the Paralysis of Analysis

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Having just returned from the APHA Business and Marketing workshops in Tampa, and in reviewing my notes and questions from attendees, I’ve come to a new conclusion about why many people have so much trouble pulling the trigger to actually SAY they are in practice – the formal hanging of their shingle, as it were…. Regular readers know I call this the “paralysis of analysis” – that inability to take the last steps. I’ve written about it here, and I’ve made recommendations here, and in both those cases, I’ve made a pretty thorough case for why advocates should not be …

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The 2014 Schueler Patient Advocacy Compass Award… and the winner is…

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And – we have a winner! The Alliance of Professional Health Advocates, on behalf of its selection committee (comprised of past winners plus Ken Schueler’s daughter, Alexandra), is pleased to announce the 2014 winner of the H. Kenneth Schueler Patient Advocacy Compass Award: Karen Zorrilla, MD of Houston, Texas. Congratulations Karen! The choice was both easy and difficult. Karen’s qualifications are outstanding – an easy choice. However, all our applicants are outstanding examples of excellence in their service to their clients and our profession. The competition was stiff. There were no wrong choices. In fact, this year’s applicants who did …

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