June 17, 2019

Doctors Should Stop Lying to Patients

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<grumble>

I’m in the infusion center right now getting my monthly dose of cancer cure, and I asked the nurse for a copy of the results of my recent bloodwork. Last month I did this accidentally, and it turned out that the printed copy contained my M-protein levels. I normally have to wait for those until my doctor manually releases them.

I figured I had discovered a loophole in the system, but no. Today’s nurse told me the M-protein test was “in process” and therefore unavailable. I told her this just meant that Dr. A hadn’t released them yet. No, no, she insisted, and turned the screen around so I could see the words “In Process.” I repeated that this just meant the results were waiting for Dr. A to let me see them and then grumbled something about not understanding why I had to wait to see my own test results.

A minute later my nurse returned and said she had asked, but it was policy not to release this stuff, and last month’s nurse was new and didn’t realize that.

OK, fine. I don’t like it, but it’s fine. What really gets me, though, is their persistent unwillingness to admit that it’s “policy” at fault here, not something else. My first oncologist blamed it on IT and said I couldn’t see my M-protein results at all until an office visit. My current oncologist admits that I can see them, and blames the policy about manually releasing them on mysterious forces beyond his ken. The nurses try to pretend that it takes several days for the lab to do its job, and that’s why I can’t see them.

I’m not sure what bugs me more: not being allowed to see the results immediately or being routinely lied to. I even understand the reason for the policy (I think), and I admit that it probably makes some sense. But don’t doctors know that when they lie to patients about one thing, it makes patients wonder if they’re lying about other stuff too? Why not just tell me why they have the policy they do; admit that they themselves are the authors of that policy; and then promise to release the results promptly? I suppose that would prompt arguments from patients, and they don’t want to waste time on arguments.

I get that. I really do. But still. I wonder how many other things they don’t tell me because they figure it’s not worth the hassle?

</grumble>

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WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

If you can, please support the reporting you get from Mother Jones—that exists to make a difference, not a profit—with a donation of any amount today. We need more donations than normal to come in from this specific blurb to help close our funding gap before it gets any bigger.

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